Here's a look at the business trends for December in the Chattanooga area.
What opened
A new Popeyes restaurant opened in late December at 5117 Highway 153. The restaurant includes both a dining room and a drive-through window and is one of two locations recently opened by Supreme Cajun Foods, a privately owned restaurant company.
Weigel's, a convenience store, opened two new locations in December on Hixson Pike and Highway 58.
Five Star Breaktime Solutions, the Chattanooga-based vending and cafeteria provider previously called Five Star Food Service, opened its 4,000th micro market. Micro markets are popular alternatives to a company cafeteria or dining room.
A 27,000-square-foot animal cancer center, an addition to the Veterinary Care & Specialty Group, opened on Broad Street.
In Soddy-Daisy, O'Brien's Brew, Bits and Bites (OB3B) opened Dec. 1, designed to be more than just a restaurant. The owners are aiming to create a space where the community can gather for all sorts of reasons, as well as make and buy artisanal crafts.
What closed
Jacob Myers Restaurant on the River closed after 25 years of operation in Dayton, Tennessee. The restaurant began in 1998 in downtown Dayton and was a popular spot for its food and free Wi-Fi.
Gifford Street Fabrics, which operated as the retail portion of the McLaughlin family business, closed its location on Chattanooga's Southside.
Baltimore Aircoil Co. announced it is investing $16.5 million to boost production of the heating and cooling coil production plant. The expansion will add 63 more employees to its Dayton plant.
A little more than two years after opening their flagship shop in 2021, the Van Meter family opened Drip Kitchen & Coffee's third location in Hixson.
Announced developments
Hamilton County commissioners in late December green-lit changes to a more than 200-home subdivision in Ooltewah. The subdivision could have prices ranging from $350,000 to upwards of $1 million.
Chattanooga's EPB plans to install a charging station for electric vehicles off Interstate 75 in East Ridge. EPB President David Wade said in a statement that adding fast charging stations along the I-75/Interstate 24 interchange will serve residents and commuters who pass through the area.
Chattanooga residential developer RP Homes is planning to build 56 townhomes near the Fort Wood District at Central and McCallie avenues.
Tennessee Department of Transportation officials announced in December that I-24 at Moccasin Bend in Chattanooga is one of four traffic sites under consideration by the state for privately built and operated toll lanes.
County commissioners approved the purchase of a building at 400 N. Holtzclaw Ave. for $2.65 million that could serve as a new regional forensic center.
The Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission approved a land rezoning that would permit a new 550-home development at Hixson Pike and Green Pond Road to move ahead.
— Compiled by Kiara Green