Daily Record Financial News &
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Vol. 102, No. 144 • One Section
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Extensive work set for former Wyndham Changing name to Lexington Hotel
By Karen Brune Mathis Managing Editor
Wednesday, Greg Anderson was elected City Council president for 2015-16. His acceptance remarks were viewed on each council member’s computer on the dais in the chamber.
First day in (the) office for new council It’s ethics training and picture day for members
They won’t be sworn in until June 25, but Wednesday the members of Jacksonville’s 2015-19 City Council recorded their attendance at City Hall. The first of three days of orientation and training began at 8 a.m. in the Lynwood Roberts Room with a welcome from council Vice President Greg Anderson. Then the 11 new council members moved to the Don Davis Room across the atrium to enroll in the city’s health plan and sign up for parking passes and city identification badges. Shortly before noon, new members cast their first ballots as the council unanimously elected Anderson council president and Lori Boyer as vice president for 2015-16. The first orientation and information session covered ethics and open government law. Council continued on Page A-3
District 1 City Council member-elect Joyce Morgan, left, and Cheryl Brown, council director, share a laugh.
Photos by Max Marbut
By Max Marbut Staff Writer
Art Casey was on the job for less than a day when he made his first changes. Casey is a food and beverage consultant with the new Lexington Hotel & Conference Jacksonville Riverwalk’s management company. One of his first steps this week when he arrived at the property, the former Wyndham Jacksonville Riverwalk hotel, was to check the flags out front. They were worn and tattered. An anchor, pedestal and stack, a tribute to the area’s maritime history, also were painted the wrong color. “If you go out there today you’ll find a new American flag, Florida flag and Navy flag,” Bernie Moyle, COO and CFO of Vantage Hospitality Group Inc. said Wednesday afternoon. Casey, a recently retired Navy master chief, bought them himself. He also offered to paint the anchor, pedestal and stack the correct Moyle colors. Late Wednesday, he found another set of flagpoles and another painting job. That’s on his list for today. Those moves are among many that Moyle and his team intend to take to restore the 34-year-old property to its historically nautical theme in recognition of the St. Johns River and U.S. Navy. “We plan to pay homage with art, décor, and monuments throughout the property,” Moyle said. Coral Springs-based Vantage Hospitality Group paid $9 million Monday for the Wyndham, along the Downtown Southbank at 1515 Prudential Drive. The sale was recorded Wednesday with the Duval County Clerk of Court. Lexington is a brand of Vantage Hospitality, which formed LexDevCoJax Inc. Lexington continued on Page A-2
Path clearing for latest pension reform plan Concerned Taxpayers group wants to stop Tuesday vote By David Chapman Staff Writer
Glover
As the latest rendition of pension reform nears the finish line, at least a couple of hurdles are considering being pulled off the track. But one potential stumbling block has emerged. After a week that’s seen two City Council committees approve the latest reform package, Police and Fire Pension Fund board members met Wednesday to hear updates and express their
Public legal notices begin on page A-9
thoughts on the deal. It was there that John Keane, the fund’s administrator, said he was willing to concede a point that personally affects him. He and a couple of others are in a senior staff pension plan, which the city’s former general counsel deemed unauthorized. Language rectifying the situation was included in the bill Keane and Mayor Alvin Brown negotiated last summer. Yet, the latest version spearheaded by council member Bill Gulliford left it out. Gulliford
wants another opinion on the issue. Keane has wanted it back in, leading to one of few sticking points in this version. But Wednesday, he told the board he was willing to sacrifice on the subject. “I can’t let one issue which impacted me directly stand in the way of comprehensive pension reform,” Keane later said. It also looks like the length of the deal might be OK for both sides. The board in the past has been adamant about keeping it 10
years — a concession from the 15 years left on the deal currently in place. Nat Glover, former sheriff and current Edward Waters College president, was among the board members who felt that way. He told the board he was “still struggling with that, but in the spirit of compromise, I might be able to get there.” Larry Schmitt and Richard Tuten III, the police and fire representatives, respectfully, didn’t mention the length of the deal Pension continued on Page A-2
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