Daily Record FINANCIAL NEWS &
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3, 2015
Vol. 102, No. 143 • Two SecTioNS
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
‘We are completely heartbroken’ Hendricks Day School shocks parents with sudden closure
By Kevin Hogencamp Contributing Writer The Hendricks Day School Honors Chorus sang the national anthem before the Jacksonville Armada FC game Saturday. That appears to have been the private school’s swan song. The Southside institution startlingly announced Tuesday it was closing this month due to declining enrollment. The K-8 school opened in 1970. The school’s board of trustees
made the decision Monday and delivered the news by email Tuesday morning, saddening parents and other school supporters. St. Johns Riverkeeper Lisa Rinaman, whose 6- and 8-yearold sons attend the school off Beach Boulevard, knew enrollment was down. But, she said, “We had hoped it was only a recoverable slump.” “We are completely heartbroken,” she added. “Hendricks instilled the joy and love of learning in our boys which will last a
lifetime.” In his email to parents, board chair Jason Porter said next year’s “dismal” enrollment numbers were not apparent until late May. He said the trustees considered options to keep the school in business, but couldn’t guarantee it could keep the doors open for a full school year. “The board was simply unwilling to risk the prospect of closing mid-year, as that would have been the worst possible decision for our students and families,”
he wrote. Porter did not return emails and telephone calls Tuesday requesting additional information, including the school’s budget and enrollment numbers. Hendricks Head of School Linda Johnson also did not respond to emails or phone calls. Board of trustees members Dwight Cooper and Jim Kagiliery declined interviews, but said in emails that Hendricks’ parents, staff and supporters were grieving Tuesday.
“As a parent and a board member, I’m incredibly sad about the closing of Hendricks. As you might imagine, the Hendricks family is very emotional at this time,” Cooper said. Kagiliery said, “I’m afraid today was a rough day for our Hendricks family. Our full efforts now are focused on helping our families and our faculty through their periods of transition.” The school’s development director, Moppy McGee, said in HENDRICKS... CONTINUED ON PAGE A-4
Support for water taxi hits pushback By David Chapman Staff Writer
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A face only a zoo executive could love
As zoo funding shifted from public to private sources, it forced many zookeepers into marketing, and some, out of the business. “I’ve been lucky. I like people,” said Tony Vecchio, executive director at Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens. Still, he seems most at home when he’s with the zoo’s residents. He counts the wild pigs among his favorites. See his workspace on Page A-6.
Gatlin setting up Southbank office
Gatlin Development will open an office on the 19th floor of Riverplace Tower.
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File photo by Karen Brune Mathis
Not everyone seems to be on board with Mayor Alvin Brown’s plan to support the water taxi. City Council Finance Committee members for myriad reasons didn’t act on a bill that has the city providing up to $240,000 through a matching partnership with the service’s provider, Lakeshore Marine. Matt Schellenberg thought with such financial support now in line, bidding for the service should be opened back up. Richard Clark thought “throwing money” at the ridership problem wasn’t going to help. John Crescimbeni lamented about a lack of scheduled performance benchmarks in the contract, a facet included in a matching partnership to revitalize Hemming Park. The bill has the city providing $120,000 over the next two years, provided Lakeshore Marine can match that amount through private sources. Already, Lakeshore Marine principals have pursued an “On Board Jax!” campaign to promote the water taxi and its benefit to Downtown. Lakeshore partner Heather Surface has said the Jacksonville Jaguars and The Florida Times-Union have agreed to provide $30,000 a year in funding and in-kind services toward that fundraising goal. Surface told council members she thought the public sector should play a role in what she called a quality-oflife asset. She said private donors she’s approached also want to know if the city is stepping up. The public-private partnership would offset revenue declines from the drop in ridership, which stands at about half of what the former provider drew in 2012. Given that and the terms of the contract, the model isn’t sustainable, Surface said. Jim Bailey, a Downtown Investment
Photo courtesy of Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens
Pension deal, Curry audit ready for vote
Gatlin Development Co., a Fort Lauderdale-based developer that brought five Walmart Neighborhood Markets to Northeast Florida, wants to create a significant Jacksonville presence in a Downtown Southbank high-rise. Building plans show Gatlin Development as a tenant in Suite 1901 in the Riverplace Tower at 1301 Riverplace Blvd. Gatlin Development would lease more than 6,700 square feet of space, which Dav-Lin Interior Contractors Inc. would renovate at a job cost of $210,955. Plans indicate Gatlin Development will set up at least 14 offices, open office space, a
conference room, lounge area, break room, and copy, work and file rooms. CEO Franklin Gatlin III and President Loren Van Der Slik did not return multiple emails and phone calls. The property manager did not respond, either. Gatlin Development opened the first area Walmart markets two years ago and also is developing Collins Plaza in Southwest Jacksonville.
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That project will be anchored by a Walmart Supercenter. Gatlin Development is a real estate investment corporation that specializes in shopping center development, management and renovation. Frank Gatlin founded the company in 1976. It has 44 developments in Florida, California, Minnesota, Tennessee and Wisconsin. Since 1984, Gatlin Development has focused on Walmartanchored shopping centers. The company says it has developed more than 7 million square feet of retail shopping centers, with a value of more MATHIS... CONTINUED ON PAGE A-2
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