MEMPHIS, Tennessee, July 28, 1998 – Two new businesses – an art gallery and a legal services provider – have opened their doors in Peabody Place, according to officials at Belz Enterprises, owner and manager of the burgeoning mixed-use development in downtown Memphis.

Ridgway’s Legal Services has opened at 119 South Main, Suite 3, in Pembroke Square, the historic 97-year-old building that once housed Goldsmith’s department store and is now an impressive piece of the Peabody Place complex.

Rivertown Gallery has opened in the rear of Peabody Place at 128 Gayoso Lane in the Peabody Place Grand Lobby. An informal open house from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Friday, August 14, will mark the "official" opening of the gallery.

"Our two newest tenants have added to the diversity of Peabody Place and also provide additional momentum as we continue to move toward gaining full occupancy of the building by the end of the summer," said Andrew Groveman, senior vice president of marketing and administration for Belz Enterprises.

Ridgway’s Legal Services provides a wide variety of litigation management services to law firms. The services include printing, reproduction, distribution, tracking, storage, and retrieval.

Ridgway’s began as a small blue-printer in 1926. Today, it is the largest privately held reprographics company in the U.S. with legal services offices in Houston, Dallas, Little Rock, Tulsa, Washington, D.C., and now Memphis.

Rivertown Gallery is a cooperative effort involving eight Memphis-area artists, all committed to supporting the cultural arts in the downtown area. Pamela Kelso Craig, one of the eight artists, is the force behind the effort.

The other artists are Mary Lawrence Allen, John Campbell, Jeannine Bowen, Virginia Schoenster, Anne Enochs, Sandee Sander, and Candice Windham.

"We could add an additional artist or two – in fact we are looking for a three-dimensional artist so we could have some sculpture in our shop as well," said Craig. "We also hope to feature guest artists in special shows from time to time."

Craig said the group also plans to hold brown bag lunches in the Grand Lobby of the Peabody Place Building. The 30-to-45-minute lunches would feature demonstrations and lectures on such subjects as the basics of oil painting, faux finishes, painting with acrylics, and making your own greeting cards.

Peabody Place is the country’s largest mixed-use development, providing apartments, retail, restaurants, entertainment and office space. Peabody Place includes The Tower at Peabody Place, The Gayoso House Apartments, The Apartments at Pembroke Square, Pembroke Square and 50 Peabody Place. Belz Enterprises plans to break ground this year on the 250,000-square-foot Peabody Place Urban Retail and Entertainment Center, featuring a 23-screen movie complex, an IMAX Theater and retail space.

Pembroke Square offers between 9,000 to 18,000 square feet per floor of prime downtown office or retail space. The historic Memphis landmark with classic architectural detailing circa 1890, has been beautifully restored. The eight-story building runs the length of Gayoso Avenue between Front Street and the Main Street Mall.

Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, Belz is a national leader in real estate development. The company owns and manages more than 25 million square feet of industrial warehouse and distribution centers, shopping centers, office buildings, mixed-use centers, and corporate campuses. Belz also owns a group of premier hotels including the Peabody Hotels in Memphis and Orlando, Florida.