With famers geting ready to put crops into fields and orchardists preparing for the growing season, immigration reform picks up as a topic across much of Eastern Washington. As immigration uncertainties have disrupted the traditional supply of Latino workers, some Eastern Washington farms have turned…
Spokane and Coeur d’Alene-based real estate consulting firm Auble, Jolicoeur & Gentry, Inc. had changed its name, joining national firm Valbridge Property Advisors. It opened its Spokane office in 1984. It now uses the name Valbridge Property Advisors | Auble, Jolicoeur & Gentry Inc. Privately…
Our second leftover from the Merch Madness story that ran today in The Spokesman-Review. Cravens Coffee, a big fan of GU basketball, has seen plenty of sales for its Zags Blend coffee. Since Neil Everett is an announcer at ESPN, company owners Simon Thompson and…
Jay Underwood has gone from Edo to Miso. Actually, his two new eateries are named Miso Fresh Asian. Underwood opened the first Miso Fresh Asian last week at NorthTown Mall. This Friday he opens one in the food court at River Park Square. Both take…
This week's major news in North Idaho was the announced reopening of the Lucky Friday mine, in Mullan. For most folks, the Lucky Friday is called a silver mine. In fact, it also produces good amounts of lead and zinc. Hecla Mining had to shut…
CenturyLink has opened two new Spokane stores, replacing ones it formerly operated in NorthTown and Spokane Valley malls. The north side new location is at 6704 N. Nevada. The Spokane Valley store is at 506 N. Sullivan. Store hours are Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m.–…
Each week during the legislative session, OfficeHours will focus on a single piece of legislation, seeing how it would affect state businesses and considering the bill's chances of going forward. This week's bill is HB 1757, introduced by a bunch of legislators including Marcus Ricelli,…
The most overused pitch sent to the media by business PR people is the standard "what can business leaders learn from ...... FILL IN THE BLANK..." Today's version: "Speculation mounts over next Pope. What can business leaders and managers learn from the selection process." I'll…
Updated at 1:28 p.m. Feb. 12 Updated to include a statement by Allegiant Air on the issue of new routes and possible cancellation of routes: Allegiant spokeswoman Jessica Wheeler emailed this comment regarding the issue that the TWU cited for the flyers handed out: Many…
The key section of the recently released Bureau of Indian Affairs environmental impact statement summarizes why the proposed Spokane Tribe casino and project doesn't impede or endanger the operation of Fairchild Air Force Base, west of town. A major argument cited by critics was the…
Spokane city commercial construction got on a major role in 2012, according to records kept by the city and outside data companies. The volume of commercial construction last year nearly doubled the volume of the generally weak performance of 2011. Today's business section story laid…
The Affordable Care Act takes effect for many small businesses over the next two years. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) on Monday started a website to help small businesses understand the set of choices they face. It's www.sba.gov/healthcare. It includes online tools to gather…
Instead of shutting its doors on Jan. 31, the East Francis Fred Meyer Store will close on Feb. 2, the company has announced. Jan. 31 was the original shut-down date chosen when the company announced the plan last year. The change better fits the financial…
A recent study by the Bay Area Council Economic Institute found that Washington state has the largest concentration of tech jobs in the United States, comparing tech jobs among all jobs in the state. Washington's percentage is 11.4 percent of all private jobs.The full study…
It was probably one of 2012's high points for me to have the chance to meet up with Bernard Daines this past month, and include him in our end-of-year "Catching Up With" series at Spokesman.com. This collage shows four file photos, On top left, Daines…
As just a little footnote to the obituary of former U.S. Army General Norman Schwarzkopf, we'll mention that the guy served for more than three years on the board of Washington Water Power, now Avista. In 1997 SR business writer Bert Caldwell took note of…
Liberty Lake cloud service company 2nd Watch, Inc. announced it's received $4.2 million funding primarily led by Seattle's Madrona Venture Group, with participation from other private investors. Launched in 2010, 2nd Watch helps large and midsized companies move IT applications and manage company business processes…
A year to the day after Mary Livingston opened her University Bar and Grill in the former Bulldog hangout, the business closed its doors. The business, at 1305 N. Hamilton Street, has a long history going back decades, when it was primarily the Bulldog Tavern…
We spent some time trying to describe the reactions of local retailers to the trend called showrooming. Today's news story touches on that trend, describing showrooming as the use of smartphone by consumers to shop a store and find the best price (either in-store or…
View Larger Map The downtown Saad's Shore Repair store at 215 N. Wall closed at the end of November. A note on the door directs customers to the Saad's store at NorthTown Mall. Owner Larry Alfano wrote that the recent untimely deaths of longtime Saad…
OK, ladies and gentlemen, you're about to read OfficeHour's commemorative first-but-maybe-not-last pot entry. Now that Washington has legalized indoor smoking of marijuana, we just had to find something to add to the discussion. Here it is: A classic Penguin paperback book, The Strange Case of…
Former Hillyard bar owner and Spokane city councilman Bob Apple plans to open a sports bar on the city’s South Hill. Apple, who served on the council from 2004 through 2011, has applied for a liquor license for a new business at 5620 S. Regal.…
Holiday Gift Cards, anew. We posted yesterday about federal efforts to eliminate expiration dates on gift cards. Today, we list the top 20 favorite gift cards, by retailer. This list comes by way of GiftCardRescue. You can see the list yourself in this graphic, from…
Gift cards are everywhere, and especially in the minds of stocking-fillers. We bring you this worthwhile update, on efforts to pass a law that bans expiration dates on credit cards. And on first blush, the thought comes jumping out: Why should the federal government care…
Michael Edwards, who was CEO of the Downtown Spokane Partnership before taking a similar job in Pittsburgh, will become the head economic development director for Chicago's downtown Loop district. Edwards will be the executive director of the Chicago Loop Alliance, Edwards, 53, will be charge…
