Comings & Goings: Yuma's 'car row' expanding
Yuma's car row along 32nd Street has been undergoing a renaissance with two new dealerships completed, a third one nearly ready to open and an announcement of plans to build a fourth.
The new dealership for Yuma Honda, a 32,500-square-foot building that has been under construction for about a year, is finished and expected to open for business on March 26, said Jerry Kane, general manager. The new, larger and updated facility is located east of the old store off the entrance into the Yuma Golf and Country Club for easier access and more parking.
Because of its location, it will have a new address of 1190 E. 32nd St. The phone number will remain 344-1000.
With the new dealership completed, the next project will be improvements to the entire parking area, Kane said. Then general contractor Pilkington Commercial Construction will begin work on the old dealership for use that hasn't been determined yet.
Previous new dealership projects included Fisher Chevrolet and Alexander Toyota.
The next project on the horizon is a new dealership for Fisher GMC/Buick. Plans have been submitted to the city, reported Alan Kircher, city of Yuma deputy building official.
It will be located at 775 E. 32nd St. just west of the new Fisher Chevrolet dealership. The 8,986-square-foot facility will house showroom, sales offices and service bays for GMC and Buick, which currently are located at the Fisher Hyundai lot at 1125 E. 32nd St.
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Foothills Firearms, 11792 S. Foothills Blvd., is closing its doors after eight years in business, confirmed owner Ben Suissa. He said he expects to close on March 31, if not sooner.
Suissa said he made the decision to close due to lack of product — “I can't get guns or ammunition.”
In the meantime, he is waiting to hear the decision from the federal appeals court on his challenge to a U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) directive requiring gun shop owners in border states to report bulk sales of semi-automatic rifles. Suissa is one of two plaintiffs in the National Rifle Association-sponsored lawsuit.
But he will be closing his shop no matter which way the court's decision goes, he said.
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Olsens MarketPlace IGA in Ajo, owned and operated by Don and Bryanne Olsen of Yuma, has been awarded the coveted five-star certification of excellence for 2012. The store opened in 1992 and was recently remodeled to include a complete grill and deli service counter.
The Olsens also operate an IGA store in Wellton that opened in 2009 in the Coyote Wash commercial center.
Don Olsen has been a grocery retailer in southwestern Arizona for more than 30 years. Olsens Marketplace IGA is headquartered in Yuma, where the Olsens reside.
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In addition, the Olsens recently opened Cheap Ole's to bring grocery salvage products to eastern Yuma County. Located in Space No. 5 in the Coyote Wash Shopping Center in Wellton, the store is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and can be reached at 785-4310.
It offers discontinued products, groceries nearing expiration and other salvage from big distributors. New loads arrive monthly.
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Quilting Bee is now in its new location at 3121 S. Avenue B next door to Dancemakers Inc., reported store owner Tricia Swenson.
The store carries fabrics and notions and offers professional longarm machine quilting. It will be offering 4H sewing and quilting meetings and many additional quilting classes.
Hours are 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays. The store can be reached at (928) 726-3000.
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San Luis, Ariz., is getting its own Goodwill retail center, Comings and Goings has learned.
The nonprofit plans to open a center in the border city at 582 Piceno Drive in a 14,000-square-foot space in the strip center next to Walmart, confirmed Jackie Halleen, vice president of retail operations for Goodwill in Arizona. She said the target opening is by July or August. It will employ 20 to 25 people.
Rue 21 and Shoe Depot, which were originally located in that strip, are being relocated to the strip of stores parallel to Piceno Drive. The Dollar Tree store will be remaining.
Goodwill also has two retail centers in Yuma. The new San Luis center is one of seven the organization plans to open in Arizona this year, with six of them in the Phoenix area, Halleen said.
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AHA! Aesthetics LLC was founded in January by Ruth Gordon, a registered nurse with more than 10 years of clinical experience, to provide medical cosmetic and beautification treatments.
Treatments currently offered include Botox, Juvederm and Restylane, Platelet Rich Plasma, Sclerotherapy and micro-needling for such conditions as sun damage, acne scars, wrinkles, and varicose and spider veins. Vitamin B12 and weight loss treatments also are offered.
AHA! Aesthetics is located at 1951 W. 25th St., Suite B, next door to Julieanna's Patio Cafe. Hours are by appointment only, evenings and weekends. For more information, call 920-3218.
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Mariscos Mar Azul, owned by Hortencia Rosales and Alex Morales, has been named the 2013 Success Award winner for Yuma County. It will be among 14 Arizona small businesses and their achievements to be honored at the 2013 Success Awards and Legislative Lunch on Monday.
The event is hosted by the Arizona Small Business Development Center Network at the state capitol. Success Award winners worked with an AZSBDC Network Center to achieve their goals and are chosen for their accomplishments.
Randy Nelson, head of the SBDC in Yuma, said Mariscos (seafood) Mar Azul (blue ocean) was selected for the honor because it was able to increase the number of jobs and remain competitive even during the economic downturn, with a possible expansion in the future. Located at 1314 S. 4th Ave., Suite 5 (in the strip center behind Gonzo's), the restaurant was started in Somerton and after several expansions opened a store in Yuma. It has now consolidated its operation to the Yuma location, where it currently has 28 employees.
Report Comings and Goings to jlobeck@yumasun.com or call Joyce Lobeck at 539-6853.
