Walden closing; is Barnes & Noble moving in?

Cape Girardeau's western fringe is a flutter with scuttlebutt. If the rumors are to be believed, the story goes something like this: Waldenbooks is leaving the mall because Barnes & Noble has decided to abandon its current location in favor of the Westfield.

I can't set the record entirely straight, but here's what I could dig up: Waldenbooks has confirmed that it will, in fact, close on Sept. 5. Rennie Mayens, the book chain's district manager for portions of Missouri and Illinois, told me that the decision was made because Barnes & Noble is moving into the mall.

Mayens said the lease was up for renewal.

"But if Barnes & Noble's going to be there, it doesn't make sense for us to be," he said. "We're disappointed to be leaving the mall. We've got some dedicated customers there. It was more a business decision."

Meanwhile, the folks at the local Barnes & Noble tell me that they've been assured by the corporate office that they're not going anywhere. But even the Fed Ex guy who delivers book shipments is asking them when they're moving.

Barnes & Noble's corporate office in New York, through a company spokeswoman, would only say that there's no announcement about any changes to take place in its Cape Girardeau store.

Westfield West Park manager Paul Dobbins said he can't comment on any possible upcoming deals, even to say whether it's true.

"But there's always stuff out there that we're working on," he said. "I'll let you know."

So, for now, that's all I know.

As Paul Simon once sang, these are only hints and allegations. But maybe there's more to it. I think there is, but I've been wrong before. (Once.)

The last chapter in this drama ought to be a doozy.

Jay's Barbecue taking over Woodard's spot in Jackson: If you've ever eaten at Jay's Barbecue in Marble Hill, you know that it offers fantastic food in portions so heaping that Jabba the Hutt would have trouble polishing off a plate.

Loosen your belts, Jackson, Jay's is coming.

Jay Santi is opening a second location in Jackson in the spot recently vacated by Woodard's at 1830 E. Jackson Boulevard. Santi, a former partner in Pagoda Gardens, tells me he plans to have it up and running sometime in October.

"I think there was a need for this type of barbecue in Jackson," Santi said.

The new restaurant is going to also offer steak and seafood and will offer table service. If you've been to the Marble Hill restaurant, you know you pick the food from a buffet-style arrangement.

The building is currently being remodeled. Santi said he also hopes to offer beer and wine, which is also different from the Marble Hill operation.

Santi, by the way, is from Thailand. But he's been in the U.S since 1971. He's worked in restaurants in New York City before opening up his own restaurants locally.

Movie theater updates: Kansas City-based AMC Entertainment is still at least considering building a new theater here in Cape Girardeau, according to commercial realtor Sandy Helwege. But nothing has been finalized yet, she said. Repeated calls to AMC's property development and corporate communications offices went unreturned.

I also checked in with Kerasotes, which is also considering building a new Cape Girardeau theater. Bob Gallivan, director of real estate for Kerasotes, said it's something they're looking at as well.

"But it's something that we're looking at down the road," Gallivan said. "I haven't spoken seriously with anyone about it. It's not on the front burner for us. ... But I keep having people call me and tell me they have a great location in Cape for us."

Job surfing: The Internet's an easy time killer, from shopping, e-mail, all the sports sites, checking out new movie trailers, maybe even reading some news. And Americans hardly restrict all this Web activity to their personal time.

But how much do you think people spend each day on the job with non work-related Internet use?

A national staffing firm posed that question to 150 senior executives and got an average response of 56 minutes per day. And many employees forget that companies routinely monitor what you're sending and viewing on their computers.

Nearly a quarter, 23 percent, said their company monitors Internet activity "very closely," and 41 percent said "somewhat closely."

The data were compiled by Accountemps, a financial temp-staffing firm based in Menlo Park, Calif.

"Employees are representatives of their firms, and all communication -- including e-mail and instant messaging -- should be professional," said Max Messmer, Accountemps' chairman.

Well my bosses never have to worry about me. I NEVER do anything on the Internet except look for news information and as a resource to make this paper better.

Never.

Really.

Scott Moyers is the business editor for the Southeast Missourian. Send comments, business news, information or questions to Biz Buzz, 301 Broadway, Cape Girardeau, Mo., 63702-0699, call 335-6611, extension 137 or e-mail smoyers@semissourian.com.