A Minnesota company and several of its subcontractors are facing fines of $273,000 from the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries for nearly 600 instances of making illegal repairs at large retailers across Washington, including in Kennewick and Richland.Bailiwick Services LLC of Chaska, Minnesota,subcontracted with five other companies to move electrical...
A Prosser fruit and vegetable processorreported an ammonia leak over the weekend that prompted the temporary closureof a nearby elementary school.Milne Fruit Products detected the leak at 6:45 a.m. April 7 in one of the plant’s tank rooms. A news release from the company said staff immediately sealed the room...
The Tri-City RegionalChamber of Commerce announced its Business on a Roll Awardwinners March 27 during its annual meeting and awards luncheon inKennewick.Winners were Knutzen Engineering of Kennewick (10or fewer employees), Petersen Hastingsof Kennewick (11 to 50 employees) and GravisLaw of Richland (more than 50 employees).The awardsrecognize businesses achieving success in 2018.Awardrecipients are businesses...
Taxpayers in Franklin andBenton counties collect some of the biggest tax returns in the state.The two counties ranked among the top 10 of the state’s 39 counties with the highest amount of tax refunds, according to SmartAsset, an online financial technology company.Franklin County ranked No. 3on the list, with the...
A sale is pending for a sizable commercial propertyadjacent to the Columbia River at the north end of Columbia Center Boulevard,within Richland’s city limits. Two tenants vacated the 101,000-square-foot Rivers EdgePlaza in the last year, including anchor tenant Chuck E. Cheese andAll-American Gymnastics. Neither space has been filled in the...
Hundreds of acres north of the Queensgate Drive shoppingarea are poised to be rezoned by the city of Richland to pave the way forfuture development and a new school. The 314-acre parcel, which has been owned by Washingtonsince its statehood, is currently zoned agricultural. The state Department of Natural Resources...
Hairstylists and salon owners around the state got Washington legislators’ attention this session when they turned out in massive numbers to oppose measures that targeted booth rentals, as well as independent contracting. In the Washington state Senate and House, Democratic lawmakers introduced bills to change and tighten the definition of an independent contractor in...
A Kennewick business owner wasn’t toosurprised when 60 Tri-City businesses stepped up to participate in a grassroots“shop local’ initiative prompted by Mother Nature’s snowfall.“I think it’s something that I haveseen so many times here — these instances of camaraderie among smallbusinesses,” said Olivia Berg, owner of BlankSpace, a Kennewick event...
Sale of company changes name to FirstFruit FarmsThequiet sale of one of the state’s largest apple companies means Broetje Orchardshas a new name: FirstFruit Farms. Thesale closed at the end of 2018 and the business now operates under threeentities: FirstFruits Farms LLC, FirstFruits Marketing LLC and FirstFruitsCommunity LLC. Financialterms of...
By Andy PerdueMore than anywinery in Washington, Richland’s Barnard Griffin has a well-earned reputationas a leader in the Northwest’s burgeoning rosé wine market.Now thelongtime winery is testing a new kind of innovative packaging: putting wine inan aluminum can.Along the WestCoast and in the Northwest, more wineries are putting wine in...