Archive for category: Ribbon Cuttings

by Ardie Arvidson

The Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce welcomed Hyatt Place Downtown Florence as a member of the chamber with a ribbon cutting on Wednesday afternoon that included the grand opening of the newest hotel in downtown Florence. The event included music by Prettier than Matt.

The five-story, 103-room Hyatt Place was the 333rd Hyatt Place to open, said Ron Glancy, senior vice president of operations for Rains Hospitality. It opened its doors in February.

Owned by East Evans Hospitality LLC, the hotel is managed by Raines Hospitality, which manages several hotels in South Carolina and Florence. The property was developed by Springbridge Development. The hotel represents approximately $20 million investment in downtown.

Glancy said this is Raines’ third hotel to open since July.

“We are opening a lot of new hotels,” he said. “It is our first partnership with Hyatt Place.”

He said Hyatt Place was great to work with and it gave Raines Hospitality a tremendous amount of support.

“This is not our last Hyatt Place,” he said. The company will be opening one in mid-May in Mt. Pleasant and looks to have others.

Glancy said the hotel is situated on what was once part of Evans Street. He said the street was straightened for the hotel.

He said the view view of downtown from the upper hotel rooms is amazing.

“It is an urban oasis in downtown Florence,” Glancy said. “It is a fun and exciting addition to the community. We are so happy with the finished product.”

The hotel offers a casual atmosphere with amenities such as free Wi-Fi and 24-hour food offerings in the Gallery Kitchen. Guests can also access the Gallery menu 24/7. A coffee bar is available day and night, and the cocktail bar is open late.

The hotel offers meeting spaces for guests and the community, a 24-hour gym, and an outdoor pool.

Guests staying at Hyatt Place Florence Downtown can enjoy the close proximity of the hotel to the arts and entertainment district downtown, Guests can also enjoy shopping within walking distance of the hotel.

Faith Rogers is general manager.

To view the full article on SC Now, click here.

by Ardie Arvidson

A ribbon cutting for the new Texas Roadhouse was held at noon Monday with the Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce and its ambassadors participating along with restaurant staff and management.

The restaurant officially opened for business at 4 p.m. Monday. It is located in front of Magnolia Mall at 2691 David H. McLeod Blvd., next to IHOP.

Texas Roadhouse is famous for its hand-cut steaks, fall-off-the-bone ribs, fresh-baked bread and made-from-scratch sides.

The atmosphere is lively and family-friendly. The wait staff is known to break out in a line dance without any notice. It makes a special deal of birthdays, too.

Florence’s community-themed western décor includes items representing the Darlington Raceway, first responders, local schools, a jukebox and more.

As does every other Texas Roadhouse, the new Florence restaurant has a painting of an American Indian, said Jackie Brown, LSM coach.

The Indian is a trademark, she said, and was started by Wayne Kent Taylor, founder and owner of the first Texas Roadhouse in Clarksville, Indiana.

She said one mural she is especially proud of is the one that features a local first responder taken from a photo.

Brown said the company is built on partnerships with the communities where they reside.

On Friday and Sunday, the restaurant was open by invitation-only to give their staff practice and to raise funds for two local charities, I Play Florence (Friday) and the Care House of the Pee Dee (Sunday). Money was raised through individual donations and drink orders during the evening.

On Friday night, the guests raised $1,988 for I Play Florence. And on Sunday, guests raised $2,802 for Care House of the Pee Dee.

Both organizations were represented at the ribbon cutting on Monday and were presented ceremonial checks. They presented plaques to the Texas Roadhouse in appreciation.

Managing partner Andrew Ivester said he is very excited to be in Florence, and he wants to have a successful partnership with the community.

“We are excited to partner with these amazing organizations and can’t imagine a more meaningful way to celebrate our opening,” he said.

“I am thrilled to be here.”

Larry DePasquale, a market partner with restaurants in South Carolina and parts of Georgian and North Carolina, said he has 11 stores and has been patiently waiting for a long time for the right spot to open up in Florence.

“When this property (on David H. McLeod Blvd.) came available, we grabbed it,” he said. “We love the people here. They have been very welcoming. I have met a lot of people in the short time we have been here.”

He said Texas Roadhouse is involved in the communities where they are located.

He said they have a full-time employee dedicated just to working with the community.

The Texas Roadhouse was started in 1993 in Indiana. The restaurant chain has more than 525 locations in 49 states and seven countries. Its headquarters is in Louisville, Kentucky.

Texas Roadhouse brings nearly 200 new jobs to Florence. The restaurant has a seating capacity of approximately 300.

Texas Roadhouse is only open for dinner during the week. The restaurant is open for lunch on the weekends.

Florence hours are 4 to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 4 to 10:30 p.m. Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Saturday and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.

For more information, call 843-536-4507.

To view the full article on SC Now, click here.

by Ardie Arvidson

Carolina Bank held the grand opening and ribbon cutting on Thursday for its new headquarters in downtown Florence. It was nearly two years in the making. The bank is at 185. W. Evans St.

A soft opening was held in December 2018 for the 19,200-square-foot building, which cost an estimated $4.5 million. It hosts the bank’s 15th branch location in addition to its new headquarters.

“We are very pleased with the results,” said Vera Herbert, vice president and a fourth-generation member of the Beasley family, founders of the family-owned bank more than 80 years ago in Lamar. “It was a lot of work to get to this point.”

Renovations were started in June 2017.

Adding a third story to the two-story building is what took so long in the renovation process, Herbert said.

Herbert said that in the early 1900s the building was three stories. She said it is believed that the third floor burned and was never replaced.

When Carolina Bank purchased the building it was only two stories and housed the Art Trail gallery.

“In order to house our operations, we needed a third floor,” Herbert said.

The bank tried to go back as much as possible to the original look from the turn of the century.

The first floor houses the new branch operations and the wealth management services. The second floor includes operations such as loan and deposit operations, as well as information technology. Located on the third floor are the executive offices and the audit department.

“A lot of our coming here had to do with the growth in Florence,” Herbert said.

She said the bank wanted to be a part of that growth and to be more accessible to many of its customers.

The bank has helped finance projects downtown and looks forward to being a part of the growth in the downtown district.

Bank President Rick Beasley said at the ribbon cutting that his grandfather had a vision in 1936 and opened a small bank in Lamar. His son opened one in Darlington and from there it has grown. And now they have moved their headquarters to Florence.

“This is just the start of what is going to happen in Florence,” Mayor Pro Tem Frank J. “Buddy” Brand II told Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce ambassadors, business leaders, bank personnel and friends gathered in front of the bank for the ribbon cutting. “Florence is on the move.”

He welcomed Carolina Bank to Florence’s downtown as part of the city’s growth.

For the full article on SC Now, click here.

by Ardie Arvidson

Carolina’s Electronic Repair service joined ambassadors from the Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday to celebrate its new chamber membership with a ribbon cutting at the chamber office.

Brandon Summers and his sister, Mary Summers, opened the electronic repair service on the first day of January this year.

They repair laptops, tablets and cellphone, including cracked screens, water damage, and other technical problems.

“I learned the trade from working with others,” said Brandon.

He said they can fix most anything with a microchip.

Mary said she is certified in computer repair work and also works on software.

She has worked at several electronic repair shops.

“I can fix most anything,” she said. “I love to repair devices. It is interesting to me. When you love it you are good at it. It is not just a job, which is what separates us from other repair shops.”

Brandon said it is her passion.

Both said they thought joining the chamber was a great business opportunity and would help them build their brand.

They are originally from Florence.

Brandon recently moved back to his hometown from Irmo.

Their hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mary’s office is at 612 S. Irby St. Suite B. She can be reached at 843-472-6625.

To view the full article on SC Now, click here.

by Ardie Arvidson