3 Rivers Health Center opens in old Essence of You location

The old Hatch Mansion and grounds on First Street has reopened as a place for massage and naturopathic medicine.

After close to three years of being vacant, the old Hatch mansion at 1421 First Street has new tenants devoted to massage therapy, new age healing, acupuncture, and the like.

The sign outside what used to be Essence of You day spa now says, 3 Rivers Health Center, but that's only part of the picture. The three principals -- Karie Jonak, Joliene Crystal and Jasmine Kinney, hope to soon be hosting weddings and receptions on the grounds and a Green Goddess kitchen open to serve healthy, natural foods ("We don't need another place with fries," said Crystal).

The soft opening at the new location was Monday, and today there was still a lot of unpacking to be done. But everybody under the new roof has been practicing somewhere else (Jonak has had a naturopathic practice on 13th Street for more than a decade), and their clients are already coming in for massages, ionic foot baths, facials, etc.

Considering how long the property has been dormant, it was in very good shape. They have done some painting, regrouting and landscaping, but on the whole it's been a lot less work than a person might have expected.

"It's kind of a niche place," said Jonak. "Not everyone could have moved in the way we did."

A grand opening is planned for July 26 from 2 to 8 p.m. For more information, call 523-3531.

Soup, sandwich restaurant planned for old Hua's on 17th Street

I've had a few people ask what is going on at 1610 E. 17th Street, the old Hua's Mongolian Grill next door to Papa Murphy's. While filling in Tuesday as a last-minute guest speaker at Idaho Falls Exchange Club, I learned that it will be Rusios, a soup and salad restaurant owned and operated by Tony Blakeslee of Idaho Falls.

My efforts to reach Blakeslee have been in vain so far, but on his Facebook page he said he is hiring now for an August opening. "It's like Zupas, meets Kneaders, and is friends with Paradise Bakery," he posted to a friend. "Nothing frozen. All soups are made by scratch; we will bake our own bread."

We'll keep you posted. In the meantime, can anyone tell me how to make a u with an umlaut on my computer?

Distinguished Under 40 winners named

The Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals Network has announced the 2013 recipients of its Distinguished Under 40 Award. The ten recipients will be recognized during a formal luncheon at noon  July 30.

These ten individuals are recognized for outstanding career, community and educational accomplishments:

• Amy Hansen - Defining Line Salon, owner
• Andrea Todd – Idaho Falls Arts Council, marketing director 
• Blake Johnson – Cooper Norman, CPA
• Dayne Dingman – Artcore Visual Studio, owner
• Eric Hess – Northwestern Mutual, financial adviser
• McKayla Matlack – Development Workshop, director
• Robert Harris – Holden, Kidwell, Hahn, Crapo P.L.L.C, member attorney
• Cassandra “Sandee” Moore – Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, COO
• Travis Powell - Alpha Graphics, sales manager
• Tyler Kraupp – Kraupp Inc., CEO

Back to the future at Park Avenue and B Street

Steve and Lisa Fischbach of MCS Advertising posted these pictures on Facebook the other day of the building at Park Avenue and B Street that they have been remodeling for the best part of two years. There's nothing much new to report other than a.) this represents a textbook lesson in downtown renewal and b.) the building at 403 Park Avenue used to be the Gem State Business College. The picture on the left is from a 1920 Polk's City Directory, which Lisa Fischbach says was a useful reference as they went about stripping the '60s-era plastic siding off and restoring the facade to a more vintage look. For a larger view, just click on the picture.

Happy Chinese Restaurant moving to new downtown location

Jay and Lily Li inside the downtown location where they hope to move their Happy Chinese Restaurant this fall. The space is at 504 Shoup Avenue, across B Street from Idaho Mountain Trading Co.

Jay and Lily Li came to Idaho Falls from Rexburg in 2003 to take over Happy Chinese Restaurant, on Park Avenue.

When it came time to find a new location that would give them more kitchen space, they didn't want to leave downtown. But it wasn't until last year, when the space formerly occupied by the Grand Victorian Wedding Chapel became available, that they put their moving plans in motion.

"People know we're downtown, so we want to stay downtown," she said.

For those of you who go way back, the property at 504 Shoup Avenue used to be the Montgomery Ward building.

In the new location, which they hope to open in November after a top-to-bottom makeover, they will have 5,000 square feet, nearly twice what they've had at their longtime location. The space will be about evenly split between the restaurant area seating 135 and the kitchen, Lily Li said.

"We will have better updated equipment for cooking," she said.