Up & Coming Weekly

February 02, 2016

Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.

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FEBRUARY 3-9, 2016 UCW 11 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Just over four years ago, a popular Fayetteville restaurant caught fire in a rear storage area. Firefighters put the blaze out before it could spread to the main dining room, but smoke and water damage ruined the interior of "Miami Subs Grill" on McPherson Church Road. It was devastating for owner/manager Jimmy Diamantopoulos. "It had just been remodeled and was free and clear," said Diaman- topoulos, as he's known, for obvi- ous reasons. He had acquired a 50-year land lease and a 20-year franchise renewal. Jimmy is managing JK's Deli and Family Restaurant nowadays, but has high hopes of returning to ownership of a local eatery. In fact, it won't be long now. Loyd Builders is constructing a strip center on Walter Reed Road, and Diamantopoulos will be back in business. Diamantopoulos has been in the restaurant business for a long time. Before coming to Fayetteville 19 years ago, he had businesses in Montreal, Florida, Pennsylvania and New York. Of Greek descent, he found a home here, and at one time owned five restaurants. The Miami Subs Grill was his anchor store. He bought the building from the Miami Subs corporation. The after- math of the fire in January of 2012 changed everything. Fayetteville Fire Department investigators, city police, State Bureau of In- vestigation and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents were unable to determine cause of the fire. No charges were filed. But Diamantopoulos says when he filed a $400,000 loss claim, Nationwide Insurance called the fire "suspicious" despite the lack of any evidence. And in May of 2012, the claim was denied. Un- able to speak with his insurance agent or Donan Forensic Engi- neering, which Nationwide hired, Diamantopoulos brought a suit against the insurance company. He tells Up & Coming Weekly the mat- ter still has not been settled. Late last year, Diamantopoulos struck a deal with the owner of vacant property where JK's is located to build a new restaurant there. It would face Raeford Road near the corner of Owen Drive. The final straw in his land prepa- ration was the N.C. Department of Transportation's decision to build a center dividing median along Raeford Road. N.C. DOT told Diamantopoulos he could not have two driveway access points, and that decision killed his plans. Actually, it changed the plan. Dia- mantopoulos is determined. That's when he learned about developer Buzz Loyd's plans for a new building on Walter Reed Road off Owen Drive. Diamantopoulos says it will be a 4,100 sq. ft. full-service restaurant about the size of JK's. Featured items will include wings, burgers, gyros and other Greek favorites. He hopes to open his new Miami Grill this summer. It's been a long road to Miami. NEWS AND EVENTS The Long Road to Miami by JEFF THOMPSON JANICE BURTON, Associate Publisher. COMMENTS? news@upandcomingweekly. com. 910.484.6200. Few if any Fayetteville residents can say they have not been touched by war in some way or the other. Some have fathers or mothers who have served, others have spouses or children and some are impacted only be friends and neighbors. But war has, for almost two decades, had a tangible affect on this community. On Wednesday, Feb. 11, Tom Quaintance, the artistic director of the Cape Fear Regional Theatre will talk about how war has impacted our community at the Fayetteville Ladies Power Lunch. Quaintance will discuss the upcoming play Downrange: Voices from the Homefront, an original work that tells the stories of the men, women and children in our community and how deployments to war have changed their lives. The stories are based on interviews with military spouses from the community. Last spring, a reading of the play drew praise from the community. Reviews in- cluded words like "funny, heartwarming, gut-wrenching and ultimately profound." Quaintance believes that the Downrange project is one way the theatre can show its dedication to the community, allowing the usually silent voices of military spouses to be heard. He believes Downrange is an important project, and an opportunity for the entire community to come together to learn about the unique challenges faced and incredible strength show by the women and men on the homefront. The play, written by Mike Wiley, is the first original play commissioned by the CFRT in its 53-year history. Downrange: Voices from the Homefront began as an outreach program by the theatre to reach out to one of its most undeserved com- munities: the military. Putting an emphasis on embracing the military as a central part of the community was one of Quaintance's major goals. Quaintance quickly learned that a large part of that community was comprised of military families, many of whom were separated by ongoing deployments. He heard stories from these families. Stories he has referred to as "stories of bravery, of community, of heartbreak and joy, of the everyday and the extraordinary." He knew this was a story that needed to be told. The theatre looked for and found funding for that project through the Audience (R)Evolution grant, a four-stage program to study, promote and support successful audience engagement and community development models across the country. The Audience (R)Evolution grant program was designed by the Theatre Commu- nications Group, or TCG, and is funded by the Doris Duke Foundation. The grant gave the theatre the means to refocus its community engagement model to put the military center stage. Bringing the story of Downrange to the Fayetteville Ladies Power Lunch sup- ports the group's mission, which is to "celebrate the 'Lionesses'" throughout the community who have faced life's challenge with courage and determination to create a powerful life and leave this community better than they found it." The event, at the Holiday Inn I-95, begins at 10 a.m. with a Shopportunity Expo, where local women-owned businesses have the opportunity to showcase their wares and build relationships. Grapes & Hops of Fayetteville will also host a wine bar and tasting. Quaintance will speak during lunch. Also on the agenda is Elaine Alexander, who will perform a monologue from her play A Southern Girl's Got to Have It, which will be performed on Valentine's Day weekend as dinner theatre returns to Fayetteville at the Holiday Inn I-95. For more information or to register for the event, visit www.fayette- villeladiespowerlunch.com Quaintance Brings Downrange to Fayetteville Ladies Power Lunch by JANICE BURTON JEFF THOMPSON, Senior News Reporter. COMMENTS? news@upandcomingweekly. com. 910.484.6200.

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