Nexxpost on the move

Nexxpost, a Western Washington company supplying postal automation equipment and software, moved to the Holly commercial building in downtown Bellingham. The new location will help the company to provide expanded service and demonstration space.

Nexxpost is a preferred vendor of the Washington Society of Certified Public Accountants.

 

Samuels has soft seat gig at mall

Samuels Furniture of Ferndale will provide seating for two mini-lounges in Bellis Fair Mall during the Holiday shopping season. Each lounge features Norwegian leather chairs and will provide a place for shoppers to relax during hectic shopping trips.

“(It) allows us the chance to provide shoppers with some extra comfort during the holidays,” said Cara Buckingham, marketing manager at Bellis Fair.

 

Campus service facility opens

Zervas Group Architects designed the recently opened campus service facility at Western Washington University. The 35,000 square foot building serves as a gateway for visitors approaching south campus and contains visitor information, parking, police and student health offices.

The exterior uses materials that predominate in campus architecture – stone, brick and metal roofing – but in a progressive style. The building also incorporates green design principles.

Site design includes the realignment of 21st Street and Bill McDonald Parkway, creating a sweeping curve leading to campus.

 

International Absorbents builds new facility

International Absorbents purchased 15.6 acres of land in the Grandview Business Park for $1.5 million to build their new 100,000 square foot west coast manufacturing facility.

“The move to a new manufacturing facility will result in greater efficiencies, enhanced logistics, and more cost effective use of assets,” said Gordon Ellis, chairman of International Absorbents. “It will also enhance long-term production capacity and provide a location from which International Absorbents can expand for years to come.”

The new location offers rail and highway access and has space for the company to expand to 200,000 square feet.

Geotechnical studies have begun on the site. Groundbreaking will follow in January. The company hopes to relocate operations to the site beginning in summer 2003. The company plans to gradually shift all operations out of the six facilities they currently operate in the northwest.

The new site is part of an expansion plan for the company. Part of that plan involves shifting CareFresh production to an as yet unspecified location on the east coast. CareFresh is the company’s line of small pet bedding.

“Production costs are too high,” said Sean Dooley, vice president for marketing at International Absorbents, to keep all production centralized in Bellingham.

However, the company plans to keep significant production and administration functions at the new location, said Charles Tait, spokesperson for CareFresh.

 

Canadian energy board still ruling on SE2 hearing

Canada’s National Energy Board has reserved judgment on whether or not they will rule on environmental concerns related to the Sumas Energy 2 proposal. Part of the proposal includes a transmission link from the plant in Sumas to a BC Hydro facility in Abbottsford, BC. The NEB will rule on whether to allow construction of the link.

Interveners representing community groups, business groups, and First Nations groups in British Columbia have asked the board to consider their ecological concerns as part of the board’s deliberations.

“They hope to make a decision by early December,” said Denis Tremblay, communications officer with the NEB. “However, that may be optimistic.”

Once the NEB decides on the scope of their deliberations, they will set a timetable for the rest of the hearings in early 2003.

The NEB ruled during hearings on various motions in October to continue with the process despite an objection filed by Randy White, federal Member of Parliament for Abbotsford. White asked the NEB to postpone consideration of the transmission link until all lawsuits in the United States are resolved.

 

Locke announces state budget strategy

Governor Gary Locke stated his commitment to develop a state budget that addresses a $2 billion deficit and “focuses spending on results that matter most to Washington citizens.”

“We have been engaged in a disciplined and creative new approach to writing a state spending plan for the next biennium that I believe will deliver the results that matter most to Washington citizens,” Locke said. “We are focusing on results that people want and need, prioritizing those results, and funding those results with the money we have.”

The state recognized 10 goals that state spending should be measured against. Those 10 goals are:

• Improving student achievement in elementary, middle and high school

• Improving quality and productivity of our workforce

• Improving the value of a state college or university education

• Improving the health of citizens

• Improving the security of Washington’s vulnerable children and adults

• Improve economic vitality of businesses and individuals

• Improving the statewide mobility of people, goods, information and energy

• Improving the safety of people and property

• Improving the quality of Washington’s natural resources

• Improving cultural and recreational opportunities throughout the state

“This process departs from the traditional approach of cutting or adding to an existing budget,” said Marty Bowen, Locke’s budget director. “We want the result to be a state budget that citizens can look at and say ‘Yes, if nothing else, those are things the government must pay for’.”

The government estimates they will have to deal with a $2 billion shortfall in the 2003-2005 budget.

 

Muljat buys shoe store

Heather Muljat is the new owner of 12th Street Shoes in Fairhaven. She purchased the store from Donna Varner in late October.

“I have been interested in buying a business in Fairhaven for a long time,” Muljat said. “When this opportunity came up, I went for it.”

For now, she plans no major changes in the store.

“We have fabulous employees and wonderful product lines,” Muljat said. “We’re not changing a thing.”

 

Farm Friends release calendar

Whatcom Farm Friends released their 2003 calendar recently. It features scenes of local agriculture as depicted by local photographers. Depictions include raspberry flats, apples, sunsets and contented cattle.

 

Credit union installs new ATM

Whatcom Educational Credit Union installed their 12th automated teller machine. The new machine is in the Viking Union, on the Western Washington University campus.

WECU had the machine pulled up Indian Street by a team of horses from Pacific Percheron.

 

Barkley Medical Center expansion on track

Barkley Company broke ground on a 20,000 square foot addition to the Barkley Medical Center. The anchor tenant will be North Sound Family Medicine, a family practice partnership affiliated with the Family Care Network.

“The deal provides us with flexibility and room to grow, as we work to provide added services to the Barkley District community, including x-ray and labs,” said Dr. Jim Moren of North Sound Family Medicine.

The initial phase of the Barkley Medical Center project opened in 2000 and is home to a number of medical professionals and healthcare industry organizations.

 

Washington unemployment drops in October

Washington’s seasonally adjusted employment rate dropped seven-tenths of a percentage point to 6.7 percent in October. However, state analysts did not hail the news.

“Not all decreases in the unemployment rate are positive since increasing numbers of discouraged workers, which we believe are reflected in October’s labor force contraction, can cause the unemployment rate to fall,” said Sylvia P. Mundy, employment security commissioner. “Seasonally adjusted employment has risen over the month.

“Too many uncertainties exist to take the October numbers as a sign the economy has significantly improved in Washington.”

Job gains in September and October were concentrated in state and local education, as teachers and support staff returned to work.

In Whatcom County, unemployment dropped by three-tenths of a percentage point from September, to 5.6 percent.

Unemployment went up slightly by one-tenth of a percentage point nationally, to 5.7 percent.

“The unemployment rate is an estimate and additional months of data will be needed before a clear trend can be identified,” Mundy said.

 

Bellair begins Baker shuttle service

Bellair charters launched a shuttle service for skiers and snowboarders headed to Mt. Baker. Buses operate each Saturday and Sunday and on most holidays.

Trips operate between Mount Vernon and the White Salmon Day Lodge at the Mount Baker ski area. Passengers can catch the bus at the Viking Union at Western Washington University and Sunset Square in Bellingham and at Snowater Resort in Glacier.

Buses can be a good alternative for people with unreliable vehicles or for drivers unsure about driving in the mountains and through the snow.

Bellair is offering a ten-for-the-price-of-nine ticket booklet for frequent riders.

 

County tries to clear water of derelict gear

Water Resources staff of the Whatcom County Public Works department are concentrating on clearing derelict fishing gear from county waters. The gear can kill marine animals and birds, degrade fish habitat and interfere with diving, swimming and boating.

To date, more than 6,000 pounds of lost or abandoned nets have been removed from local marine waters.

 

Aeros comes to Mount Baker Theater

Aeros, a high-energy melding of theater and gymnastics, is coming to Bellingham on Jan. 30, 2003. The program captures the thrill and power of world championship gymnastics and merges athleticism into a theatrical experience. It is the product of three world-renowned choreographers – Daniel Ezralow, David Parsons and Moses Pendleton – in collaboration with Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas, creators of Stomp.

Aeros began in Italy in 1998 with a cast drawn from gymnasts auditioned in Bucharest.

The show is sponsored by Veco and by BP Cherry Point refinery as part of the BP Broadway series.

 

Horizon Air installs medical equipment...

Horizon Air began outfitting their entire fleet of 60 aircraft with defibrillators and upgraded medical kits. They expect to have the project finished by summer 2003, well ahead of the Federal Aviation Administration’s April 2004 deadline.

All flight attendants will be trained to operate the defibrillators and to support heart attack victims after being revived. Kits include cardiac drugs, airway equipment and life support equipment to address cardiac, respiratory and diabetic emergencies.

Horizon’s defibrillators are manufactured by Meditronic Physio-Control of Redmond, Wash. Medical kits are made by MedAire in Tempe, Ariz., who also provide a 24-hour link to emergency physicians on the ground to support flight crews in case of in-flight medical emergencies.

 

…and makes Conde Nast reader surveys

Horizon Air is the only regional airline to make two recent reader surveys in Conde Nast magazine.

Horizon placed seventh on the magazine’s reader’s choice list of domestic airlines. They first appeared on the list in 1997.

The airline also placed second in Conde Nast’s list of best domestic business airlines in the coach only category. Horizon placed fifth in the magazine’s value for money category on the business travel survey.

“When you consider that Horizon is a regional airline up here in the Pacific Northwest that carries a tiny percentage of the nation’s air travelers, it’s amazing we were recognized in these surveys,” said Jeff Pinneo, president and CEO of Horizon Air.

 

Boundary Bay stirs cabin fever

Bellingham’s Boundary Bay Brewery reintroduced Cabin Fever Ale at a special cask night last month. The dark reddish-brown ale has a malty flavor and spicy hop finish.

It’s available on tap and in 20 oz bottles.

 

Olympic contracts with application services provider

Olympic Health Management Systems, a Bellingham-based provider of health care plans for the Medicare market, recently contracted with Synertech for their applications service.

Synertech, based in Harrisburg, Pa, provides computer applications support and business process services to clients in the health insurance industry. They will provide a claims processing platform and various functional add-ons, image and archive claims, and provide implementation support services for Olympic.

“Olympic is able to leverage the benefits of application hosting to provide cost-effective service to their customers,” said Steve Rock, president and CEO of Synertech..

Synertech is owned by Platinum Equity, a global acquisitions firm specialized in technology companies.

Olympic develops insurance plans designed to either supplement or replace Medicare. They developed the first Medicare fee for service supplementary plan, Sterling Option.

 

Marine companies form new association

Nearly twenty Bellingham-based boat repair and service companies banded together recently to form the Marine Professionals at Colony Warf, or the PROs.

Companies who are part of the new group include Top to Bottom, Shawmanee Marine Services, Bellingham Marine Repair, Yacht-Tec, the Boatyard at Colony Warf, Jon Lope Master Marine Cabinet Maker, Peter Lamb Mobile Marine Shipwright, Dockside Machine, and Fair Winds Yacht Service.

“We have new competition in town from Seattle and we needed to respond to it,” said Phil Erickson of Shawmanee Marine Services, spokesperson for the industry association. “We’re all independent…but we can compete more effectively if we work together as a complete unit.”

PROs operations are centered on the Boatyard at Colony Warf’s haulout facility, at the foot of C Street. They announced their new partnership through a series of seasonal specials coordinated by multiple businesses. Such arrangements are indicative of the group’s ability to “improve efficiency and reduce cost,” said Gordy Lavigueure of Bellingham Marine Repair.

“The people involved in this group are all seasoned professionals, well known by boat owners in Bellingham,” said Russ Deptuch, owner of Yacht-Tec.

 

Cascadia Massage opens downtown

Cascadia Massage Clinic recently opened in downtown Bellingham last month.

The three therapists at the school met while studying at the Spectrum Center School of Massage in Lake Stevens. Cathy Kuntz and Marjorie Scarlett graduated last June, while Ann Brintzer graduated three years ago. All three live in Bellingham and sought to create a practice close to home.

“Touch promotes healing and overall well being, with immediate and long lasting beneficial effects,” Kuntz said. “We seek to discover and treat the individual needs of each client.”

Cascadia provides both relaxation massage and therapeutic massage. They accept labor and industries clients and other insurance plans.

 

StonWest rocks the tenth month

StonWest Granite and Marble gave away tabletops and cutting boards as part of their Rocktoberfest promotion. Carol Even, Terry Del Negro and Janice Shepherd won tabletops and Betty Hawkins and Janet Corrick won cutting boards.

Stonwest is open Saturdays throughout the holiday season.

 

BP reports profit, analysts disappointed

BP posted a 78 percent profit in the third quarter of 2002. However, most of the profit derived from sales of business units. Operating profit was down, and analysts downgraded BP stock.

The company scaled back their full year production growth target to three percent, down from earlier estimates of five percent.

 

Chiropractors host patient appreciation

Northwest Chiropractic Clinic is hosting a patient appreciation day Dec. 7 at 8 a.m. Dr. Fredy Hunziker and Dr. Matt Maas will offer complimentary adjustments. Participants are encouraged to bring donations of cash, non-perishable food and toys to help benefit the Salvation Army, Lighthouse Mission, and Womancare Shelter.

 

Tri County opens budget division

Tri County Office Interiors opened a new budget store next to their regular store. The new location is 5,000 square feet of discounted office furniture, much of it recycled from AT&T and Microsoft. Tri County also carries off-price seating, scratch and dent filing systems, desks, bookcases and more.

 

Pacific Northwest Bank to outsource mortgage lending

Pacific Northwest Bancorp outsourced its residential mortgage lending operations. Approximately 80 employees will be affected by this change. Pacific Northwest is offering outplacement services to these employees.

“As we planned for 2003 and beyond, our current method of operation would not provide an effective service experience for our customers and a sufficient return to our shareholders,” said Patrick Fahey, president and CEO of Pacific Northwest Bancorp.

Bank One, Mellon Financial Corp., and Merrill Lynch & Co. have all outsourced mortgage processes in an effort to minimize the cost of processing, underwriting, and closing mortgage loans.

“This approach to mortgage lending allows us to focus on the everyday banking and financial service needs of the businesses and residents of our marketplace while removing the cyclical uncertainties and operational risks of the mortgage business,” said Bette Floray, executive vice president and CFO of Pacific Northwest Bancorp.

While this new arrangement will change the way the bank offers loans, customers can still get loans from the bank.

“We will continue to offer residential loans to our customers because they prefer to work with people they know and trust,” Fahey said. “But we will do so in a more efficient manner that provides customers a more effective process and our shareholders a better return on their investment.”

 

Horizon reports increased interest margin

Horizon Financial Corp. reported increased net interest margins to more than 4 percent in the third quarter of 2002. Increased margins, combined with increases in consumer and commercial loans combined to push earnings per share up 28 percent to 27 cents per share.

“The combination of our focus on shorter term lending and on the economic resiliency of our primary market area has helped boost our commercial and consumer lending activity,” said V. Lawrence Evans, chairman and CEO of Horizon. “The current low interest rate environment has helped sustain strong loan demand as well.”

Non-interest income was also up to $1.5 million in the third quarter, better than the $1.1 million reported in the third quarter last year.

“In addition to our commercial and consumer success, we are busy generating mortgage refinance loans,” Evans said. “We do not believe it’s prudent to retain long-term, low interest rate loans in our portfolio.”

 

Glass studio opens on Mt. Baker Highway

Blast It Glass, a gallery featuring sandblasted glass, opened near Maple Falls last month. It’s at Ambridge Road, just past mile 25 along state Route 542. Lori Nelson-Clouts, proprietor, envisions the studio as both an art stop for tourists to the Mt. Baker Foothills area and as a showroom for people interested in architectural applications for sandblasted glass.

 

Nooksack tribe opens new market

The Nooksack Indian Tribe opened the Nooksack Market Center last month. A 5,400 square foot market center, it includes a Chevron, a Port of Subs, a full-service retail and commercial bakery, a wine and spirit shop, a tobacconist and a tribal arts and crafts center.

“With the addition of the market, the tribe now employs nearly 500 people,” said Art George, Nooksack tribal chairman..

“The center will generate revenues that will help fund much needed services for our people,” George said. “Our tribal government relies on revenue generated by tribal businesses to help support health, education and social programs.”

The market represents a significant step in improving the tribe’s business mix.

“This is a significant step in our effort to diversify the tribe’s holdings,” said Kevin Hogan, CEO of the Nooksack Business Corporation.

The bakery contains a monolithic stone hearth oven manufactured by Wood Stone of Bellingham. Diane Shaffer, a master baker trained at the Culinary Institute of America, will oversee a rotating menu of 125 items.

The wine and spirit shop features over 300 imported and domestic beers and will also highlight private-label wines produced by Mount Baker Vineyards.

Market Center was built by the Nooksack Construction Co. and incorporates Native décor with a rustic lodge motif.

 

Horizon Bank unveils new logo

Horizon Financial Corp. recently updated their logo and tagline.

“The new image, logo and tagline are a culmination of months of research into what business and retail banking customers are looking for in a financial institution in Western Washington,” said Michelle Mason, marketing manager for Horizon Bank.

Turk’s Head Productions of Ballard, Wash, the bank’s advertising agency of record, created the updated brand image. It retains the familiar blue and green color scheme that Horizon has long sported.

“We are very excited about the research findings that business and retail customers have shared with us,” said Dennis Joines, president and COO of Horizon Bank. “We found that retail and business consumers in Western Washington are very busy individuals looking for a financial partner.”

 

Western offers peak performance classes

The Center for Performance Excellence at Western Washington University is offering a peak performance class, beginning Jan. 14.

Classes focus on ways to improve personal, professional or athletic performance through mental skills training. Topics include confidence, concentration, composure and commitment. Participants will develop skills in positive self-talk, imagery, relaxation, goal setting, and concentration routines.

“The peak performance class…is dedicated to enhancing the performance of those individuals who seek personal excellence in sport, life, and the workplace,” said Ralph Vernacchia, director of the center and a physical education professor.

For more information, or to register, visit http://www.ac.wwu.edu/~cpe/.

 

Pacific Northwest Bank acquires Portland bank

Pacific Northwest Bank received regulatory approval for the acquisition of Portland-based Bank of the Northwest.

Shareholders in Bank of the Northwest received their choice of Pacific Northwest Bancorp stock, cash, or a combination of both. The entire transaction cost Pacific Northwest Bank almost $26 million and resulted in almost 1.8 million PNWB shares issued.

 

Honor society most improved in nation

The Golden Key International Honor Society named their Western Washington University chapter the most improved in the nation. The award was handed out at a national convention in Atlanta.

Golden Key was founded in 1997 and is a non-profit society that seeks to recognize the top 15 percent of college juniors and seniors in the country.

Western Washington’s chapter will host the regional Golden Key conference this spring.