Daily Record Financial News &
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 082 • One Section
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Zoo to build manatee care center
Manatees should soon have their own critical care center in Jacksonville. The Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens will begin construction of the Manatee Critical Care Center upon approval of final permits with anticipated completion by year-end. The zoo has funding to start construction but continues to raise money to cover final construction and annual operating costs. Dan Maloney, the deputy director of animal care and conservation, said those costs include food for the manatees — one manatee
eats more than 100 pounds of greens a day. The center, including pools for rehabilitation, will open at the zoo at 370 Zoo Parkway. The zoo broke ground in July on the $2 million facility, which is behind the Wild Florida Loop and between the Education Campus and gorilla exhibits. The public will have limited views of the center. The St. Johns River Water Management District has been reviewing the project, which will encompass a 0.6-acre site. Maloney said because of the zoo’s partnership with its resi-
Missing or stolen items not new issue
dent Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Field Lab staff and its association with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manatee experts, “we recognize the need for a care center in North Florida.” He said the zoo is in charge of raising the funds. It has secured a $500,000 grant from the state and raised $1.1 million from private
donors to start construction of a behind-the-scenes facility that will provide urgent medical care to rescued manatees. He said the zoo anticipates most of the rescued manatees will be suffering from cold stress, while others could be compromised from entanglements or boat strikes. There also could be orphaned calves. Maloney said manatees are emblematic of Florida and represent a distinct place within the state’s heritage. “Marine Mammal Response is one of our most important and extensive regional conservation
commitments,” he said, adding the zoo also supports and participates in other conservation programs. He said some are international or regional and some take place at the zoo, such as wood stork and butterfly research efforts. He said the zoo uses 75 cents of each paid admission for conservation work and also raises funds through donations and its conservation speaker series. “Our guests help us perform this work each time they visit the zoo,” he said. Spokesman Lucas Meers said Mathis continued on Page A-2
Computers, chairs and forklift can’t be found
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Gov. Rick Scott was in town Monday to announce the creation of 250 jobs by Fidelity National Information Services Inc., which recently acquired SunGard. Incentives for the deal passed City Council in November under code name “Project Revere.”
Worst-kept secret revealed FIS adding 250 jobs, receiving $1.8M in incentives
By David Chapman Staff Writer The signs all pointed to Fidelity National Information Services Inc. being the codenamed “Project Revere” that City Council approved in November. The company had acquired SunGard, a technology services company, which was listed on JAX Chamber reports as having announced 250 information-technology jobs. The type of company and the same number of jobs fit the specs of a Southbank office space expansion. It was Monday morning and a visit by Gov. Rick Scott that finalized it. Like he does with other major jobs announcements, Scott was in town to talk about the benefits of growing businesses. “Financial service companies like FIS continue to help diversify Florida’s economy, which will help us become first in the world for job growth,” said Scott in a news release. FIS handles banking and payment technologies through software and services
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Financial service companies like FIS continue to help diversify Florida’s economy, which will help us become first in the world for job growth.
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City Council is poised to approve a write-off of $4.3 million in city inventory that has gone missing or been stolen over the past several years. Computers, printers, ice machines, chairs, even a forklift can’t be found. As Mike Weinstein, Mayor Lenny Curry’s chief financial officer, told the Finance Committee last week, there was a lack of accountability and responsibility in the past. In all, the more than 1,300 items have a net present value of more than $94,000 that will be taken off the books. That value factors in depreciation over the years. Though Curry’s team placed the blame on Mayor Alvin Brown, it began long before he was in office. In the final months of former Mayor John Peyton’s term, his team sought to write off 637 items worth $1.7 million, with a net value of more than $40,000. The items went missing before Peyton was mayor. Alarmed at the problem, council formed a subcommittee to look deeper at the issue. “We wanted them to go back to the drawing board to figure it out,” said council member John Crescimbeni, one of three who served on the group. He said the problems asked to be corrected then — mainly poor bookkeeping — never really were fixed. “It’s sloppy, sloppy, sloppy inventory control,” said Crescimbeni. That write-off bill filed by the Peyton team in April 2011 was withdrawn in August of the same year. Most of the items from that list appear on the latest one. For example, of the 44 items listed as missing or stolen from the Circuit Court on the 2011 list, 35 remain unaccounted for. The new breakdown has a total of 80 items listed. The last time the city deleted such items was 2010 when almost $32,000 worth of net present items were written off. According to minutes from the 2011 subcommittee, most of the items were related
Photo courtesy of JAX Chamber
By David Chapman Staff Writer
Gov. Rick Scott About Fidelity National Information Services Inc.’s expansion and technology outsourcing. It serves more than 20,000 clients in over 130 countries, according to its website. Its headquarters is in Jacksonville. Gary Norcross, FIS president and CEO, in the release said Jacksonville’s businessand family-friendly climates have been factors in attracting talent and maintaining its commitment to the city. The company was approved for $1.8
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million in taxpayer incentives from the city and state. The city’s portion is $330,000, which includes grants of $250,000 for the jobs and $80,000 for the increased value on the property after renovations. The state provides the remaining $1.5 million through a governor’s closing fund and the jobs. FIS will spend $2.2 million in capital improvements, which comprises $1 million of real estate improvements and $1.2 million for equipment and furniture. The announcement was the second in less than a week about jobs coming to Jacksonville. Ernst & Young was revealed as Project Omega, which will bring 450 jobs with an average annual wage of more than $49,000. The company also will invest $6 million in IT, equipment and real estate improvements in exchange for $3.29 million in taxpayer incentives from the city and state. dchapman@jaxdailyrecord.com (904) 356-2466
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