Denny’s restaurant at Court Street, Minot Avenue and Unior Street in Auburn.

This week the Buzz is renaming, reopening and rebuilding — or at least knocking down to build something temporarily, mysteriously anew.

First up: Crisis averted!

Denny’s reopened.

The Buzz received several nervous notes last week after the restaurant on Court Street in Auburn suddenly went dark Wednesday.

Donna Brown, the new general manager, said a water pipe break at around 3 a.m. June 5 caused enough damage to the chain restaurant to shut it down for five days.

Repairs were in place so they could reopen at 4 p.m. Monday, to the joy of regulars and “my staff, too,”  Brown said. “They need to work, so they’re excited. Come on down, Denny’s is open, we can’t wait to see you again.”

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You’re curious about the mystery, right?

On Monday night, the Lewiston Planning Board approved a $1.5 million, 5,584-square-foot medical building for 685 and 689 Sabattus St.

The property at 685 is a paved lot and 689 has a brick building that will come down first, according to the permit application filed with the city.

The project is being developed by 685 Sabattus Street LLC.

“We don’t know who the end user is, though. They would not tell us,” said David Hediger, director of planning and code enforcement, who asked a project representative in advance of the meeting. “He said, ‘That will be known soon enough.’

“One of the board members asked, ‘Is it an urgent-care-type facility?’ and his response, was, ‘It is similar to an urgent-care facility.'”

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Construction is anticipated to start this year.

What’s in a name?

The Brand Collective is now Warp + Weft.

The Auburn branding agency announced the name change on Tuesday.

“Like a lot of companies, our original vision for the organization has evolved in response to our clients’ needs, the expertise of our team and our target market,” said Jennie Malloy, who co-founded the company with Aimee Goodwin in 2012. “Although an unusual name for a branding agency, we feel Warp + Weft better underlines the sophistication and creativity of our work, the foundational nature of the branding work we do, and the importance we place on our chosen location and community (Lewiston-Auburn).”

So what’s the name mean?

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It’s a nod to weaving heritage: warp threads run lengthwise and weft threads across, according to the agency’s new website.

And yes, they anticipate some double takes.

“When we first seized upon Warp + Weft, we went directly to Museum L-A for an inspirational field trip,” Malloy said. “As you can imagine, the term warp and weft was everywhere. The connection to the history of Lewiston-Auburn — its textile workers and weavers — is important to us.”

And then there was one again

The Twin Cities are back to a single business-to-business trade show and it’s happening this year on June 20, at the Norway Savings Bank Arena in Auburn.

The Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council had run the Maine B2B for 22 years before becoming part of the Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce last year. The chamber opted to change up the format, name and location.

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Travis Dow, who had organized the B2B the two previous years, broke out his own event, calling it the Maine Business to Business Trade Show, and held it a few months later.

This year, it’s just Dow’s event — Maine B2B Business to Business Trade Show — and the location has changed from the Androscoggin Bank Colisee to the ice arena in honor of Auburn’s 150th anniversary celebration.

Dow will host the chamber’s Business After Hours at the end of his trade show, according to chamber President Beckie Conrad.

More details to come.

Quick hits about business comings, goings and happenings. Have a Buzzable tip? Contact staff writer Kathryn Skelton at 207-689-2844 or kskelton@sunjournal.com.


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