If you really want snow, check eBay
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I?ve been half expecting the kids to say, ?What?s cold daddy??
It?s days like yesterday that have me wondering if it will snow at all this year. That?s been an annual thought since we?ve been experiencing warmer temperatures as of late (although you won?t hear me say the words ?global warming? because I?ve heard politicians say that?s justsilly propaganda).
For folks in Warren County who want snow and don?t want to depend on Mother Nature, just check eBay. It?s been said you can find anything on eBay and now you can find snow.
Colorado couple Jim and Mary Walker have bids starting a 99 cents for samples of the blizzards which have pounded the state over the past month.
?I figured eBay has ghosts and all sorts of weird stuff, so why not snow?? Mary told The Associated Press.
For bargain hunters looking for a great deal, this might be it. The Walkers say for 99 cents, the winning bidder can bring a dumptruck and take all the snow they want from their property. In fact, the Walker says anyone can stop by and take the snow on their driveway for free.
Mary says she doesn’t really expect to find a buyer for their blizzard overstock. ?We just wanted to give some folks a laugh,? she said.
If the Walkers can find someone to pay them to take snow off their property, I?m going to hold an eBay auction for leaves. For 99 cents, one lucky customer can rake a dumptruck of leaves from my yard. I?ll even throw in a free rake.
As for other odds and ends, allow me to take you across the world to the great country of China. As some of you may know, the 2008 Olympics will be held in Beijing and there is a full-throttle campaign by the Chinese to turn Beijing into a ?city of smiles? for the Olympic games.
While China wants to put on a proverbial happy face for the world, there?s one main problem with that. Chinese people don?t often smile.
That?s because in Chinese culture people who smile a lot are considered devious, perhaps even a little evil. In short, it?s the opposite of the happiness we associate with a smile in America.
Thus the Chinese are offering classes on smiling. Yes, I said classes. Apparently the classes are working because people who successfully complete the intense course are seeing results.
?At first, I thought it might be difficult to smile,? said one man after taking the class. ?But later I realized if you don’t treat smiling as work, you may find it very easy to smile all the time.?
I don?t see why it?s a big deal if the Chinese smile or not. It doesn?t matter what kind of look they have on their face. We?re still going to buy all their cheaply made products.
Mega shopping center
coming to Murfreesboro
One topic I?ve fielded several questions about ? even though it?s not in Warren County ? is the upscale shopping center currently under construction by Interstate 24 in Murfreesboro.
Since it?s safe to say many, many Warren County residents will frequent the shopping center (despite all the pleas to shop at home), I think it deserves a few paragraphs in this column.
The 810,000-square-foot shopping center, located off I-24 by Medical Center Parkway, will make its debut this fall and be called The Avenue Murfreesboro. The $140 million project is being built on 100 acres.
Thus far, over 30 of the expected 110 shops and restaurants have been announced. To get you licking your chops, here?s a sampling of the announced tenants:
Brighton
Coldwater Creek
Francesca?s Collections
Kay Jewelers
Mimi?s Cafe
The Children?s Place
Yankee Candle
Petco
Linen ?N Things
Ann Taylor Loft
Barnes & Noble
Belk
Best Buy
Carters
Champs Sports
Chico?s
Cost Plus World Market
Dick?s Sporting Goods
Lane Bryant
Longhorn Steakhouse
New York & Company
Off Broadway
Osh Kosh B?Gosh
Romano?s Macaroni Grill
Talbots
White House/Black Market
I was chatting with Tara Stone of the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce and she tells me the new shopping center will really round out Murfreesboro?s retail offerings.
?We already have some great stores here,? said Tara. ?But there were some areas where we needed more. We needed more upscale clothing and more children?s clothing. This will give us stores that will really diversify our area. We?re already a shopping destination. This will make us a complete retail district.?
If you?re wondering who has $140 million to invest in a shopping center it?s Atlanta-based Cousins Properties and Charlotte, N.C.-based Faison Enterprises. Cousins has developed seven Avenues in four states ? Georgia, Florida, California and Tennessee. The eighth, in Murfreesboro, is the largest yet.
Tara told me the opening date was planned for this October but now developers are hoping to have some stores open in August in time for back-to-school shopping. She said the shopping center has been drawing a tremendous amount of interest because it?s one of the biggest building projects going on in the entire Midstate.
With The Avenue on the way, Murfreesboro?s existing mall, Stones River, has decided it better improve its game. Stones River is in the process of a $40 million expansion that will provide almost 200,000 more square feet to the 422,000-square-foot mall. JCPenney and Dillard?s, two of the mall anchors, will roughly double in size, among other changes.
Tara put a positive spin on the Stones River expansion and said it wasn?t in response to the new shopping center moving in.
?That mall was developed when our county was a lot smaller and now a different need exists,? said Tara. ?JCPenney and Dillard?s both need full-sized stores where they can display all their merchandise.?
Another key component of the Stones River expansion is the addition of a 300-seat food court, which is always a big hit at malls.
While I?m a firm believer of supporting Warren County businesses, I also realize folks like to go on out-of-town shopping sprees. Hopefully these new developments just a short drive down the road won?t negatively impact the local retail market.
Cookeville gets pleasant
surprise with Oreck
Since I?ve given you a Murfreesboro retail report, I?m going to continue with a regional roundup and talk about the Oreck vacuum cleaner plant that recently located in Cookeville.
That plant was originally expected to produce about 100 jobs, but the employment outlook got much better for Middle Tennessee two weeks ago. That?s when Oreck announced it was closing a vacuum plant on the Gulf Coast and moving the jobs to Cookeville.
The end result is the Oreck in Cookeville is now expected to have 400 to 450 jobs.
?I feel bad for those people down there because they?ve been through so much already,? said Putnam County Executive Kim Blaylock referring to the Oreck employees in Mississippi who are still rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina. ?At the same time, I?m thankful for us. I?m also thankful those jobs stayed in the country instead of going to China or Mexico.?
If you recall, Oreck was strongly considering Warren County but opted instead for Cookeville. The difference, Blaylock said, is Cookeville had a facility that was ready to get up and running.
?They wanted to get the show on the road once they found a building and they have,? said Blaylock. ?I think they have close to 100 employees right now and they?re cranking out vacuums.?
For the people who have said manufacturing companies are no longer interested in locating in Middle Tennessee, Oreck proves all those people wrong. It also shows the importance of being ready when opportunity comes knocking.
I think I?ve mentioned before how our community needs to have a variety of buildings ready for potential industries. At the very least there needs to be one spec building ready, and all the vacant buildings around the county could be closer to move-in condition.
Unfortunately, vacant buildings like Powermatic and DeZurik are run down and not fit to show potential industry. It?s so bad, private businessman Gordon McGee bought the Powermatic building to fix it up himself.
The sad fact is if Warren County was ready, we very well could be making vacuum cleaners right now. But since no one wants to trade a small tax increase for a better chance at recruiting manufacturing jobs, it looks like we might go 20 years without bringing an outside industry to Warren County. That?s something to be proud of. I?ll get off my soapbox now.
Andy?s buffet
opens with a bang
After much fanfare and anticipation, Andy?s Country Buffet opened its doors, and its buffet tables, to the Warren County masses on Thursday. And I think masses is an appropriate term.
Owner Andy Kim had braced for a hectic opening weekend, but even he was stunned by the volume of people who poured through his doors on Thursday and Friday.
?I expected it to be busy but I didn?t expect this,? said Andy. ?We fed over 700 people Thursday and had people waiting in line 20 minutes after we opened the doors. That was a little hard to believe.?
Most folks I talked to were well pleased with the food and several people singled out the deep-fried fish as their favorite item. Wanda McCormick said she enjoyed everything on her plate ? macaroni and cheese, corn, potatoes, butter beans, and yes fish ? and said she knows she?ll be back.
?I think it?s a good place,? said Wanda.
The thing that sticks in my mind most from my Friday night experience at Andy?s was the temperature of the mashed potatoes. I?ve never been served restaurant mashed potatoes that have been hot enough to burn my tongue until Friday. It may never happen again but at least I can say I?ve enjoyed that experience at Andy?s.
As for his thoughts after two days of business, Andy is certainly excited about the amount of customers, but he also realizes in the rush some people were not completely satisfied.
?It?s early and there were a couple kinks,? said Andy. ?But I think people will be understanding about it. They know we just opened. We will get everything straightened out, I can say that.?
So there you have what I expect to be my last article about Andy?s for some time. His restaurant opens six days a week at 11 a.m. The one day he is closed is Monday.
Main Street talk
I?ll have some news to report about a promising new business coming to Main Street and another business leaving Main Street in next week?s column. I would fill you in now, but I can?t tell everything I know.
I do want to make one addition to last week?s column where I talked about Main Street merchants and the Christmas shopping season. I ran into Attitudes owner Nedra Davenport and she informed me that her first Christmas season downtown was a memorable one.
?It was way better here than over at Northgate,? said Nedra referring to her former location at Northgate Shopping Center. ?I was pretty pleased.?
That?s all folks
It is my resolution to make 2007 the best year ever for Business Pulse. I want to make the column livelier, more reader friendly and more informative. I?m also considering animal sacrifices.
If you have an animal you would like to have sacrificed, give me a call. But it would probably be less of a mess if you just give me a call with your business tips at 473-2191.