NORTH ADAMS -- Downtown will see several new business spring up this month.
By mid-month, Main Street will have two new eateries: The Local, which will open in the former Petrino's Cafe, and Luma's Muffin and Mug, a small coffee shop and bakery, opening inside of Berkshire Emporium and Antiques.
"We're always trying to figure out ways to bring new businesses to Main Street and the downtown," David Bond, who works in commercial leasing for Scarafoni Associates, said. "We're fortunate to have a few things happening right now."
He said Fahri Karakaya, owner of The Local, is on track to open the restaurant, which will serve breakfast lunch and dinner, by the middle of the month.
"Mr. Karakaya has invested some money in the space and it looks great," Bond said. "He's a very sharp guy and very anxious to start serving people. He's put together a very nice, affordable menu, and I can't wait to see him open."
Nicole and Glenn Maloney expect to open Luma's Muffin and Mug on March 17.
"I really enjoy baking and baking for other people," Nicole Maloney said. "I was baking out of my home for several years and had some of my baked goods at the Cup and Saucer. Keith Bona and Jim Montepare approached me with the idea; they wanted a small goodie place in the shop and it grew into a small bakery."
She said the shop will offer Pierce Bros. coffees, paired with her baked goods -- muffins, cookies, whoopee pies, cheese
In addition, The Hub restaurant is in the beginning stages of expanding into the former Pip's Printing shop next door, as a way to add more seating and make the current space handicapped-accessible.
Bond said co-owners Kate and Matthew Schilling and Charles and Barbara Doane have been very cautious in their consideration and have found a way take over the space in pieces -- a plan he said "every one is comfortable doing."
A little farther down the street, Steepleview Realty, located inside of 85 Main St., has already expanded its offices, taking over the space, which, until last month, was home to Framing by Design.
"Brad Dupres, who owned Framing by Design has been having some health issues and decided to vacate the space," Bond said. "I approached Jen Segala and Christine Girard of Steepleview to see if they were interested in more space and within 24 hours, we had the deal set and people working on the space. They were very excited to almost double their space and now I have 500 square feet available."
Steepleview Realty's new office, which is located next door to its former space, is also home to Heritage Apartments.
"Seven years ago, we set up this office in North Adams as a satellite, but now this is the central hub," Segala said. "We did some rehab work because it was a bit bumped and battered in here -- tore out some things and added a mixture of both new and old antiques and new furniture."
Also expanding is Eagle Street Music. Matthew Berger will expand his music shop, moving it to 81 Main St., the former Shear Madness storefront, under the name Eagle Street Music on Main. Berger is set to go before the city's Planning Board on March 12 for approval.
Berger, who declined to be interviewed, opened Eagle Street Music in the Historic Flatiron Building on Eagle Street last January.
"Matthew is teaching a lot, and his business is starting to expand," Bond said. "It's a good sign for the downtown. As we continue to move towards being an arts-oriented community, it's great to have a music store in place, which offers music lessons right on Main Street."
He said the new space will allow Berger to have a larger space in the back of the shop for guitar lessons as well as space to expand his clothing offerings and musical instrument selection in the front of the store.
Also in the works is the relocation of the Brien Center to the former Transcript building on American Legion Drive, which is scheduled to take place by April 1, Bond said.
"I'm also working on bringing in something to 107 Main St., but we're still in discussions," he said. "We might see something happening there this summer."
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