BUSINESS BUZZ

The lowdown on what’s up with neighborhood businesses

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Fast facelift

The Starbucks at Gaston and La Vista reopened in early February after a snappy 10-day remodel. To say the place received a “major overhaul” wouldn’t even begin to cover the extensive nip-tick this Starbucks recently underwent. “Unrecognizable” is more like it, and the reaction has been mixed, according to one of the baristas. Some people love it, but some others are sad to see the space so drastically reworked.

Moving up

The Shops at Park Lane has broken ground for three new buildings that will add more than 160,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and office space to the 33.5-acre multi-use shopping center. Located at the northern end of the project near Park and North Central Expressway, the expansion will add a five-story, 150,000 square-foot building containing 120,000 square feet of office space with 30,000 square feet of ground floor retail.

Ripped up

Chunk by chunk, the old building at Arboretum Village continues to disappear as it is disassembled by demolition crews. The shopping center at the corner of Gaston-Garland-Grand belongs to Lincoln Property Company, and once the old building is cleared out, Lincoln plans to build a brand new shopping center in its place. So far we know of at least three future tenants for the shopping center.

First The Fresh Market signed on, and then Ace Hardware agreed to transplant from its current location in Lakewood Shopping Center to Arboretum Village. Most recently, Luke’s Locker became the third tenant to sign on the dotted line.

On the upswing

Last July, long-time owner Tommy Stanco handed the keys of the Balcony Club over to new owners, Teddy Davey and Bruce Richardson. Some major tweaks have been made to the venue, most noticeably being the stage, which was moved from the space near the door to the dead center of the room. Also, the curved wall along the stairs leading to the bathroom has been removed, giving the room a more open feel. It has also been cleaned up with a fresh coat of paint, new furniture and other much-needed fixes.

Work it out

The owners of HG Sply Co. on Lower Greenville opened The Gym of Social Mechanics in February in the spot to the immediate left of HG Sply Co., Lower Greenville’s wholesomeeating, paleo-diet centric restaurant. Managing partner Elias Pope says Social Mechanics centers around “functional fitness mixed with the theory of the group moving the individual forward,” Pope says.” It’s about getting together as a team and being better than you can be on your own.”

—Brittany

More business bits

1 The old Snow Pea Restaurant location o Abrams in Lakewood is under construction to prepare for Zoës Kitchen, a Mediterranean-inspired restaurant chain. 2 Hacienda on Henderson, a casual Tex-Mex restaurant with a large patio facing Henderson, closed suddenly in February 3 Dallas-based residental real estate broker Clay Stapp + Co opened a location in East Dallas at Greenville Avenue and Morningside in February. 4 Lakewood’s new Chipotle at the corner of Abrams and Richmond hosted its grand opening on Jan. 24. 5 Construction has begun for the 59 new homes being built in the Hollywood/Santa Monica neighborhood, most of which will go for upwards of $500,000. 6 Doctors Hospital at White Rock Lake announced the recertification of its cardiovascular rehabilitation program by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation. 7 The premier issue of “Attorney At Law Magazine – Greater Dallas Edition,” was delevered to the mail boxes of attorneys in Dallas earlier this month. 6 Dental Boulevard opened at 7324 Gaston, near the Gaston-GarlandGrand intersection. Dental Boulevard is a general family practice owned by Dr. Stephanie Lobo, DDS.

There two

GIFTS we can give our children: One is ROOTS and the other is WINGS.