Daily Record FINANCIAL NEWS &
MONDAY, MARCH 20, 2017
Vol. 104, No.090 • oNe SectioN
35¢
www.jaxdailyrecord.com
TapImmune is courting investors immunotherapies — treatments that stimulate a person’s immune system — to fight cancer. “Our vaccines have the potential to be a powerful stand-alone therapy against a variety of cancers, as well as a central component of a leading combination immunotherapy,” Wilson said in last week’s conference call. “Our initial focus is on addressing the unmet need in women’s cancers,” he said, particularly ovarian and breast cancer. Wilson said those cancers have a high
Jollibee welcomes 3,000 on first day
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Special to the Daily Record
Richard Corcoran
Corcoran’s brash style shaking up Legislature CORCORAN’S VIEWS
By Mark Gordon Business Observer Managing Editor
There are cockroaches everywhere, and I think you’re seeing that. You turn on the lights, and there’s Enterprise Florida and you say, ‘let’s take a closer look.’
Richard Corcoran isn’t afraid to mess with fire. There’s the fire pit in the backyard of his Land O’Lakes home. That’s where Corcoran holds court with friends and family. It’s where he talks about anything and everything, from America’s Founding Fathers to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to home décor choices. Then there’s the raging firestorm Corcoran, who ascended to the uniquely powerful Florida House speaker position, ignited in Tallahassee over Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida. It has caused sides normally in the same camp to bicker over core philosophies on spending and the definition of corporate welfare. It also scrambled tourism marketing and economic development officials, who have jammed the Capitol with pleas not to slash their budgets. And, it has engulfed fellow Republicans Corcoran and Gov. Rick Scott in an unusually public and caustic riff. The crux of Corcoran’s position is Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida — two of Scott’s prized programs — are unaccountable, secretive and the epitome of crony capitalism. Enterprise Florida is a public-private partnership tasked with retaining businesses and wooing new ones to the state, while Visit Florida is the state’s tourism marketing arm. CORCORAN CONTINUED ON PAGE 7
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They teach you in law school that when you’re right, pound the facts and when you’re wrong, pound the table.
No one said it’s going to be easy. But I’m not afraid to lose.
legal NoticeS begiN oN Page
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OTHERS’ VIEWS
With Richard, it’s 100 miles an hour or he’s just not interested in it. There’s no in between. There’s no, ‘Let’s just go shoot baskets.’ Chris Nocco
Pasco County sheriff
When Richard gets focused in on something, you will not tear him away from it. He will achieve what he set out to do. Some people don’t know that yet, but they are starting to know that.
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AstraZeneca. Wilson said those trial partners “thoroughly vetted our technology and recognized the value in advancing our lead candidates,” which gives TapImmune credibility. TapImmune’s annual report filed last week showed a net loss of $2.46 million, or 36 cents a share, which is no surprise given that it has no products on the market. Wilson did say one of the company’s several therapies BASCH CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
If there’ s a fire, he probably set it
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Asia’s largest restaurant company by market capitalization prepared Friday for its Saturday grand opening in Jacksonville with candles, prayers, blessings, a traditional coin toss and a song-and-dance by its mascot. Jollibee Foods Corp. also rolled out a big bucket of Chickenjoy, its signature menu item, for guests to photograph at its Florida flagship fast-food restaurant at southwest Atlantic and Kernan boulevards. Taste-testing ensued from smaller buckets of fried chicken passed around the crowd for the “Chickenjoy toast” and later at the buffet line. “It’s about time. It’s a long wait,” said Dr. Mel Carbonell, a physician and the president of the Filipino-American Community Council of Northeast Florida. “Jollibee represents the Philippines,” he said. On Saturday morning, about 150 customers lined up by the 7 a.m. opening, with Westside resident Helen De Nardis at the front of the line with her daughter, son and grandson. “We want to be part of history,” she said. De Nardis moved from the Philippines to Chicago and then Jacksonville. The family set up near the front door at 2 a.m., she said. “We’ll be here a lot. I don’t mind driving.” Jollibee said 3,000 customers came through on opening day. The restaurant is the largest fast-food chain brand in the Philippines, where it operates more than 950 stores. Along with its other brands, Jollibee Foods Corp. operates more than 3,000 stores globally. Jose Minana, Jollibee Foods Group President for North America, and Maribeth dela Cruz, vice president and general manager of JFC North America, both said the company chose Jacksonville for its Southeast JOLLIBEE CONTINUED ON PAGE 24
recurrence rate, so treatments are needed that can eliminate them entirely. He said TapImmune’s focus on women’s cancers “distinguishes” it from other biotech companies. “These cancers also tend to be resistant to most immunothera-
pies, which is why we believe we have a significant opportunity to improve the lives of these patients,” he said. What also distinguishes TapImmune is its high-profile partners. The company moved its headquarters office to Jacksonville two years ago because of a clinical trial of one its therapies ongoing at the Mayo Clinic. It also has trials underway involving the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York and pharmaceutical firm
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TapImmune Inc. will likely have no profit or revenue for the foreseeable future. But the Jacksonville-based immuno-oncology company is taking steps to attract attention on Wall Street. The company in November got its stock listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market and as he gave a year-end report last week, CEO Glynn Wilson promised to hold regular conference calls to update investors on TapImmune’s progress. TapImmune is developing
Mike Fasano
Pasco County tax collector
coNSecutiVe weekdayS