Jackson Free Press

JazzFest and New Releases...

After years of planning, Whole Foods Market in Jackson is opening in less than one month. Here's the full, verbatim release from the company:

JACKSON, MS (January 10, 2014) Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ: WFM) announces it will open its doorsTuesday, February 4, at 9 a.m. at Highland Village, 4500 I-55 North in Jackson. The 34,000 square-foot store features an organic salad bar, in-store smoked barbecue, fresh-made gelato, natural body care and nutritional supplements, beer growler filling station and the Yazoo Bend Coffee & Taproom with 4 beers on tap.

“We really look forward to finally opening our doors and being part of the Jackson community,” said Marty Cribb, Store Team Leader for Whole Foods Market, Jackson. “We offer a unique grocery shopping experience, but we also give back to the community through our 5% Days, local vendor partnerships, and donations.”

Whole Foods Market will also offer an early look at its first Mississippi store with sneak-preview tours. For a $5 donation to The Literacy Garden at the Mississippi Children’s Museum, curious customers can take a pre-opening tour of the store at a specified time slot. Tours are scheduled between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Friday, January 31, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, February 1. Tour attendees will be the first to get a glimpse of the new store, learn a bit about Whole Foods Market and the store highlights, taste samples, and receive a goodie bag.

Advance registration is required, register TODAY! http://jackson.wholefoodsrsvp.com/

The store opens for business Tuesday, February 4, immediately following a bread-breaking ceremony (Whole Foods Market’s version of a ribbon-cutting,) with city officials and special guests. Customers arriving between 8 - 8:30 a.m. receive a free raffle ticket and are automatically entered for a chance to win a gift card ranging from $5-500. There will be 100 winners!

Merchant of Vino by Whole Foods Market, the 950 sq. ft. wine & spirits shop adjacent to the larger grocery store, will open at a later date with its own celebration! Whole Foods Market added approximately 120 additional jobs to the Jackson market and has been named by FORTUNE® magazine as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work For” in the U.S. for 16 consecutive years – every year since the List’s inception.

What fire officials are calling a "major" industrial fire is burning in downtown Jackson.

Few details are available but the fire is located in a building on South Jefferson street, near the offices of WLBT-TV.

No cause has been made available.

http://jacksonfreepress.com/users/photos/2014/jan/09/15297/

The few new releases that hit the streets this week...

After his election as mayor, one of the biggest questions hanging over Chokwe Lumumba's new administration was what kind of relationship he would have with the state Legislature.

Historically, that relationship has been icier than our weather the past few days. Lumumba's predecessor, Harvey Johnson Jr., wasn't known as someone who liked to hobnob and press the flesh.

Today, Lumumba opened what he called a new "era of cooperation" as he gave the Legislature a warm welcome to the capital city.

"I want you to feel welcome; I want you to to feel like you're home. Go out and spend lots of money," Lumumba told members of the Mississippi House of Representatives.

Lumumba even recommended a couple of his favorite haunts, Chitoes African Deli in west Jackson and Pearl's Southern Kitchen on Terry Road, and urged members in need of a new set of wheels to stop in at a Jackson car dealership.

Then, he struck a slightly more serious tone.

"Vote for all the pro-Jackson stuff," he said. "What's good for Jackson is good for Mississippi and what's good for Mississippi is good for Jackson."

Read more about the city of Jackson's legislative agenda.