City Council paves the way for Eway Scooter Company to expand

City Council paves the way for Eway Scooter Company to expand its fleet

Local entrepreneurs are the first to offer electric scooter rental in the Springfield area. by Samuel Knox

A new City Council ruling paves the way for local entrepreneurs Marquez Williams and his brother and business partner Trayvon Northern to expand their scooter fleet. EWay LLC is one of the first electric scooter rental companies in Springfield to offer micro-mobility services. Their younger brother, Laquion Williams, a junior at Parkview High School also works in the business providing how-to and safety instructions to each scooter renter. On June 13, 2022, Springfield City Council approved new rules for electric scooter rentals. The proposed council bill implements micro-mobility device rules that create an outline to prevent electric scooters from being “a nuisance or poses a threat to public safety or security.” The business owners are both from the Quad City area. The Quad Cities is a region of cities in the U.S. states of Iowa and Illinois. They moved to Springfield

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L to R: Laquion Williams, Marquez Williams, Marquell Williams, Trayvon Northern

in 2014. Williams said he first experienced the electric scooter in Tulsa, OK, and had a great time! He came back to Springfield and went to work researching what it would take to bring that type of experience to the Ozarks. The two brothers started Eway, LLC in September 2021 making an agreement with the Bolt Scooter brand. The company owners have been in talks with the city Traffic Engineer to make sure they are in compliance with local ordinances and safety measures. Williams said the company started with five scooters but should soon have available a fleet of over one hundred. For those interested in taking a ride on the electric scooters, go to their website: ewayscooters.com. There you will find instructions on how to register to take a ride. The cost is one dollar to unlock and forty cents per minute. ($25 per hour) According to the the company website, the scooters are used for recreational use, public tours, romantic dates, and school visitations. The business is open during daylight hours. By being local and first to market in the area, they hope to have a niche carved out before other competing companies come to town. Starting July 1, the Eway Scooter Company will have an office at the Robert Plaster Free Enterprise Center (EFactory) 405 N Jefferson Ave.

Husband and wife team Octavius and Tonisha Manier

Mimi’s Soul Food Kitchen — Sunday dinners made with love

Mimi’s Soul Food Kitchen is a combination of the years of practical management skills and the recipes mixed with love that she learned from her grandmother. by Darline Mabins

One sure sign of growth is competition. As luck would have it, the soul food restaurant industry in Springfield that was once non-existent is now showing signs of growth. What is not to love about food. They remind us of homecooked meals with our families or Sunday dinners made with love. Springfield’s soul food scene has another addition, with the June 8th opening of Mimi’s Soul Food Kitchen. Husband and wife team, Octavius and Tonisha Manier are the proud owners of Mimi’s Soul Food located at 533 S Kimbrough Ave in Springfield Missouri. Sitting down with the couple we learned that, Tonisha has a long history of working in the food industry. Managing other restaurants helped her to learn the flow and processes of taking orders and providing the meals to customers in a timely manner. She also had the memories of growing up in Springfield and remembering the love that her grandmother put into the family meals. She shared how her grandmother’s house was the place where her friends would drop in for a meal before heading to the Boy’s and Girls Club. Tonisha combined the practical skills from her management years with the love and recipes that she learned from her grandmother to create the menu and feel of Mimi’s Soul Food. Tonisha also had the encouragement of her brother (Owner of the Carriage House) to thank for taking the step to open her own restaurant. The road to her opening day was not easy. On the day that they were scheduled to sign the paperwork for a lease on the storefront, they now occupy. The couple shared that in the middle of signing the paperwork they were told that they had to stop due to a possible sale of the location to an interested buyer. In the end, the owner of the property decided to go with them and their vision for the building and leased the space to them. The obstacles didn’t stop there. As new property owners, they learned the hard way about what was needed to bring the building up to code and this process took them nearly 2 months more than anticipated to get their doors open. They credit the support of their immediate and church family for their ability to work through the issues and connect to resources. The restaurant opened to large crowds and sold-out menu days. The top dish on the menu you ask…Fried Catfish and Spaghetti with the second runner-up being the brown beans and cornbread meal. What do they hope to accomplish in their first year? They want to focus on the culture of their restaurant to ensure that everyone that comes into their restaurant feels that they are welcome. They also hope to work out any kinks in their delivery of service. It’s important to them that food is delivered efficiently and customers are not left waiting for their food. They would also like to incorporate weekly specials to their menu that were family favorites and add to their soul food flare. When asked why people should try their restaurant. The couple shared that at the end of the day, “they want people to experience their culture, the spirituality, the love, the music… we want them to experience the atmosphere. It’s more than color, it’s connections. The magic is in the kitchen.”

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