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Comings and Goings
According to the report, Yuma experienced 6.06 percent employment growth from May 2005 to May 2006, going from 49,500 jobs to 52,500 during that time. Of other Arizona metropolitan areas listed among the top 100, Prescott was ranked second, the Phoenix area was 14th, Flagstaff 35th and Tucson 38th. A new quilting shop is about to open, stocked with the materials and notions to make quits and offering classes for all age groups and abilities. It also will have a long-arm stitching machine, which people can either have done for them or learn to do themselves. Log Cabin Quilts — named for a popular quilting pattern of alternating strips of light and dark fabrics — will open for business July 17. It's located at 136 W. 32nd St. in the space next to the Arizona Public Service Co. office in the Big Curve Shopping Center. The business is the project of Steve and Kim Elrod. She's worked with 4-H members for years on quilting projects for the Yuma County Fair. An administrator for Home Choice Health Care, she decided she was ready for a change in careers when that business changed hands. Once open, Log Cabin Quilts hours will be from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. It also will be open special hours for classes. For more information, call 344-3800. Starbucks and other tenants will occupy a 16,100-square-foot building under construction near the Avenue B Wal-Mart Supercenter. Another tenant will be Kool Smiles, which will open a children's dental office. According to the company's Web site, Kool Smiles focuses on providing oral care for underserved children and young adults ages 1-21. It has several offices in the eastern part of the country. There are four other spaces, but tenants for them haven't been announced yet, said leasing agent Felisa Taylor of A.T. Pancrazi Real Estate. She said the hope is to have the building ready to open by fall. Ted Hook has sold the seven acres he owned at the southwest corner of Pacific Avenue and 16th Street. Selling price was $2.5 million, according to the Yuma County Assessor's Office. Recorded buyer is Yuma Plaza LLC of Phoenix. A shopping center is reportedly planned for the site. JB's Doll Houses and Miniatures will be closed for the month of July while owner Jackie Bruno does her annual buying trip. For more information about the shop, visit www.JBsDollHousesMiniatures.com. Permits have been issued for a Circle K at Araby Road and 26th Street, said Randy Crist, city of Yuma building official. Also, the site preparation for Wingate has been completed and construction is ready to start. And plans are under review for Party City at Las Palmillas, the shopping center under construction north of Kohl's. It will be 12,000-square-foot building, Crist said. Speaking of Las Palmillas, the order of shops starting at the south end is Circuit City; Bed, Bath & Beyond; a shop building with no tenant announced yet; Shoe Pavilion; a big box and another shop building with no announced tenants; and Party City and another big box at the north end. Permits will be issued in the next week or so for reconstruction of Crane Pueblo School, 2803 W. 20th St., said Crist. The project will involve demolition of all but the newest building and construction of a new 49,000-square-foot school. There's just one little thing that has to happen before all that work can start. Crane Mesquite, the district's new school now under construction at 45th Avenue and 28th Street has to be completed so the Pueblo students can be bused there while their own school is rebuilt. The walls are up and interior work is underway on Mesquite, said Lynn Thompson, Crane assistant superintendent. The schedule is to make the move to the new school after the fall break in October. More information will be provided to parents in the fall, she said. Replacing the 40-year-old buildings at Pueblo School will cost an estimated $7.6 million and is part of the $11.87 million bond issue voters approved last fall. Things are moving forward for a new construction trades training program to be offered by Arizona Western College and classes will start Aug. 21, said Amy Wells, associate dean of academic and technical programs. Permits have been issued for tenant improvements on a building at Yuma Commerce Center leased by the college for the program. Instructors have been hired for the carpentry and electrical programs; offers have been made for drafting and plumbing instructors. "We've gotten great support from the contractors," Wells said. Those taking day classes could complete certification in six months for one of the trades, while those taking evening classes could complete a program in 10 months, Wells said. People are already signed up, "but we still have room," she said. To register, call Wells at 344-7786, or her secretary at 344-7572. S & R Glass Service Inc. has a brand new location. It has moved to a new building at 3427 S. Avenue 3-1/2E, Suite D1, on the east side of the street. The glass sales, installation and repair business has the same phone number of 341-1867. It has a variety of glass products for commercial, residential and automotive use — and it makes its own dual panes. The business had been located at 3295 E. Highway 80 for a number of years. Owners are Susanne and Russell Leasure. The business is a natural for Susanne — her father, John Keefer, was the owner of John's Glass Service. Yuma-area Alltel customers will benefit from the company's new cell tower near Dateland, which just became active. The Dateland tower will enhance Alltel's wireless network with improved call quality and easier access to data features like games, e-mail and text messages, according to a news release. Alltel is spending nearly $45 million this year to better serve customers in Arizona. That includes the Yuma County tower. Alltel now provides Axcess Broadband Internet service in Phoenix and plans to expand the service to Tucson and Yuma, said Scott Thompson, Alltel's vice president of retail services in Arizona. Alltel retail stores in Yuma are located at 770 E. 32nd St. (344-5200) and 1309 S. Yuma Palms Parkway at Yuma Palms Regional Center (343-0866). The Yuma County Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a Yuma town hall meeting with U.S. Rep. Raul M. Grijalva, (D-Ariz.), from 8 to 9 a.m. Friday. The meeting, which will include a question-and-answer period, will be held in the old City Hall Council Chambers, 180 W. 1st St. at the rear of building. If planning to attend, call the chamber at 782-2567. Lines & Lundgreen Roofing and Insulation Inc. has just moved from 2226 S. Avenue C to 12351 S. Avenue 4E. The roofing company purchased the old Yuma Truss building and fixed it up, giving it some expansion room, said Richard Sorenson, chief financial officer. The company has added Spider insulation, a blow-in system for walls that fills all the little nooks and voids normal batt insulation can miss. It also has added foam roofing, which is a polyurethane foam with an elastomeric seal coat to give added insulation and reflective value to a roof. And it has a full line of roofing, insulation and acoustical ceiling products. Lines & Lundgreen is owned by John Lines and his brother-in-law, Steve Lundgreen. Jonathan Lines, the third generation to work in the family-owned business, is the general manager. The business has the same phone number of 783-9084. LA Skates is closed again, but just temporarily while the skating floor is being refinished, said co-owner Patricia Hester. "It will be even better and more beautiful," she added. She said they hope to reopen by mid-July. In the meantime, she wants to thank everyone who came out last week for the free night of skating. For more information, call 782-4700. Two more businesses are preparing to open in the Hastings shopping center in the 2800 block of South 4th Avenue. FACI Fashion Specialists, located in suites C and D, is about ready to start stocking and could be open soon. While the sign has been installed, Elegant Nails & Spa in Suite B is a little further away from opening. Suite A is occupied by Sharky's Backpacks and Luggage, which opened awhile back. That leaves two suites still available for lease. If interested, call Felisa Taylor at A.T. Pancrazi Real Estate at 782-0000. Report Comings & Goings to jlobeck@yumasun.com or 539-6853.  |
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