From the Georgia Voice (via Carl)…

Paris Decatur, the LGBT bar at 308 Ponce de Leon Ave., will shut its doors after a final show on March 27, owner Susan Bird announced today.

“It has been a great run, and I have learned a lot. I have had great support from my friends, and I have met so many interesting and wonderful people that I now feel privileged to call my friends,” Bird said in a press release.

Bird asked the club’s supporters to visit on March 20, 26 and 27 “to say goodbye and have one last drink with me.”

After months of brown-papered windows, Unconcerned Citizen (aka NFDecatur on Twitter) reports on his brand-new blog that Meldora Hair Salon is going into the old Victory Vintage space at the intersection of College Ave and South Candler.

Pic courtesy of Unconcerned Citizen

Looks like the plans of a Greek Diner in the old Atlanta Bread Company space are history…or we just never had it more than 50% right.

Carl reports on Twitter…

Spoke with future #DecaturGA eatery at 205 E PDL: same ownership as Marietta Diner, plans to be open 24/7.

Definitely diner fare.  Check out the menu of the Marietta Diner HERE.

According to Assistant City Manager Lyn Menne’s note in the March issue of the Decatur Focus, the film production company Pogo Pictures, is moving into the office space above Parker’s along Ponce de Leon Ave.

A check of their website shows they are moving from their current location on North Avenue in Atlanta and sport an impressive roster of current and former clients.  Clients include: Ford, Travelocity, Back of America, Chik-Fil-A, Abercrombie & Fitch, Heineken, U.S Virgin Islands, Goody’s, and many more.

The old gallery space above Parker’s is definitely one of the nicest, non-retail spaces in Decatur I’ve ever ventured into, so no big surprise it’s filled again!

MarlaTiara reports and confirms to DM via Twitter that Hoopla: Fun Stuff for Kids, next to Taste on Church Street, will be closing at the end of March.

The store is having a 30% off sale this week.

I’m not sure whether the “temporary” part of the sign below is true or not, but the reopen track record of businesses that put up this vague sort of sign is pretty low.

Thanks to Billy for the report and the pic!

The clothing store, Signature Revolutions, which opened in the old Eviva space at 335 West Ponce de Leon Ave has closed it’s doors for good after just a month and a half in business.

Jennifer, who works next door, reported the news to DM via Twitter yesterday.

I’m not sure of the reason for such a quick close, but the strangeness of it reminded me of an odd experience a reader reported a couple weeks ago…

I walked in [to Signature Revolutions] the other day, and it was a really odd experience. While the storefront is stark and the decor reflects remnants of the holiday season, the owners were sitting back relaxing and playing cards. And if the sparse selection and quality of their stock wasn’t enough of a red flag, the conversation I had with them left me speechless.

How could a business come and go in just 45 days?

From our friends at the Decatur Minute…

What: Decatur for Haiti. Local Decatur merchants and restaurants donating to the Haiti earthquake relief.

When: Monday, Feb. 1

Who: The following businesses have agreed to donate a portion of their proceeds from Feb. 1 to the American Red Cross.

See the full list of participating shops and restaurants after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

Kaiser’s grand-opening of it’s downtown Decatur location tomorrow on Friday and if you’re big into hob-nobbing, it’s the place to be!

This Friday, Jan. 29 at 8:30 AM, Kaiser Permanente will open its new medical office in Downtown Decatur (ground level of the Artisan building at 201 W. Ponce De Leon and Commerce Dr.). You are cordially invited to attend the grand opening.

Dignitaries from state and county institutions will be on hand, including State Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver; DeKalb County Commissioner Jeff Radar; County Commission CEO Burrell Ellis; Bill Floyd, Mayor of Decatur; Jackie Ginn, president of the DeKalb Chamber of Commerce; and Scott Drake, president of the Decatur Business Association.

In conjunction with the opening, Kaiser has donated $10,000 to the Decatur Education Foundation, which according to a DEF press release will be used to “seed” the Farm-To-School program and… Read the rest of this entry »

As “part as part of a series called “The Great Global Business Adventure” , Portfolio.com is following the owners of Paddywax as they muscle through this tough economic time.  According to Portfolio, owner David Duncan will be blogging about his company throughout the coming year.

But Portfolio isn’t the only news org following the folks at Paddywax Candles these days.

The candle factory on DeKalb Industrial Way just announced that “The Evening News with Katie Couric” recently stopped to film a segment.   The piece is scheduled to air this Friday, January 29th during the 6p telecast.   In a recent email blast, Paddywax summed up the feature as “The husband-and-wife team behind the boutique fragrance company weigh in on small business’s impact on the Gross Domestic Product.”

Thanks to Christa and Patti for forwarding along the links!