Jacksonville, Duval County | featured news

KINGSLAND, Ga. | Karl Porfirio hopes people will remember his son as a vibrant young man who chose to serve his country by joining the Air Force in 2007 after graduating from Camden County High School.
The proud father hates looking at emaciated pictures of his son, Tre Porfirio, from the months after a ground-breaking procedure that prolonged the senior airman’s life.
He prefers to scroll through images on his phone that show Tre smiling when he was an athletic young man with his whole life in front of him.

On a brilliant, end-of-summer day, sunshine illuminated the foliage obscuring 82-year-old Jim Kern’s waterfront St. Augustine property. The modest house peeked through the trees, less a noticeable landmark and more a strange hiccup of white breaking through emerald splashes of palm leaves at the elbow of a narrow dirt road.
read more

A celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month will be presented at 5:30 p.m. Friday at the Amelia Island Museum of History at 233 S. 3rd St. in Fernandina Beach .
In association with the Fiesta de Santa Maria, a flamenco performance by Margarita Dodd Uricoechea will be followed by a presentation on “The Spanish Legacy in Florida” by Florida historian Steve Noll.
The event is $15 per person. which includes light appetizers from local restuarants and a drink. Tickets may be purchased at the Amelia Island Museum of History.

A major downtown road reopens Wednesday night after almost seven months of repair, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
The Newnan Street/Hubbard Street Bridge over Hogan’s Creek is next to Confederate Park in the Springfield Historic District. The Henry J. Klutho-designed bridge was originally constructed in 1929 and is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
read more

Traffic on a part of Beaver Street will shift to a new configuration on Wednesday after its intersection with McDuff Avenue reopens on Wednesday, weather permitting, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
The new configuration is part of an ongoing $9.2 million project to resurface Beaver Street, improve drainage and construct sidewalks on both sides of the one-mile section of Beaver Street from Stockton Street to McDuff Avenue.

Pasta and pizza will be part of the 26th annual Festa Italiana, scheduled for 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1, 2and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 2, at the Italian American Club of Jacksonville at 2838 Westberry Road.
The 65-year-old club and city jointly observe October as Italian-American Heritage Month with the two-day celebration of all things Italian, including the sale of authentic Italian food like pizza, meatball and sausage subs and homemade desserts. Free events include children’s bounce houses and live music.

The Jacksonville Aviation Authority elected Patrick Kilbane as chairman of the board of directors Monday.
Kilbane’s 2016-2017 tenure begins Oct. 1. He’s been on the JAA board since 2014 when he was appointed by Gov. Rick Scott, a news release said.
Kilbane will succeed Ray Alfred as chairman. Alfred will remain an active member of the JAA board.
read more

A celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month will be presented at 5:30 p.m. Friday at the Amelia Island Museum of History at 233 S. 3rd St. in Fernandina Beach .
In association with the Fiesta de Santa Maria, a flamenco performance by Margarita Dodd Uricoechea will be followed by a presentation on “The Spanish Legacy in Florida” by Florida historian Steve Noll.
The event is $15 per person. which includes light appetizers from local restuarants and a drink. Tickets may be purchased at the Amelia Island Museum of History.

A major downtown road reopens Wednesday night after almost seven months of repair, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
The Newnan Street/Hubbard Street Bridge over Hogan’s Creek is next to Confederate Park in the Springfield Historic District. The Henry J. Klutho-designed bridge was originally constructed in 1929 and is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
read more

Traffic on a part of Beaver Street will shift to a new configuration on Wednesday after its intersection with McDuff Avenue reopens on Wednesday, weather permitting, according to the Florida Department of Transportation.
The new configuration is part of an ongoing $9.2 million project to resurface Beaver Street, improve drainage and construct sidewalks on both sides of the one-mile section of Beaver Street from Stockton Street to McDuff Avenue.