The Walgreens store at 1315 N. Water St. will close Wednesday, Aug. 17.
The store opened in 2005. The decision to close it was not easy, said James Graham, senior manager of media relations for the Deerfield-based company.
“Many factors are taken into account when decisions like this are made,” Graham said in an email. “Among the factors is close proximity of other stores. We have five other Decatur stores that will keep customers happy and healthy by sustaining and growing excellent service to the community.”
He said prescription files will automatically transfer to the store at 1311 Route 48, near the intersection of Oakland and Grand avenues. Pharmacy patients will receive a letter providing more information about their records.
Graham said the store's employees were offered job opportunities at other area stores, “and almost all will continue working for Walgreens.”
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Brandon Lockhart is continuing the process of bringing back the art of classical barbering by opening yet another location this week, this one at 3777 N. Woodford St., Suite B.
This makes three barber shops in the Decatur area, not to mention Lockhart's Barber College, plus a fourth shop called Lockhart's & Elam Barber Shop in Lockhart's native Shelbyville.
“Folks have been asking for a north location for a long time,” he said. “We serve a lot of clients from northern Decatur, Forsyth, Maroa and Clinton.”
The new store manager is Brett Conlin, a recent graduate of the barber college. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Call 330-8377.
The other Macon County locations are at 248 W. Main St., open since 2012, plus a newer shop at 1425 E. Village Parkway in Mount Zion.
For more, go to www.lockhartsbarbershop.com or find the business on Facebook.
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The Osaka Japanese Restaurant has debuted in downtown Mattoon, offering Japanese steakhouse-style dinners, sushi, noodle dishes and more.
Hibachi chef Kaichun "Kai" Huang and sushi chef Bin "Jerry" Lu opened Osaka at 1412 Broadway Ave., just north of the U.S. Bank building.
The hibachi dinner menu options include vegetable, chicken, salmon, shrimp, New York strip steak, filet mignon and various combinations, including with lobster and scallops. Each dinner is served with miso or other soup, a house salad, vegetables and fried rice.
The restaurant offers a variety of sushi rolls, small orders of sushi or thin sliced sashimi, and sushi bar entrees, include shared meals. There are also more than 20 types of house special rolls.
Huang suggested that diners who want to sample a variety of menu items in one dish could try a bento dinner. The compartments of the bento box hold a teriyaki, tempura or sushi entree, plus gyoza pot sticker dumplings, a four-piece California roll sushi and fried rice.
Other menu items at Osaka include yaki soba and thick udon noodle dishes, appetizers, salads, and a children's menu. Osaka offers lunch specials from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday, including bento box, hibachi, sushi bar, and sushi roll lunches. Carry out meals are available.
Osaka Japanese Restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday. Call (217) 234-6666.
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Teri Moore has moved back to Mattoon from Decatur and opened with her daughters the 2 Sisters and A Mom Boutique.
“We'd like to see downtown come back to life,” Moore said. “My older daughter was really into re-doing furniture, and we like crafts, so we decided to give this business a try.”
In addition to Heather Hinton's furniture re-purposing, the boutique sells gifts and antiques and can provide photography, wedding and other special event planning, fundraising and marketing, all in one stop.
Hinton's younger sister, Keri Moore, is the third co-owner.
Located next to Jack & Bill's Clothing at 1630 Broadway Ave. in Mattoon, the boutique is open from noon to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.
For more, find the business on Facebook or call (217) 512-3899.
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West & Company, LLC has purchased the bank consulting practice of Jeffrey A. Rice.
Rice founded his firm in 1982 and has engaged in the performance of directors’ exams, loan reviews and compliance audits. The business was based in Windsor.
It was very important to me that my company be sold to a reputable firm that shared my commitment to the provision of client services at the highest level,” Rice said. “I am confident that West & Company, LLC is that firm.”Â
“We are pleased to serve as the successor firm to Jeffrey A. Rice and are pleased to add bank consulting services to the list of services provided by our firm,” said Brian E. Daniell, partner-in-charge of the firm’s accounting and auditing group.Â
Mattoon-based West & Company, LLC was founded in 1968 and has since grown to become a regional accounting firm with five offices. It is a full-service CPA firm with offices in Mattoon, Effingham, Edwardsville, Greenville and Sullivan.
On Biz, published Fridays in the Herald & Review, highlights business developments. Contact Tony Reid at treid@herald-review.com, Chris Lusvardi at clusvardi@herald-review.com, Theresa Churchill at tchurchill@herald-review.com or call them at (217) 421-6979. Rob Stroud contributed to this column.

