Originally scheduled to open weeks ago, the long awaited reopening of Jackson Hospital's front main entrance might take place by Friday, June 1, Public Relations Director Rosie Smith told Business News Tuesday afternoon.

"The front entrance will reopen on the day of the First Friday Breakfast, June 1, or shortly thereafter," she said. The hospital is scheduled to host the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce's monthly event beginning at 7 a.m. and lasting until 9:30 a.m. Dr. Stacy Harbin of Chipola Surgical and Medical Specialties is the keynote speaker for the breakfast and a ribbon-cutting is set for 9 a.m. on the front lawn. The public is invited to this event; it will be our first official look at the new lobby and first floor renovations. These renovations were made possible, in part, by the hospital's consolidation last year of several outpatient services to a new Outpatient Center across the street in the Hudnall office building. Then there's the $7.5 million that has been spent and paid for by the hospital itself, still a publicly-owned facility but managed by a private hospital management firm.

Camp Braveheart Site Coordinator Gino Mayo accepted a check from Beef 'O' Brady's for six hundred and seventy dollars, which along with money from t-shirt and wristband sales totaled more than one thousand dollars raised for Camp Braveheart! Emerald Coast Hospice is VERY grateful to the Jackson County community for the support and kind words for the services they provide.

Applications are beginning to come in for camp, and sixty children who have experienced a loss will be attending camp July 20-23. Camp Braveheart, for children ages 7-14, is a four day camp offered at no charge to children from the Florida Panhandle and southeast Georgia. If you know of a child who might benefit from this camp please contact Gino Mayo or Sherri Stone at 526-3577 for information and applications.

Jackson Square, formerly known as Marianna's Carol Plaza, 4154 West Lafayette St., is becoming almost vacant. Former tenant Classic Cabinetry is moving out, according to a sign on the door this week, and Rent-A-Center will complete its move to the Winn Dixie shopping center downtown next week, on May 23, according to Rent-A-Center manager Maranda Marlowe.

Those moves will leave Jackson Square with just three units, out of 15, being leased with tenants—Dollar General, Waco Drugs and the Plaza Barber Shop. Classic Cabinetry is leaving the Square because the showroom sales approach is being suspended for now by owner Tatum and Associates, manager Sue Rogers told Business News Tuesday afternoon. Anyone interested in their fine cabinetry can call contractor Tatum at his offices, located on West Lafayette Street behind Elegant Happenings at the Gathering.

But the Congressman plans to "keep fighting"

Steve Southerland's frustration with Washington, D.C. was palpable last Friday at the congressman's "town hall" meeting in Marianna.(May 11) About 50 generally supportive people turned out at the Penn Avenue-Ag Center Conference Room to hear the first-term Republican U.S. House member expound on the issues and take questions.

"It's maddening to me," Southerland said, about the ways of the nation's legislative branch. "Washington uses no common sense." After explaining his preference for "temporary work permits" over "e-verify" immigration controls, the Representative began to demonstrate how, for example, a picture would be hung on a wall in Washington.

It hasn't been this lively on the South Green Street hill in downtown Marianna since the 1980s, back when the Monitor newspaper, Rene Jordan's original hair salon and Dr. Jon Kisner's dental office had the place hopping. To get to the Green Street Plaza during that era, one only needed to turn south off Lafayette Street and go between Thompson Brothers Printing and the Citizens Bank lot with the drive-through lanes.

Thompson Brothers has long since vanished, Dr. Kisner died, and Citizens is now SouthTrust Bank—no drive-through—but the lower part of Green Street has recently been revitalized. With the grand opening of a promising new automotive repair shop, Green Street Automotive, the small business district is now full of tenants and customers. Bruce Adams has completely redone his sewing and embroidery shop, giving it a new name: "Sew Spoiled."

Milk and Honey Frozen Yogurt

Milk and Honey Frozen Yogurt is the newest store to open in the just finished Eastside Plaza, built east of Marianna on U.S. 90 by developer/engineer David Melvin's company, Jireh Developers. Quest Diagnostics, which runs medical tests for patients, took out the first lease and three more units will soon be filled with possibly doctor's offices or restaurants.

A new warden for Jackson Correctional Institution has been appointed by the Florida Department of Corrections. He is Randall Bryant and he comes to Malone beginning Friday, May 4, from Lake Erie Correctional Institution in Ohio. Business News obtained a copy of an interdepartmental memo containing this information on Tuesday from the FDOC information office.

Many folks are scratching their heads over the sudden resignation of Jackson County Library director Darby Syrkin. After working and making many improvements to the library systems throughout the county for the last 10 months, she turned in a resignation to the Jackson County Commission last month. Interviewed by the media this week, she declined to make public any grievances. She only cited "personal and professional circumstances." There were reports that she was not initially given a salary commensurate with her master's degree qualifications for the job and that she disagreed with the commission on the job duties and pay of her staff.

Marianna's newest business is called "Un 2 U." It is a "faith-based gift store," according to the owners and features books by such authors as Max Lucado and Beth Moore in addition to bibles, journals, picture frames, t-shirts and much more.

Un 2 U was opened Monday, April 30, at 2924 Jefferson Street (next to Davis Optometry.) The owners are Angie Carpenter and Cassie Willis, both of Marianna. The hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more info, call Cassie or Angie at 482-7492.

A very historic building in Marianna is about to be razed to the ground, but there will be no objections from any preservation societies. The old Jackson County Jail on Marion Street will soon be a parking lot.

The jail became an anachronism, terribly out of date, while it was still in use—up to the early 1990s. It was often the subject of lawsuits from nationwide groups such as the Prison Project and given consistently bad marks from DOC inspectors. Former Sheriff Johnny McDaniel's west wing addition in the late 1980s failed to sufficiently modernize the complex and county commissioners finally built the new facility, using federal standards, on Penn Avenue in the west end of town.