Daily Record Financial News &
TUESDAY, MAY 3, 2016
Vol. 103, No. 122 • oNe SectioN
35¢ www.jaxdailyrecord.com
Chance at piece of $510,000 pie PNC offering arts and culture grants to Duval, two other counties
By Max Marbut Staff Writer PNC Financial Services Group doesn’t operate any banks in Duval County, but this morning it made a deposit of up to $510,000 to support arts and culture. “Our goal is to get children who aren’t typically exposed to art hooked on it,” said Cressman Bronson, PNC regional president for Florida East. The company operates a mortgage service and call center near Gate Parkway that employs 500
people, he said. The PNC Arts Alive! Program is seeking, beginning Wednesday, grant requests starting at $10,000 from arts organizations that promote visual and performing arts, public programming and creative use of technology. The grants will be made over three years in Duval, Broward and Palm Beach counties. “These grants will be very important. The arts are not in all parts of Duval County,” said Tony Allegretti, executive director of the Cultural Council of Greater
Process to replace IG starts this month
Jacksonville. The council will convene a panel to evaluate the grant applications in partnership with the PNC Foundation. The program is designed to support smaller arts organizations in the county, which often struggle to secure funding, said PNC spokeswoman Zoraya Suarez. Rena Coughlin, executive director of the Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida, said more than 60 percent of the nonprofits in the area have annual budgets of less than $500,000 and they lack
development resources needed to compete for large grants. “Small organizations have the toughest time getting funding. It’s particularly tough when it comes to government grants,” she said. Since it began in 2009, PNC Foundation, through Arts Alive, has awarded $13 million in grants to cultural organizations in Philadelphia, St. Louis and Columbus, Ohio. Examples of grants include new exhibitions and festivals, pop-up theaters, mobile arts vans and family arts programs.
Bronson said priority will be given to applications that impact the most children in the community, specifically in underserved neighborhoods. “We challenge the arts organizations in the region to get creative,” he said. The application deadline is July 15. Grants will be awarded in October. For more details, visit pncartsalive.com. mmarbut@jaxdailyrecord.com (904) 356-2466
Hope is to replace Cline by Oct. 1
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Grimm’s family celebrates JBA award with her Courtney Grimm, second from right, of the Bedell Firm, received The Jacksonville Bar Association’s Professionalism Lifetime Award on Monday at the annual Law Day luncheon. Pictured with Grimm, from left, are her daughter, Hannah; her husband, Scott; and John DeVault, managing director at Bedell. See story on Page A-3.
Firebirds Wood Fired Grill to join Strand By Karen Brune Mathis, Managing Editor
Firebirds Wood Fired Grill intends to open in third quarter 2017 at The Strand shopping center near St. Johns Town Center.
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Images from Firebirds Wood Fired Grill
The group tasked with selecting and retaining the city’s inspector general will revert back to selection mode this month. It’s a shift necessitated by the sudden resignation last week of Tom Cline, the city’s first inspector general since the office was re-established more than a year-anda-half ago. Cline has been on the job just under a year. The former Federal Communications Commission’s deputy inspector general has hired staff and investigated many complaints in that time, building on a foundation laid by former Palm Beach County Inspector General Sheryl Steckler. But, due to personal reasons, his last day is May 27. “I was certainly surprised,” said Circuit Judge Elizabeth Senterfitt, who serves as the chief judge’s designee on the selection and Cline retention committee. “No doubt this sets us back.” The committee already had a meeting scheduled for May 16 that was to formulate evaluation criteria for the office. That still will happen, said City Council Vice President Lori Boyer, the committee’s chairwoman. However, with the recent news, the group will need to discuss listing the job again and look into appointing someone on an interim basis, she said. Like Senterfitt, Boyer said Cline’s resignation caught her by surprise and adds to the work needed for the new office. “It’s no question it’s a setback from a timing perspective,” said Boyer. “We were just getting geared up to a certain level … now we have to focus on someone new.” Boyer said there was “no question” that Cline was a very qualified auditor, but
Photo by Fran Ruchalski
By David Chapman Staff Writer
Firebirds Wood Fired Grill intends to open its first North Florida restaurant next year in The Strand shopping center near St. Johns Town Center. An executive with the restaurant and steakhouse, based in Charlotte, N.C., said the Jacksonville location will open in the third quarter at southwest St. Johns Town Center Parkway and Big Island Drive. “Jacksonville has been on our radar for quite some time,” said Stephen Loftis, vice president of marketing. He said The Strand’s location matches Firebirds’ profile and the area’s demographics fit its offerings. Firebirds will employ about 100 full- and part-time workers at the estimated 6,500-square-foot restaurant, which will seat 225. Hours will be 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Loftis said it will be the third Firebirds in Florida. The first is in Orlando and another will open in Pembroke Pines. After the Alpharetta, Ga., restaurant opens next week, there will be FIREBIRDS CONTINUED ON PAGE A-4
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