Benton County commissioners and the Benton-Franklin Fair Association have agreed to a new lease that will keep the Benton Franklin Fair & Rodeo at the Benton County Fairgrounds for the next five years.
Those working on radiation and nuclear projects as part of national security missions at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are now being asked to volunteer to be laid off as the Richland lab continues to look for ways to cut costs.
Gov. Bob Ferguson didn’t mince words during a Sept. 12 press conference in Kennewick: if the Waste Treatment Plant at the Hanford site does not begin treating waste by Oct. 15, the state will pursue legal action to bring the facility online and the state will win.
The Trump administration’s top official at the U.S. Department of Energy has reportedly told a Washington senator that he is stalling operations at a critical Hanford site facility that is weeks away from beginning operations – though his office says otherwise.
With a successful fair in the rear view, the fair board’s attention is now focused on hammering out a lease for the fairgrounds amid tense negotiations with their landlord, the Benton County commissioners.
One local government agency is hoping its latest effort will help ensure that Tri-City growth – and growth yet to come – can be steered to benefit not just individual cities but the entire region.
PNNL began asking in mid-August for voluntary layoffs as the Tri-Cities’ largest employer sought to make cuts in response to anticipated federal spending reductions.
