Local News
Bergstrom Aviation ponders its bills as fuel business collapses, flight school stays shuttered
As Malin Bergstrom ponders the future of the aviation business her father Karl started in 1971, she is worried. The coronavirus pandemic all but froze travel, which hammered the Pasco business. It reported a 90 percent drop in fuel sales to airlines. It closed its flight school when Gov. Jay Inslee issued the Stay Home,…
Positive coronavirus test stops one school project, spares others
West Richland’s Tapteal Elementary will not open as planned this fall after construction stopped when a worker tested positive for the new coronavirus, which causes the deadly COVID-19. The shutdown is sending a ripple through the Richland School District’s construction schedule. Fowler Construction, the Richland contractor for the $20 million project, had previously informed the…
Tri-City entrepreneurs are a scrappy bunch
These are challenging times. Uncertain and troubling times. (Fill in your favorite adjective here) times. More than a quarter of a million people across our planet, including nearly a thousand in our state as of press time, have died from COVID-19, the deadly disease caused by the coronavirus. Our national, state and local economies are…
Tri-City construction numbers appear normal, but looks may be deceiving
Homebuilders and homebuyers appear undaunted by the COVID-19 crisis that has sidelined construction and much of the economy since March. Building permit activity dipped in April, but it is still solid for the year to date, according to new figures released May 7 by the Home Builders Association of Tri-Cities. Local agencies authorized 437 single-family…
Teamsters target Tyson plant after COVID-19 spreads
A local union hopes the 1,450 workers at the Tyson Fresh Meats plant in Wallula will rethink collective bargaining after coronavirus spread through the workforce and killed at least one man. Teamsters Local 839 is “absolutely” interested in representing Tyson’s beef plant workers, said Russell Shjerven, secretary, treasurer and business agent. The union represents 55…
Walkabouts restore calm in crazy world, lead to new discoveries
By Wendy Culverwell & Kristina Lord The week of May 18 marks our ninth week working from our home offices for the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business. It also marks more than 45 days of walks. Our daily WFH (working from home) routine includes a walk around the Tri-Cities—paved paths, sandy trails, bike routes, river…
Tri-City hoteliers think outside the box as pandemic emptied rooms
Tri-City hoteliers found creative and unexpected ways to stay relevant after a wave of cancellations washed over the industry on what one owner called Black Friday in March. “People are definitely thinking outside the box,” said Michael Novakovich, president and chief executive officer of Visit Tri-Cities, the region’s tourism marketing agency. He’s heard of only…
COVID-19 brings daunting challenge to Tri-City economy
An oft-used description of economics has been the “dismal science.” Most of us economists soundly dislike that nickname. After all, recent Nobel prize winners in economics have been rewarded for their insights into poverty alleviation (2019) and technological change (2018). But this month, I present some definitely dismal numbers. In a departure from prior columns,…
Aviation community perplexed by CARES Act airport funds
Port of Pasco officials are delighted and perplexed by the $5.9 million they received from the $2.2 trillion CARES Act to support the Tri-Cities Airport during the coronavirus pandemic. Airport traffic is down more than 95 percent, casting its ability to pay the bills into chaos. The government money from the Coronavirus Aid Relief and…
Ben Franklin Transit, Via offer new on-demand service
Ben Franklin Transit has launched a new on-demand transit service to connect riders to the places they need to travel to most during the COVID-19 crisis. The new service—called BFT Connect—is powered by Via, a New York City-based company that provides an app, drivers and vans in cities across the world, under a $6.6 million,…
