Etcetera Coffeehouse in Lower Town celebrated five years in business on Oct. 8 with music and free espresso.JOHN WRIGHT | The Sun
The Toys R Us/Babies R Us store held a grand reopening in October in the Kentucky Oaks Mall area of Paducah.JOHN WRIGHT | The Sun
Lambert and a trio of river industry-related executives —Ronnie and Jeff James, and John Eckstein of Marquette Transportation — have plans to renovate the vacant, former Gatti’s location and re-open it by Christmas.
The restaurant operated as a Gatti’s until several years ago, and Lambert said the group plans to bring back the franchise in an improved way.
He said the renovated restaurant will have a large arcade gaming area, will offer take out and delivery and will feature a pasta and salad bar.
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The Gerdau steel mill in Calvert City donated nearly three tons of steel to Marshall County Technical Center in Benton, which will be used to help support the school’s welding program. The Calvert City steel mill opened in 1983. It creates structural steel often used in civil construction and consumer product markets.
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Western Baptist Hospital was awarded a three-year term of accreditation in Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography (PET/CT) following a review by the American College of Radiology. A PET/CT scan is a nuclear medicine imaging technique that shows how tissues and organs are functioning.
WBH is the only Kentucky hospital west of Owensboro to receive this designation.
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Toys “R” Us held a grand re-opening Sept. 30-Oct. 2 with its new Babies “R” Us addition at the 3411 James Sanders Blvd. location.
“The redesign of this store represents an ongoing strategy for the world’s leading dedicated toy and juvenile products retailer to bring two trusted brands together under one roof,” said Meghan Kennedy, spokeswoman, in a release.
The local renovation was part of the company’s side-by-side format for its stores across the nation, which has combined the two operations at more than 100 stores.
The format and renovations included energy-efficient upgrades and improvements ranging from energy-efficient LED fixtures to a cardboard baler that facilitates recycling.
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Insurance company Peel & Holland announced its merger with Harris & Oliver, an insurance company established in 1993.
Frank Harris and his staff, Karmen Womble and Marie Williamson, continued to serve their clients out of the Peel & Holland Paducah office at 5120 Village Square Drive, Suite 104. Frank Harris said Harris & Oliver had worked out of its 2122 Broadway office for the last eight years.
“This is going to be a win-win,” Harris said. “ (Peel & Holland) is well-established, and their major market is the same company that is our major market, so it’s not going to be a tough transition.”
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Sisters & Friends, an antiques, collectibles and gift shop, in La Center held a grand opening at the end of September.
The shop at 6236 Paducah Road, about a 15-minute drive past the Kentucky Oaks Mall on U.S. 60, celebrated increased business after a soft opening this summer, said Norma Anselm, owner.
Murals 7-feet wide and 10-feet tall along the building’s exterior have been catching the town’s eye, Anselm said.
She said 37 vendors have signed on to offer items at the shop. Normal store hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday.
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A sign at 414 Lone Oak Road, Suite A, advertises a Jimmy John’s sub shop would open soon.
A company spokeswoman did not confirm further details during the last week of September.
Established in Charleston, Ill., in 1983, the sandwich and sub shop has grown to more than 1,200 stores. Delivery service and an irreverant atmosphere are calling cards for the franchise.
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A Grand Affair by Memry, an upscale consignment boutique exclusively devoted to bridal and formal wear, opened Saturday, Oct. 1, at the intersection of Tenth and Ferry Streets in Metropolis, Ill.
Owner Tonya Stoll said the store also sells new and used prom dresses as well as mother of the bride and flower girl dresses.
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Etcetera Coffeehouse at 320 N. Sixth St. in Lower Town celebrated five years in business on Oct. 8 with live music and free shots of espresso for customers.
Co-owners Allan and Johanna Rhodes opened the coffeeshop on Oct. 14, 2006, and the couple has marked its yearly anniversary with the Saturday closest to the Lower Town Second Saturday event.
The coffeeshop has grown from two employees to eight, and expanded to a second location at 118 S. Second St. that opened in March 2010.
Art exhibits, live music and open mic nights have helped the neighborhood coffeeshop grow into a common meeting place and hub of activity for the arts and the Lower Town community.
Johanna said she expected to sell two or three cups of coffee each day while lounging around with a laptop or book when the couple, former high school teachers, first opened the shop.
“Now we have all ages coming in every day, such a diverse group of people who come in,” Rhodes said.
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John Paul Henry Photography held an open house Oct. 8 to mark the studio opening at 614 Madison St. in Lower Town.
Metropolis, Ill., native John Paul Henry said the studio is open 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday and offer documentary and wedding photojournalism. Henry earned a degree in photojournalism from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale and has worked as a photojournalist for the Lawrence Journal-World in Lawrence, Kan.
Henry said the studio will also act as a gallery for his and other artists’ work. For more information visit johnpaulhenry.com or call 270-933-8104.
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Top Quality Consignment management opened a thrift store on Oct. 4 beside of the consignment shop at 3333 Irvin Cobb Drive.
The thrift store, called TQ Thrift, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, according to Tina Simpson, general manager of Top Quality.
Simpson said every item at TQ Thrift will cost $1 with a percentage of the proceeds going to a different nonprofit each month.
“It will not be a separate business so to speak,” Simpson said. “But it will run under TQ until we see over the next six months if it will sustain itself.”
Top Quality has donated items to local nonprofits and churches, and the increase in need over the last couple of years prompted the idea of a separate store dedicated to give more back to those institutions, Simpson said.
Call 270-575-3833 for more information.
