PerspectivesA.G. Gancarski Jacksonville Today Contributor
Featured image for “OPINION | Let the sunshine in: Local government’s transparency problem”
May 20, 2024

OPINION | Let the sunshine in: Local government’s transparency problem

Government is at a low ebb when it comes to accessibility, and in Jacksonville, you can find support for that…

Featured image for “Ponte Vedra Beach man accused of COVID PPE fraud”
A woman wears a COVID-19 mask. | Alvaro Barrientos, AP
May 20, 2024

Ponte Vedra Beach man accused of COVID PPE fraud

James Elliott Davis II was indicted on charges of enticing people to invest more than $7 million in a phony…

Featured image for “Clay County voters can get elections information by text”
People in Clay County can get elections information through a new texting service. l Paul Hanaoka via Unsplash.
May 20, 2024

Clay County voters can get elections information by text

The supervisor of elections has launched a new texting service that allows voters to access information or report issues 24/7.…

Featured image for “School employee among 27 accused of soliciting children”
Two people have died in five days while in custody of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
May 20, 2024

School employee among 27 accused of soliciting children

A Duval school maintenance worker and a former professional baseball player are among the people arrested in an internet sting.…

Featured image for “Jacksonville’s strip club law set for court hearing”
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. | News Service of Florida
May 20, 2024

Jacksonville’s strip club law set for court hearing

A federal appeals court will consider whether it’s constitutional to bar dancers under age 21 in adult establishments.…

Featured image for “Hugo Boss appears headed to Jacksonville”
Plans show a Boss menswear shop at St. Johns Town Center. | Jacksonville Daily Record
May 20, 2024

Hugo Boss appears headed to Jacksonville

The city is reviewing a permit for a Hugo Boss store at St. Johns Town Center, in the space now…

Featured image for “Sheriff Office reexamines teenage girls’ slayings”
Jazmine Shelton, 13, and best friend Megan Simmons, 14, were shot and killed in August 2013 in a trailer home on Missouri Avenue. | MAD DADS
May 20, 2024

Sheriff Office reexamines teenage girls’ slayings

No leads ever emerged in the shootings of Jazmine Shelton, 13, and Megan Simmons, 14, on Aug. 10, 2013.…

Featured image for “Court considers Jacksonville’s panhandling ban”
May 20, 2024

Court considers Jacksonville’s panhandling ban

The publisher of a newspaper benefiting the homeless says the law violates free speech rights.…

Featured image for “SPORTS | Jaguars get 2 in prime time with challenging schedule ahead”
May 19, 2024

SPORTS | Jaguars get 2 in prime time with challenging schedule ahead

My predictions for every game on the 2024 Jacksonville Jaguars schedule, ending in a 10-7 record and wild card playoff…

Featured image for “#AskJAXTDY l What’s being built at Lem Turner Road and I-295?”
A new logistics park is under construction at the corner of Lem Turner Road and Interstate 295. l Cushman & Wakefield.
May 17, 2024

#AskJAXTDY l What’s being built at Lem Turner Road and I-295?

A Jacksonville Today reader wonders why land is being cleared in Northwest Jacksonville.…

Featured image for “JAX Chamber voices support for Jaguars stadium agreement”
The JAX Chamber is supporting the renovation of EverBank Stadium into "the Stadium of the Future." City of Jacksonville
May 17, 2024

JAX Chamber voices support for Jaguars stadium agreement

The chamber will lobby City Council members to approve what it calls “an incredibly important deal for the future of…

Featured image for “The latest renovations at St. Johns Town Center”
Louis Vuitton is expanding into the former space of Lovesac beanbag and sofa maker. Lovesac moved across the Nordstrom plaza to make space for the Louis Vuitton expansion. | Karen Brune Mathis, Jacksonville Daily Record
May 17, 2024

The latest renovations at St. Johns Town Center

Louis Vuitton, Swarovski and Maggiano’s Little Italy all are expanding or rejuvenating their properties.…

Featured image for “Japanese gastropub to open in Jacksonville Beach”
An illustration shows the Izakaya Ko restaurant planned at 1198 Beach Blvd. in Jacksonville Beach. | Jacksonville Daily Record
May 17, 2024

Japanese gastropub to open in Jacksonville Beach

The owners of Bento Asian Kitchen + Sushi will bring a new concept when Izakaya Ko opens in June.…

Featured image for “EverBank and Jaguars want to extend naming rights”
EverBank Stadium would remain the name of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ stadium through 2027 under a proposed sponsorship extension. | Casmira Harrison, Jacksonville Today
May 17, 2024

EverBank and Jaguars want to extend naming rights

Pending approval by the city, the name of EverBank Stadium would remain in place through 2027.…

Featured image for “Federal judge tosses part of Florida’s elections law”
Daryl Jones, board chairman of the Transformative Justice Coalition, advocates for voter rights in June 2023. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 17, 2024

Federal judge tosses part of Florida’s elections law

Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker blocked part of a 2023 law that restricts voter registration groups.…

Featured image for “Former Nassau deputy pleads guilty to drug charges”
Former Nassau County sheriff’s Sgt. James Hickox.
May 17, 2024

Former Nassau deputy pleads guilty to drug charges

James Hickox admitted to stealing marijuana and cocaine while working with the Drug Enforcement Administration.…

Featured image for “Northside ‘huddle’ draws cautious optimism about ‘Stadium of the Future’”
Michael Wright listens to a community conversation about the $1.4 billion proposal from the City of Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Jaguars to renovate EverBank Stadium on Thursday, May 16, 2024. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 16, 2024

Northside ‘huddle’ draws cautious optimism about ‘Stadium of the Future’

A community investment promise is helping sell the Stadium of the Future proposal, while Northside activists vow to oppose it.…

Featured image for “Trauma survivors cheer their saviors at Memorial Hospital”
Ponte Vedra High School senior Madison Schemitz, right, shoots a selfie with her mother, Jacqueline Rogue, and Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department Lt. Matt Avera. They were at the Trauma Survivors Day event Thursday, May 16, 2024, at HCA Jacksonville Memorial Hospital. | Dan Scanlan, Jacksonville Today
May 16, 2024

Trauma survivors cheer their saviors at Memorial Hospital

Eight grateful patients reunited with teams at HCA Florida Memorial Hospital Jacksonville that saved their lives and in some cases…

Featured image for “OPINION | Author’s Saturday talk should be a hotter topic”
May 16, 2024

OPINION | Author’s Saturday talk should be a hotter topic

Author Jeff Goodell will speak Saturday at Jacksonville’s main library about his book, The Heat Will Kill You First.…

Featured image for “Nassau Schools sued over book’s removal”
"And Tango Makes Three" tells the story of two male penguins who raised a penguin chick at New York’s Central Park Zoo.
May 16, 2024

Nassau Schools sued over book’s removal

The co-authors of “And Tango Makes Three” allege the school district removed the book in violation of the First Amendment.…

Featured image for “Eastside homeowners get help on utility bills”
Barbara Robertson has lived on the Eastside for nearly 50 years. She says the Restore, Repair and Resilience program has transformed her home on Jessie Street. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 16, 2024

Eastside homeowners get help on utility bills

JEA and the city of Jacksonville won an $845,000 federal grant to make Eastside homes more energy-efficient.…

Featured image for “Southbank high-rise approved for $58.79 million in incentives”
The Related Group is proposing a 25-story residential tower on the Downtown Southbank.
May 16, 2024

Southbank high-rise approved for $58.79 million in incentives

Jacksonville City Council will consider the incentives after the Downtown Investment Authority recommended them this week.…

Featured image for “Delores Barr Weaver donating $5 million to Sulzbacher”
Cindy Funkhouser, president and CEO of Sulzbacher, is shown Wednesday, May 15, 2924, at a meeting with Downtown and community stakeholders on the future of Sulzbacher. | David Cumpler, Jacksonville Daily Record
May 16, 2024

Delores Barr Weaver donating $5 million to Sulzbacher

The money will be used for Sulzbacher’s Enterprise Village, a multibuilding expansion in Northwest Jacksonville. …

Featured image for “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park to open June 27”
Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in LaVilla is shown under construction in March 2024. | Jacksonville Daily Record
May 16, 2024

Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park to open June 27

The park honors the song written in the early 1900s by Jacksonville brothers James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamond Johnson.…