TUCSON
Chef Ryan Clark now at PY Steakhouse
More than three months after leaving his partnership at Agustín Kitchen, star Tucson chef Ryan Clark is placing his bets on a new position. Clark has moved to Casino del Sol Resort to head up the kitchen at its Wine Spectator award-winning restaurant PY Steakhouse.
The “rising star” chef has been a fixture of Tucson’s culinary scene for the past several years, after winning a series of local cooking competitions including Iron Chef Tucson. After five years as head chef at Lodge on the Desert, Clark was instrumental in reconcepting the French bistro Agustín Brasserie into the more contemporary Agustín Kitchen.
Clark announced in October that he was selling his interest in Agustín Kitchen to Mercado San Agustín owners Adam Weinstein and Jerry Dixon. Agustin Kitchen’s Chef de Cuisine Brandon Dillon has also relocated, going downtown to Reilly Craft Pizza and Drink. Agustín Kitchen is now under the helm of Sally Kane.
Casino del Sol also announced a new executive chef for the property’s nine restaurants, Norman Nichols. Nichols has headed up the kitchens in several gaming properties including New York’s Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino and Louisiana’s Paragon Casino Resort.
Home Depot to hire 300 here for spring
The Home Depot plans to hire 300 associates at six Tucson stores for spring, the home improvement retailer’s busiest selling season.
The new hires will be among more than 80,000 employees the company plans to hire nationwide for the spring season, the same level as in recent years. The retailer estimates that more than half of the temporary workers stay on for permanent employment.
The part-time and full-time jobs include sales, operations and cashier positions across all departments in stores as well as jobs at its distribution centers. “College students, retirees and veterans are encouraged to apply,” The Home Depot said in a news release.
Job candidates must apply online at careers.homedepot.com/jobs-in-bloom
Gas prices still falling
The price of crude has been fluctuating recently but gas prices continue to fall, AAA Arizona says.
This week, the statewide average fell just over a nickel to $1.79 per gallon of regular on Thursday. Nationwide, prices dropped almost 5 cents to $1.77.
Tucson and Flagstaff had the lowest and highest state fuel averages at $1.57 and $2.01 per gallon, respectively, AAA said.
TSA Airport PreCheck office has moved
A Tucson center where airline passengers can enroll in the PreCheck expedited security program has moved to a new location.
PreCheck is a program of the Transportation Security Administration that provides expedited airport security checkpoint screening for enrollees.
Identogo, the contractor that operates PreCheck application centers in Tucson and elsewhere, closed the former local center at 3360 S. Palo Verde Road on Jan. 28.
A new center has opened at 1037 S. Alvernon Way, Suite 100, just north of East 22nd Street, the TSA said. The TSA website had not been updated but officials expect information on the new Tucson center to be posted online on Friday.
For more information or to pre-apply online, go to www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck
Arizona Daily Star
