The Greenwood-Phinney Chamber of Commerce is reinventing itself, and it needs input from neighborhood business owners, whether they are traditional brick-and-mortar or home-based.

If you own a business in Greenwood or Phinney Ridge, you’re invited to a meeting at 7 p.m. Friday at Umpqua Bank, 7120 Greenwood Ave. N.

The New Year begins with the opportunity for you to weigh in on the future and role of the Greenwood-Phinney Chamber of Commerce.

Simple Agenda:

We will be accepting nominations for, electing and installing Officers and the Board of Directors.

We will engage in conversation about what you want from your local, business-advocating Chamber of Commerce.

Come, bring your business neighbors, your thoughts and nominations.

Get involved (to the extent you can) as 2012 unfolds as the year of Reinvention and Resurgence!

It’s your Chamber, help us help You!

(PhinneyWood is a member of the Greenwood-Phinney Chamber of Commerce.)

About 40 owners of businesses in Greenwood and Phinney Ridge gathered at In the Red Wine Bar in Phinney on Friday night to talk about holiday marketing and how to help each other succeed.

The event was organized by Sheri Hauser of Tasty art gallery and Lynn Gallob of Phinney Ridge Cabinets, with help from the Phinney Neighborhood Association and Mike Veitenhans (who also sent us the photo – thanks, Mike!)

Sheri asked those in attendance to record their “business wants and needs” in an idea book, the contents of which will be compiled and shared with attendees via email. One idea discussed: creation of Shopwatches (like Blockwatches, but for businesses) to facilitate communication among owners and managers along the business nodes of Phinney/Greenwood.

The group plans to hold another “meet and talk” event sometime in February.

A group of Phinney Ridge and Greenwood business owners are looking to get together with other businesses and talk about a holiday marketing strategy.

Specifically, they’re wondering if retail businesses would be interested in staying open a little later on Thursdays in December, to draw in more holiday shoppers.

Sheri Hauser of Tasty, Lynn Gallob of Phinney Ridge Cabinet Company and the Phinney Neighborhood Association are organizing the mixer, which is from 6:30-8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 18, at In the Red Wine Bar, 6510 Phinney Ave. N.

The 7-Eleven franchise at 5900 Phinney Ave. N. is for sale.

Tim Bain, franchise sales manager for 7-Eleven, tells us that the store has been for sale for a couple of months. He said the average time to sell a 7-Eleven franchise right now is about six to nine months.

Bain said the current franchise owner, Eric Batara, has owned it for about 10 years.

“We’re definitely looking for someone in the community, and who wants to be a part of the community,” Bain said.

Bain said the 3,000-square-foot Phinney Ridge 7-Eleven is an average volume store, making around $1.2 or $1.3 million in sales annually. It has two gas pumps.

To purchase a 7-Eleven franchise, you pay a one-time franchise fee that is determined based on the gross profit of the store. In this case, Bain said it might be around $85,000. Plus, you pay what they call a negotiated “goodwill” fee to the selling franchise owner.

7-Eleven rents the land, with a current lease that runs through Sept. 30, 2022. 7-Eleven also maintains the building and all equipment.

With a number of empty storefronts in the neighborhood (and the nearby Phinney Market announcing yesterday that they would be closing at the end of the month), neighbors are worried what would happen if a new franchise owner doesn’t buy it soon and Batara had to walk away.

Bain says that is unlikely, but 7-Eleven could step in and run it as a corporate store until finding a franchise owner.

“It won’t be empty,” Bain promised. “We’d run it. It’s a good neighborhood. I think it’ll franchise in the next couple of months.”

If you’re interested in purchasing the Phinney Ridge 7-Eleven, fill out an application online. For more information, call Tim Bain at 253-796-7156.

The 7-Eleven at 2100 N. Northgate Way is also for sale. You can find a map of all available 7-Eleven franchises here.

Thanks to Patti for the tip, and to James for the photo of the franchise sign!

When the Couth Buzzard book store closed in September of 2008 after 20 years as a Phinney Ridge fixture, no one could have foreseen its comeback the following year. Couth Buzzard Books Espresso Buono Café re-opened at 8310 Greenwood Ave. N. just before Christmas last year, and last Saturday, it celebrated its one-year anniversary.

“We survived and thrived in a bad economy with a used book store and a café,” co-owner Theo Dzielak, 59, said from the back of the store on Saturday. As blue grass duo Pickled Okra performed “pickled” Christmas songs in the front, he added, “It’s our first-year anniversary, and we’re celebrating.”

“Our music — well, we throw songs into the pickle jar for a while, and they come out a little different,” performer Todd Gray said in between sets with wife and band mate Paisley Gray. With a laugh, the Greenwood couple added, “It’s an acquired taste.”

Performances from children’s music to blue grass went all day during the anniversary celebration. For the evening, Spanish wine tasting and a free concert were scheduled with performers Stew Hendrickson, Pint and Dale and headliner Jim Page.

Dzielak, a former store manager at the original Couth Buzzard, re-opened with original owner Gerry Lovchik, 73, and café owner Penny Wight, 59, on Dec. 15, 2009.

“We wanted to re-open, but not without a café person,” he said in reference to a conversation he had with Lovchik when the two were looking for a new location. “This was a no-go unless we could find a coffee person.”

He gestured to Wight and then explained her expertise as one of the main components to the store’s recent success.

“We couldn’t have made it as just a used book store,” he admitted. Wight, already a coffee shop owner in Lynnwood, had the “perfect” background to help the new store survive.

“Between the three of us, we have decades and decades of experience,” Wight said as she typed on her laptop next to Dzielak. “We were able to survive by becoming part of the community.”

She said the new store has “added events where people can show off their talents in a comfortable way — the kind of place where everyone is welcome.”

Aside from the café, which serves local beer and wine, the new store is still centered on using trade as a way to build value in their product and help customers feel a sense of ownership.

Dzielak said customers bring in used books for trade, are assigned store credit, and then use it towards the purchase of other books in the future. Customers can only use store credit to pay for 50 percent of the price of each item; the rest is out of pocket.

Customer records are kept in an old notebook — in a “trade log like the old days,” Dzielak said. “We’re kind of like a recycling center that way,” he added. “This system was started in the late 1960s and early 70’s in San Francisco.”

“But we’re a cleaned-up and amped-up version of the old one,” Wight explained. “I think it’s a stroke of genius.”

Long-time customer Rich Levinski, 42, said, “They give you more value than other local book stores, and a better deal in the long run.”

“And our baristas are so kind and considerate,” Wight said as she got up to relocate moveable book shelves to make room for the evening concert. “They make homemade baked goods and soups — the whole nine yards.”

“Our café is just fun, and we have the freedom to experiment and make things,” barista and cook Jason Studstill, 26, said as he took a tray of brownies out of the oven. “We are surrounded by eccentric artists, and that carries over into our work.”

“The reason this place is becoming a draw is because it has a nostalgic twinge,” artist Brian Prosser said as he sketched the ongoing blue grass performance. “People come in here every day and are excited that their old book store is back.”

“Opening up a business is almost like having a child all over again,” Dzielak said. “All these crises and decisions come up every day, and you’re counting the days until it goes off to kindergarten and you can finally take a breather.”

“Now that we have a system going,” Wight said, “we won’t have to work 80 hours a week to keep it going.”

Tyler Steele is PhinneyWood’s intern. He is a journalism student at the University of Washington.

Island Video, 7216 Greenwood Avenue N., a long-time fixture in the neighborhood, is closing due to changing consumer habits.

“It’s because of Netflix, obviously,” lamented Chris, the store manager. “It’s a national disease.”

The store is expected to close in mid-December, Chris said. There is one other Island Video store in Madison Park.

We found out about this from Diane Butler, who posted a note on our Facebook page that read:

How can it be that our super cool Phinney Ridge neighborhood video store, Island Video, is closing?! I love movies, but I am not Netflix kind of gal. I like going into the shop, browsing the titles, and getting great advise from Chris about what to watch. He is a wealth of cinematographic history & knowledge. Let’s get our community organized to Save our Video Store!

Ballard will soon get a taste of Greenwood’s Mr. Gyros Mediterranean eatery.

Our sister site, MyBallard, is reporting that owners Sammy and Joni Arsheed will open their second location at the corner of 20th Ave NW and NW 56th St in June. The Arsheed brothers opened Mr Gyros seven years ago at 8411 Greenwood Ave. N. The new space will be larger than the Greenwood location, but is modeled after the original, with an open kitchen, casual dining and a hard-to-miss yellow awning. “It’ll be the same as Greenwood,” Sammy says, “Bar stools and baskets. Get people in and out.” They plan on staying open late, like 2 a.m., on Fridays and Saturdays for those late-nighters who want something other than hot dogs, Sammy tells us. (Thanks Silver for the tip!)

(The following article was written by neighborhood freelance writer Vickie Bona. It is part of an occasional series on small neighborhood businesses.)

When strolling in the vicinity of 85th Street and Greenwood Avenue, keep an eye open for the lovely Terra Bella Flowers. A small storefront just southwest of the intersection, Terra Bella Flowers offers a quiet reprieve from busy streets.

As soon as you enter, the natural fragrance of flowers soothes the soul and clears the mind, freeing you to absorb all the small details which owner Melissa Feveyear arranges into her space. The feel is classic, with an eclectic twist, and Feveyear is just as much a part of the scenery, with her cascading strawberry blonde ringlets and soft-spoken demeanor.

(Photo by David E. Perry, courtesy of Terra Bella Flowers.)

Terra Bella Flowers is the culmination of Melissa’s pursuit to preserve the natural beauty of the earth. Her flowers have no pesticides or chemical fertilizer residue.

Melissa was introduced to the floral business at age 15, doing small jobs in her aunt’s flower shop in Porterville, CA. At about this same time, her environmental conscience was also sprouting. During school breaks she traveled to Mexico, volunteering as an English and art teacher. She worked in a shanty school that was built on top of a covered landfill, overlooking the vast pit of the operating landfill. While the children studied, their parents spent the day scavenging in the pit next to the school. There was a children’s cemetery nearby and, to Melissa’s dismay, each time she returned to the school, the cemetery had expanded.

For three years Melissa made regular trips to Mexico to teach. These journeys opened Melissa’s eyes to how humans were treating the environment and the reciprocating impact of pollution. She decided to take up the cause. In college, she enrolled in Environmental Studies and Hazardous Waste Management. She also volunteered at Silicon Valley Toxic Coalition.

Caught up in the embroiled fight for environmental responsibility, Melissa found she missed having direct contact with plants and so she decided to take a different tack, one that continued to promote environmentalism yet allowed her to do what she loved most.

She changed her major to Landscape Design with the intention of building landscapes that removed toxins from the earth. She also completed her certification in floral design to help pay for her college. Working with flowers again, she realized she really loved floral design, so she returned to her floral roots.

Melissa and her husband moved to Seattle in 1999 and Melissa found work at a flower shop in Magnolia. She then converted an Airstream trailer into a floral shop and set up on the corner of 65th Street and 3rd Avenue NW. Melissa bought her flowers from the Pike Place Market vendors and found she loved having her own business.

She closed down at the end of the growing season, with an idea to open a more permanent shop. In 2006, when Phinney Ridge Florist at 103rd Street and Greenwood Avenue went up for sale, Melissa, with the help of her family, purchased the small shop and began to cultivate her vision: to be Seattle’s premier organic flower shop.

But the location was not ideal. With little foot traffic and parking, Melissa was already searching for a better spot to transplant her growing business. She liked the corner of 85th and Greenwood, so she approached the owners of Antika. They agreed to rent her the space at 8417 Greenwood Ave. N.

In 2008, under her new name, Terra Bella Flowers opened its doors in the heart of the Greenwood district. Melissa sources local, organic, and sustainably grown flowers. In the summer, most of the flowers she sells are grown locally. In the winter, she supplements with orders from California and South America. She’s found that the South American market has more stringent rules protecting against pesticide use and that the carbon footprint of transporting organic is less than that of locally grown flowers sprayed with toxic chemicals.

Melissa follows fair trade and sustainable practices guidelines when seeking vendors. There are certifications she looks for that guarantee these qualities, such as the Veriflora certification and Sierra Eco. Terra Bella Flowers is a premium flower shop and full service design studio with certified designers, highlighting the incredible, natural beauty and character of flowers and plants. And, Melissa emphasizes, pricing is competitive with any conventional flower shop.

Melissa also continues to maintain a level of activism, promoting sustainable practices in the floral industry. She has worked with the WA State University Outreach Program and Community Supported Agriculture and is constantly in dialog with suppliers about sustainable choices. And she’s always looking for new local growers who practice sustainable farming.

To complement her love of the earth, Melissa adorns her shop with antiques and repurposed arts and crafts. She supports local artisans and welcomes more products and artwork for consignment. One of her favorite collections are the handmade aprons created from vintage fabrics by a mother and daughter team who call themselves Boojiboo.

Although she has a natural flair for beauty, Melissa also has a natural business sensibility. She does a lot of networking and always has her ear out for new opportunities. She can be seen at neighborhood small business gatherings and local Chamber of Commerce meetings.

Terra Bella flowers is much more than a pretty face on Greenwood Avenue. It is a business dedicated to inspiring appreciation for the natural beauty of the earth, while actively working for sustainable change in the industry. Melissa’s motto: “Naturally Inspired!”

Several people alerted us to the For Lease signs that appeared on the building where Kelly’s Fresh Produce was expected to open on the corner of North 83rd Street and Greenwood Avenue North. We just spoke with the building owner, who says he is indeed looking for a new tenant.

“The Kelly in Kelly’s Produce changed his mind, so we’re looking for a new produce vendor,” owner Jim Greene said today.

He says he’s got a couple interested people looking at the space. Greene says he hopes to have interior renovations done in the next week or so. One noteworthy element is a produce-themed mural on the interior north by artist Jim Carey. Here’s a picture of the partially completed work.

There’s also a comment thread on this subject in the forum.

The 85th St. Market at the corner of NW 85th Street and 8th Avenue NW opened Friday and here’s a look inside today:

We can’t compare the convenience store to the old place - we avoided it, as did a lot commenters on some of our earlier posts. As you can see from the picture, the cheery yellow paint, new floors and new lighting brighten it up quite a bit.

Owner Chuck Shin, pictured, says they’re getting in more inventory and are at about 70 percent of where they want to be. They’ll get hot food in soon and they’ll be bringing in some dairy products as well. They’re even considering a hand-dipped ice cream station during the summer.

Two things they won’t have is malt liquor and porn, which some commenters on those earlier posts said attracted a negative element to the area.

The building has been repainted and new security lighting has been installed all around the building to further discourage loitering. There are plans to repave the parking lot this summer to further improve the visual appeal of the property.

“A lot of people have come in to say they’re glad we’re here instead of the other store,” Shin said.

Body & Brain Holistic Wellness Center just moved into Greenwood at 8750 Greenwood Ave. N., Ste. S-2. Becky Croissant is the owner and head instructor.

Body & Brain HWC offers a variety of programs and workshops designed to help you let go of your critical, judgmental brain and negative habits that bring anxiety and stress to your life and keep you from creating the life you truly want. Learn how to master your body, brain, and emotions to be more peaceful and happy!

Personalized programs include private healing sessions, one on one Qigong classes, core strengthening, and health and wellness sessions focusing on weight loss. Children’s classes are available, and include character-building to promote harmonious social relationships among peers and family members.

Body & Brain’s Grand Opening Celebration is from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 6. Stop by to receive free consultations, energy readings, and hand/shoulder healing massages. Refreshments (including gluten-free) and tea will be served. Free open classes will be at 10 a.m. and 12 p.m.

Each class is one hour long and is comprised of deep stretching, breath work, meditation, energy training, and brain wave vibration (a dynamic movement meditation). RSVP by calling 206-453-5989.

Especially effective for helping with weight loss, insomnia, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, arthritis, osteoporosis, general neck/shoulder stiffness, increased flexibility, and handling everyday stress. Tai Chi, Qigong, and children’s classes are forming.

Grand Opening Special: 20% off all new memberships (includes unlimited classes and 1-on-1 training).

We’ve been so busy with arson coverage lately, that our inbox is full of reader tips on other topics. Here’s a roundup:

Now that holiday season is approaching and delivery drivers are leaving packages on door steps, keep an extra careful eye out. One reader reports that neighbors in the 300 block of NW 77th Street had a package stolen from their porch.

Michael reminds us that it’s the 20th anniversary of the John Cusack classic “Say Anything,” with two key scenes filmed right here on Phinney Ridge at the 7-11 and the adjacent Woodland Park by the zoo’s north entrance. Here’s an anniversary review of the movie.

Five neighborhood businesses are included in the new fourth edition of “eat.shop seattle,” which calls itself “a curated guide of inspired and unique locally owned eating and shopping establishments.” They have a whole series of guides around the country. Neptune Coffee, Tokara, Picnic (a PhinneyWood sponsor), The Shop Agora (a PhinneyWood sponsor) and Greenwood Space Travel Supply all get props for being “interesting, inspired and authentic.” The book is available at Picnic.

Karen is concerned that some bicyclists don’t have enough lights or reflective clothing on, especially now that it gets dark so early. Add another light or two to your bike and helmet, and leave plenty of room when turning or changing lanes. Don’t assume that a driver can see you.

The Frock Shop at 6500 Phinney Ave. N. has completed its expansion and renovation into the space next door. The store was also named one of Marie Claire’s 50 Best Fashion Stores in the country. And owner Suzy Fairchild is now offering her own line of organic baby clothing, called Hoot.

The website Kids Eat For has a weekly calendar that lists all the restaurants in a certain area where kids eat free or cheap.