Medical office building planned at Memorial East

It didn’t take long for the partnership that operates the new Memorial Hospital East in Shiloh to seek approval for plans to build a medical office building on ground adjacent to the hospital.

Shiloh Planning Commission members on July 11 approved a Memorial Hospital/BJC HealthCare site plan calling for a three-story, 70,750-square-foot office building to be built southwest of the main hospital. The $22 million project could begin as soon as September and wrap up in late 2017.

The plan also details a second phase — a similar office building that would be built beside the first one — if there’s a need for additional office space.

O’Fallon sporting goods store making progress

What will soon be an Academy Sports + Outdoors store in O’Fallon is taking shape.

The first of the planned structure’s walls went up last week, more than three months after construction at the site at Lincoln Crossing in O’Fallon began.

The O’Fallon store is the retail chain’s first in the St. Louis area.

New owner, same ice cream at Sammie’s in Highland

There’s a new owner, but that won’t change anything about Sammie’s Soft Serve at 304 Poplar St. in Highland.

“I’m going to keep everything the same. When I bought the business, everyone begged me not to change the ice cream,” said Peggy Price. She’s worked in marketing for 15 years, helping friends get their own businesses started. In search of something new, she jumped at the chance to run a business when she learned Sammie’s was up for sale.

“As soon as a heard about this, I jumped on it,” she said.

Price plans to have the shop open seven days a week and wants to expand the menu to include snack foods.

Hours now are Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday-Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Sammie’s will stay open until Halloween, when a costume party is planned to close out the season.

New location for J.C.’s Jewelry

J.C.’s Jewelry & Repair, formerly located at St. Clair Square in Fairview Heights, will soon open in a new location in O’Fallon, according to John Eichenlaub at the BarberMurphy Group.

What will be the main sales area at the new J.C.’s is empty, ready for the start of a build-out that Eichenlaub said should begin any time.

J.C.’s owner Debb Severs was not available for comment last week.

J.C.’s has two other locations, both in Missouri. One is in Florissant and the other in Hillsboro.

Bugs bite (the dust)

The metro-east’s second Mosquito Joe franchise opened this season.

James Newcomer, who operates the franchise from his home in Granite City, covers Madison County and some areas beyond. He said his season offering residential and commercial mosquito treatments began in late May.

Newcomer can be reached at 618-215-3785. A ribbon-cutting for his franchise is set for 4 p.m. July 25 at the Edwardsville-Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce office at 1 North Research Drive on the SIUE campus.

The rest of the metro-east is covered by a Mosquito Joe’s location at 2661 N. Illinois St., Suite 307, in Swansea. That location, now in its second season, can be reached at 618-360-2903.

This story was originally published July 17, 2016 at 2:01 PM with the headline "Medical office building planned at Memorial East."