ERIN EDGEMON, Business Editor
Posted: Sunday, August 17, 2008 8:10 am

A 50-year-old pizza franchise is heading to Murfreesboro.

Franchise owner Charlie Patel hopes his Pizza Inn location will be open at 4205 Manson Pike next door to the new BP gas station off Interstate 24 by the end of September.

Patel, who also owns the new BP station and Stones River Total Beverages, said he was attracted to Pizza Inn because of the high-quality ingredients used on the pizzas.

“We have tried Pizza Inn a lot,” he said. “We thought it was the best pizza around.”

Patel’s carryout and delivery restaurant is the only Pizza Inn location in Middle Tennessee. The restaurant franchise formerly had locations in Murfreesboro and Smyrna.

Pizza Inn officials did not respond to interview requests.

Patel said the Manson Pike location was ideal to serve nearby neighborhoods because there aren’t any other restaurants in the area.

The Dallas-based restaurant franchise is known for its unique pizza flavors from bacon cheeseburger, taco and chicken fajita to veggie and bacon cheddar ham. The menu also features salads, stromboli, pasta, sandwiches and desserts.

Patel said he plans to open “a few more” Pizza Inn locations in Murfreesboro and Smyrna within the next three years.

There are more than 360 Pizza Inn restaurants across the world. For more information on Pizza Inn, visit www.pizzainn.com.

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Old Navy and Haverty’s Furniture are both slated to open Aug. 22 at The Avenue lifestyle center, said Angie Carter, general manager of The Avenue.

Both stores are relocating from existing Murfreesboro locations for better visibility and higher traffic at The Avenue located off Medical Center Parkway.

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All of the office space in StoneGate Corporate Center — the first Class A office building built in the Murfreesboro Gateway — has been leased, said owner/developer Mark Pirtle.

The approximate 30,000-square-foot space was leased to the Veteran’s Administration.

“My goals for this building was to obtain a 90 percent occupancy by the end of the third year, however, I will reach 100 percent in 27 months,” Pirtle said. “This is just an indication of the viability of the Gateway.”

Construction will soon begin on StoneGate Corporate Center II. The four-story building will be located on 11.6 acres directly behind StoneGate Corporate Center I.

Pirtle also is developing a 38-acre office park across the street from StoneGate Corporate Center. He has sold parcels to Wilson Bank and Trust, BB&T Bank, First Bank, SiteTrust, Parks-Harney Commercial, Centennial Pediatrics and Parkside Properties.

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Yogurt Oasis is heading to the Stones River Mall instead of the Wal-Mart Supercenter shopping center on Rutherford Boulevard as originally planned, said co-owner Dale Malleck.

“We thought it would be the best location,” he said of the mall.

Malleck and his business partner Kelly Barnett hope to have the store open in the Stones River Mall’s new lifestyle center by the mall’s regrand opening slated for Sept. 14.

“We plan on having it operational by Oct. 1 at the latest,” he said.

The independently owned and operated store offers more than 15 yogurt flavors and more than 20 toppings. The yogurt has only eight calories per ounce and no fat or cholesterol.

“It is unique because you can build your own (cup),” Malleck said of the shop’s concept. “You can get as many flavors and as many toppings as you want.”

Customers are charged based on the weight of their cup of frozen yogurt.

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Office Solutions has relocated from Middle Tennessee Boulevard to 1103 NW Broad St., Suite D near Demo’s, said co-owner Benny Bateman.

The store sells new and used office furniture from cubicles and desks to filing cabinets and chairs.

In the case of cubicles, Office Solutions can come out to a potential customers’ office space measure the space and see how many cubicles the customer will need. Office Solutions can then quote a price based on new or refurbished cubicle panels.

“That keeps it out of the Dumpster and the landfills,” he said of refurbished cubicles.

After working in the industry for 15 years, both Bateman and co-owner Andrew McDaniel decided to open their own office supply store in growing Murfreesboro. They originally opened Office Solutions in Murfreesboro in June 2007.

Erin Edgemon can be reached at 869-0812 and at eedgemon@murfreesboropost.com.