Washington State Development Thread

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Kelso council rejects skateboard park bid
Tuesday, June 2, 2009 11:05 PM PDT
By Amy M.E. Fischer

TDN.com
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


The Kelso City Council on Tuesday rejected a construction bid for the city’s long-awaited skateboard park, uncomfortable about the price and that only one company was vying for the project.

Instead, the council decided to put the project out for bidding again.

Thompson Brothers Excavating, Inc. of Vancouver submitted the only bid in the amount of $424,047. To award the contract with a 5 percent contingency for cost overruns, the council would have had to approve spending $89,000 more in city funds, Public Works Director David Sypher told the council.

The council had anticipated spending $405,000 on a 10,000-square-foot skate park with a concrete bowl design. The skate park would be built at Kelso Rotary Park on Minor Road, which is visible from Interstate 5.

Grants and donations — including a $150,000 state grant, $10,000 from the Tony Hawk Foundation and $45,000 from Kelso Rotary — were expected to pay half the cost, and the council pledged $163,000 toward the project. The city already has spent nearly $60,000 to have the skate park designed and engineered.

Councilmen Gerry Malella, Alan Slater, Rick Roberson and Dan Myers couldn’t stomach the idea of parting with another $89,000, they said.

“I would characterize this as probably a good project at a bad time,” Myers said, adding that the city has other projects of a higher priority to fund. “If we start laying off people after spending this, I think we would be embarrassed.”

Malella said he was troubled by having only one bid because he didn’t know if it was a fair price.

“If there’s a recession going on, we should’ve had 10 people bidding,” he said.

Sypher explained that the job requires specialty concrete work that few companies do. The bid Thomas Brothers Excavating submitted included $300,000 in subcontract work on the concrete bowl by Grindline Skateparks Inc., a Seattle design firm that’s built about 100 skate parks nationwide.

Sypher said the project might get more bids if the city waited until January, a month when contractors typically are hungry for work. Liking that idea, Roberson asked the council to be patient.

Councilman Todd McDaniel became frustrated at his peers’ reluctance to accept the bid. He read a list of past projects the council funded, including a $300,000 parking lot. The council had “no problem” with that cost, even though a parking lot wouldn’t enhance citizens’ lives, he argued. A skate park was an investment that would last 50 years, he said.

“We’re about action,” McDaniel said. “I understand the economy, but what’s it going to cost a year from now? ... It’s time to move or just drop it.”

Myers said that a six-month wait for bids wouldn’t be significant, considering the project’s already stretched out nine years.

“To say it’s now or never is a bit melodramatic,” he said.

The council rejected Thomas Brothers’ bid by a 4-3 vote. McDaniel, Mayor David Futcher and Councilman John Karnofski voted to accept it.

The council then voted 6-1 to reopen the bidding for another 30 days in hopes of getting a lower bid. Slater voted no.

Afterward, Jeremy Hooper, who owns Plan-Z skateboard shop at Three Rivers Mall, said he was “baffled” that the council was still debating whether this was a “good time” to build the park after discussing it for nine years.

If he had $400,000, he’d build the park himself, he added.

“I’d do it just so the kids would quit asking me when it’s gonna be done,” said Hooper, who’s held skate park fundraisers. “I’m just amazed it keeps on stretching out.”

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The Shops at The Bravern are taking shape
By LINDSAY LARIN
Bellevue Reporter Staff Writer
Jun 02 2009, 2:01 PM ·
image hosted on flickr

(The Bravern during construction.)
AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

Towering on the corner of NE 8th Street and 112th Avenue NE, The Shops at The Bravern are taking form and on schedule to open in September.

The 300,000 square foot retail and restaurant village will feature upscale brands including Jimmy Choo, Hermès, Tory Burch, Salvatore Ferragamo, and will be anchored by the Pacific Northwest’s only Neiman Marcus department store.

The urban-outdoor shopping village will also house new Eastside dining options including John Howie Steak and Seattle-staple Wild Ginger.

Bellevue Reporter Staff Writer Lindsay Larin can be reached at llarin@bellevuereporter.com or 425-453-4602.

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Published: Thursday, June 4, 2009
Bigger Bothell put on hold

The planned expansion into Snohomish County isn't ready, a state board rules.

By Noah Haglund
The Everett Herald Writer

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


A citizen-led drive to greatly expand Bothell's city limits into Snohomish County will have to wait at least another year after a state board ruled Tuesday that the proposal wasn't ready.

The Boundary Review Board decided Tuesday that more planning was necessary, especially for fire protection.

"The citizens are going to be disappointed," said Mickie Gundersen, president of the Hilltop- Locust Community Group, which has worked to join Bothell for 12 years. "What we really want is better representation."

Gene Grieve, who has headed up the effort with Gundersen, said they would try again.

The annexation would have added 22,000 residents to Bothell's current population of 32,000. Residents are split almost evenly between King County and Snoho*mish County; the annexation would have put the majority of the city north of the county line.

Fire-service issues weighed most heavily on the board. Two fire districts serving the unincorporated areas said the annexation would have forced them to close one station each and lay off a combined 26 to 30 firefighters. Bothell planned to hire six new firefighters to replace them.

"They're saying they can provide the same level of service with a lot fewer firefighters," said Snoho mish County Fire District 1 Commissioner Jim Kenny. "Somehow, that doesn't add up."

Fire District 7 faced similar problems, plus possibly losing a nearly $1.7 million federal grant.

Another sticking point was a cross-county dispute about trash. King County officials say a late-1980s agreement gives them the right to all of Bothell's garbage. Snoho mish County officials say the county could lose $1.9 million in annual revenue if it loses responsibility for handling the trash.

Review board members, who voted 4-1 to keep the annexation from moving forward, worried about the potential for lawsuits without further planning.

Bothell originally hoped to put the issue to ballot early next year. Now, it has to wait until at least late 2010. Bothell spokeswoman Joyce Goedeke said Wednesday the city was deciding how to proceed in light of the decision.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet.com.

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Wednesday, June 3, 2009, 1:48pm PDT
Seattle is nation’s No. 2 high-tech center: Study
Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle)

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

image hosted on flickr



Seattle passed Boston to become the nation’s No. 2 high-tech center, according to a study released Wednesday by the Milken Institute.

California’s Silicon Valley “continues to lead all other metropolitan regions in North America in the breadth and scope of economic activity it creates through technological innovation,” according to the Milken Institute report, called “North America’s High-Tech Economy: The Geography of Knowledge-Based Industries.” In the previous Milken study in 2003, Seattle was ranked third behind Silicon Valley and Boston.

The study ranked the metropolitan areas based on several factors, including the number of employees in the various high-tech fields, salaries paid, and the relative size of the industry compared to the entire city. It ranked the metros in 19 high-tech business categories.

Using data from 2007, the study indicates that the high-tech industry provided $22.3 billion in wages in the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett area and employed 226,000 people in 2007. In the sub-category of software publishing, the Seattle area ranked No. 1 nationally, with that high-tech industry employing 46,318 people who earned wages of more than $7 billion in 2007. Seattle also ranked high in the aerospace product and parts manufacturing sub-category, with 76,148 people earning $6.69 billion in 2007.

“Like most of the economy, the high-tech sector has taken a beating in the last six months, but recent numbers show that these cuts may be leveling off and the sector could be primed to once again be an engine of sustainable growth when recovery begins to take root. Cities with strong high-tech bases will perform best as the economy recovers because the jobs generated by these fields pay so well,” according to the Milken study.

Following Silicon Valley, Seattle and Boston in the overall results of the study were: 4. Washington, D.C. area; 5. Los Angeles area; 6. Dallas area; 7. San Diego area; 8. Santa Ana/Anaheim, Calif. area; 9. New York City area; 10. San Francisco area.

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Exec lays out amphitheater needs
New I-5 bridge, more access vital to venue's success, he says
Wednesday, June 3 | 9:33 p.m.
BY MICHAEL ANDERSEN
THE COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER


AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

The visually spectacular music venue south of Clark County’s fairgrounds will need a new bridge and access road if it’s ever to fix its spectacularly unprofitable balance sheet, the venue’s chief executive said Wednesday.

The accident-prone Interstate 5 Bridge seems to scare Portlanders away from the 16-mile trip to the Amphitheater at Clark County, Dan Braun told county commissioners.

“Somehow, there’s something unpleasant about that short drive, I think, from (Interstate) 405 to Fourth Plain,” Braun said. “If we’re going to grow — if the county is going to be in the entertainment business — these infrastructure issues have to be addressed.

“I’m sure we are not the only company that feels that is a major hindrance to bringing customers up here,” Braun said of the I-5 bridge.

The 18,000-seat amphitheater, which Braun’s company built at its own expense and donated to the county in 2002, has booked just three shows this summer, headlined by Coldplay, Nickelback and Mötley Crüe.

Another two shows, from Staind and the comedian Larry the Cable Guy, will be performed on the big stage as part of the Clark County Fair.

The venue has never had a profitable season, its owners say. Braun said no outdoor amphitheater has been built in the country since.

“It’s been a long seven years,” he said.

New exit needed?
With his public relations consultant sitting at his left and his lawyer to his right, Braun told county commissioners Wednesday that big-name entertainment is worth the investment.

“A building like ours can be a major quality of life and economic value cornerstone,” he said.

The county could make the fairgrounds a better entertainment destination by extending Northwest 10th Avenue south across Whipple Creek, Braun said.

That would give people a second route to Interstate 5, and might nudge them into other local businesses.

“Okay, I’m here,” Braun said, imagining the thoughts of a concertgoer. “What do we do? Woah, we better go inside. There’s nothing else to do.”

County commissioners have spent the last few years trying to find money for the 10th Avenue extension. On Wednesday, they approved a plan to use several million dollars once marked for 10th Avenue to cover the county’s general fund deficit.

Braun said he’s planning a retractable wall that would make the venue more pleasant for small acts. The wall could also extend the concert season by “a couple more months,” he said. The seating area is covered, but is open to the elements at the rear, and has no heating or air conditioning.

The venue has another problem with small shows: fixed costs. Traffic management and other off-site costs for a major show run more than $10,000, Braun said.

It’s more than the costs at McMen-amins Edgefield, another Portland-area outdoor concert venue, said Amphitheater lawyer Randy Printz.

Major artists typically require a guaranteed payment of more than 100 percent of ticket revenues. For its profit, the Amphitheater relies on concession sales.

So if a crowd is too small to bring in tens of thousands of dollars in concession sales, it’s a money-loser.

“It makes no sense to book a show that you’re going to lose money on,” Printz said.

Michael Andersen: 360-735-4508 or michael.andersen@columbian.com.

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POSTED: Wednesday, Jun. 03, 2009

image hosted on flickr


AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


Bellingham advances project to extend West Illinois Street to Marine Drive
JARED PABEN - THE BELLINGHAM HERALD


BELLINGHAM - A roughly $3.5 million project to extend West Illinois Street west to Marine Drive is nearly fully designed, and officials say it looks like the project will have a green light.
Previously officials were unsure whether they'd have enough money for the project, but money was made available from various sources, including a $1.6 million federal grant last year.
The project would extend West Illinois Street west from its current dead end and then southwest along the Timpson Way right of way.

Once it's built, heavy trucks serving Morse Steel, which is near the current Illinois Street dead end, won't have to cut through the residential neighborhood anymore. It also will provide Bellingham Technical College a new entrance and future new front entrance.
The new street will have two, 12-foot-wide driving lanes, 5-foot-wide bike lanes and a sidewalk on one side. The project is nearly half a mile.
On Monday, June 1, the City Council signed updates to agreements with Whatcom County and BTC for the project. As part of those, the city prioritized the order in which money will be spent for the work:
• $40,000 from Bellingham's street fund (already spent).
• $1.1 million in a federal grant received in 2004.
• $369,000 in state money through BTC.
• $142,000 from Morse Steel (some of this will be cash but includes other things, like donations of land and previous work relocating rail lines on site).
• $350,000 from a Whatcom County Economic Development Investment program grant.
• $1.6 million in a federal grant received in 2008.
• $160,000 in county road funds.
Bellingham has $400,000 budgeted this year for the project, but officials are hoping the project costs will be low enough that the city won't have to spend that, said Ravyn Whitewolf, engineering manager at Bellingham Public Works. County officials are hoping the same thing for their $160,000.
Depending on how long it takes to get permits, the project could start this fall or next spring, Whitewolf said.
Reach JARED PABEN at jared.paben@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2289.

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June 5, 2009
Buyer calls off YWCA deal
SRM planned to build pair of condo towers

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

The Spokesman-Review

Jonathan Brunt
jonathanb@spokesman.com, (509) 459-5442

A development company’s recent decision to break an agreement to buy prime riverfront land from the YWCA of Spokane has left the nonprofit group searching for a new buyer in a depressed market.

SRM Development offered $4 million for the downtown YWCA complex in 2005 and planned to build two 14-story condo towers on the property along the north bank of the Spokane River.

“It is not moving forward,” said Mike Craven, development manager for SRM. He declined further comment Thursday afternoon.

Trish McFarland, executive director of the YWCA, said SRM informed the YWCA late last month that it would back out of the sales agreement signed in 2005. The company made a $250,000 down payment on the property.

“We’re certainly disappointed that the downturn in the economy has had this effect on a reputable, local developer,” McFarland said.

She said she is confident that the YWCA will find a new buyer who will pay a similar amount. “I have received some very good interest from other parties,” McFarland said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime piece of property.”

The YWCA recently moved to a new complex it shares with the YMCA of the Inland Northwest at 930 N. Monroe St.

The nonprofits hope to use money raised by selling their older structures – both adjacent to Spokane Falls – to help finance the new building on Monroe and a new Y that will open this summer on U.S. Highway 2 in north Spokane.

SRM’s condo project, Broadway Towers, had approval to build along the shoreline, said Spokane Planning Director Leroy Eadie. The company’s Web site said the towers would “offer unparalleled views of the Spokane River and Riverfront Park.”

The YMCA is awaiting a decision from the city of Spokane on the sale of its old building. The Spokane Park Board put $1 million down on the property in 2006. City officials say they plan to live by that agreement by borrowing the remaining $4.4 million from a city utility fund. It’s unclear, however, how the city will repay the utility fund because the Spokane City Council has expressed unease with a proposal to accept Conservation Futures taxes offered by the Spokane County Board of Commissioners.

Rig Riggins, president and CEO of the YMCA of the Inland Northwest, said he has faith that the city is good for the money. The YMCA has extended the deadline for the city to complete the purchase to June 24.

Riggins said the YMCA and YWCA have raised $36 million of their $40 million campaign goal. Money from the expected sales of the YMCA and YWCA is included in the $36 million, he said. “We’re just having to negotiate two particularly complicated facility sales,” he said.

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Downtown Spokane Valley?

June 5th, 2009.
Staff Writer

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

The Spokane Journal of Business

(City-center street intersections proposed in the revitalization plan, such as the one illustrated here, would have decorative paving to enhance the visibility of pedestrian crossing points.)
—Rendering courtesy Bernardo Wills Architects PC and GGLO LLC

The city of Spokane Valley appears ready to give final approval this month to the latest version of the proposed Sprague-Appleway Revitalization Plan, says Mayor Rich Munson.

The city hopes to attract a variety of private development projects by jump-starting a city-center district through its own development of a new City Hall in the University City Shopping Center, which is at the core of the revitalization plan, Munson says.

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Published: Wednesday, June 3, 2009
New pedestrian bridge en route

By Oscar Halpert
The Enterprise

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

http://www.enterprisenewspapers.com/...e=ETPZoneLTart
(Planned Overpass Design Image)

LYNNWOOD - Pedestrians and cyclists can soon expect a little relief getting back and forth along the I-5 overpass at 196th Street Southwest.

By April 2010, a new pedestrian bridge will save walkers and cyclists from having to take their chances against cars exiting the southbound off-ramp from I-5.

The Lynnwood City Council May 26 approved a $3.2 million contract with Tri-State Construction, Inc. of Bellevue, the lowest bidder, to build the new U-shaped bridge that will lift pedestrians above the fray along the off-ramp so they can more easily get across 196th Street Southwest's freeway overpass.

Construction is expected to begin in July on the $5.6 million project. Funding for the new bridge includes $1.25 million in federal stimulus money through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. It was the second highest rated project countywide to receive stimulus funds.

"That's because it was ready to go," said Jeff Elekes, the city of Lynnwood's deputy public works director.

The pedestrian bridge is actually the final cog in the wheel of an $80 million interchange project the city started in 1993, Elekes said. It's part of the same project that realigned freeway exits and entrances near Poplar Way and modified land near Lowe's Home Improvement store and what became Heritage Park.

Original bids for the pedestrian bridge were as much as $2 million over budget, so the city altered course and opted for a new plan: to widen the overpass instead and build a smaller pedestrian bridge.

This time, the city plan is to widen the north side of 196th Street Southwest and build a smaller bridge over the southbound ramp that ties into the Interurban trail and Alderwood Mall Boulevard, Elekes said.

Changes in the economy have helped push the project ahead. Stimulus funds, plus hungry contractors equals less expensive projects.

"What's interesting is that two or three years ago, (bids) were running between 10 to 15 percent higher than engineer's estimates," he said. "It's a very cyclical thing that's happening. We're also seeing contractors bid work across the board that are more traditionally private sector contractors."

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Tacoma's deal for DaVita will include neighborhood facelift

image hosted on flickr



BY JOHN GILLIE; THE TACOMA NEWS TRIBUNE
Published: 06/04/09 7:30 pm

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


Expect to see a more appealing Pacific Avenue between South Eighth and South 15th Street within a couple of years as a result of the City of Tacoma’s successful effort to keep its second-largest downtown employer.

A sidewalk-to-sidewalk facelift of downtown’s main street is part of the incentive package that persuaded DaVita Inc. to stay in downtown Tacoma.

DaVita, which operates a network of 1,400 kidney treatment centers nationwide, last week announced it will sign a new lease on the former Schoenfeld Furniture Store at South 15th Street and Pacific Avenue, and lease three floors of the nearby Columbia Bank Building to house its accounting and billing staff.

The company now employs some 900 workers in the former furniture store building, and it expects to add more over the next decade.

The El Segundo, Calif. company (now moving its headquarters to Denver) had searched the area for new quarters before deciding to stay put and to expand downtown.

Elly Walkowiak, project manager for the City of Tacoma Department of Economic Development, said that in addition to the Pacific Avenue makeover, the city added several other inducements, including: business and occupation tax forgiveness based on the number of new employees the company hires, federal tax benefits and low interest loans so that the Oakland, Calif., owner of the Schoenfeld Building can upgrade the former furniture store.

The city is still putting together the funding package for the Pacific Avenue upgrade, she said. The city expects to draw from local, state and federal sources for the project. That project is also likely to include a new transportation center and parking garage near the Tacoma Dome to serve commuters and downtown workers.

Walkowiak said the total cost of the project is likely to exceed $35 million.

The Pacific Avenue project could also help keep downtown’s largest employer, Russell Investments, downtown.

Russell is considering offers from both Seattle and Tacoma for its headquarters. Russell was founded in Tacoma in 1936 and has its headquarters on A Street now.

The DaVita deal includes a yearly $500 business and occupation tax forgiveness per new employee. That tax forgiveness will last for five years. To qualify, those employees must make $16.19 an hour or more.

Tacoma projects that DaVita could hire about 400 new workers during the 10-year-lease period. About 270 or so would meet the income qualifications, she said.

The city also told DaVita that it would be eligible for a one-time $1,500 tax credit from the federal government for each new employee who works and lives in the downtown area. The city is estimating about 20 new hires could qualify.

The building owner, Horizon Properties, is potentially eligible for about $2 million in federal Section 108 low-interest loans to pay the costs of updating the Schoenfeld Building to meet DaVita’s needs. The interest rate on that loan is likely to be about 2 percent, including administrative fees from the city.

In addition to the low interest rate, which could translate to a lower rental rate for DaVita, the federal money means that the building owner won’t have to search for conventional loans for the rehab, a difficult task in today’s environment, said Walkowiak.

John Gillie: 253-597-8663

john.gillie@thenewstribune.com

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Friday, June 5, 2009
As recession grows, more Seattle work goes into development limbo

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

Puget Sound Business Journal

image hosted on flickr


Two dozen construction projects in Seattle are stalled due to the recession, according to a tally by the city. They’re not getting any prettier. Instead of gaining a grocery store or new homes, neighborhoods are inheriting holes in the ground and half-finished buildings.

The list — the first count by the city —includes more than $40 million worth of projects and hundreds of thousands of square feet of space, ranging from condominium developments to retail projects.

The projects hail from the heart of Ballard and the edges of Queen Anne. Many have been sitting untouched for more than a year.

It’s the first time in decades that Seattle has compiled such a list, but it took the step this spring to try to assess the effect of the credit market’s collapse on the Puget Sound real estate market. Inspectors conducted an informal survey to find potentially stalled sites and to make sure they are kept clean and safe.

“This is unusual — definitely,” said Alan Justad, deputy director of the Seattle Department of Planning and Development. “You just don’t see things stall very often in Seattle.”

“In recent decades we haven’t had anything like this.”

The number of stalled projects could grow substantially, especially if the recession worsens. Another 400 projects are awaiting initial city approval. Some of those have had little activity in recent months, and it remains unclear how many of those ultimately could be stalled or abandoned, Justad said. The city is offering to extend the approval period for up to two years.

“We just do not want to close the door” on projects, Justad said. “The question is whether they want to put on hold or cancel the project.”

Developers of the 24 projects identified as stalled have shelled out at least $400,000 for permits and fees — and that doesn’t include thousands of dollars in fees they’ve paid to other city departments, Justad said. Those fees are nonrefundable.

City officials plan to help these struggling developers keep their permits active, Justad said. That way, when the real estate market does turn around, they’ll be ready to go again. Until then, many of them are just waiting.

While the 24 stalled projects compare with 1,800 that appear to be going ahead, the number is highly indicative of the weak development market, Justad said.

The causes of the stalls are familiar. Some developers are struggling with financing as local banks cut back on real estate lending. Others are facing foreclosure with no hope of selling or finishing their property. Some can’t even sell the land because of the steep drop in prices.

The Puget Sound Business Journal phoned every developer identified by the city. Many did not return calls. At least one disputed his project was stalled.

“We continue to work on it — we haven’t stopped,” said Michael Mastro, who’s developing 301 apartments on the former Leilani Lanes bowling alley site on Greenwood Avenue North.

Some of the eyesores are more recognizable than others: the failed Hotel 1 condominium project in downtown Seattle, which has developed into a giant pit next to the Macy’s parking garage, and the site of the former Ballard Denny’s restaurant are on the list.

Others are less obvious. Developer Paul Guzman was building a six-story condo building near Queen Anne — until his financing from Everett-based Frontier Bank fell through.

Now the property, 70 percent complete, is in foreclosure and Guzman has filed for personal bankruptcy. Frontier is struggling with bad real estate loans and is operating under strict regulatory enforcement. The bank doesn’t comment on individual lending relationships.

“At a certain point I realized they weren’t going to give me the money,” said Guzman. “(The project) just got delayed and delayed again.”

The stalled projects are in various stages of the city’s permitting process. Some developers, like Great Northern Land Co., have full permits but are fighting a bad real estate market.

The developer planned to build a three-story, 12-unit condo building on Capitol Hill with all the green amenities that have become wildly popular in Seattle.

Working with a $5 million construction loan from Seattle Bank, Great Northern tore down several existing buildings on the land — and then the real estate market came to a screeching halt, said Ed Gallaudet, owner of the company.

Early last year, Seattle Bank “put the brakes on the project,” said Gallaudet. Now the land has been sitting for over a year and Gallaudet is exploring his options. He could try to build fewer units and price them at $500,000, about $100,000 less than he originally anticipated. Or he could sell the land at a steep discount.

“We have to figure out how to build a product and make less money on it,” said Gallaudet. “And do we need another 12 units on the market right now? Probably not.”

Meanwhile, Seattle Bank hasn’t yet foreclosed on the property but Gallaudet said, “It’s a discussion we’re having.” The bank declined to comment.

Developer Mark Gordon planned to build two “really nice town homes” on a hilltop overlooking Lake Union just west of Interstate 5 until the economy put his project in check. Now, little more than the foundation sits on that space.

“If I built it and no one buys it, it would put me in even greater trouble than I’m in now,” Gordon said, adding that he has put too much money into the Boylston Avenue property to turn it into rental units. Meanwhile, waiting for the housing market to turn around is frustrating.

The unfinished construction is “a blight on the neighborhood,” he said.

“It doesn’t make me happy because I’m paying for it and the neighbors aren’t happy because they’d rather look at anything other than a job site,” he said. “I didn’t ask for this. I’m just caught.”

Only half-kidding, he says, “working at McDonald’s is probably a better alternative than what I do now.”

At the site of the former Ballard Denny’s, developer Benaroya Co. had plans to build 32,000 square feet of retail and 287 condos. But it will only move forward, “depending on the market,” said Mark Nemirow, a company executive.

Already, development has been delayed a year, in part because of the landmark status of the site. Now the company is waiting to receive a permit from the city in the next couple months that will allow it to clean up the abandoned buildings on the site.

But the company still doesn’t have firm plans for building.

“We’re not sure if we’re going to develop or get it into a position where it’s available to develop,” said Nemirow. “We want to be ready when the time is right.”

For a List of potentially Stalled projects, visit this link.

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Historic Winthrop Hotel project another victim of recession


(Winthrop Building.)

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


The historic Winthrop Hotel in Tacoma is another project to fall victim to the recession. The owner has given up plans to restore the building to its 1920s glory days and now wants to sell it. The list of potential buyers, however, is short.

PETER CALLAGHAN; THE TACOMA NEWS TRIBUNE
06/04/09 7:01 am


The owner of the historic Winthrop Hotel building in downtown Tacoma wants out and offers the building for sale.

Its condition and the difficult issue of relocating low-income tenants keeps the list of potential buyers small.

Hopes of restoring the apartment building to its 1925 glory as the region’s premier hotel and meeting facility grow dimmer by the day.

That was the situation for the 12-story Italianate tower at Ninth and Broadway six years ago. And after a local rescue was celebrated in 2006, it is again the situation today.

Prium Companies has quietly offered the Winthrop to the Tacoma Housing Authority. The Tacoma-based developer, who took on the project as a labor of love, is abandoning plans to relocate the tenants into new housing and restore the Winthrop as a boutique hotel.

Blame the recession. When times were good, Prium could take on a project outside its normal line of work. Now, it has enough trouble with condos it can’t sell and office buildings it can’t lease.

So the Winthrop is back to the future. Can a buyer be found? What is the best use? How can the tenants be best served? Is the building even savable?

As it did in 2003, the Housing Authority has taken a look.

“We don’t know yet if we want to buy it or can buy it,” said Michael Mirra, executive director of the authority. “It needs millions of somebody’s dollars.”

But while that makes authority officials shy, it also makes them worried. If Prium fails and another buyer isn’t found, “at some point the pigeons move in,” Mirra said. That means a loss of badly needed housing and another destructive hole in downtown – in effect, another Elks Lodge.

The status quo isn’t much better.

“The danger is that Prium has to sell and sells to someone who doesn’t care,” Mirra said.

THA chairman Ken Miller said the authority would like to restore the Winthrop for housing – both market-rate and low-income, both rental and condo. It also would like to include office space and retail space and restore the Crystal Ballroom for public events.

“We’d like to see if it could be a contributor to the economy of that part of downtown,” Miller said.

This is the Housing Authority’s second time around. It was outbid in 2004 by Oakland-based A.F. Evans, a developer that specializes in restoring historic buildings for low-income housing. Evans, in turn, was bumped aside after a group of local business people – led by Tim Quigg – advocated for a hotel conversion.

Quigg altered the politics of the issue by proposing replacement housing before conversion took place. That empowered the City Council to oppose Evans, which went away, but went away mad. Prium took over the project.

There are others taking a look now. Well, at least one other. Grace Pleasants of Heritage Properties, the developer that restored Albers Mill on the Foss Waterway, is looking for partners interested in the hotel conversion. If she or anyone else wanted to take a run at a hotel project, the Housing Authority would step out of the way.

But as Mayor Bill Baarsma said: “Of course expressing interest and putting money down are two very different things.”

The city has a role to play in approving state and federal loans. And it has been active in making sure whoever runs the building doesn’t again let it become a haven for drunks and druggies like those who harassed other tenants and neighbors for years.

“I still see drug dealing going on around the building but I have no more energy to track it and no one else seems to care,” said Laura Hanan, a neighboring business owner. She thought the management has improved but had its hands full.

Mirra gave no time line for a decision.

“We remain interested but uncertain.”

Peter Callaghan: 253-597-8657

peter.callaghan@thenewstribune.com

blogs.thenewstribune.com/politics

[USAPatriot]

The Winthrop Story Continues ...

June 4, 2009. By Derek Young.


(The Winthrop Building in downtown Tacoma.)

Exit133.com

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


At last month’s Downtown Merchant Group meeting, someone mentioned that the there was a buyer for the Winthrop. A buyer? It’s for sale?
Michael Mirra, executive director of the Tacoma Housing Authority, came before the Downtown Merchant Group this morning to talk about the potential future of the Winthrop. What’s the story?
Prium recently approached THA about possibly selling the Winthrop. Mirra began by stating that the Tacoma Housing Authority has no formal relationship with the Winthrop. They don’t own it. They don’t manage it. They don’t know if they want to buy it. They don’t know if they can buy it. Yet, they do worry about the building and its future.
As many of us know, the Winthrop at South 9th and Broadway has had a contentious and tumultuous history over the last few years. There was a group of folks rallying behind Tim Quigg to turn it back into a hotel. It was bought and sold by A.F. Evans. Prium purchased it with plans to restore the hotel with some housing. The visions have included a north tower, a renovated hotel, new low income housing in other parts of the city, etc. etc. That said, Prium can’t assemble the financing for its original vision so the Tacoma Housing Authority has been asked to buy it.
There are many competing visions for what should be at this corner of downtown Tacoma. Questions about low income housing concentration, civic pride, pricing tenants out of the market, are only a few of many issues that have been raised. Mirra said that if there was no other buyer, THA could consider renovating the building into a mixed building of residential, commercial office, retail, and the public ballroom. However, financing is difficult at best. One thing is for sure, should THA purchase the historic building, they would not convert it into a hotel.
According to Mirra, “The only factor that has a timeline is the building itself.”
The problem now is that the building needs some serious work. Their estimates are at least $7 million in maintenance over the first two years just to keep the building safe and operational in its current use. No upgrades. Renovations and conversion to something else could be $60 to $80 million more – not exactly a project most folks are looking for right now.
So what’s next for the Winthrop? At this point nothing has been decided. We’ll have to wait and see.

[USAPatriot]

Oregon renews its support for I-5 crossing
But Legislature still hasn't paid for its share of planning
Friday, June 5 | 10:50 p.m.
BY JEFFREY MIZE
THE COLUMBIAN STAFF WRITER

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

image hosted on flickr

(The Interstate 5 bridge connects Vancouver, Washington, as shown, into Portland, Oregon. It crosses the Columbia River.)


PORTLAND — Oregon remains committed to replacing the Interstate 5 Bridge, despite its Legislature's failure to set aside millions in planning money, the state's top transportation official said Friday.

Matthew Garrett, director of the Oregon Department of Transportation, said Gov. Ted Kulongoski, legislative leaders and his state's transportation commission are solidly behind the Columbia River Crossing project.

"We will ripen the project," Garrett told other members of the Columbia River Crossing project sponsors council Friday. "We will move it forward. And one day, we will cut a ribbon on it. Make no mistake about it."

Washington has provided $50 million to pay for ongoing studies and planning, but Oregon has contributed only $15 million.

Kulongoski had proposed an additional $30 million, which would have come close to equalizing the contributions between the two states, but that money wasn't part of the 2009 transportation bill that won legislative approval in Salem, Ore.

Washington Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond said following Friday's meeting that she is hopeful the Oregon Transportation Commission will spend its discretionary money on project planning.

Hammond said she is eager to see financial parity to reinforce the partnership between the two states. She used the catch phrase, "Show me the money" to illustrate her point.

Money always will be a central focus in the contentious debate over a bridge-transit-freeway project expected to cost as much as $4.1 billion.

Richard Brandman, Oregon director for the Columbia River Crossing project, broke the project into four pieces: $1.94 billion for freeway improvements, $1.2 billion for a replacement bridge, $850 million for light-rail transit and $100 million for cyclist-pedestrian paths.

The project is seeking $400 million in federal highway funds and another $750 million in federal transit funds, which leaves $2.9 million to be covered by the two states and bridge tolls, Brandman said.

With such a large number remaining, crossing officials already are looking at ways to scale back the project.

Possible changes include reusing existing infrastructure, such as the freeway bridges connecting Hayden Island with the rest of Portland, changing the design speed for freeway ramps, reducing shoulder widths and phasing in portions of construction.

"We are hoping through this exercise that we can save hundreds of millions of dollars, and that's a pretty big goal," Brandman said. "We want to put a menu of options on the table for you."

Jeffrey Mize: 360-735-4542 or jeff.mize@columbian.com.

[USAPatriot]

Fort Vancouver Library Project

BY JESSICA SWANSON of the Vancouver Business Journal



AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

May 29th, 2009

The building boom of the last 10 years has come to a screeching halt. Fortunately, nobody told the Fort Vancouver Regional Library District.

After the opening of a new 18,000-square-foot library in Battle Ground May 30, the district will follow with a 24,000-square-foot library in Cascade Park late this year or early next year, and the 83,000-square-foot main library at Evergreen Boulevard and "C" Street.

Demolition of the former CARR Vancouver dealership there is underway to make way for the new library, set to open in mid-2011.

With this momentum, the library district stands to be an economic driver for Southwest Washington, creating jobs and bringing people to burgeoning business districts.

Portland-based Howard S. Wright, the general contractor for the main library, estimates that the $38 million project will create 160,000 worker-hours during construction.

While the libraries secured capital funding and private donations in better times,
they have recently had to cut hours and staff due to falling tax revenues.

But even opening the new libraries at less-than-full speed, there is a collective opinion
that the new projects will pull plenty of paying customers to adjacent mixed-use and commercial developments.

Anchoring Battle Ground Village

The largest tenant at Battle Ground Village, the new North County library is nearly five times larger than the former city library. It is expected to bring nearly 300,000 unique visits to Battle Ground Village in the next year, making it quite a good neighbor at the mixed-use development.

"While people are (at the library), they don't spend any money," said FVRL Executive Director Bruce Ziegman. "But before they go in, there's a good chance they might spend money somewhere else."

Dennis Pavlina, president of The Gold Medal Group, agreed. He and Carmen Villarma, president of The Management Group, developed the project and have a long history of supporting libraries.

The library district received a
$1 million discount on the building shell, which Pavlina referred to as a personal donation. It brought the cost of building there down to
$3.4 million, Ziegman said.

"Libraries and retail go together because they both need bodies," Pavlina said, calling it good planning where visitors are not just going to a single destination. "A library in a retail element is just like a movie theater or (bowling alley and entertainment center) Big Al's. It becomes a valued tenant just like all other tenants."

Becky Dunning owns the first business to locate at Battle Ground Village, the 2,100-square-foot furniture and accessory retailer Distinctively Home Inc. Dunning said she loves the spontaneous visits the library generates for her store - even before it opened.

Distinctively Home is located directly across from the library and Dunning answered this question many times before it opened: Where's the new library?

Dunning chose Battle Ground Village in part because of the expected walk-in traffic.

Spotlight on downtown

In downtown Vancouver, Kate Singh, for one, can't wait until the new main library opens. There are plans for a groundbreaking in August, and demolition is well underway.

Designed by Seattle-based Miller Hull Partnership, the new Vancouver Community Library will have five above-grade levels and a below-grade elevator entrance from an eventual parking garage. The five levels include a mezzanine between the first and second floor. There will be a roof deck for gathering but no coffee shop or retail element, other than a Friends of the Library Bookstore.

Sustainable elements include low-VOC interior finishes, recycled and locally made products, enhanced insulation and access to natural light. The neighboring mixed-use Riverwest development is on hold until at least next year.

The library will be located across from Singh's photography business' office at The Academy. The Academy, a historic Vancouver professional office building, is hidden in plain view, she said.

"We've had a one-way street going past the academy for so many years, people pass us without even noticing," Singh said, adding that she stays at The Academy because it is beautiful and historical.

However, she has been looking for other office spaces because The Academy has no retail outlet.

"To have more people come through would just be more exciting," Singh said. "The more visible profile we have, the better off we all are."

Singh said she plans to market Aevum Images directly to library visitors - it expects up to 1 million visits per year - keeping brochures stocked there, putting signage on the south side of Evergreen and creating a relationship with the library.

To be clear, the Academy has a restaurant, El Presidente, and a coffee shop, The Missing Drink, which Singh said will pull library-goers to the Academy - highlighting it as a place to work and helping to fill some of the empty spaces.

Monte Hidden, who owns The Academy with his two brothers, said the library will have a positive impact, in general, on the downtown core. But, he said, it won't likely have much of an impact on his tenants because The Academy "is a professional office building" whose tenants do not rely heavily on walk-in traffic.

The building is 95 percent leased, Hidden said.

Josh Schlesinger, vice president of Portland-based Schlesinger Cos. and owner of the future library's "C" Street neighbor, the Bank of America Financial Center, is focused on revitalizing Vancouver's downtown core and attracting tenants to the area. As of Jan. 30, the building was 85 percent full, according to VBJ research.

"I think the library is wonderful thing," Schlesinger said. "I think it's another amenity downtown (Vancouver) offers over other parts of Clark County."

Body, mind and soul

The new Cascade Park Library will be nearly 10 times the size of its predecessor on Southeast Hearthwood Boulevard. It is under construction slightly east of the current location in the recently developed 136th Avenue commercial corridor.

It will be located adjacent to the Firstenburg Community Center, and for this reason, FVRL sees it a little bit differently in terms of economic impact, but, Ziegman said, "It's hard to imagine a better physical relationship.

Library staff has coined this project "the body, mind and soul" library, said FVRL Communications Director Sue Vanlaanen.

"It's pretty clear from examples - even on the Portland side - that that libraries are an incredibly valuable asset to any mixed-use project, that they really support different kinds of retail amenities," said Alisa Pyszka, city of Vancouver business development manager.

[USAPatriot]

Originally published June 7, 2009 at 12:00 AM | Page modified June 7, 2009 at 12:20 AM

Tacoma vs. Seattle: fight over Russell Investments worth millions
Tacoma springs into action as city's longtime treasure considers moving to Seattle.

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


By Jim Brunner
The Seattle Times staff reporter
Tacoma has pledged a package worth more than $148 million to keep Russell Investments.

image hosted on flickr

(Russell investments Building in Tacoma.)

Russell Investments provides financial services to investors and institutions in 47 countries, and manages more than $136 billion in assets.
Founded: 1936, in Tacoma

Tacoma-based employees: 900

Total employees worldwide: more than 1,800

Sold: 1999, to Milwaukee-based Northwestern Mutual



TACOMA — From its 12-story headquarters with a sweeping view of Commencement Bay, Russell Investments has long dominated this city's downtown as its largest private employer and a major civic leader.

But as Washington's third-largest city, Tacoma has periodically fretted that Russell — a global financial firm with offices from London to Tokyo — might someday outgrow its hometown.

That nagging worry has made the care and feeding of Russell a key part of the job description for Tacoma leaders. In the 1990s, when Russell chirped about leaving the state because business taxes were too high, Tacoma legislators pushed through a special tax break.

In recent years, though, Russell's ties to Tacoma have eroded, with the sale of the company to a Milwaukee-based insurance giant and the departure of several top local executives.

In April, the company jacked Tacoma's fears higher when new CEO Andrew Doman announced Russell was pitting Seattle against Tacoma in its search for a new headquarters. He gave both cities until the end of May to submit their "final bids."

Even before that announcement, Tacoma made it clear it was all-in to keep Russell and its 900 employees.

Led by U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks, Tacoma has pledged a package worth more than $148 million. That includes federal, state and local tax breaks, a publicly financed parking garage, a new park-and-ride and streetscape improvements. Gov. Chris Gregoire has promised to throw in $700,000 from a special state-lottery fund.

As the May 31 deadline approached, Tacoma sweetened its bid even more with energy rebates, low-interest loans and free parking — benefits worth at least another $4 million.

"We're doing everything we can," said Tacoma City Manager Eric Anderson.

The company is expected to make an announcement by October.

In Seattle, city officials seem spooked about even discussing Russell. They have not announced tax breaks or promises of state money.

However, there has been an effort to land the company, led by the Downtown Seattle Association (DSA) and private landlords eager to fill skyscrapers left vacant by the recession and the collapse of Washington Mutual.

And Seattle city officials have quietly lent support to that effort, according to documents released last week in response to a public-disclosure request.

Seattle's reluctance to be seen as poaching Tacoma's company could be explained partly by neighborly politeness.

But it may also have something to do with pressure from Dicks, the state's senior member of Congress and a high-ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee, who has let Seattle leaders know he wants Russell to remain in Tacoma.

"I've urged them to remember their friend Norm," Dicks said. "I've tried to delicately remind people that, hey, this is very important to me personally and that I hope they'll take that into account."

He added: "Seattle doesn't need Russell."

At least not like Tacoma does.

Russell "put us on map"

Founded by Frank Russell in 1936 as a small brokerage firm, the company was transformed under his grandson, George Russell, who secured J.C. Penney as his first client and built the company into a renowned pension-fund manager.

George Russell and his wife, Jane, became major benefactors for Tacoma, funding charities and civic assets such as the Museum of Glass.

"As Tacomans, we feel Mr. Russell put us on the map," said Brian Ebersole, a former Tacoma mayor and former state House speaker.

Today, even after recent layoffs, the company has more than 1,800 employees worldwide and manages more than $136 billion in assets. Its Russell 2000 stock index is one of the most-watched in the world.

With its high pay and benefits, the company has frequently made Fortune magazine's annual list of the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America."

Russell has also maintained connections to powerful politicians.

It hired two former chiefs of staff to Gov. Gary Locke, Joe Dear and Fred Kiga (both have left the company). Last year, Russell hired Patricia Akiyama, former chief of staff to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, as its director of corporate and government relations.

This isn't the first time Russell has wielded its political clout for special treatment.

In the 1990s, when Russell complained about its taxes and made noise about leaving, the Tacoma legislative delegation responded: The state lowered the business-and-occupation (B&O) tax rate on "international investment-management companies" — in other words, Russell — by 84 percent.

That tax break, now claimed by 41 companies, reduces all their B&O taxes by an estimated $15 million this year, according to the state Department of Revenue.

That's nothing compared with the $148 million package assembled by The Tacoma Partnership, a group of Tacoma leaders chaired by Dicks. They developed the offer last year, after Russell first said it was considering a move.

Tacoma leaders say they want to use a new or renovated Russell building to revitalize downtown through the creation of an International Financial Services Area, a special zone benefiting from tax breaks and public spending. The Legislature this year passed a bill authorizing $500,000 a year in state sales taxes to help pay for improvements in the financial zone.

"We like to see it from a bigger perspective. It's more than one company," said Tacoma Mayor Bill Baarsma. But Russell is the key.

Among the major enticements being offered:

• Tacoma will eliminate its local B&O tax on financial companies — saving Russell an estimated $16.5 million over 15 years. The city also has promised $15 million toward a 500-space underground garage if Russell builds a new headquarters.

• A state sales-tax exemption on construction of Russell's new building and parking garage would be worth an estimated $33 million.

• Dicks has promised to help Russell qualify for a $3.3 million federal income-tax deduction through the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Tacoma would help Russell obtain additional federal income-tax credits worth another $6 million.

• Tacoma also says it wants to spend $66 million — with federal aid — on downtown improvements, including streetscapes, storm drainage, better roadways and a new park-and-ride lot to connect Russell with Sound Transit's light rail.

• Gregoire has personally pledged $700,000 from an economic-development reserve account funded by unclaimed state-lottery winnings to pay for "public infrastructure improvements."

Quieter effort in Seattle

No comparable effort is visible in Seattle, where officials are reluctant to talk openly of pursuing Russell.

"Russell means an awful lot to Tacoma and you sort of have to respect that. They're our neighbors," said Alex Fryer, a spokesman for Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels. He added that "at this point there is nothing on the table in terms of a subsidy" for the firm to move to Seattle.

Fryer later asked to change his statement to the official line of the mayor's office: "No comment."

But documents released by the city late last week, in response to a public-disclosure request, show some involvement by the mayor's office to bring Russell to Seattle.

Nickels has spoken twice with top Russell executives by phone in recent months, including with CEO Doman on May 26, according to the mayor's calendar.

And officials with the city's economic-development office created a brochure for Russell executives touting the "wonders of living and working in Seattle."

Russell has divided the Seattle business establishment.

Randy Hurlow, a DSA spokesman, confirmed DSA representatives had met with Russell to pitch Seattle. "We believe downtown has a lot to offer," he said, declining to give further details.

Seattle city officials refused to say whether any city representatives took part in that meeting.

The more regionally oriented Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce has shied away. "We're not part of that dialogue," said George Allen, the chamber's senior vice president for government relations.

Meanwhile, Russell has hired two Seattle firms, Kinzer Real Estate Services and Seneca Real Estate, to aid in its search for some 300,000 square feet of office space.

Russell representatives have toured the WaMu Center, the downtown office tower developed as part of the Seattle Art Museum expansion, said developer Matt Griffin, who is helping to find a new tenant to replace Washington Mutual.

Seattle real-estate sources said Russell has also been interested in 1111 Third Avenue, another downtown building vacated by WaMu; West 8th, a new 28-story office tower at Westlake and Eighth; and 1918 Eighth Avenue, another new building at Eighth and Virginia.

Tacoma's worries grow

In Tacoma, the dread of losing Russell has increased in recent years.

Russell was sold in 1999 to Northwestern Mutual, the Milwaukee-based insurance giant that advertises itself as "The Quiet Company."

George Russell stayed on as chairman of the Russell Investments division until 2002, when he stepped down. The company also sold its headquarters building, which it now leases.

"It became someone else's company and someone else's building," said Ebersole, the former mayor, who said Russell's civic engagement has not been the same since George Russell sold.

Last June, Russell CEO Craig Ueland resigned after 25 years with the company. His replacement, Doman, came from London.

Earlier this year, several longtime local executives left and Russell laid off about 200 local employees as part of a global reduction.

"Kiss Russell Goodbye, Tacoma," warned a headline on a pessimistic piece in April by Dan Voelpel, a business columnist for The News Tribune newspaper.

"I've lost my punch," George Russell said last week, explaining he can't influence the decision at all.

"If it leaves Tacoma, it leaves a big hole in the ground," he said.

The recession may give Russell a chance to get a bargain on a prime Seattle location — even if the city doesn't offer tax breaks or other incentives, say local real-estate brokers.

"Seattle has the name, the image, the prestige, where they may not have to offer some of the things that Tacoma has to offer," said Oscar Oliveira, managing director of the Broderick Group. "It is a rare opportunity for them to strike a good deal and to get the Seattle address that comes with it."

As for Tacoma, Ebersole said he understands why Russell is tempted to leave, and why Tacoma leaders are fighting hard to keep the company.

"I don't think there are any good guys and bad guys in this drama," he said.

But Ebersole said he wishes sometimes there could be more public debate about bending over backward for one company. "It deserves a lot more civic debate and discussion than it gets," he said. "We're a bit buffaloed to even talk about it."

Those involved in the effort to keep Russell at home don't have time for such theoretical concerns. "This is classic economic development. You deal with the situation in front of you, not the situation in the abstract," said Bruce Kendall, president and CEO of the Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County.

"They're a leading global company in a cluster we want to grow — financial services. If we didn't have them, and they came calling, we'd love to bring them here."

Staff reporters Kristi Heim and Eric Pryne contributed to this report. Jim Brunner: 206-515-5628 or jbrunner@seattletimes.com

[USAPatriot]

Moses Lake celebrates the return of air service

Flights started Thursday
Posted: Friday, Jun 05, 2009 - 04:06:29 pm PDT

By Lynne Lynch
Columbia Basin Herald staff writer

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center

image hosted on flickr

(Plane landing at Grant County International Airport.)

MOSES LAKE — Inside the terminal of the Grant County International Airport, about 250 people marked the restart of commercial air service in Moses Lake with a party.

They attended the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Hours event at the airport.

On Thursday, the public enjoyed free hor’d oeuvres and entered a drawing to be included in a celebration dignitary flight to Seattle next week. SkyWest Airline officials will arrive in Moses Lake then.

“Awesome,” said Stacey Lehman-Garcia, of Moses Lake, who attended the event.

She added she thinks the restart of air service from Moses Lake to Seattle is great for the community and for people who visit the area for business or pleasure.


Wendy Cox, of Moses Lake, said she has family in Seattle and might use the new air service to travel back and forth.

“It’s pretty exciting,” said chamber President Billy Brice. “Moses Lake is excited to make this happen.”

Brice said his business, AmericaStay Inn & Suites, is hosting the pilots.

“We’re very excited about that,” he said.

In addition to about 11 SkyWest/United Express employees now working at the airport, there are about six people who will work for the Transportation Security Administration in Moses Lake, said the chamber’s executive director Debbie Doran-Martinez.

She said the new employees want to be involved with the community.

Thursday was also the first day air service restarted in Moses Lake. About five people flew to Seattle and about five people arrived in Moses Lake, according to information provided by the Port of Moses Lake.

“Service isn’t yet at capacity, but we want it to reach capacity in a very short time,” Doran-Martinez said.

Among the people who used the service on Thursday was an Anchorage man who was visiting his brother in Moses Lake.

She also learned of another man used the service and who works for Flour Enterprises Inc. at REC Silicon near Moses Lake.

The service will enable out of the area workers to connect with their families, she explained.

Doran-Martinez encouraged people to change their travel habits and use the local service, instead of driving to Seattle or Spokane to catch a flight.

“United Express/SkyWest is a top notch operation,” she said. “They’re definitely dedicated to our community.”

If service grows, a possible east or southbound destination out of Moses Lake is possible, she said.

With advanced purchase, round trip tickets to Seattle are selling for $138, she added.

Rhonda Severance, who works for Redmond-headquartered Genie Industries, said air service is really important.

The company is interested in bringing suppliers to Moses Lake and its difficult navigating people to Moses Lake from Spokane, she said.

With air service, Severance also mentioned the company will be able to have smaller freight delivered to Moses Lake the same day.

[USAPatriot]

Rite Aid opens ‘Customer World’ in M’ville, plans upcoming events
By KIRK BOXLEITNER
Marysville Globe Reporter



AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


Jun 04 2009, 9:18 AM · UPDATED
MARYSVILLE — Rite Aid opened a “Customer World” store, at 3733 116th St. NE in Marysville May 28 with a 7 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Rite Aid Regional Pharmacy Vice President Germaine Robottom explained that the store incorporates features of the company’s prototype “Customer World” design, offering a new look and many new services, which were created using feedback from customer focus groups across the country.

“Marysville residents can now see and experience the new design and services that many customers have been raving about since we opened our first ‘Customer World’ store about four years ago,” Robottom said. “Customers told us that their relationship with their pharmacist was important, so each new store highlights the pharmacy. Pharmacy is our core business so we made it the focal point, or star, of the ‘Customer World’ design.”

Rite Aid has expanded its merchandise selections and improved both its store navigation and “the professional feel” in its “Customer World” stores. The pharmacy department is easily seen and accessible from the entrance, emphasizing Rite Aid’s stated commitment to patient health and wellness, and the pharmacy waiting area has been designed with a lowered ceiling, comfortable chairs, a TV and a connection to a pharmacy consultation room, which provides a private and professional setting for patient counseling by the pharmacist.

“Reaction to the new store design has been overwhelmingly positive from customers and associates alike,” Robottom said. “Aisles are wide and clutter-free, and the design makes it easy for customers to find what they’re shopping for. The store environment shows that we also care about our associates’ ability to get their work done efficiently.”

The new Marysville store covers more than 14,000 square feet, with a bright, open environment that offers direct views of each department.

Darlene Judkin, store manager for the Marysville Rite Aid “Customer World” store, explained that Rite Aid’s commitment to supporting the local community can be seen not only in the Marysville “Customer World” store’s 20 new hires from the area, but also in their service projects, such as when Marysville “Customer World” store employees repainted the graffiti-covered fences across from the Marysville-Pilchuck High School athletic fields on 108th Street May 21.

“We had about 24 of our employees out there that day,” Judkin said. “The city of Marysville Parks and Recreation Department supplied the paint, and we did the work. It was quite fun. We’re really excited to be in the local community, and we look forward to helping our new customers out. We’ve just had a few in so far, but we hope to get more soon.”

[USAPatriot]

Published: Monday, June 8, 2009
Edmonds commuter rail station closer to reality

Construction on Sounder commuter rail station could begin next spring

By Chris Fyall
The Everett Herald Writer

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


EDMONDS -- A new Sounder commuter rail station near Edmonds' waterfront has been planned for years.

image hosted on flickr


It could finally be on the fast track.

Construction on a new, permanent station could begin next spring, according to Sound Transit spokeswoman Linda Robson. The agency has a $12.9 million budget for the project.

The Sounder commuter train already stops in Edmonds near the Amtrak building on Railroad Avenue, but it doesn't have a dedicated building. The train offers service to Seattle, Mukilteo and Everett.

There were plans to build an interim building this summer, but those stalled earlier this year when funding for a $200 million project that would have combined a permanent Sound Transit station with a new ferry terminal dried up.

Earlier this year, Washington State Ferries announced that they probably wouldn't have funding for the Edmonds Crossing project for 20 years -- or more.

After that announcement, Edmonds officials asked Sound Transit to abandon plans for a bare-bones "interim" station, and focus instead on a permanent station with more amenities. Plans for a permanent station had been approved in 2002, back when optimism for the Edmonds Crossing project was also low.

Now, Edmonds is close to getting what it wants.

Thursday, Sound Transit's finance committee approved a recommendation to finish plans for a more permanent station.

The change means Edmonds should get a fancier building, Robson said.

"It will have things like more glass, less plywood," she said. "Permanent stations have higher quality finished materials."

The change is good for commuters and downtown Edmonds, said Stephen Clifton, the city's economic development and community services director.

"We're hoping that once it is developed, it will encourage additional riders and encourage development within the vicinity of the station," he said. "I think it's an excellent outcome."

[USAPatriot]

Would low-income housing be welcome in Prosser?
Low-income housing proposed next to upscale winery complex
BY ROSS COURTNEY
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC


(Prosser, Washington. AJM STUDIOS Northwest Photo Journey.)

AJM STUDIOS.NET Northwest Development News Center


PROSSER, Wash. -- Tourism requires workers; so does farming.

The people of this little city, which relies on both, are wrestling with where those workers will live.

Catholic Charities Housing Services has proposed building a low-income housing complex right next to a crown jewel of Prosser's fast growing wine tourism industry: Vintner's Village, a cluster of about 11 wineries and tasting rooms.

Both sides are talking, and the housing complex is more than a year from construction. But the issue is prompting this image-conscious city, the first in the state to write agritourism zoning laws, to examine its housing needs.

"The bigger issue in the city in the long run is how we want to approach affordable housing in general," said Charlie Bush, city administrator.

Plans are still conceptual, but Catholic Charities envisions a 50-unit complex of townhouses on 20 acres at the corner of Wamba Road and Old Inland Empire Highway.

It may start as mixed use, with some units reserved for farmworkers, others set aside for laborers in other industries. Senior housing and low-income homeowner residences might follow someday, said Mario Villanueva, executive director of the nonprofit.

The location is a stone's throw to the south of Vintner's Village, which draws throngs of tourists to the city's well-known wine events. The 32-acre area is poised to roughly double in acreage over the next five years or so, with part of its growth area bordering the proposed housing property.

Catholic Charities operates nine affordable housing complexes in Central Washington, most in the Lower Valley. Most are funded by a combination of state funding and private investors seeking tax breaks.

Demand is high. One of the group's developments, a 50-unit complex in Wapato, has 300 applicants on a waiting list, Villanueva said.

In a 2006 statewide survey, 38 percent of farmworkers complained that affordable housing was difficult to find. Nine out of 10 said housing availability might make a difference year to year in where they look for work.

In Prosser, commercial industries, particularly tourism, have exploded in recent years. That's good news for the economy, but housing has not kept up, Bush said.

Cities don't have to encourage low-income projects, but the state's growth management act requires them to make room for high-density housing near jobs.

Catholic Charities' complexes usually look like any apartment building or townhouse development, but they rent to farmworkers making less than half of the area's median income. Some of the units are reserved for seasonal workers.

Villanueva said they are well-maintained and all tenants must pass criminal background checks.

Affordable housing, no matter who builds it or where, commonly meets resistance from residents in this state, said Janet Abbett, a contract manager for the state's Housing Trust Fund, which helps finance projects.

However, tourism is a new neighbor, she said.

"The tourism thing really hasn't butted up against farmworker housing," he said. "That is kind of a new angle."

Backers of the project contend the workers at restaurants, wineries and hotels, both existing and proposed, need to live somewhere. So do those who work at the area's vineyards and orchards.

"Grapes don't turn into wine by themselves," said Marty Miller, executive director of the Office of Rural Farmworker Housing, a Yakima-based private nonprofit that functions as the developer for many of Catholic Charities' projects, including the one proposed in Prosser. "It takes a significant labor force."

Putting them next to the wineries makes their commute easier and might even add a sense of authenticity to Prosser's tourism industry.

"(It could) demonstrate to tourists that not only are communities like Prosser growing with their wine industry, but they're also progressively addressing their workforce housing needs," Miller said.

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Opponents believe there's a need.

"It's a chore for people to have to drive 20 or 30 miles to get to work," said Larry Olsen, president of Olsen Brothers Ranches, part of a family that has been farming near Prosser for 100 years.

Some of Olsen's employees complain of driving from Mabton and Sunnyside to reach their jobs, Olsen said. The Olsen business is working with the state on its own on-farm worker housing unit for seasonal laborers.

However, next door to tourist amenities is the wrong place, critics say. Prosser's wineries have grown up near the city's two Interstate 82 exits for a reason.

"You want to have those two wings ... as tourist friendly and attractive as possible," Olsen said.

Even attractive housing would not look right, he said.

Olsen is a co-founder of Olsen Estates winery, one of the anchors of Vintner's Village. He said the family has tentative plans for more tourism-related businesses, but he declined to elaborate.

Officials at the Port of Benton, which developed Vintner's Village, also hope the proposed housing development finds a different location.

Low-income housing "is going to take away some of the ambiance of coming into a ... high-end, tourism-related place like Vintners' Village," said Jan Jackson, the port's marketing manager.

Port directors want to someday apply for a rezone to agritourism. Other developers have plans for hotels, bed and breakfasts, boutique cheese vendors and other businesses, if not more wineries, both south and north of the proposed housing development.

"We're trying to protect the rights of our tenants, who have purchased this property and put a great deal of money into it," Jackson said.

The wineries in the area cost between $2 million and $3 million, he said.

Other critics, including Prosser Mayor Paul Warden, say a housing development of any kind would rob the area of commercial developments, which bring in more revenue through sales and property taxes.

Catholic Charities has an agreement to purchase the property, but that's about as far as the paperwork has reached, Villanueva said.

Under the city's long-term plans, which were established long before Vintner's Village, the property is designated for high-density housing.

But for now it's an unincorporated island that would require annexation into Prosser to get water and sewer lines. For that to occur, Catholic Charities must persuade a majority of the island's other property owners to seek annexation.

The group has not applied for annexation yet.

It would not be the first high-density housing development in the area. Right across Wamba Road from the proposed development lies the Village Park subdivision, a neighborhood of manufactured homes that meet the federal poverty guidelines for a community development block grant the city will spend on street and water improvements. Also across the street is Sheffield Manor, a senior assisted living facility.

However, city officials have discussed rezoning the area to agritourism, said Mayor Paul Warden.

"We just haven't got on there and changed the colors on the map yet," Warden said. Warden owns a bed and breakfast at his home across town from Vintner's Village.

If they do, they have to make room for high-density housing somewhere else, Bush said.

Villanueva said he is willing to listen and explore other Prosser locations, but the city has few other choices. All other locations would require a zoning change.



* Ross Courtney can be reached at 509-930-8798 or rcourtney@yakimaherald.com.