The grand opening of the Brain Balance Center is on Wednesday, Sept. 14 in Rams Plaza at 1728 Fordham Blvd. The ribbon cutting will take place at 1:30 p.m., and additional activities will follow from 2 to 5 p.m.
The Brain Balance Center helps students from age 4 to those in their early twenties who have behavioral, social or academic challenges.They provide a personalized and individualized approach for each of their students.
“Our goal is to welcome the community into the center,” said Christy Hart, the assistant director of Brain Balance Center’s Chapel Hill location.
During the open house, Brain Balance will be hosting a touch-a-truck event where kids can come out and meet a fire man and play on the fire truck. They are also offering free eye assessments to check kids’ eye functions. There is also a book signing with the company’s founder, Dr. Robert Melillo, interactive crafts, an obstacle course and face painting.
“To sum (Brain Balance Center) up we do an assessment, we make plans for an individualized program, we help families implement nutrition and we follow up with schools,” Hart said.
There will also be another function at UNC’s Friday Center for Continuing Education at 7 p.m. the same day where Dr. Melillo will be talking about his research involving common childhood neurobehavioral disorders.
“He is going to talk about the root cause of children who have challenges and how that root cause often starts in the brain, and the critical importance of synchronizing left brain and right brain interactions as well as to combine physical exercise and a healthy diet for dramatic results in kids,” Hart said.
Chronic Tacos
Chronic Tacos will be hosting their grand opening Sunday, Sept. 18 from 12 to 4 p.m. celebrating their new location in the Chapel Hill area.
“We’re not a tex-mex restaurant, we’re all authentic Mexican,” O’Neill said about his restaurant.
The first twenty-five people in line will receive one free taco a week for a year and the first fifty people in line will receive a free taco. The local radio station 95X will be there as well as the professional skateboarder, Wee Man and a mariachi band.
“Chapel hill is such a unique town - it has a lot of flavor and character to it,” Sean O’Neill, Chronic Taco’s manager, said.
Their menu includes potato tacos - a deep fried taco filled with mashed potatoes, which O’Neill said vegetarians love.
“We have chronic fries which, for me, I consider the best hangover food in the world. It’s essentially loaded fries and most people get it with carne asada,” O’Neill said.
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Other popular menu items include carne asada, California style fish tacos, tortas — a traditional Mexican sandwich and Chronic fries.
“All of our recipes are third generation family recipes. There’s no corporate chef in a funny hat mixing up peach-mango salsa because that’s what’s in season or anything,” said O’Neill.
Chronic Taco’s new location is at 504 Meadowmont Village Circle.
Morinaga American Foods
Morinaga American Foods is the 80th business in Orange County to meet the living wage criteria said Susan Romaine, chair person of the Living Wage Project.
“We are thrilled to have Morinaga on board,” Romaine said.
Romaine said a 'living wage' helps lift many working families out of poverty and creates a more stable workforce as business owners see less turnovers, absenteeism and lower costs in training and re-hiring.
She said it allows more people to live and work in Orange County — creating shorter commutes and more time for employees to spend with their families. It helps put money back into the local economy.
“If you use what’s called the standard multiplier, it suggests that for every additional dollar that goes into the pockets of workers at the low end of the pay scale, the local economy benefits by $1.21,” Romaine said.
Morinaga is the first company to locate in the Buckhorn Economic Development district which was set up by the Orange County Board of Commissioners.
This economic district is a way to provide incentives for big name businesses to locate in Orange County said Romaine.
Morinaga provides about 80 percent of health benefits for all of their employees and must maintain a wage of at least $11.25 to continue to be living wage certified, Romaine said.
Morinaga American Foods has 80 full time employees.
