Malco Pulls 2nd Building Permit for Downtown Theater

Malco Theatres’ Downtown movie theater continues to take shape, with the Memphis-based cinema chain seeking its second multimillion-dollar building permit for the project in recent months.

Malco has filed a $5 million building permit application with the Office of Construction Code Enforcement for the seven-screen theater being built at at 45 E. G.E. Patterson Ave., at the southeast corner of G.E. Patterson and Front Street. The application lists Linkous Construction Co. as the contractor, SRC Consultants as the engineer and TK Architects as the architect.

The theater is part of the $55 million redevelopment of Central Station, which also includes a boutique hotel, apartments, restaurants, retail and significant infrastructure and landscaping improvements to the surrounding South Main area spearheaded by Henry Turley Co. and Community Capital.

The $9 million theater will be a new product type for Malco, featuring a rooftop screen and lounge and a two-story movie screen with balcony seating. The Powerhouse building, which was built more than 100 years ago to provide steam and electrical energy to Central Station, will be converted into a lobby and concessions area for the new theater.

A previous $5 million permit application for the project was filed in March.

– Patrick Lantrip

YMCA Opening Child Development Center in Lakeland

The YMCA of Memphis & the Mid-South is opening its first Child Development Center in Lakeland, in the old Funtimes Learning Center facility.

The newly remodeled YMCA Child Development Center at 2935 Lakeland Hills Drive will work with parents to support children 6 weeks to 5 years old with new state-of-the-art classroom furniture, equipment, toys and supplies.

Meals for the children will include breakfast and an afternoon snack included with a full lunch daily for most children except infants.

“At the Y, babies develop trust and security; preschoolers experience early literacy and learn about their world,” said YMCA of Memphis & the Mid-South president and CEO Jerry Martin. “Most importantly, children learn how to be their best selves.”

Registration for the new center begins Monday, July 10.

– Andy Meek

NSA Mid-South to Get New Commanding Officer

The Naval Support Activity Mid-South base in Millington is getting a new commanding officer.

Capt. Michael Wathen will relieve Capt. David Bryson as commanding officer of the installation in a change-of-command ceremony Friday, July 14, at the NSA Mid-South Conference Center.

Retired Rear Adm. Donald Quinn will be the guest speaker and Rear Adm. Babette Boliver, commander of Navy Region Southeast, will preside over the change of command.

Bryson has served as commanding officer since July 2015 and worked to ensure the installation provided support to its 64 tenant commands, maintained emergency readiness for the Navy in the region, and effectively managed resources during an ever-changing fiscal environment, according to a release from the Navy.

"There have been a lot of challenges thrown at us. We not only tackled them, but we cleared them and raised the bar,” Bryson said. “I am proud of the hard work the NSA Mid-South team has done in the last two years to ensure we support our tenant command missions."

The July 14 event will also serve as a retirement ceremony for Bryson after 26 years of naval service.

Wathen, a native of Evansville, Indiana, comes to NSA Mid-South after a tour as the executive officer at the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. A 1992 graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Wathen was stationed on the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) during its historic nine-month deployment following Sept. 11.

Additionally, he has served in support of operations Southern Watch, Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn and Enduring Freedom.

– Daily News staff

Construction Employment Swells After 3-Month Lull

Employment in the construction sector rose to 16,000 jobs in the month of June, which is the highest total since October 2008.

The sudden increase comes after a three-month lull, according to the Associated General Contractors of America.

Total construction employment reached 6.9 million in June, and the month’s 16,000 increase for nearly doubled the amount of jobs added in the previous three months combined.

Year-over-year, jobs rose by 206,000 in June, or 3.1 percent.

Since contractors are struggling to fill these job, officials with the AGCA are urging government officials to enact measures to make it easier for school officials, local associations and construction firms to set up construction training programs.

"Construction firms added employees over the past year at nearly double the rate of the overall economy, but the record-low unemployment rate for construction workers shows companies are having to reach outside the industry to fill positions," said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. "Finding any qualified workers will likely become even harder with low unemployment throughout the economy."

– Patrick Lantrip