Thursday morning, four realtors participated in an open house of a different kind in the hopes of promoting Picayune as a place to establish a business.

Brenda Macaluso, a realtor with Coldwell Banker, devised the idea to hold a commercial open house as a way to let the public know that Picayune is open for business.

Four locations were on display during the two hour long event, which lasted from 9 to 11 a.m. Those buildings included the now closed Radio Shack location at 421 Memorial Boulevard, the furniture store at 313 E. Canal Street, a former pediatric care clinic at 409 Carroll St., and a former home care business located at 2003 Wildwood.

Macaluso worked with the Pearl River County Board of Realtors to organize the event, of which three other realtors participated, including Tammy Valente, Bruce Kammer and Mark Smith.

Smith said that not only is the unit where RadioShack use to be available, the entire building consisting of three other units is for sale. He also touted the listing on Memorial Boulevard as being in a high traffic area.

Kammer said his listing on East Canal Street offers 9,000 square feet in the main room and an additional 1,000 square feet of storage.

Valente, who is also on the Picayune City Council, said her listing on Carroll Street was a clinic providing pediatric care, but could be used for other purposes. And while the building is listed as being for sale, the owner is also willing to lease it.

Macaluso’s listing is just off of Cooper Road, visible from Interstate 59, and has a number of features including rear parking with an awning and a kitchen.

By showing these commercial listings, the agents wanted to let the business community know that there are plenty of locations in the city that could support a thriving business.

And currently Picayune is in a period Smith describes as an up turn. He’s noticed a number of new homes being built now that the foreclosure stock is dwindling. In order to keep that trend alive, he said that the commercial side of the market needs to be advertised.

According to Smith, three years ago was probably the worst time for the real estate market, with just after Hurricane Katrina being the peak.

Valente agrees that this is a good time to invest in Picayune, just before an upward trend is predicted to start. When asked for details about her prediction, she simply said she had some things up her sleeve. Her ultimate goal is to see Picayune become a place where young people can decide to stay and be gainfully employed.

“We need more fresh ideas like this open house,” Valente said.

She feels the city has to think differently if a new result is expected.