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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: Northtown Square adds two shops

From Staff And Wire Reports

Max Muscle and Palm Springs Tan will be the 13th and 14th retailers to join the newly opened Northtown Square project, developer Chud Wendle announced Wednesday.

Developed in the former location of the NorthTown Wendle auto dealership, the retail block is anchored by a Red Lobster restaurant and DSW Shoes.

Wendle and others are gathering today to formally dedicate the project in a ceremony with Spokane Mayor Mary Verner.

The nutrition store and tanning salon will open in September. About 11,000 square feet of Northtown Square is still unfilled, according to Wendle.

Boeing takes steps to expand facility

Charleston, S.C. – Boeing Co. is seeking permits to expand its South Carolina plant, one of several being considered for an assembly line for its new 787 wide-body jetliners, the company said Wednesday.

Boeing spokesman Russ Young said the company is notifying state and local officials about applying for permits at the North Charleston plant, but noted there will be no decision on where to locate a second line until year’s end.

Boeing has been evaluating potential sites for a second assembly line for the 787, a next-generation aircraft built for fuel efficiency with lightweight carbon composite parts.

Production of the 787 has been hampered by problems stemming partly from Boeing’s reliance on global suppliers to build large sections of the aircraft.

The North Charleston plant, which Boeing bought last month from Vought, makes fuselage sections for the 787. Analysts saw the acquisition of the plant as an effort by Boeing to exert greater control over the production process and resolve supplier problems.

Energy companies may buy Ford plant

Lansing, Mich. – Two alternative energy companies planning to buy a closed Ford Motor Co. factory near Detroit want to convert it into the country’s largest renewable energy park, with at least 2,800 workers building storage batteries, solar panels and possibly wind turbines.

The proposed $725 million project outlined to state lawmakers Wednesday would be a coup for a state in desperate need of jobs. Michigan has the highest unemployment rate in the nation.

Xtreme Power of Kyle, Texas, and Clairvoyant Energy of Santa Barbara, Calif., said that if state tax incentives and federal loans are approved, they will purchase and refurbish the sprawling 320-acre Wixom Assembly Plant 25 miles northwest of Detroit, which was closed in 2007 as part of Ford’s restructuring.

Legislative committees on Wednesday began passing the tax breaks, which must be put in place quickly because Xtreme and Clairvoyant face a Sept. 14 deadline to apply for federal loan guarantees.