New ballet academy to offer classes for the young, old
Classes for toddlers through senior citizens are available at Syringa Ballet Academy, which opens Tuesday in Coeur d’Alene. Veteran teacher and ballerina Heather Rutherford’s school is at 1928 Fourth St.
The 900-square-foot facility that formerly housed the Affordable Elegance formal wear shop includes a dance floor, dressing room and parents’ viewing area. Classes will teach performance, flexibility, posture, choreography and some ballet history.
Classes in classical and contemporary ballet for beginners, intermediate and advanced students range from 45 minutes for toddlers to 90 minutes. Adult classes are exercise-based. Public performances are planned for the spring or summer.
Rutherford studied ballet in Rapid City, S.D., Coeur d’Alene and Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle. She began teaching at age 14 and performed with Eugene Ballet and Ballet West. Phone (208) 771-3221. Check www.syringaballet.com.
Affordable Elegance moved to 296 W. Sunset Ave. The store also has a wedding chapel at the Heartland Ranch on the Farragut Peninsula. The indoor or outdoor events include a wedding chapel, tables, chairs and decorations. Phone (208) 644-8847. Check www.weddingsbybecky.com.
Walgreens plans October opening in Hayden
The new Walgreens Drug Store in Hayden is planning a mid-October opening. The 14,000-square-foot store on the southeast corner of Highway 95 and Honeysuckle Avenue will employ 25 to 30 people and have a drive-through pharmacy window.
Walgreens began in 1901 in Dixon, Ill., and now has almost 7,000 stores. Its headquarters is in Deerfield, Ill. An interesting history and other facts are at www.walgreens.com.
Advanced Input Systems plans expansion
Advanced Input Systems, which employs 325 people, will be adding to its complex at 600 W. Wilbur Ave. off Highway 95. The $3.3 million project will add 54,000 square feet and bring different segments of the company under one roof of about 139,000 square feet.
The 31-year-old company produces about 2,000 different input devices, including custom keyboards, control panels and interface devices. It is owned by Esterline Technologies, which builds avionics systems and environmental censors serving aerospace and defense markets from its headquarters in Bellevue, Wash.
The expansion will increase production capacities and office space with completion next summer. The building is owned by Parkwood Business Properties of Coeur d’Alene. Check www.advanced-input.com.
This week’s tidbits
•Sargent’s restaurant and lounge in Hayden has gone smokeless.
•Texting is a common word-sending method on our handheld communications devices (cellphones, etc.), but early newsmen perhaps “texted” (shortening/bastardizing words) more than a century ago. The word OK originated from “all correct.”
•Last week I had North Idaho College Sentinel editors Jake Donahue and Eli Francovich in the Midwest to accept the runner-up award for top nondaily college newspapers. The winner was Loyola University of Chicago and the other runner-up was the University of South Carolina. Quite an honor for a two-year college. And Indianapolis and Chicago provided an enjoyable education.