Shop Mack Avenue Spring Sidewalk Sales

The Mack Avenue Business Association's sidewalk sale begins today and continues through Saturday.

By Janet Treuter The Mack Avenue Business Association (MABA) is kicking off its summer series of Sidewalk Sales with a very special event May 16-18. They invite you to shop the marvelous Mack Avenue business corridor in Grosse Pointe Woods, and check out what’s in store. Take advantage of special prices on Sidewalk Sale items and in the stores, and pick up an entry form for the “Shop the Mack” raffle. “We are encouraging everyone to explore the entire length of Mack Avenue in the Woods and visit shops and businesses they may not have gone into before,” said MABA member Angelo DiClemente, owner of The Dried Flower Shop. “Take your entry form and have it validated when you visit participating businesses all along Mack Avenue – Uptown, …

Marais Restaurant to Feature Outdoor Dining

The new restaurant planned for the corner of St. Clair Street and Kercheval Avenue in the Village recently gained approval of its site plan, its liquor license and special use due to the size exceeding 5,000 square-feet.

The French-inspired restaurant slated to open in the Village, Marais, will feature an outdoor patio at the corner of St. Clair Street and Kercheval Avenue that will be nearly 400 square-feet.  Construction has already been underway on the building. Crews tore off the back facade of the building a few weeks ago, revealing the old "Fischer's" signage painted on the brick.  More construction is ahead after the restaurant owners, Monica and David Gilbert, gained approval of his site plan, which includes a 390 square-foot outdoor dining area. The patio will require some changes to the corner, which currently houses a traffic control box and is well-landscaped with trees and flowers as a pedestrian corridor offering bench seating and flowing …

•  3 Comments
• Photos (1)
• Documents (3)

SHE Boutique to Open This Week in Village

The boutique offering a personal shopping experience is slated to open this week on Kercheval Place in the Village. It is one of several new business in the City of Grosse Pointe.

Employees of the new SHE boutique will be merchandising and preparing the store this week located in the Village for a soft opening scheduled for Thursday May 9.  Owner Sharon Eisenshtadt is excited not only about opening the second location of SHE but also thrilled by the welcoming attitude of neighboring businesses and the community in general.  "Everyone is so friendly," Eisenshtadt said. "There has not been an uncomfortable moment." The original location, located in Bloomfield Hills near Maple and Telegraph, has been open for five years, she said. Opening multiple locations was always part of the business plan, she said. That part of the plan is coming to life this week as Eisenshtadt and her new team prepare for opening the newest …

• Photos (1)

Boutique Owner Buys Spa in Grosse Pointe Woods

Local business owner Rose Marchese and her husband have taken over a local spa. In addition to making some updates, Marchese is trying to partner with the medical field related to massage therapy for patients and whole body care.

Rose Marchese took over ownership of a spa on Mack Avenue in Grosse Pointe Woods formerly known as the Edwin Paul Spa in January. Marchese is also the owner of Hannah Bear Boutique and La Jolie Rose.  The spa is seperate from Edwin Paul Salon at 20327 Mack Ave., which is owned by Edward Framalino, president Edwin Paul Inc. Services and management at the salon remain the same. The spa is no longer named Edwin Paul Spa due it being trademarked, attorney Lisa Pinkos Howle said. After making a variety of updates to the spa located at 21023 Mack Ave., including hardware, the building and the staff, Marchese and her husband, Robert Marchese, are beginning to reach out to offer services within the community.  Rose Marchese said she is making an …

•  1 Comment

New Juice Bar Celebrates Grand Opening in Grosse Pointe Park

A new business, Jungle Juice Bar, featuring fruit and vegetable smoothies, raw juices and more, celebrated its grand-opening Thursday with a vine-cutting with the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce.

Jungle Juice Bar in Grosse Pointe Park was a longtime in the making. Co-owner Regeania Hunter-Coleman essentially turned a hobby/lifestyle of her own into a business, she said.  For years, she has been juicing her own combinations at home. It began years ago when she discovered she had an allergy to an ingredient in vitamins. She still needed the vitamins but was prevented from consuming vitamin pills as a result. Now years later, Hunter-Coleman along with her niece, Syretta Hunter, own Jungle Juice Bar in Grosse Pointe Park. The pair celebrated their grand-opening Thursday with the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce with a vine-cutting. Jungle Juice Bar offeres a variety of fruit and vegetable smoothies, raw juices, coffee, fruit and …

•  3 Comments
• Photos (5)
• Videos (1)

St. John Providence to put $5.4M into Borders Building if Purchased

Officials are planning to do a complete renovation of the former Border building to outfit it with two retail spaces facing Kercheval Avenue. Additional renovations will focus on establishing space for the health system, including physical therapy and mor

St. John Providence intends to put $5.4 million into the former Borders building if the organization purchases the now vacant space in the Village.  The proposal will be decided upon by the City of Grosse Pointe Council May 13. Council members already have the proposed plans for the building, St. John Providence Health System spokeswoman Sara E. Brown said.  The intent is to make the building fit into the Village more by making the facade similar in design to others, she said, explaining it would be a more "warm and friendly" feel.  Among the proposed plans are two small retail storefronts that will face Kercheval Avenue. One will be about 1,700 square feet and the other about 1,300 square feet, Brown said. The remainder of the 19,800 …

•  2 Comments
• Photos (1)

Village Ace Celebrates Grand Opening on Mack

Following a soft opening in January, the owners of Village Ace celebrated their official grand opening Friday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a week's worth of specials.

About six months after purchasing a new building, investing about $500,000 in the renovation and having a soft-opening in January, Village Ace on Mack Avenue is celebrating its grand opening this weekend.  The new location, 18165 Mack Ave., is on the former Lochmoor Chrysler lot. Village Ace moved to Mack Avenue from the Village of Grosse Pointe, where it had been located for years at the corner of Kercheval Avenue and St. Clair Street.   Owners Shelli and Mark Elmer thanked a variety of people who helped in the move including their employees, their attorney, the family from whom they bought the building and more. Dozens of people joined them Friday in celebrating the store's grand opening, which was kicked off with a ribbon-cutting …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (2)
• Videos (1)

Public Invited to Village Discussion Tonight in City of Grosse Pointe

The Voice of the Village's first formal event is tonight at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial. Robert Gibbs, an urban planner, will speak at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial about the development of the Village.

The public is invited to attend tonight's address by Robert Gibbs, a well-known urban planner, who will speak about the state of the Village. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial. It is being put on by a new organization created in part by James Bellanca, who manages 18 of the properties in the Village on behalf of a trust. The organization, Voice of the Village, is intended to provide the public with information about development and what's actually happening in the Village. Bellanca said the organization resulted after he was asked to speak twice to residents in the area who had concerns about the Village. Based on the questions people have asked him knowing he's associated with the Village, there is a lot of …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)

Biggby Coffee Coming to Grosse Pointe Woods

The Grosse Pointe Woods Building Official is to walk the property of the future site of Biggby Coffee on Monday to review plans and ensure all of the proper attention is given to the building as it is converted from a bank to a coffee house.

Biggby Coffee is coming to Grosse Pointe Woods. The coffee shop will be located in the former Talmer Bank at Mack Anenue and Roslyn Road after a contractor converts the building, Grosse Pointe Woods Building Official Gene Tutag said Wednesday.  Discussion about the possibility has been floating around the Pointes for months--since the closure of Biggby Coffee in Grosse Pointe Farms in December. While an architect contacted the city several months ago regarding the possibility, there was not contact about the project beyond that conversation until Monday, Tutag said. The contractor hired to complete the transformation talked with Tutag Monday to review site plans and the necessary permits, he said. Tutag said the pair will be walking the …

•  7 Comments
• Photos (4)

Restaurant, Women's Boutique Coming to Village

A new French restaurant and a women's boutique retailer will be new additions to the Village in the City of Grosse Pointe.

Several changes are happening in the Village and preparations for two new businesses are underway: a French restaurant and a speciality women's boutique. The restaurant, named Marais, will be located at Kercheval Avenue and St. Clair Street, said property manager James Bellanca Jr., who oversees the management for 18 properties in the Village. Marais will occupy the corner store most recently occupied by the Grosse Pointe Art Center as well as the neighboring space, which was the longtime location of Bellissima Boutique. The combination of the two areas will make the restaurant 6,100-square-feet, Bellanca said. It will be a high-end restaurant with white table linens, Bellanca said. Well known chef David Gilbert is behind the restaurant. …

•  6 Comments
• Photos (1)