Business Comings & Goings: Work Under Way at Planet Fitness

Work has finally started on the Planet Fitness center at 9503 S. Cicero Ave. in the Green Oak Shopping Center in the former Oak Lawn Fresh Market space.

“They started working on it a few weeks ago, and workers are in there every day now,” said Steve Kant, vice president of Robin Realty, the company that owns and manages the mall.

Kant said he didn’t know when the 17,400-square-foot fitness center would be opening.

An email to the marketing department at Planet Fitness was not answered.

Planet Fitness operates more than 500 fitness centers in 46 states and the vast majority of them are franchised operations.

The chain, which prides itself for being a Judgment Free Zone and holds monthly pizza nights and gives away Tootsie Rolls to clients, seems to be in an expansion mode in Illinois. New locations recently opened in Champaign, Montgomery and at 4327 S. Pulaski Road in Chicago.

For information, visit Planet Fitness online or on Facebook.

Marquette Bank, Charter Fitness Hold School Supply Drives

and Charter Fitness are holding school supply drives in August.

Marquette Bank is holding its annual drive through Friday, Aug. 10. Customers, employees, neighbors and businesses can donate school supplies at any of the bank’s 23 locations. For information, call 1-888-254-9500.

Charter Fitness is hosting its annual drive through Sunday, Aug. 19. Brand-new school supplies may be dropped off at any participating locations.  The donations will benefit local students and schools in each of the communities Charter Fitness serves. 

For information, ask at your local center or visit Charter Fitness.

Calling for Business Champions

The Economic Development Council for the Southwest Suburbs is seeking nominations for its 2012 Business Champion Awards.

Nominations are being accepted in five categories:

• Training and Development
• Sustainability
• Excellence in Government
• Philanthropy
• Best Place to Work

Eligible individuals or businesses must be clients of or be located in or provide services in one of the 26 communities in the college’s district.

Nominees can enter as many categories for which they qualify, but they can only win once. Entries must include a nomination form and a brief description of the business or individual. Self-nominations are accepted. 

The awards will be presented at the 18th annual Business Champion Awards Banquet on Thursday, Nov. 1.

For information, call Eda Schrimple, Economic Development Council for the Southwest Suburbs coordinator, at 708-974-5714.   

More Cicero Avenue Bridge Work

The Illinois Department of Transportation announced that bridge joint reconstruction and other routine repairs to the Cicero Avenue bridge over the CSX Railroad in Alsip are scheduled to begin, weather permitting, on Monday, Aug. 6. The projects will require reducing Cicero to one lane in each direction over the bridge just south of 115th Street until mid-October.

Cicero currently is one lane in each direction over the Cal-Sag-Channel just south of 127th Street for a bridge rehabilitation and painting. The tentative completion date for that project is Aug. 31.

There also are ongoing temporary and intermittent lane closures on Illinois 50 between 95th and 127th Street and between Illinois 83 (147th Street) and 175th Street for a resurfacing project tentatively due to be completed Sept. 7.

Evergreen Chamber Hosts Golf Outing

The Evergreen Park Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual golf outing and barbecue lunch at noon on Friday, Aug. 3, at Fountain Hills Golf Course in Alsip. Registration starts at noon with a 1 p.m. shotgun start.  For information, call the chamber at 708-423-1118 or Outing Chairman Tom Ollenburger at 708-424-7850.

Southwest Orthopedic Hosts BAH

is hosting a Business after Hours for the from 5-7 p.m. Thursday at 9618 Southwest Highway in Oak Lawn.

Farmers Market Features Business-Midway Convention Center

Today’s Oak Lawn Farmers Market is featuring Business-Midway Convention Center.

Sign Up to Tour Little Company Care Center

Little Company of Mary Hospital is asking Oak Lawn residents to sign up for a sneak peek of its new Urgent Care Center at 6700 W. 95th St.

The community open house for the new center will be Saturday, Aug. 4, from noon to 4 p.m.

Guests will get to enjoy family-friendly activities, treats and giveaways. Guests also will be able to tour the facility and see its nationally certified immediate care center called The Care Station, state-of-the-art diagnostic imaging suite complete with MRI, CT, ultrasound, radiology and mammography.

To sign up, visit Little Company of Mary Hospital.

If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bob@chicago-patch.com.

You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.blogspot.com.