New Businesses

Mr. Juan&squo;s Mexican Restaurant opened Friday in the former George&squo;s restaurant building, which most recently housed the China Dynasty restaurant. Owner operator Juan Sarias said the restaurant will offer traditional Mexican food from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. On Sundays, the restaurant will be open from noon to 10 p.m.

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Hospice of the Carolina Foothills begins this Wednesday accepting donations such as clothing, furniture and household goods for its new Hospice Thrift Barn. The new store will be located in the former, 7,500-square-foot America&squo;s Country Store on Hwy. 14 in Landrum, which closed last year. Hospice says the thrift store is scheduled to open in May. For more information, call manager Jacquie Ziller at 457-7348 beginning April 1st.

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The Condar Co. of Columbus has acquired the FunSpecs Co. FunSpecs, founded by Judith Mussel in Spartanburg, offers and extensive line of stylish reading glasses, reading sunglasses and eyewear accessories.

&dquo;Reading glasses are the new shoes — every occasion demands the perfect pair,&dquo; says Becky Whitt, customer relations manager for FunSpecs. The aspheric lenses offer superior optical performance in strengths from 1.0 to 5.0, making them both fashionable and functional. Matching pendants and upscale keepers are also offered.

&dquo;Years ago, I worked with (founder) Judy, an amazing design professional and a wonderful person,&dquo; says Michael McCue, president of Condar. &dquo;When I learned of her passing, I wanted to honor her legacy and continue her attractive product line. The merger of FunSpecs into our full-service operation will make this happen and we plan to significantly grow the business.&dquo;

FunSpecs can be seen at the Kangaroo/Condar facility, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, at 111 Kangaroo Drive off Hwy. 108 in&bsp; Columbus.

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A Growing Concern of Hendersonville will host a grand opening April 11, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. for a new garden center, A Growing Concern II in Columbus, midway between Columbus and Mill Spring.

The grand opening celebration will include speakers and demonstrations, refreshments and drawings for gifts. The gardens of the new center feature extensive varieties of trees, shrubs, annuals, perennials, herbs, container gardens, pottery and fountains, as well as experienced landscape design and installation.

For more information call 894-2424.

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Having recently earned her certification from Equissage Equine Sports Massage Therapy, Betty L. Hill of Columbus has started Horssage, a service providing deep muscle therapy for horses.

The Equissage system Hill will use is the industry&squo;s oldest and leading equine massage technique, designed to enhance muscle tone, alleviate pain, increase flow of nutrients to muscles, improve disposition, and increase range of motion, regardless of performance level.

Hill has over 20 years of experience in competitive long distance riding, which has underscored for her the importance of massage therapy to the general comfort and recovery of the equine athlete.

For more information, visit Hill&squo;s web site at www.horssage.vpweb.com. For an appointment call: 828-863-2935.

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ExpressIT Shipping Centers announces the opening of CopyIT, a full service copying facility at its Mill Spring location.

&dquo;Now Foothills residents and businesses can take advantage of the copying technology we have been offering our commercial accounts,&dquo; says Bob Morgan, president. Morgan explains that &dquo;we are already one of the most active copy centers in Western North Carolina producing tens of thousands of copies monthly.&dquo; In addition to printing, CopyIT offers document processing directly from computer files. &bsp;

&dquo;The end product can be booklets, tri-folds, or bound copies as desired. Business cards are available as well.

&dquo;We have a significant copying capability and we would like to see it working for the benefit of our Foothills neighbors,&dquo; concludes Morgan. The CopyIT Copy Center is located at 82 Highway 9 North in Mill Spring.&bsp; Copy requests can also be left and picked-up at our Tryon Office, 96 Pacolet St. For further information please call us at 894-0588.

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The Asheville Regional Airport Authority announced that AirTran Airways will begin new non-stop air service between Asheville and Orlando International Airport on June 11, 2009. Service will be operated using 117- passenger Boeing 717 jets. These jets will provide two classes of non-stop service to Florida where travelers can enjoy beaches and sunshine.

&dquo;This new service is great news for Western North Carolina as it will inject new energy into our local business economy and support our vital tourism industry,&dquo; said David N. Edwards, Jr., A.A.E, Airport Director. &dquo;Asheville is a great place to do business, and this new service from AirTran, a low-cost carrier, demonstrates our commitment to Western North Carolina.&dquo;

The flights on AirTran will take place at the following times/days: from Asheville to Orlando, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, departs 1:10 p.m., arrives 2:45 p.m. From Orlando to Asheville, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, departs 10:55 a.m., arrives 12:35 p.m.

Introductory Sale Fares will begin at $69 and must be purchased by April 16, with travel completed by June 25, 2009. Travelers can book their ticket at www.airtran.com and www.flyavl.com.

Asheville Regional Airport was constructed by the City of Asheville between 1958 and 1960 at a cost of $2.2 million.

Business Notes

The Independent Grocers Alliance USA awarded the IGA Five Star honor for achievement in IGA&squo;s Assessment Program to the Tryon IGA and its owner Willard Teaster this month. Five Star is the highest level of recognition possible under the Assessment&squo;s rigorous standards.

The Polk Wellness Center, which opened earlier this month, will hold an Open House Monday, April 6, from 8 to 9 a.m. The offices are located in the Columbus Professional Center, 801 W. Mills Street, Suite A, in Columbus. For information, call 894-2222. An earlier planned Open House was canceled due to the early March snowstorm.

The Adams Mill Project was awarded a $25,000 North Carolina Rural Center Building Reuse Pre-Development Grant recently. The grant will&bsp; be used to determine feasibility and develop design plans for conversion of the old Adams-Millis mill in Tryon for mixed use as apartments, with retail space at ground level. Wallace Cheves of Adams Mill Associates LLC is the project developer and the Town of Tryon will be providing grant administration as local in-kind match.