The Port of Pasco has selected the consultant that will help inform efforts to revitalize Connell’s economy after Lamb Weston closed its production facility there.

French fry producer Lamb Weston is beginning to see its financials turning a corner. But its corporate leaders acknowledge that they don’t anticipate smooth sailing just yet.

After Lamb Weston’s abrupt departure from Connell left hundreds unemployed and the city’s budget devastated, the community now may have a clearer path to bringing a new company to town.

A $100,000 state grant to study potential industrial sites in Connell may provide a path to economic sustainability for a community still dealing with the closure of its largest employer.

Q&A with Mike Crowley, president, North America, Lamb Weston.

The company known for the branded Milky Way tankers seen on highways ferrying milk from dairies to processors is buying land near one of its biggest partners north of Pasco.

Lamb Weston’s current chief operating officer will be the next top leader of the Idaho-based potato processor as it wrestles with decreased demand for its products.

A nationwide egg producer will make the Tri-Cities the home for its newest hub for egg farms in the region.

One of the Mid-Columbia’s largest employers has shuttered a potato processing plant and laid off the facility’s roughly 375 workers as part of a restructuring plan.

Taxes, regulations, energy and workforce remain some of the manufacturing industry’s major challenges despite an increase in manufacturing jobs throughout the state.