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Around the State

CLAY COUNTY

Mining company RGC Mineral Sands Inc., the U.S. division of an Australian firm, is undergoing a $10 million expansion of its Green Cove Springs operation and expects to add up to 20 employees.

GAINESVILLE

University of Florida College of Medicine's cancer research program received a $5 million gift from a Jacksonville couple, Jerry and Judith Davis, who are both cancer survivors. The state of Florida will match the Davis gift for a total endowment of $10 million.

A 1 million-square-foot major film and television studio, Springtree Studios, is slated for construction this summer. Gainesville-based Cadence Entertainment is heading up the $100 million project.

JACKSONVILLE

Developer HGL Properties plans to build a $25 million, nine-building, 400,000-square-foot office and warehouse complex off Baymeadows Way. The project begins in June if permitting goes through.

The Jacksonville Economic Development Commission voted to stop granting economic incentives to projects on the city's congested south side unless the projects include traffic mitigation plans. The move, which must be approved by the city council, is meant to steer growth to underdeveloped property on the city's north and west sides.

Mayo Clinic Jacksonville has two expansion projects underway, totaling $49 million, that will add 275,000 square feet to the medical complex.

SuperStock Inc., an international stock photography agency, is building a 43,000-square-foot facility for fiber optic and digital technology next to its headquarters and plans to add 170 employees.

Information technology consulting firm Computer Management Sciences Inc. (Nasdaq-CMSX) [FT, October 1997] will open a second Jacksonville outsourcing center in August, adding 165 new jobs.

Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. (NYSE-WIN) [FT, April 1998] plans to build an $82 million, 1.7 million-square-foot warehouse and distribution center in Baldwin and a $20 million, 96,000-square-foot expansion of its headquarters, with 250 new jobs anticipated. Plans for an airport at Cecil Field Naval Air Station were expected to be scaled back to 6,000 acres, leaving 8,300 additional acres for other economic development when the Navy pulls out next year.

Armor Holdings (AMEX-ABE), a maker of security equipment, agreed to purchase the Law Enforcement Division of Bennington, Vt.-based Mace Security International for about $6 million.

PUTNAM COUNTY

Construction begins this fall on a 255-acre, county-owned industrial park just outside Palatka, next to Kay Larkin Municipal Airport.

ST. AUGUSTINE

The St. Augustine-St. Johns County Airport has $5 million in expansions and upgrades underway, including 10 new corporate jet hangars to handle increasing plane traffic to nearby World Golf Village.

SUWANNEE COUNTY

Concire Centers is completing a shopping center north of Live Oak expected to create 500 retail jobs. A 147,000-square-foot Wal-Mart opens this summer with other tenants moving in this fall.