Biz Buzz shares business tidbits from across the tri-states. In this edition, we highlight developments in Galena and Elizabeth, Ill., as well as Bellevue, Iowa.

Development is underway at a Galena resort for a new mountain bike park.

Crews are working on the first project phase of Farside Bike Park at Chestnut Mountain Resort, 8700 W. Chestnut Mountain Road. Plans have been in the works for more than a year, according to Adam Buck, of Pathfinder Trail Building, the Minnesota-based company working on the project.

“This spring, we started construction on phase one, which will include two top-to-bottom downhill trails and one skills development area,” Buck said. “We will be back over the next two years developing more plans for them.”

Currently, Buck said the park’s plans include two more phases.

“Ultimately, the plan is to utilize all of their property not used for skiing in the winter,” he said. “All of the trails will be up in the woods on their property.”

Further park details, including an opening date for the first phase of the bike park, will be released later, though posts on the Chestnut Mountain Resort Facebook page indicate that the new trails will open in late summer.

Buck said the two new trails will each be about three-quarters of a mile long. Gravity-based, downhill mountain biking trails will be unique to the area, he added, as many trails in Dubuque County are cross-country ones.

“I think for the gravity-based stuff, it’s all about the fun,” he said. “Not that fitness isn’t a part of it, but it’s more about the fun. … I think in the Midwest, there’s not a lot of lift-access riding options. So for this area, I think it’s definitely going to be a unique riding experience.”

The skills development area will include elements such as smaller jumps so beginner riders can develop skills, Buck said.

He added that having additional trails in the community can only benefit an area as more people come out to enjoy the amenities.

“The terrain is absolutely gorgeous in Galena,” Buck noted. “It makes it a very unique experience not just for this area but also the Midwest.”

Chestnut Mountain Resort can be reached at 800-397-1320 and found online at chestnutmtn.com.

Bellevue native opens second electronics repair store

A Bellevue native has opened an electronics repair store in his hometown, which is also the second location for the business.

SurgIT opened this month at 101 S. Second Street, Suite B, according to co-owner Payton Marshall. The suite, which Marshall said had sat empty for a while, is across the street from Hartig Drug. The suites on either side of the store are currently empty.

The business offers repairs on electronic items, as well as provides phone and internet plans.

“I grew up in Bellevue,” Marshall said. “I graduated from high school here. I knew this place would be a really good community.”

Marshall and co-owner Quentyn Hoeger opened the first SurgIT location last August at 217 First Ave. E. in Dyersville, Iowa. Marshall said the two had met while he was working at Best Buy, and they decided to go into business together when the opportunity to rent a spot in Dyersville arose.

Since Hoeger grew up in Dyersville, Marshall said he hoped to open another store in Bellevue so both men could work in their own hometowns.

“Being able to open one up here and seeing people I used to work with and former teachers come in the door means a lot,” he said.

SurgIT’s Bellevue location is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The store can be contacted at 563-265-1456.

Dance studio owner to open second location

An Elizabeth dance studio owner will open a second location this summer.

Liz Walker, of Elizabeth Dance Center, plans to open a location in Lena, Ill., in time for the studio’s summer season.

The center in Elizabeth, opened in 2016, is above the pharmacy at 218 N. Main St. The studio primarily offers classes for children ages 2 and older, as well as a few adult options.

The new Lena location will be at 208 W. Main St., above Lena Fitness Club, and it also will be called Elizabeth Dance Center. Walker said the space previously housed another dance studio called RAE-DiANCE, where Walker taught classes about five years ago.

“The owner was ready to step away from it, and she reached out to me and asked if I’d be interested in transitioning that to Elizabeth Dance Center,” Walker said. “I couldn’t say no to that opportunity. In the Lena studio, we’re reaching a whole other community of dancers.”

She said the Elizabeth location serves 65 families in the surrounding area, and she hopes to at least double that number with the addition of the Lena studio.

The Lena studio also will allow Walker to offer tumbling classes. She said there is not enough space at the Elizabeth location for tumbling.

Walker is accepting registration for both studios for the summer season, which starts in July.

“My goal with these classes is to make sure these children are feeling proud and confident in what they’re doing,” she said. “They’re growing as people when they’re taking classes and performing onstage. Coming back to the Lena community, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to make even more kids gain that confidence in themselves.”

Elizabeth Dance Center can be reached via email at elizabethdancecenter@gmail.com. The studio also can be found online at elizabethdancecenter.com, as well as on Facebook and Instagram at @Elizabethdancecenter.