One Mississippi... Two Mississippi...

firm based in Greenwich, Ct.

Under the deal, Atlas Trading would acquire North Pacific's food and agriculture and utility and construction units, the Portland-based portions of its hardwood and industrial products unit, and the company's Portland Trading Platform.

North Pacific, once the third-largest private company in Oregon, was forced into receivership on Jan.20, after its lenders filed a lawsuit claiming the company and its subsidiaries had defaulted on $42 million in loans. That figure has since been reduced to $30 million, according to Edward Hostmann Inc.. the crisis management firm that now controls North Pacific.

Hostmann is completing negotiations on a final agreement to sell another North Pacific division that "would substantially reduce the debt" to lenders and "plans to move for its approval as soon as possible."

Still up for grabs are North Pacific's building products division, its Southern Trading Unit, and its hardwood lumber and flooring manufacturing operations in Arkansas and Missouri. A manufacturing plant in Raymondville, Mo., was shut down in late January.

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Dealer's Lumber is closing its yards in Sunbury and Columbus, Oh., after 90 years.

Artistic Builders Supply, Lawrenceville, Ga., was destroyed by an early morning fire Feb. 10.

Lacillade Lumber closed its 73year-old Williamstown, Vt., lumberyard at the end of February and placed the 36-acre site up for sale.

Operations continue at its branch in Williston, Vt., which specializes in windows, doors, cabinets and countertops.

The owners of Stewart Bros. Hardware, Midtown and Bartleft, Tn., opened a third, 12,000-sq. tt. Ace Hardware store Feb. 10 in Cordova, Tn. Store *t4, at 10,000 sq. ft., will open next month in White Station (E. Memphis), Tn.

Rylee's Ace Hardware opens a larger, 31,000-sq. ft. replacement store March 22 in Grand Rapids, Mi.

Vergas Hardware, Vergas, Mn., converted from Ace Hardware to a Hardware Hank franchise.

Owner Paul Pinke installed new signage and a new computer system.

Lowe's opened new stores Feb. 19 in Lowell, Ma., and Feb. 5 in Abingdon, Va. (Chris Bare, store mgr.), and Jan. 29 in Hudson, Ma.

Home Depot is liquidating its home centers in Wilson, N.C., and Waveland, Ms., as well as a clearance center in Atlanta, Ga., by March 31.

Metro Builders Supply,_tutsa, Ok.. has been renamed Metro Appliances & More and is building location #10, in Jonesboro, Ar.

Habitat for Humanity tnis month is opening a 19,000-sq. ft. ReStore discount LBM outlet in Savannah, Ga.; a 10,000-sq. ft. unit in New Richmond, Wi., as well as a store in Pittsfield. Ma.

Habitat held a Feb. 13 grand opening for a 40,000-sq. ft. replacement ReStore in Oxford, N.C., and is considering moving its Ravenna Township, Oh.. location to the former Kent Hardware building in downtown Kent, Oh.

Roper Sells Taylor Bros. Yard

The Lester Group, Martinsville, Va., has acquired and reopened Taylor Brothers Lumber Co., Lynchburg, Va., from bankrupt Roper Brothers Lumber Co., Petersburg, Va.

In December, Roper filed for Chapter 1l bankruptcy protection and shut down its six yards, including 58year-old Taylor Bros. (see Jan., p.23).

Lester operates pro yards in Martinsville and Fredericksburg, Va., and four Fortress Wood Products treating plants in North Carolina.

Coastal Lumber Downsizes

Coastal Lumber Co., Charlottesville, Va., is closing its dry kiln and concentration yards in Goldsboro, N.C., and Buckhannon, W.V., and its sawmill in Spartansburg, Pa., as it negotiates with potential buyers to keep the facilities open.

"This closing is a result of Coastal Lumber right-sizing the company to reflect current market conditions, and is not a reflection of the dedicated, hard working employees at this plant," said c.e.o. Victor C. Barringer II of the closure in Buckhannon. "We are presently negotiating with two separate parties who are interested in oper- atlng lt as an ongorng concern.

Founded in 1938, Coastal is one of the country's largest exporters of forest products, with 13 sawmills and four concentration yards.

Roof Collapse Traps Worker

Snow caused the peaked roof to collapse over the finishing mill at Ritenour Lumber, Melcroft, Pa., briefly trapping one person inside.

At the time of the collapse, Ken Ritenour and Ron Ritenour were working in the mill. "One made it out before the roof collapsed. He heard it coming," said fire chief Max Gales of Ken Ritenour's escape.

Ron Ritenour "dove beside the high lift and that saved all the debris from coming clear down on him," said Gales. Although he appeared to have rib and head injuries, he was alert when an ambulance took him to a nearby hospital.

"Definitely, the Lord was watching out for him because it could have been a lot worse," said Paul Ritenour, company president since 1993.

Inside the mill, the floor was littered with roof trusses, nearly $30,000 in completed orders, and up to 4 ft. of snow. The owners plan to rebuild.

Wolf, York, Pa., has added a 101,000-sq. ft, distribution center in Lexington, N.C., expanding its reach into the Carolinas, northern Georgia, eastern Alabama, and Tennessee.

The cross-dock facility distributes cabinetry, decking, railing, trim and other LBM products.

Bradco Supply, Avenet, N.J., has acquired commercial roofino distributor insulation Systems -lnc., Greensboro, N.C.

Its three branches, including Charlotte and Raleigh, N.C., will continue to operate under the lSl name, and former owner Dewey Haizlip will remain on to ensure a smooth transition.

M.G. Dixon Lumber Go., Eufala, Al., secured a mmmunity grant to help restart its sawmill, down since 2008.

CMl, Ctricago, ll., has agreed to acquire the assets of 66-year-old lllinois Flush Dooi Go.. Plainfield. ll.

Northeast EWP Distributor Gets Double Certified

Eastern Engineered Wood Products, Bethlehem, Pa., which distributes structural building products in the Northeast, recently earned chain of custody certification from Forest Stewardship Council and Sustainable Forestry Initiative.

"Achieving both certifications provides the opportunity to supply a wider offering of certified products, giving our customers and their builders more product options," said president Todd Lindsey.

EEWP's certification was the first completed by the North American unit of SGS, an inspection, verification, testing, and certification company headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

Green Product Group Forms

The Green Roundtable/NExUS has launched a new international Green Product Association, the "first inclusive platform to represent the entire life-cycle ofproducts from construction through operations."

GPA's mission is to lead an industry-wide market transformation so that building products meet a continu- ously increasing level of sustainability throughout their life cycle. GPA hopes that in time all building products will be green, and that their performance criteria and metrics will be visible to all.

Founding participants include Bostik, CBC Flooring, and UL Environment.

Hardwood Decking Specialist Launches Online Stoie

Advantage Trim & Lumber Co. has launched an online hardwood decking store, initially specializing in standard, pre-grooved, and T&G ip6.

Accessing www.advantagelumber. com, customers can select their desired species and profile with sizes up to 23 ft. for most dimensions. Orders are processed immediately, including calculation of UPS or direct freight costs.

In time, the site will offer every species of lumber, flooring, and decking stocked by Advantage.

All international wholesale orders are handled from Advantage's administrative offices in Sarasota, Fl. Orders are shipped around the world from milling facilities in Grover, N.C., and Buffalo, N.Y.