Village Living Volume 7 | Issue 4 | July 2016
neighborly news & entertainment for Mountain Brook
art reflecting
LIFE
By ANA GOOD
T
ucked away on a quiet residential street in Irondale, a small art studio is busy providing life-changing services for the often underserved. Studio By The Tracks, which gets its name because of its close proximity to the web of crisscrossed railroad tracks just outside its door, provides free art classes to emotionally conflicted children and adults with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disorders. SBTT is a nonprofit organization formed in 1989 by Mountain Brook resident Ila Faye Miller, the former vocational director of the Allan Cott School for children with autism. From the outside, the space, a converted auto shop with still-visible garage doors, provides little hint of the magnitude of work being done inside. Within the structure’s simple, white walls, artwork from students of all ages, abilities and inspirations lights up the walls. The artwork from paintings, drawings, ceramic work and collages floods the space with life. It’s a reflection, after all, of the students it serves. What the studio offers is more than free art classes. It’s a safe haven where “people who have been handicapped by negative circumstances and society’s assumptions about their ability to achieve” can receive a safe and positive experience, Miller said. For the adult students who may find it difficult to earn a living
Above: Austin proudly displays his work with watercolors. Right: Studio By The Tracks in Irondale has been an outlet for adults with special needs since the mid-1980s. Now located in a former garage and filling station, art fills the space. Photos by Frank Couch.
See ART | page A22
Lane Parke tenants open shop By ANA GOOD
Pre-Sort Standard U.S. Postage PAID Memphis, TN Permit #830
Late this month, a handful of Lane Parke retail tenants are set to open their doors nearly a year to the day construction on the 66,640-square-foot luxury mixed-use space first began. The “shells” of the tenants’ spaces were turned over to the shop owners April 11, said John Evans of Evson, Inc. “They started their own individual build-out from there,” he said. All tenants, with the exception of the restaurants and Western Market, are expected to open sometime in the late July
to August timeline, Evans said. New to the list of publicly announced tenants is Platinum Pilates. It’s a fitness studio that’s a “well-heeled operation,” said Robert Jolly, president and CEO of Retail Specialists. The addition of another, not-yet-publicly-named tenant leaves all but one remaining space for lease. Though he could not share the name of the latest tenant, Jolly described it as a “luxury outdoor gear and apparel” store providing hunting equipment and field attire.
INSIDE
See LANE PARKE | page A23 Sponsors ....................A4 City ..............................A6
The Lane Parke development in Mountain Brook Village is set to open the retail development phase soon. Photo by Frank Couch.
Business ....................A14 Community ................ B4
School House ............ B9 Sports ........................ B12
Faith ........................... B17 Calendar ....................B18 facebook.com/villageliving
Voter Guide: 2016
Sights on Sailing
Local elections are approaching fast, so be sure you’re up to speed on who’s in the race (and who’s bowing out), issues and voting do’s and don’ts.
Incoming Mountain Brook High School freshman brings passion for water, competition with her.
See page A8
See page B1