Last Monday it was announced the former TGI Friday’s property, located at 6945 Airport Blvd. in West Mobile, was acquired for $1.35 million by an out-of-town restaurant operator.
As reported in Lagniappe last April, the popular fast-casual restaurant was one of the first local businesses directly impacted by the initial round of COVID-19 shutdowns. The original New Orleans-based owner pulled the plug on the property in the spring and put it on the market.
At the time, Kenny Nichols with Vallas Realty listed the 7,000-square-foot building, sitting on 1.85 acres of land, for a price tag of $1.8 million.
According to Nichols, TGI Friday’s was custom-built to franchise specifications back in 2000. The new owner is anticipated to rearrange the site’s footprint to meet their specifications, but capital expenditure, build-out timelines, the name of the new business and staffing plans were unknown as of press time.
Leigh Dale Younce of SRS represented the tenant in the transaction. Nichols worked for the landlord.
Tim Herrington with Herrington Realty Inc. reported last Friday on a recently completed commercial lease for the former 2,100-square-foot Hardee’s located at 6321 Cottage Hill Road in West Mobile.
Expectations for the site, after extensive renovations, involve opening sometime in late spring of 2021 as the first Mobile location for Baldwin County-based Aloha Hospitality Management’s Wingfingers concept.
The new chain, rolled out by local restaurateur Bob Baumhower, has another restaurant across the bay at 25 Greeno Road South in Fairhope. A third eatery is located at 201 South Union Street in Montgomery.
This is the fourth concept rolled out under the company’s corporate umbrella by the former standout University of Alabama and Miami Dolphins football player, along with freestanding concepts Dauphin’s and Las Floriditas in downtown Mobile, and the successful Baumhower’s Victory Grille brand, which boasts multiple locations across the state.
Herrington worked for the tenant in the transaction. Kenny Nichols with Vallas Realty represented the landlord.
James and Nina Kim, co-owners of Coffee Monster, opened a second shop last month, leasing some 1,500 square feet of space at 100 North Florida Street, Building F, inside the Publix Shopping Center, next door to the Simple Greek restaurant.
Locally owned, Coffee Monster opened its first location inside The Shoppes at Bel Air in 2018 and currently employs 10 workers between both locations. According to James Kim, plans are to move the original site out to West Mobile in early 2021 due to a significant drop in foot traffic from COVID-19.
He went on to say the store has been well received by Midtown Mobile patrons with the shuttering of Chaleur Coffee’s sit-down space earlier this year, reportedly due to COVID-19, and transitioning to a wholesale-only supply model.
“Our traffic ranges from early morning ‘grab and go’ business from local hospital staff, to parents stopping by after taking kids to school and sit-down college students. We are grateful for all of their business,” James Kim said.
In an update, Irby Home Buyers, a division of Mobile-based Irby LLC, held a ribbon-cutting this past Monday for their new 5,317-square-foot office space located on the third floor of the One St. Louis Center at 1 St. Louis Street in downtown Mobile.
Dignitaries in attendance included Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson and Irby CEO Jared Irby.
“Irby has expanded into Biloxi, Pensacola, Panama City and will be in Montgomery by the end of the year,” Irby said. “We plan to be in five additional markets by next year, investing in local economies and growing our corporate headquarters in Mobile by hiring 20 more positions by December 2021.”
Mayor Stimpson said, “This area of work you have chosen, especially the rehabilitation of homes, is hugely important. That’s why we have talked about developing 1,000 affordable, new homes between now and 2026, either built new homes or renovated homes.
“A lot of people around the city of Mobile are making the same kind of decisions and are trying to do it on their own, but are realizing that they can’t do it on their own. It takes a team to make things happen. You are in the right spot and we have to better partner with you to make this happen. The city of Mobile is the foundation, but you have to execute.”
Last month, the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce held a grand opening and ribbon-cutting for BizPad, reportedly Daphne’s first co-working space, located at 26241 Equity Drive, Suite 101.
The 1,262-square-foot co-working space comes completely furnished with a tall ceiling and natural light. The space has a private kitchen with full access to a coffee bar. Amenities include 24/7 building access, a high-speed Wi-Fi network, a conference room with video conferencing, mail and package handling, print and scanning services and a snack room area.
“We wanted to offer the community a workspace that is able to fulfill the needs of small business owners and entrepreneurs, without the cost that comes with a traditional office space,” office manager Whitney Sherling said. “Networking and collaborating are what makes BizPad unique. We want to build a community that encourages growth and prosperity.”
More information about the shared workspace can be found at bizpad.us.
Industrial distribution and supply company The Van Horn Group — now part of the Künzelsau, Germany-based Würth Group conglomerate — has recently leased a 10,850-square-foot warehouse space located at 3014 Mill Street in downtown Mobile.
The company is relocating and expanding from their previous Midtown site found at 51 Midtown Park East, according to John and William Peebles of NAI Mobile, who represented the tenant in the transaction. Matthew Gerrard of Milling Commercial Real Estate worked for the landlord.
According to Vallas Realty, homebuilder D.R. Horton has purchased 45 residential lots located at the Amelia Lakes subdivision off of Snow Road in West Mobile for $2.2 million. This is the fifth phase of the successful Amelia Lake project being developed by Mobile-based Amelia Lake Partners LLC. Home prices at the project are reportedly starting in the high $200,000 range.
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