Eatontown, N.J. — Total Comfort Group has hired Cesar Joao as the vice president of national account services and Cary Hudson as the area manager for the South Division. Both team members are part of the company’s recent expansion and will be responsible for overseeing new and existing commercial and retail accounts. Joao and Hudson were handpicked to join the Total Comfort Group team due to their extensive backgrounds in sales and leadership in the HVAC/R industry. Previously, Joao was a territory manager for York International Corporation for 10 years …
Atlanta — On September 9, 2019, Velvet Taco opened its first Atlanta restaurant in Buckhead. The 2,500-square-foot establishment is situated at 77 W. Paces Ferry Rd. within a Whole Foods Market-anchored shopping center. The late-night joint (most locations stay open until 2 a.m.) offers a variety of chicken, beef, pork, fish and vegetarian tacos as well as brunch options. Velvet Taco expects to open a second Atlanta location next year at the Interlock development in West Midtown, according to local media. Based in Dallas, the brand also operates restaurants in …
Gilbert, Ariz. — Evergreen Devco has commenced construction for The Post at Cooley Station, a grocery-anchored shopping center located at the southeast corner of Recker and Williams Field roads in Gilbert, Ariz. Situated on 23 acres, the retail center will feature 23,000 square feet of multi-tenant shop space in three buildings. Anchored by Fry’s Marketplace, the project will also include AutoZone, Taco Bell and Burger King. Currently, the center is 65% preleased, with one junior-anchor pad available. Butler Design Group, Optimus Civil Design Group, Kraemer Engineers and Laskin & Associates …
— By Jim Arabia — How facility managers of multi-location maintenance projects can benefit from an automated, single source heavy equipment rental provider. Every project manager and maintenance director knows the importance of having the right construction equipment delivered at the right time to ensure a job runs smoothly and cost-effectively. The last thing you need is to have workers standing idle waiting on machines, or sending staff home due to the incorrect equipment being delivered. It means wasted time — and time means money. One headache in particular …
— By Aaron Hartung — Developing a maintenance plan for your facility’s carpet, LVT, VCT and ceramic floors. Flooring maintenance protects your initial investment, paying dividends when compared to ripping and replacing every 5 years. And here’s an insider tip: It typically doesn’t cost anything to have a flooring contractor build a custom maintenance plan for your facility because their contract is for the actual maintenance work. Plus, they’ll add value by tailoring your daily cleaning and periodic maintenance procedures to your facility’s budget — and how your facility …
Jackson, Miss. — Newk’s Eatery has reopened all seven locations in its home market of Jackson, Miss., with a new restaurant prototype inspired by the brand’s ‘Project Strive’ initiative. At the milestone of 15 years since the first unit opened in Oxford, Miss., the brand took pause to seek feedback from guests on what’s important to them. “The purpose of Project Strive is to build from what our guests love about Newk’s and evolve the brand to be more aligned to their lifestyles. It stems from our brand mission to …
Bonita Springs, Fla. — GATES Construction has added Ben Haynie as senior superintendent. Haynie is responsible for daily onsite supervision of GATES’ projects, including quality control, safety, security, project closeout and transition planning. Haynie has over 37 years of construction experience with a wide variety of project types such as commercial, industrial, hospitality, retail construction and much more. Haynie will be based out of GATES Construction’s headquarters in Bonita Springs, Fla. For over 25 years, GATES Construction has provided award-winning construction management, general contracting and design-build services throughout the southeastern …
— By David Dawdy — Alternatives to elevator lobbies are a game changer for the retail and hospitality industries. In 1980, a kitchen fire tore through the casino floor of the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The inferno sent plumes of toxic smoke through the sprawling complex — including elevator shafts and stairwells to the floors above. Of the 85 people killed that day, 61 deaths were on the upper floors of the hotel — nowhere near the fire. These victims, as well as the other fatalities, died of …
— By Rusty Amarante — The future looks bright for service-based franchises. Providing specialized and on-demand services, service-based businesses currently represent a large portion of the franchise establishments in the United States. For almost a decade, service-based franchises have been on the rise because of the nation’s high demand for services that require technical skills and expertise, and those that cater towards commercial and residential upkeep are most prevalent. To maintain the proper safety standards that these properties are expected to meet, the expert teams that provide maintenance services …
Calabasas Hills, Calif. — As previously announced in August, The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated has closed the acquisitions of North Italia and Fox Restaurant Concepts (FRC), including Flower Child, for $308 million. The company previously invested $88 million in the North Italia and Flower Child concepts over the last 3 years in anticipation of their purchase. North Italia turns a modern lens on Italian cooking in the upscale, casual-dining segment. All dishes are handmade from scratch daily. The concept currently has 21 locations in 10 states and Washington, D.C. North Italia’s …