Benton County, home to nearly 209,300 people in 2021, is wrapping up construction of a new administration building at its justice center campus in Kennewick.The administration building is the largest undertaking by either Benton or Franklin county in 2021.Franklin County, with a population just 500 people shy of the 100,000...
It’s time for the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business’ deep dive into all things related to construction and real estate.Readers will find the 64-page Focus magazine inserted in this month’s edition of the paper. It is a strikingly different publication than issue we published in 2020, when coronavirus shutdowns were...
Tri-City real estate broker Charles Laird was vacationing in his native Scotland in March when national borders began to close because of the spreading threat of coronavirus.Laird and his family cut their trip short and headed home, a journey that included driving on Interstate 5 through pandemic-stricken Seattle.The chronically congested...
A pandemic, choking smoke and a polarizing national election did little to dampen demand for new and existing homes in the Tri-Cities as the calendar flipped toward the final quarter of 2020.More homes sold for higher prices. Unemployment increased, driven up in part because more people were seeking work.New home...
The Tri-Cities is coming off a banner year for commercial construction. New schools dot the region. A new cold storage warehouse is taking shape in north Pasco.Kennewick’s Vista Field is stocked with utility lines, paved streets, lamps and a water feature, waiting for private developers to build an urban village...
Government-funded projects are keeping construction workers busy in Kennewick despite the recession.Multiple commercial and residential projects are underway in every area of the city, and the largest are funded by the city, Benton County, Kennewick School District and Port of Kennewick, said Evelyn Lusignan, the city of Kennewick’s spokeswoman.“Development activity...
A global pandemic hasn’t slowed progress across the city of Richland as major construction projects wrap up and new ones prepare to break ground.The $43 million Duportail Bridge opened to limited traffic in early September 2020. It is expected to fully open by Nov. 1, 2020, providing a new span...
Construction is booming in Pasco.It’s because the city is an incredible value for builders, said Rick White, Pasco’s director of community and economic development.Whether residential, commercial or industrial, Pasco is less expensive to develop than Richland and Kennewick and it promises population growth, he said.With 77,100 residents, the Franklin County...
As a city that doesn’t rely on sales tax revenue to fuel much of its budget, West Richland had an unexpected boost from the Covid-19 pandemic: more people began ordering online, sending “destination-oriented” sales tax revenue to the city’s coffers.“When you’re not dependent on sales tax, it’s actually benefited the...
The first months of 2020 welcomed new members to the Port of Benton “We were in the middle of a transition,” said Diahann Howard, executive director for the port, whose jurisdiction includes a population of about 56,050 and a budget totaling $14 million in 2020.Howard, who became executive director in...
