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Home / Washington Business - March/April 2005 / Inside Washington: News Briefs March/April 2005 |
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Inside Washington: News Briefs March/April 2005 |
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Written On: March/April 2005 |
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We Saved the Banner
OLYMPIA — It’s back. The resurrected banner hangs on the wall of AWB’s Olympia headquarters, facing the state capitol, and emblazoned with the words, “It’s the Economy — Don’t Kill It.” The last time this banner saw daylight was in 1993, the year that state government, then controlled by Democrats, imposed more than a billion dollars of new taxes on Washington businesses.
As the “T-word” began circulating more in more in Olympia in early February, AWB hauled the banner up from the basement and hung it outside as a reminder of the harm poorly conceived legislation can inflict on Washington’s fragile economic recovery. It will remain in place through the legislative session.
Another point worth noting: Raising taxes to close the state’s gap in revenues also occurred in the early 1980s when Republicans controlled the Legislature and governor’s mansion.
Turning Snails into Sidewalks
OLYMPIA — City officials in Olympia are thinking about dredging snail shells from the bottom of Puget Sound and substituting these for the layers of rock and gravel underneath sidewalks, according to an article in the Olympian in early February.
This plan offers two potential benefits. Snail shells on the bottom of the Sound are choking oyster habitat, and the shells would be cheaper than the aggregate currently used underneath sidewalks. In other words, sidewalk costs would go down and oyster habitat would be enhanced.
Aircraft Manufacturer Expands
YAKIMA — Cub Crafters is expanding from a two-airplane-per-month production cycle to one that could ultimately see the production of a new airplane every day, according to a January article in the Yakima Herald Republic.
Piper Cubs and their souped-up cousins, Super Cubs (PA-18s), went out of production when Piper closed down due to bankruptcy in 1994. The New Piper Aircraft Inc. did not resume production of Cubs when it emerged from bankruptcy. Under an obscure provision in Federal Aviation Administration rules, Cub Crafters has been able to build PA-18s to original Piper specs since 1999. It now operates under an FAA-granted type certificate that allows it to build its own version of the PA-18, which incorporates a variety of improvements and design changes.
In addition to the Super Cub, Cub Crafters also plans to offer a less-powerful version, the Top Cub. Cub Crafters is creating about 80 new jobs with this expansion, manufacturing jobs paying from $10 to $18 an hour.
Underwater Logging
SEATTLE — Sunken treasure apparently exists in Lake Washington, a subsurface forest of well-preserved logs that could include highly valued, centuries-old cedars. Logs at the bottom of the lake got there from landslides centuries ago or from falling off barges when logging was big business along the lake shore, according to the Seattle Times in an early February article.
Because the deep waters of Lake Washington lack oxygen, the submerged logs do not rot and, in some cases, the minerals in the water can seep into the logs hardening the wood and making the ancient trees even more valuable.
Sen. Ken Jacobsen, D-Seattle, has sponsored a bill in the Legislature to harvest this underwater timber and use the profits to support the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Washington. Jacobsen is a UW alumnus.
Paccar Hauls In Record Profit
BELLEVUE — Locally-based Paccar, with record fourth-quarter truck sales, posted its best year ever, with 2004 profits up more than 52 percent, according to the Seattle Times in early February.
Paccar is the world’s third-largest truck manufacturer, and its market share in the United States and Canada for heavy-duty trucks climbed to 24.6 percent last year. The company produced 124,000 trucks in 2004.
Viaduct Funds DOA
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., described proposals to the federal government to partially fund the building of a subterranean replacement for the Alaska Way Viaduct to the tune of $1 billion as “…impossible. We’ve all got to sit back and be realistic.”
The tunnel is estimated to cost $4.1 billion over a 10-year construction period.
In the Washington state House of Representatives, meanwhile, the powerful Seattle delegation was flexing its muscles and preparing to move forward on state funding for the project. “It absolutely has to happen this session,” said Rep. Ed Murray, D-Seattle.
$5.6 billion Worth of Tree Fruit
EVERETT — The Everett Herald reported in early February that Washington’s tree-fruit industry puts $5.6 billion into the state’s economy each year and creates about 140,000 jobs.
In computing these numbers, the Washington State Horticultural Association looked beyond the usual farm-gate value figures for fruit and included packers, processors, marketers and shippers in its compilation of the value of the tree-fruit industry in Washington.
Company Seeks to Build Sawmill
REDDING, CALIF. — Sierra Pacific Industries of Redding, Calif., in mid-January announced plans to build a sawmill north of Seattle near Everett, according to an article in the Olympian. The mill is expected to be operational in 2007 and will cost between $60 million and $100 million to build.
About 200 employees are expected to work full-time at the finished facility, which will be a high-tech, environmentally-friendly mill. An average mill worker will earn around $18 an hour.
Less than 20 years ago, 702 sawmills were operating in western states. By 2003, only 242 were still in business.
Fast-food Jobs Leaving for Midwest?
KENNEWICK — Order a hamburger at the McDonald’s in Hermiston, Oregon, or other franchises owned by Kennewick-based Adams Tri-Cities Enterprises, and you could be talking to someone in Grand Forks, North Dakota, according to the Tri-City Herald in late January.
The company is testing a system to route drive-through orders to a North Dakota call center, capitalizing on high-speed data connectivity. Both Adams and McDonald’s insist this is not an attempt to cut back on local staff because the minimum wage in North Dakota is more than $2 an hour less than in Washington and Oregon. Both claim this will enhance customer service and could necessitate hiring even more workers to handle an increased number of customers using the drive-up windows.
Snow Lacking — Fish, Crops, People may Suffer
SNOQUALMIE PASS — Balmy January weather melted most of the snow in the Cascades, closing ski resorts and jangling the nerves of electric consumers, fishery managers and agriculturists across the state. In late January the snowpack was only 20 percent to 30 percent of normal. Though there was still time in February and March for the snowpack to improve, most forecasters were not offering much hope. El Niño conditions this winter were tilting all weather predictions toward warmer and drier.
Returning National Guard Soldiers Get Support
OLYMPIA — A consortium of federal, state and local partners have joined together to provide support to Washington National Guard men and women and reservists returning from assignments in Iraq and Afganistan.
These efforts include insuring that each returning service member gets letters from the Governor, the Adjutant General and the Director of the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs thanking him or her for service, welcoming him or her home, and providing information on VA health care, claims assistance and employment services.
As part of this effort, the Association of Washington Business is developing initiatives for employers and service personnel to make smooth transitions back to civilian employment. If you know a citizen soldier or family member in need of these services, call (toll free) either the Olympia Service Center at (800) 562-2308 or the Seattle Service Center at (877) 249-0516.
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