Weyerhaeuser case heard
The Supreme Court on Tuesday questioned whether forest products giant Weyerhaeuser Co. drove a smaller competitor out of business by paying too much for logs that Weyerhaeuser allegedly didn’t need.
The case focuses on the lumber industry in the Pacific Northwest and pits a defunct company, Ross-Simmons Hardwood Lumber Co., against Weyerhaeuser and the Bush administration.
Weyerhaeuser is fighting an $80 million award to Ross-Simmons stemming from a jury verdict that found the larger company had violated federal antitrust law.
Ross-Simmons accused Weyerhaeuser of paying too much for alder logs and not using what it bought, with the goal of driving out competing sawmills.
Coeur d’Alene
Home sales down but prices rising
Home sales in Kootenai County declined 29 percent during the first 10 months of the year, compared with the same period in 2005. Prices, however, are still rising.
Slightly more 2,000 houses were sold through the end of October, according to figures from the Coeur d’Alene Multiple Listing Service. In contrast, nearly 2,900 homes sold during the same period last year.
The average sales price in Kootenai County was $238,443 at the end of October, compared with $208,140 a year ago.
Coeur d’Alene experienced the sharpest drop-off in the number of home sales, with a decline of nearly 35 percent. Home sales declined 31 percent in Post Falls; 20 percent in the Hayden-Dalton area; and 8 percent in the Rathdrum-Hauser area.
The number of homes for sale is rising, which means buyers are having an easier time finding properties in all price ranges. Homes priced at $199,000 and less accounted for 45 percent of the sales through the end of October. Homes priced at $300,000 and up comprised nearly 27 percent of the sales.
Spokane
RPS garage cuts Sunday discount
River Park Square has eliminated a Sunday parking discount through the holidays.
People parking at the garage on Sunday can now expect to pay regular rates of $7 a day or $1 per half-hour.
Parking after 5 p.m. costs a maximum of $3 and validations by participating merchants take $1 off the price.
The Sunday discount will be offered again, starting Jan. 2.