Jaxport

The Florida Ports Council is asking Congress for $3.5 billion in aid to help U.S. seaports and maritime businesses recover from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic as talks continue on an economic-stimulus package.

The Jacksonville City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved $75 million in funding for the ongoing St. Johns River dredging project.

Plymouth Industrial REIT Inc. intends to continue investing in Jacksonville after it completes the $97 million acquisition of 20 Southside buildings in mid-December.

On Friday First Coast Connect was live from Derby on Park in Five Points to kick off WJCT’s Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall Block Party. Stop by Friday to hear the music playing.      

The Army Corps of Engineers on Tuesday awarded a contract for the second phase of a dredging project to deepen the St. Johns River.

The City of Jacksonville could soon acquire 6.72 acres of Mayport waterfront property with the goal of attracting private developers to transform the area into a mixed-use development.

Thursday on First Coast Connect we spoke with Florida Times-Union reporters Nate Monroe and Christopher Hong on their investigative series regarding how dredging affects the flow of the St. Johns River (01:06).

Carnival Cruise Line will stay in Jacksonville through at least May 2021 and potentially through 2027 under a new agreement announced by JAXPORT, which also calls for improvements to the terminal building.

Friday on First Coast Connect our weekly Media Roundtable featured Folio Weekly Editor Claire Goforth, WJCT contributor and board member Charles Griggs and Florida Politics Reporter A.G Gancarski. (01:17).

We spoke with Scott Meyer who operates Congaree and Penn farm about the upcoming Olive Weekend (38:50).

Musician and Florida native Ben Sparaco performed live in-studio (46:00).  

Wednesday on First Coast Connect we spoke with St. Johns Riverkeeper Lisa Rinaman about an injunction the group filed to postpone the dredging of the St. Johns River (01:01).

North Florida Transportation Planning Organization spokesperson Marci Larson talked about a survey of the region’s residents being conducted regarding their traffic and transportation concerns in the area (30:05).

Singer-songwriter DeSean Kirkland joined the show to tell us about an upcoming Christmas concert and to perform live in-studio (46:00). 

Thursday on First Coast Connect, we spoke with Ramon Day and Dr. Shyam Payani with Floridians Advocating for Insurance Reform, or FAIR. They want a Constitutional Amendment placed on the November 2020 ballot to implement a single-payer health system in Florida (01:08).       

We were told the results of a poll asking local residents their thoughts on the future of the St. Johns River with Dr. Quint White and Dr. Ray Oldakowski from Jacksonville University (29:22).

We heard about a move in the Duval County School District to get rid of traditional school lockers with district IT executive director Jim Culbert (36:56).  

Springfield Preservation and Revitalization Council Executive Director Christina Parrish told us about this weekend’s Porchfest and Kerry Speckman previewed this month’s upcoming events (46:00).  

Florida Sen. Bill Nelson is optimistic a St. Johns River dredging project will bring big business into JAXPORT. The Florida Democrat’s support for the deepening goes against the concerns of local environmentalists, as the St. Johns Riverkeeper is suing over potential environmental impacts.     

  Today on “First Coast Connect,” we spoke with St. Johns Riverkeeper Lisa Rinaman (01:02) about JAXPORT’s newly modified plan to deepen the river’s channel. Retired Captain Matt Tuohy from the Jacksonville Military Veterans Coalition and Pelocity CEO Stephen Pollan (33:04) talked about the company’s program to help veterans find jobs. Flamingo Magazine publisher Jamie Rich (40:31) told us about its summer edition and Kerry Speckman (45:16) let us know what’s going on around town this weekend. 

On this episode of Redux, we’re going to revisit a continuing conversation in Jacksonville: to dredge or not. The debate over deepening the St. Johns River continues.

Then, what do Montreal and Jacksonville have in common? Well, they are both port cities and if this whole shipping thing doesn’t work out, maybe we can learn a thing or two from our neighbors to the north.

Also on this episode, now that Florida has legalized some forms of medical marijuana, its list of potential uses might begin to grow. And finally, looking for things to do on the First Coast? We've got you covered with the new app from Visit Jacksonville, intoGo.