Guest Contributor, Author at Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business

Lemon Grass Gifts owner Linda Pasco snaps a photo while a new sign for her store is installed at Marineland Plaza at 5215 W. Clearwater Ave. in Kennewick. A major remodel of the 30-year-old retail plaza has encouraged businesses to move in and longtime tenants to make improvements.

Remodeled Kennewick shopping plaza attracts new tenants

By Robin Wojtanik For the first time in two decades, all but one storefront is occupied at Kennewick’s Marineland Plaza. Following a major remodel of the façade, every spot on the West Clearwater Avenue side of the shopping center is booked, and just one space remains available for lease on the North Edison Street side […]

Food processing jobs lead local manufacturing boon

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Robin Wojtanik The Tri-Cities has seen the creation of thousands of new jobs in manufacturing, despite a loss of manufacturing jobs across the state. Jobs in food processing led the way for the region, with gains in non-durable manufacturing up 2.9 percent between March 2016 and March 2017, which translates to about 2,400 new […]

The Bogert Group in Pasco, a company with four separate manufacturing arms, reported success after participating in the business consulting and online education portions of the Make It In Washington, a program providing rural manufacturers with a range of consulting services and educational subsidies to train employees in key functions to make their businesses operate more efficiently. (Courtesy The Bogert Group)

Tri-City businesses succeeding at Making It In Washington program

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Michelle Dupler When your job is to make the best hydraulic jack you can, also understanding how to reach customers on Facebook might be outside your toolbox. But for manufacturing businesses in Washington state, help is available through a program that aims to help small and medium-sized manufacturers to change, grow and prosper with […]

Miramac Metals signed a two-year lease with the Port of Pasco last May for one of its warehouses in the Big Pasco Industrial Center, located off Ainsworth Avenue along the Columbia River. Demand for products is prompting the steel roofing manufacturer to plan for an expansion.

Miramac Metals eyes expansion of Pasco manufacturing plant

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Laura Kostad Miramac Metals Inc. opened a new manufacturing facility a year ago in Pasco and is already considering a future expansion. The Mead-based company supplies a diverse offering of customized steel products, including corrugated, ribbed and snap-lock panel profiles, to commercial and residential customers in the rapidly growing Tri-City region. Miramac signed a […]

Cloyd Bowers, 93, right, and Dave Car, 61, use the seated steppers at the city of Richland’s new gym COR Fit at the Richland Community Center.

New Kennewick, Richland gyms aim to offer affordable workouts

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Robin Wojtanik The availability of inexpensive fitness options is increasing in the Tri-Cities with the opening of COR Fit in Richland and the new Planet Fitness in Kennewick. Each gym is available to users on a month-to-month basis, with no long-term contracts required. COR stands for “city of Richland” and is the new name […]

Verizon Wireless expands at Columbia Center Mall

Verizon Wireless to expand in Columbia Center

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

An expanded Verizon Wireless store is under construction at Columbia Center mall in Kennewick. The cellphone store is expanding into 1,400 square feet that will encompass the former Starbucks shop inside suite 802 to create more space for suite 805. Starbucks moved to a kiosk in front of the mall’s food court last fall. The […]

Farmers should make time for mid-year estate tax planning

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Paul G. Neiffer Farm couples can be worth about $11 million and not owe any federal estate tax. However, farmers in Washington state are subject to a state estate tax which starts at a little more than $2 million of net worth and the tax rate reaches 20 percent at $9 million (the highest […]

Marijuana enthusiasts have kept Steve Lee’s Green2Go retail store in unincorporated Kennewick busy. Lee said he foresees continued steady growth as the state’s pot industry matures. Retail sales of marijuana in Benton County were up by 75 percent in the 2016 fiscal year compared to the previous year, from about $2.8 million to more than $4.9 million. (Courtesy Michael Schroeder of AgingEnt.com)

Marijuana sales budding in Benton County, statewide

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Michelle Dupler Benton County and Washington state marijuana retail sales bloomed in fiscal year 2016, and the high appears to have continued into 2017, according to data from the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board. Retail sales in Benton County were up by 75 percent in the 2016 fiscal year compared to the 2015 […]

Tri-Cities offers plenty of options to savor farm-to-table fare

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Marilou Shea This column is exclusively about one of our universally favorite things: food. It contributes to our economy in all kinds of ways, from agriculture, processing and manufacturers, to talented entrepreneurs, cultural heritage, restaurants, food trucks, farmers markets and farm-to-table efforts. Farm-to-table is a cool concept but it needs clarification. Simply put, it’s […]

Family farm LLC offers best choice for business succession

1 week ago by Guest Contributor

By Beau Ruff As the center of Washington’s agricultural empire, it is important to recognize the planning opportunities afforded the Washington farmer in the Tri-Cities. This column explores the use of the family farm LLC for business succession planning. The quintessential farmer is land rich and cash poor. And, the farmer recognizes the value of […]