Daily Record Financial News &
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 138 • Three Sections
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Aetna leaving Downtown Southbank
By Karen Brune Mathis Managing Editor Aetna is leaving Jacksonville’s Southbank for the newly named Gramercy Woods office park in Southside, moving the large employer from a Downtown office tower to a suburban campus environment. The insurer said Tuesday it would move 800 employees, starting in mid-2017, from the 22-story Aetna Building at 841 Prudential Drive. The move will be completed by August 2017 when its lease expires. Employees were notified
Tuesday. The company said in a news release that it chose the Gramercy site at 9000 Southside Blvd., long known as the Bank of America office park, with potential growth in mind. Aetna did not expand Tuesday on that growth, but a report filed with the city in December said the company could add 150-300 jobs in Jacksonville. “Aetna cherishes its close relationship with the city of Jacksonville,” said Mark LaBorde, Aetna senior vice president of enterprise sales, product and marketing, in
news release. “As we take steps to address our future needs, we’re very pleased that we’ll be staying in Jacksonville and continuing our commitment to the local community and its organizations,” he said. Aetna provides health benefits to more than 1.5 million people in Florida. It offers traditional voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services. Jacksonville is one of the company’s larger employment sites Aetna continued on Page A-3
Crescimbeni becomes VP in 10-9 vote
Special to the Daily Record
800 jobs moving to suburban Gramercy Woods
Bank of America is consolidating at the office park it anchors along Southside Boulevard, making buildings, including Building 100, available for lease to other tenants. Aetna will move there.
Boyer easily takes council presidency City Council member John Crescimbeni celebrated his 350th consecutively attended council meeting Tuesday evening, but he didn’t receive a medal, plaque or trophy. Instead, the veteran local legislator earlier in the day ended up taking home something more valuable — he was elected council vice president over Doyle Carter in a narrow race impacted by a last-minute change. Council Vice President Lori Boyer had no trouble ascending to the top position on the 19-member group. She was unanimously elected president for the 2015-16 council year that begins July 1. It wasn’t that easy for Crescimbeni. Boyer For months, Crescimbeni and Carter had been vying for support from their colleagues in an attempt to reach the coveted 10-pledge majority needed to win the leadership seat. Both came close by securing eight supporters by Tuesday afternoon’s special meeting. It was the first time since the 2010-11 council year that a leadership race had to be settled on the floor. Momentum swung in Carter’s favor before the meeting when Garrett Dennis said he was backing him. It did so more when Reggie Brown stood to second the Carter nomination. Anna Lopez-Brosche, who had not previously announced her support, likewise went to Carter. Crescimbeni Katrina Brown had pledged to Crescimbeni. That would have given Carter the 10-9 majority, except it didn’t. It was announced Reggie Gaffney had Council
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Tuning up for the long season ahead
Photo by Bobby King
By David Chapman Staff Writer
Jacksonville Jaguars Tony Washington, Jamal Robinson and Rashad Lawrence work on a coverage drill during the squad’s organized team activities Tuesday. The on-field drills signal the unofficial start of a work year that players and fans alike hope ends with a winning season. See more pictures from Tuesday’s activities, Page A-7.
Council to audit Friends of Hemming Park $100,000 approved to fund nonprofit to mid-August
By Max Marbut Staff Writer Tuesday started off not so good for the Friends of Hemming Park. It didn’t get better as the day went on. The nonprofit with a $1 million city contract to manage and program Hemming Park was seeking an additional $250,000 to sustain its operations through Sept. 30. After a morning meeting with several City Council members, a bill before council authorizing transfer of the money from a contingency account was amended to $100,000. That amount was approved later in the
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day by council, but not until after an audit of the nonprofit’s financial position was called for and the Friends’ transparency in communicating with council members was called into question. Council Vice President-elect John Crescimbeni pointed out the city has invested $1 million in the Friends for management of the park and he’s not satisfied with how the organization does business. “The more they talk, the less confidence I have in their ability to spend taxpayers’ money,” he said. The management contract included $1 million, paid in installments over the first 18 months of the five-year agreement.
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The 2015-16 general fund budget included a $250,000 contingency account to finance the operation through Sept. 30 if the organization failed to raise private funds to cover its operating costs. After legislation was introduced to transfer the full amount to the Friends for operating expenses, the organization decided to take a different tack. The Friends proposed using the $250,000 to build a permanent stage in the park and negotiated a five-year, $50,000-per-year naming rights agreement for the stage with Community First Credit Union. The plan was to use the city money to Hemming continued on Page A-4
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