The Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber's New Tacoma Awards gave recognition to many of the people and organizations the Weekly Volcano has been touting for months and months.  The awards, announced today, recognize those downtown people acheiving greatness.  They included (from the Chamber's news release):

• Avanti Spa won the Ghillarducci Award for beautifying the Courtyard by Marriott;
• Embellish Salon and Gallery du Jour owner Patricia Lecy-Davis won the Popham Award for her work in the Downtown Merchants Group;
• The Grand Cinema won the Union Station Award for 35 percent growth in memberships during the last year;
• Urban Xchange owner Julie Bennett won the Schoenfeld Award for great performance as a retailer. â€" Ken Swarner