Bert Caldwell

Washington Water Power Co. is allowing customers to negotiate bills for electricity service disrupted by last month's ice storm, spokeswoman Dana Anderson said Wednesday. Although the utility has mailed bills for periods that include days when there were widespread outages, officials have allowed adjustments sought by consumers who did not have power, she said.

Many Washington Water Power Co. customers are learning that November's massive power outage won't mean lower utility bills in December. Thousands of bills going out this month are based on estimates of energy usage because meter readers were kept out of areas where downed power lines and other hazards raised safety concerns, said WWP spokeswoman Dana Anderson. In all, 17,891 electricity and natural gas meters in Spokane and Deer Park that would have been read between Nov. 19 - the day the storm hit - and Nov. 27 were bypassed, she said. Anderson said those customers are receiving bills with the explanation that eheir energy usage is based on use in the same period a year ago, adjusted for warmer or cooler temperatures.

Founder and president of ICM Asset Management, Jim Simmons' company handles more than one billion dollars in pension and other funds. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Donors bombarded with requests for money can get a free guide to charitable organizations from the Better Business Bureau of the Inland Northwest. The Holiday Edition of the "Give But Give Wisely" newsletter lists the most asked-about charities and how well they comply with 23 standards for charitable solicitations established by the Council of Better Business Bureaus. A large print edition is available. Lisa Stephens, president of the Spokane-based bureau, said donations could be unusually important this year because government support for low-income programs has slipped. Also, damage from the recent ice storm has created additional needs, she said. In addition to the guide the bureau offers these tips: Do not surrender to a high-pressure pitch to give on the spot.

The ice storm's punch to Washington Water Power Co.'s bottom line follows an earnings blow earlier this year from the company's aborted merger with Sierra Pacific Resources. Together, the left-right jabs will cost company shareholders about $28 million in 1996. That's a painful cut, but one analysts said should heal rather quickly with help from new wholesale revenues.

A proposed switch from old, left to new lock boxes has some Spokane real estate agents upset. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Ameriflo Inc., a Spokane maker of ducting, conveyors and other industrial equipment, plans to build a new factory on North Dollar Road with the help of $750,000 in revenue bonds from Spokane County. Owner Roger Storey said the project will increase Ameriflo's manufacturing space by about 50 percent - to almost 13,000 square feet - and allow the company to add to its work force of 16.

Employees at two KeyBank branches in Spokane and Kettle Falls will take the brunt of layoffs associated with the bank's consolidation efforts, spokesman Rob Gill said Monday. Although only 10 layoffs are expected statewide when nine branches are closed, Gill said four of those positions are in Spokane, and three in Kettle Falls.

Twenty-three Cox Communications Inc. employees will lose their jobs when TeleCommunications Inc. takes over the Spokane-area cable television system next month. Allan Collins, Cox vice president and general manager in Spokane, said most of the cuts will affect workers in marketing and accounting.

State Farm insurance adjuster Tammi Marshall talks with John Roberts about damage to his north Spokane home. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

1. Technological treasure hunt. Dave and Linda Brower keep the phone lines busy at Western States Electric on Friday. The two have spent all their time at the office calling all over the country for everything from transformers to galvanized bolts for power line repairs. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review 2. Transformers are a hot commodity at Western States Electric, a supply store that is scrambling to keep up with demand because of the ice storm.

Linemen Dennis Scott and Bill Sharp work to restore power to Idaho's Blue Bay. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review

An avalanche of callers seeking assistance with their winter heating bills brought phone service on parts of the South Hill to a near standstill Monday. The surge will be repeated today as thousands of low-income Spokane County residents compete for the help.

Kim Marcus, of Dames & Moore, does much of his work with foreign clients. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Old divisions over allocation of the Northwest's cheap hydroelectric power, and how much should be spent by whom on fish and conservation, erupted Wednesday in Spokane before a committee searching for consensus on those issues. In three hours of testimony before representatives of three regional governors, environmentalists criticized what they said were feeble commitments to restoration of Columbia River salmon runs.

Descriptions of Wells Fargo invoke images of a linebacker, not a bank. Tough. Aggressive. Savvy. Definitely a force to be reckoned with as it absorbs First Interstate Bank branches across the Northwest. Although Wells Fargo historically had a presence in the region - a Spokane office opened in 1879 - the bank stuck closer to its California roots than cross-state rival First Interstate.

Dozens of credit unions in Washington and Idaho are turning away potential members who do not belong to the industries the institutions were formed to serve. And many current members could be forced out if a U.S. District Court judge orders the credit unions to limit themselves to their core constituencies.

Washington Water Power Co. wants to sell its share of the Centralia Power Station, the executive in charge of the utility's thermal operations said Tuesday. George Perks said the Spokane utility notified Washington regulators and the seven other Centralia owners of its intentions last week.

Itron Inc. will read 50,000 meters for Southern California Edison in a test that could lead to the biggest deployment yet of its fixed-network automated meter-reading equipment. The utility, with 3.8 million meters, is the second largest in the United States.

A newly formed Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance should extend increasingly scarce conservation budgets, backers said Thursday. Although participating utilities are not dedicating any new money to the effort, working together will make the $65 million committed over the next three years go farther, said Washington Water Power Co. conservation analyst John Powell.

Thriving downtowns are the magnets that attract companies with high-paying jobs, hotel developer Don Barbieri said Wednesday. Although talk about the proposed downtown revitalization effort focuses on retaining Nordstrom and other retailers, he said, the project's importance goes beyond its impact on a few blocks in the city's core. Low wages are putting affordable housing beyond the reach of many in Spokane, Barbieri said. Recruiting companies with well-paid workers helps the whole community, he said, but executives who make relocation decisions are not going to move to areas without shopping and cultural amenities.

WSU student David DeVries, right, and Gonzaga University professor Shibi Bayyuk watch over fuel cell technology equipment. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

In rapid-fire testimony that won the admiration of the hearings officer, Spokane officials on Thursday unanimously endorsed forming a foreign trade zone at Spokane International Airport, the adjacent business park and Felts Field Airport. A trade zone, they said, would add to the list of pluses the area can use to attract new businesses, or retain those already here.

Establishing a foreign trade zone is not a sure-fire economic booster, but it does show an area wants to be more aggressive in international commerce, a federal official says. John Da Ponte, executive secretary of the Foreign-Trade Zones Board, will be in Spokane today to conduct a hearing on a Spokane Airport Board application to create a zone covering Spokane International Airport, the adjacent business park and Felts Field.