Another retailer prepares to leave Columbus Place.
Cato, 1404 Old Aberdeen Road, is officially slated for closure.
This is the second store within a month to announce its upcoming closure from the former Leigh Mall.
A Cato store associate confirmed that Christmas Eve will be the store’s final day open.
Cato first opened in 1946 in Charlotte, North Carolina, went public in the 1960s and expanded to more than 1,300 locations throughout the country. Mississippi currently has 44 Cato locations, including one in Starkville and the soon-to-be closed Columbus store.
Cato did not return my messages by deadline.
Last month, Bealls announced its closure with Friday as the final day.
With these stores closing, that leaves Claire’s, Prestige, Five Below, Hobby Lobby, Mobi Care, Dollar Tree, Planet Fitness, American Deli, City Gear, Hibbett Sports, and outparcels Trustmark and Hardee’s, as the shopping center’s remaining open stores. According to Dispatch reports, Columbus Place has 37 spaces and only 12 will be occupied by the end of this month.
Moving downtown, the new cigar lounge construction is already underway.
Fields Ferguson, a Realtor with Mississippi Magnolia, posted a video on Facebook interviewing the new owner.
James White is opening Sola Cigar Co., a boutique cigar lounge, at 423 Third Ave. S. He hopes to open the cigar lounge by the end of this year or early next year.
“We plan on opening a place for those who like cigars and pipes to come in and enjoy themselves for as long as they may want,” he said in the video.
I could not reach James White by press time.
It appears a last surge of customers wasn’t quite enough to save the new hibachi restaurant in Columbus.
Yummy Teriyaki, located in the former Backyard Burger, is officially closed. After just five months, the owners closed the doors permanently. The restaurant announced the closure on Facebook, and the website is no longer in service. I could not reach the owners by press time.
Children’s Health Center of Columbus is expanding due to an increased demand in services. Chief Operating Officer Will McDow confirmed a drastic increase in adolescent behavioral issues in recent years.
“It’s skyrocketed absolutely after COVID, politics, wars, you name it,” he said. “We were overrun.”
Children’s, located at 114 N. Lehmberg Road, purchased the former Cadence building at 120 N. Lehmberg Road. The former bank will house Children’s second location known as Thrive, a clinic designed to provide mental and behavioral support for patients ages 4 to 26.
McDow said Thrive will host its ribbon-cutting at 4 p.m. Jan. 9.
Over in Starkville, Oasis Counseling celebrated its ribbon-cutting last week. The counseling center, at 1085 Stark Road Suite F., offers a variety of services including therapy for addiction, children, couples and trauma. Oasis has facilities in Starkville and Ridgeland.
See y’all next week!
Former Dispatch reporter Mary Pollitz writes weekly about interesting business news. Have a tip? Send it to [email protected].
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