By Catherine Sweisberger Lake Wylie Pilot
FORT MILL -- Baxter Town Center on S.C. 160 has several new businesses opening including Polka Dots Stationery & Unique Gifts, which gives local artisans, such as Stephanie Worley of Lake Wylie, a place to display and sell their works.

"I think that's what was really exciting and unique about the shop -- that they have local artisans," said Worley, who was contacted by store owners Heather Lux and Kelly Patterson after seeing an article in the Pilot in July on her hand-made handbags.

"They contacted me and were just thrilled with my work, and that, of course, is very reaffirming," Worley said.

Other area boutiques offer some local artist's works, "but not like Polka Dots," she said.

Lux, who lives in Baxter Village, and Patterson of Tega Cay opened the gift and stationery store at 940 Market St. in suite 116 about a month ago after planning for the store for a year. While the main focus is stationery for events from weddings and birth announcements to special and every day occasions, bringing in hand-crafted items is in keeping with the store's theme.

""It's a neighborhood store and it'll always be a neighborhood store," said Lux, who has a degree in marketing and business management. "It also gives it a sense of a community store."

Lux said local artists provide the store with a "unique product line."

Products include Worley's handmade, customized bags; Ballantyne's Erin Elizabeth's jewelry; Charlottean Amy White's custom illustration cards, portraits and painted glasses; Village of Baxter's Betzi Tarter's baby products, Shane Shivel's stationery and cards, and Day Dosch's knit ponchos and scarves; and Fort Mill's Raymond Overman's turned-wood gifts.

"They give us a good advantage because people like to give a gift that's handcrafted and made locally," said Lux, explaining sales are currently 80 percent for gifts and 20 percent for stationery, but they'd like to see those figures flip-flop.

The store is open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call (803) 548-3888.

For families

Also scheduled to open in the spring of 2005 are Field of Dreams Nurture and Education Center, which will hold a groundbreaking ceremony at 2 p.m. Friday with local dignitaries and other officials at its location site at 1180 Springmaid Ave.

Owners Rick Field and his wife, Gloria, of Tega Cay and Walt and Daffony Bullard of Baxter Village will run the business side of the center while hiring a team of experts to run the child care and education programs. There will be room for 250 children, ages 6 weeks to 5 years old in full-day programs and 50 children up to age 12 in after-school programs, Rick Field said.

We just really saw the need for quality child care. There are some church-based programs part-day, but very little choice for parents who need full-day care and educational programs," he said, explaining many parents have to travel to Charlotte for such a service. "Having children ourselves, we wanted to step up and provide this service having seen firsthand the limited options for quality child care in the area."

The center also provides the community with employment opportunity. "We're going to be creating over 50 jobs in the community. That's really exciting for us," Field said.  The center will offer parents time-saving services, too, including dry cleaning drop-off and pick-up and heat-and-eat meals to go.  "The focus there is to allow families to spend more time together," Field said. "We know how parents, at the end of a long day, have to run many errands. We can help take care of some things that normally would require another stop."

For more information, call (803) 396-0900 or visit www.fieldofdreamscenter.com.

Other services

"With over five hundred families living here already, there's a built-in market within walking distance for businesses choosing Baxter," said Kerri Robusto, sales, leasing and marketing director for Clear Springs Development Co. "So many retail and commercial businesses are succeeding in Baxter, and that has drawn a lot of interest from other companies."

Other businesses and services include:

• Construction of Fort Mill native Dr. Epps' orthodontics practice. When the office is complete in about seven months, Epps will provide orthodontics for children and adults within Baxter and the surrounding area.

• Carolinas Development, LLC, has pre-sold two units within the office condominium complex at the corner of Market Street and Sutton Road. The 2-story brick and stucco building was inspired by homes and businesses in Charleston's historic district. While 1,200-square-feet offices will be the standard, units will be available from 600 square feet and more.

• The Six Pence Pub and Restaurant should start construction by year-end. The authentic English pub will offer lunch and dinner as well as a rooftop terrace. Other locations include Savannah, Georgia and Blowing Rock, N.C.

• Liu Liu's Chinese Restaurant featuring Asian dishes. "In addition to Chinese, we also have Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese cuisine," said Po Lui, who previously owned Uncle Lui's in Lake Wylie.

• A new branch of the YMCA is under construction and is scheduled to open its doors in summer 2005. When completed, this state-of-the-art, 60,000-square-foot facility will be one of the finest in the Southeast.

Other businesses in Baxter include Beef O'Brady's Restaurant and Pub, Circa North Salon, Baxter Village Cleaners, Peterson Law firm, SweeTreats Ice Cream and Coffee, the regional offices of Ovako Steel, Wilson Law Firm, Raymond James Financial Services, First Residential Mortgage Network, Greg C. Kimsey CPA, Advantage Financial Corp. and Advanced Chiropractic Clinic.

Next door

Charlotte firefighter and avid cyclist Clint Holmes opened Cyclesport in October at 2144 Carolina Place Road, across from Village of Baxter.

"I started out doing bicycle repairs out of a remodeled room in my house in Tega Cay several years ago," Holmes said via e-mail. "It started out slow at first and over the last year, business was booming."

Services include repairs, tune ups, complete bike rebuilds, new bike buildups, bike sales, along with a selection of clothing, accessories and energy food and drinks. Discounts are available for firefighters and police officers, as well as local bike club members.

Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. Call (803) 548-7315 or visit www.Cyclesportinc.com for information.