•The Jacksonville Economic Development Commission (JEDC) and Cornerstone won the 2009 Florida Economic Development Council (FEDC) “Deal of the Year” Award for the Deutsche Bank project that brought 1,000 jobs to Jacksonville.  The JEDC also won the 2009 “Best External Marketing Campaign” Award for the Cecil Commerce Center marketing efforts.  Business Development Chief, Lindsey Ballas, CEcD, was elected to the FEDC Board of Directors, representing Northeast Florida. 

•Direct Airflow, a Dutch supplier and manufacturer of food container products for planes and trains, plans to open a distribution center in Jacksonville.  The company would distribute finished goods from Jacksonville to the rest of the country, South and Central America and Europe.  Detailed plans of the move have not been released.  The company was introduced to Jacksonville by Cornerstone and visited the area during the International Showcase Week.

•The Jacksonville Urban League recently established a young professional’s chapter, JULYP. The chapter will implement local initiatives and programs in support of the Jacksonville Urban League’s empowerment movement.  The JULYP vision is to create an environment for effective training of young leaders through professional development, personal growth and community volunteerism while concurrently promoting the vision of the Jacksonville Urban League and the National Urban League Young Professionals.  For additional info, please visit www.jaxul.org.

•The FDIC is opening a temporary satellite office in Jacksonville that will create 500 new jobs. The jobs will include a variety of positions from banking to financial securities, accounting and legal.  The office will operate between three and five years to liquidate troubled assets from failed financial institutions.

Did you know…
•…FierceBiotech ranked Florida one of the top five regions for biotech companies for a second year in a row?

•Signs promoting Jacksonville as “America's Logistics Center” were recently unveiled on Interstate 95. The branding campaign is an initiative of the Jacksonville International Business Coalition (JIBC) led by local attorney George Gabel and highlights Jacksonville's geographical advantage by being located at the confluence of three interstate highways, three railroad lines, seaports and airports.  The signs will also be placed at other locations throughout the city, including the seaport and the airport.

•Click here to read about tips for recession survival in the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at UNF's "Upside of the Downturn" brochure.

JEDC Office of Film and Television News:
•Governor Crist signed the 2009/2010 budget which allocates $10.8 million to fund efforts to help grow the state’s film and entertainment industry.  Since 2004, the state has invested $44.8 million in the film and entertainment industry which has resulted in 117 productions; 38,290 new jobs; 83,852 hotel room stays and $301 million spent on Florida wages and services.

•The Florida Small Business Development Center Network's (FSBDCN) Mobile Assistance Center (MAC) Vehicle is making a few stops in north Florida.  The MAC provides space for SBDC Certified Business Analysts to work with clients through paperwork and planning in the aftermath of a disaster and is equipped with satellite communications, wireless computers and small business libraries.  The SBDC at UNF will be offering four free workshops for business owners to get their business ready before a storm hits.  The workshops will be held at the following locations:

•July 30 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
 Beaver Street Enterprise Center - 1225 W. Beaver St.
•July 31 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.
 SBDC at UNF - UNF University Center - 12000 Alumni Dr.
•August 7 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
 Home Depot - 6346 Lane Ave.
•August 7 from  2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
 Home Depot - 12111 Lem Turner Road

Tour the SBDC MAC anytime during the hour before the workshop at each location.  To register, contact (904) 620-2476 or go to www.sbdc.unf.edu

•Construction of the First Coast Outer Beltway may happen sooner than expected.  Governor Charlie Crist recently signed legislation that will exempt a future state-private partner from paying property taxes on the land, overcoming a major obstacle for the proposed 46.5-mile toll road.

•During the third quarter FY 2008/2009, the JEDC processed 39 Enterprise Zone applications.  Those companies, which received state tax credits totaling close to $175,000, invested nearly $32.3 million and created 82 jobs.  There are an estimated 9,000 businesses potentially eligible for Enterprise or Empowerment Zone benefits.  Click here to see if your business is in the Zone. Interested parties can also visit JEDC Enterprise and Empowerment Zones or contact Joe Whitaker at (904) 630-1624 or josephw@coj.net.

• Shaw’s Southern Belle Frozen Foods was featured on QVC selling salmon burgers.  The company has appeared on the shopping network several times since June, selling thousands of burgers.  Shaw’s is a local, family-owned business founded in 1934 and has been at its present day location since 1942.

•Whertec, a metal treating fabricator, is considering relocating one of its locations from Dothan, AL to Jacksonville, pending approval of public investment by Jacksonville City Council and the State of Florida.  The move would create 81 jobs- to be hired locally- with an average wage of $45,000 and a capital investment of $4.1 million. The company currently has a presence in Orange Park and several other states. 

•Jacksonville is another step closer to having a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier currently stationed in Norfolk, VA at Mayport.  The Senate Appropriations Committee approved $46.3 million for Mayport dredging, a necessary step to get the Naval Station ready.  The funding has to be approved by the full Senate as part of broader legislation.

•The JEDC and Cornerstone will host a Duval County field trip on July 31, for the Cornerstone Regional Partners as part of an educational program.  The program includes a visit to Beaver Street Enterprise Center and a Downtown walking tour.  The purpose of the program is to educate the economic development partners in the seven-county region on Jacksonville’s best practices.

•Jacksonville-based Venus Swimwear signed an agreement with Bon Prix to purchase the business and lease back the space, keeping their headquarters in Jacksonville and saving 243 jobs.

•According to CB Richard Ellis’s Second Quarter 2009 Industrial Report, Jacksonville’s Industrial Market has shown positive absorption for the first two quarters of 2009.  Click here to read the full report.

•Plans are underway to build a $37 million training facility at Naval Air Station (NAS) Jacksonville.  The new facility will train pilots and crew for the P-8A Poseidon aircraft.  Construction is expected to be completed by June 2011.

•A Jacksonville-based company is now offering Disk-Lok, a new technology that makes copy-protected DVDs.  Easy Edit Video, Jacksonville’s largest DVD duplicator, recently purchased the new equipment which prevents unauthorized duplication by making a copy-protected DVD.  Disk-Lok technology automatically encrypts copy protection into each DVD during the duplication process.  The protected disc plays normally on a DVD player or drive, but the embedded encryption makes the disc almost impossible to copy.  Easy Edit Video is a certified City of Jacksonville Small Business Enterprise that has been in business since 1993.  For more information, visit www.easyeditvideo.com. 

•Boeing is moving its F-18 repair operations from Mesa, AZ to Cecil Commerce Center over the next year.  The move will create 60 jobs in Jacksonville - with 40 to be hired locally- with an average annual wage of approximately $60,000.  The company will invest approximately $4 million in tenant improvements and equipment.  The JEDC has approved a five-year lease of a city-owned building at Cecil Commerce Center with two additional five-year options. Over a 15-year period, the lease will generate about $2.3 million for the city.  The relocation of this repair operation will add to Boeing’s current 150 employees.

•SAFT America, an international manufacturer of high-tech batteries, is considering the capital investment of $122.8 million in a facility at Cecil Commerce Center pending grant approval from the Department of Energy and of public investment by the JEDC, City Council and the State of Florida. The project will create 279 new high-wage jobs.

•A grand opening for Cecil Commerce Center Parkway, the new interchange at I-10 and Brannan Field/Chaffee, is planned for the end of August.  The roadway will provide direct access to Cecil Commerce Center and is the first leg of the planned outer beltway.