Events

Washington, D.C. -- The D.C. Council failed on Tuesday to overturn Mayor Vincent Gray’s veto of the proposed “living wage” bill. According to Washington Business Journal, only seven of the required nine district councilors voted to override Gray’s veto of the Large Retailer Accountability Act.

National Retail Federation (NRF) senior VP for government relations David French issued the following statement:

Seattle -- Starbucks Corporation is requesting that customers no longer bring guns onto its property, either inside or outside its stores — even in states where “open carry” laws permit them to do so — with the exclusion of law enforcement personnel.

Company founder, chairman and CEO Howard Schultz made the request in an open letter posted under his name on the Starbucks website. The company plans to buy ad space in major national newspapers to run the letter.

City of Commerce, Calif. — 99 Cents Only Stores will open a 15,635-sq.-ft. store in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sept. 19.

As part of the grand opening, the first nine customers may buy a 40-inch Westinghouse flat-screen TV for 99 cents. The chain currently operates 326 across the southwest.
 

Have you heard of Silicon Beach? No, it isn’t an offshoot of Silicon Valley. It is a phenomenon emerging in West Los Angeles, home of The Promenade at Howard Hughes Center, a mixed-use development with office, residential, hotel, retail, restaurant and entertainment offerings.

Silicon Beach has taken its name from Silicon Valley — both are notable for the number of creative business start-ups.

Duck brand is hitting the road in its custom, bright green, 31-foot Duck Bus and heading to Burnham Park in Chicago as part of the Duck Tape "Rolls Across America” tour. 

Seattle -- Starbucks Coffee Company on Monday opened two flagship stores in Beijing, China. The new Beijing flagship stores were designed by members of the in-house Starbucks global design team and the local Starbucks China Design Studio, one of 18 international design offices worldwide. One store is a “coffee tribute” store at Kerry Center and one is an “eclectic chic” 24-hour store in the Taikoo Li Sanlitun district.

Mokena, Ill. — Micoley.com’s Sept. 28 property auction will offer a restaurant and banquet facility in Mokena, Ill. The two-story restaurant spans 14,754 sq. ft. The site includes 162 parking spaces. Zoning allows other kinds of commercial activity.

The property has an opening bid of $995,000, substantially lower than the initial asking price of $1,795,000. Offers are expected during the lead up to the auction. Properties such as this frequently sell ahead of their auction date.

Greenwood Village, Colo. — Maui Wowi Hawaiian plans to open a shop in Northwoods Mall in Peoria, Ill. Slated to open in early October, the new Maui Wowi franchise shop will continue the brand’s expansion in Illinois.

Maui Wowi currently has more than 450 operating units in seven countries.