KPBJ June Edition

June 2015 Vol. 28 No. 6

Est. 1988

An edition of the K i t sa p Su n

House calls

Virtual urgent care offers convenience, cost savings for patients, providers | Page 4

Peninsula Community Health CEO retiring | Page 4 Pain management a growing specialty | Page 5

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Business Calendar June 2 Kitsap Development Officers Group Meeting Andrejs Zommers from AMZ Productions will present “Seven Secrets to Better Direct Mail.” All nonprofits welcome. Free.

Where: Poulsbo Library, 700 NE Lincoln Road, Poulsbo When: noon-1:30 p.m.

Info: kitsap.philanthropy@ gmail.com June 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30 Tues@noon Workshops 90-minute workshops covering a new topic each week from technology to marketing to finance.

Where: OfficeXpats, 403 Madison Ave N, Bainbridge Island When: noon Info: 206-780-2177, officxpats. com June 3 Contracting Coffee Hour An open forum for businesses with questions about contracting with the government, on the first Wednesday of each month. Walk-ins welcome, registration appreciated.

Where: Kitsap EDA, Hearthstone Building, 4312 Kitsap Way, Bremerton When: 7:30-9 a.m.

Info: kitsapeda.org June 3 Silverdale Greendrinks This month will focus on local area nonprofits.

Where: Silverdale Beach Hotel, 3073 NW Bucklin Hill, Silverdale When: 5:24-8:03 p.m.

Cost: $10 cash Info: rsvp4silverdalegreen drinks.com June 9 Kitsap Business Forum The theme this month will be “Engaged Leadership: Leading beyond your business to impact the community.”

Please RSVP.

Where: Kitsap Conference Center, Bremerton When: 7:30-9 a.m.

Info: kitsapbusinessforum.com

Kitsap Way, Bremerton When: 9-11 a.m.

Info: 360-377-9499, kitsapeda.org

June 10 Small Business Finance: Systems Design for Working with the Government Create simple systems to generate monthly reports and track important milestones for your contract awards and subcontracting agreements. Registration is required.

Where: Kitsap EDA, 4312 Kitsap Way, Bremerton When: 9-11 a.m.

Info: 360-377-9499, kitsapeda.org June 13 Kitsap Young Professionals Heart for the Homeless Run This event raises funding for and awareness of the Kitsap Rescue Mission and the work they do with the poor and homeless in Kitsap County.

For all ages and levels.

Where: Evergreen Rotary Park, Bremerton When: 9 a.m.-noon Info: facebook.com/ HeartfortheHomelessfunrun June 16, 23 and 30 Good Morning Kitsap County Come out Tuesday mornings to meet a new business professional each week for a question and answer session.

Where: Hop Jack’s, Silverdale When: 7:30-9 a.m.

Info: silverdalechamber.com June 17 RFP Pitfalls & Avoiding Them The class is presented by Mona Carlson, a retired Government Contracting Officer with NAVFAC with extensive experience with contract/modification pricing and negotiations of construction contracts.

Registration is required.

Where: Kitsap EDA, 4312

June 24 Edward Jones Coffee Club

Donald Logan, a local Edward Jones financial advisor, will be hosting a coffee club every fourth Wednesday of the month.

Where: Edward Jones, 2416 NW Myhre Road, Silverdale When: 8:15 a.m.

Info: 360-698-7408

June 24 Small Business Finance for Government Contractors Local bankers and financial gurus will help navigate meeting payroll and expenses on the government’s timeline. Registration is

required.

Where: Kitsap EDA, 4312 Kitsap Way, Bremerton When: 9-11 a.m.

Info: 360-377-9499, kitsapeda. org

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Also in this issue

JUNE 2015 | 3

introduction | david nelson

Taking a look at what’s to come

H

• Consumers can support local agriculture through new online co-op, 34

• Displaced sports bar returns as microbrewery in Silverdale, 24

The Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal is published by the Kitsap Sun the first week of every month, and distributed to business addresses through Kitsap County, North Mason and Gig Harbor.

Brent Morris, Publisher brent.morris@kitsapsun.com David Nelson, Editorial Director david.nelson@kitsapsun.com Tim Kelly, Managing Editor tim.kelly@kitsapsun.com editor@kpbj.com

Mike Stevens, Marketing Director mstevens@kitsapsun.com Jeremy Judd, Digital Director jeremy.judd@kitsapsun.com For inquires to receive the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal at your business, contact Circulation Sales Director Hugh Hirata at 360-7925247 or hugh.hirata@kitsapsun.com.

To advertise in the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal, contact Michael Stevens at 360-7923350.

TO SUBMIT NEWS: Tim Kelly, Managing Editor tim.kelly@kitsapsun.com 360.377-3711, ext. 5359 Standard mail postage to be paid at Bremerton, WA POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Kitsap Sun, PO Box 259, Bremerton, WA 98337-1413 © 2015 Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal / Kitsap Sun ISSN 1050-3692 VOLUME 28, NO. 6

ealth care is a perennial topic for the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal, naturally so because of the sector’s outsized impact on the local and national business climate.

That effect is somewhat an open question in Kitsap County these days, as we’re a year closer to Harrison Medical Center’s major move to Silverdale and more dominoes appear to be falling, with examples such as commercial real estate activity in Silverdale and early relocation of some medical offices from Bremerton.

The future for that story is unknown, and of course there’s a story to be told about whether the quality and availability of health care improves as well.

For this edition we’re explicitly threading the idea of the future into our coverage of local health care in several ways.

We’ll explain a technological trend that is changing doctor schedules and insurance payments for certain visits at Harrison; look into a crystal ball for the communi-

ty’s long-time low-cost health care provider, Peninsula Community Health Services; and unpack the regulations changing what’s perhaps the most noted alternative form of patient care in our state, medical marijuana.

One future trend I hope continues is an influx of quality medical professionals to our community. We’re spotlighting one in print here, through an interview with a relatively new doc to Kitsap’s pain management field about treatments and solutions on the horizon.

Then in person, rather than in print, the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal, along with the Kitsap Sun, will recognize many more.

That recognition comes through our second annual Health Care Heroes event, where individuals in 10 categories will be honored for their work in making this a healthier community. We had more than 130 nominations for a panel of judges to sort through and recognize a group of individuals that are the future of our health care community. (See box for details.)

Another quick note about the months to

health care heroes Awards reception and dinner for community medical providers When: Wednesday, July 17 5:30 open, 6:15 p.m. dinner Where: Admiral Theatre, Bremerton Tickets: $25 Info: Kitsapsun.com/healthcareheroes

come, though not regarding health care, is this advisory of some changes on the way for this publication. Beginning in July, you’ll see a redesigned Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal, updating the monthly publication with a slightly different style and moving to a glossy magazine format that we think will offer readers and advertisers a better experience and an edition that the business community will take pride in. Keep an eye out for that next month, and enjoy the June edition now.

• David Nelson is editor of the Kitsap Sun and editorial director of the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal.

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health care

Virtual care a growing trend locally, nationally “The new generation coming up is very technologically savvy and they want healthcare when they want it, where they want it — and they want it to be affordable.”

By Rodika Tollefson KPBJ contributor

W

hen Kate Soderberg experienced asthma complications a few months ago, the Port Orchard resident couldn’t afford a trip to an urgent care clinic.

She knew that the kind of regiment she needed would require her to see a physician. But due to a recent job loss, Soderberg had lost her insurance — and she estimated it could cost her as much as $600 for the visit.

As a patient of Franciscan Health System’s primary care clinic in Port Orchard, Soderberg learned about an alternative option: virtual urgent care, at the cost of $35. All she had to do was make a call from her living room couch, answer a few screening questions, and wait for a doctor to call her back.

By the end of her virtual visit, the physician had not only reviewed her medical history and prescribed medications, but had also called Soderberg’s pharmacy to find the least expensive drug option.

“He went above and beyond,” Soderberg said. “I was very sick and had a hard time walking, and I only had to make one trip — to the pharmacy.”

Soderberg is one of a growing number of patients who are choosing to “see” a doctor from the convenience of their homes — or any other place — instead of driving to the office.

Telemedicine was introduced more than 40 years ago as a way to treat patients in remote areas. Today, virtual care is being embraced by hospitals and primarycare practices alike. The American Tele-

Illustration courtesy CHI franciscan health

medicine Association estimates that more than 10 million people used some form of telemedicine in 2013, double the number from 2010.

“It’s amazing to see how quickly it’s becoming a new trend,” says Matt Levi, director of Virtual Health Services for CHI Franciscan Health. “It’s becoming not something that’s ‘nice to have’ but a must-have.”

Franciscan’s Virtual Urgent Care

Franciscan has been offering a virtual urgent care program to the public in Pierce County since October 2013 and in Kitsap since January. The healthcare or-

new or haven’t been with Franciscan for the past two years.

He estimates that 80-90 percent choose the portal option.

“A lot of it is about convenience,” Levi says. “It’s a service that allows patients to receive care when and Christi McCarren, where they need it.” vice president of retail health at MultiCare All the providers who treat patients virtually undergo special training that includes coursework, job shadowing and on the cover post-visit patient case review.

For about 75 percent of the patients, the Diana Rae is shown interacting with Dr. virtual service is a “definitive care plan” Ben Green during a virtual care session. that doesn’t require a further primary Green is with Carena, the medical service care or emergency room visit. Those who CHI Franciscan Health contracts with for can’t be treated virtually, however, receive providing virtual care for patients. a refund for the $35 fee.

For the physicians, virtual care is a little different than seeing a patient in person, ganization estimates that it has saved pasays Dan Diamond, MD, medical director tients more than $600,000 in healthcare of Harrison Urgent Care Centers. costs and more than 4,200 hours (from Diamond was one of the first Harrison avoiding visits to the emergency room or physicians to be trained for virtual urgent a primary or urgent care clinic). care. He says the doctors have to use othOne of the first hospital systems in the er ways of getting information that they country to offer wide-scale virtual urgent may get from physical clues by being in a care, Franciscan launched the service in room with the patient. partnership with Carena. This year, it has “It takes a little bit of getting used to,” also started offering the option in-house, he says. “We have to ask a lot more questo Harrison Health Partners and Francistions, and we use a set of virtual-clinical can Health Group physicians. guidelines.”

Patients pay $35 for the visit, and have the option of linking up with a physician (or nurse practitioner) either via the MultiCare Doctor on Demand phone or video through an online portal MultiCare Health System launched a or Skype. Levi says that about 60 percent virtual urgent care option for the public at of the patients using the service are either see virtual | 8

Peninsula Community Health’s evolution includes leadership change CEO Barb Malich retiring after 22 years with Bremerton nonprofit whose role is expanding significantly

By Tad Sooter KPBJ contributor Peninsula Community Health Services has long served as a safety net for Kitsap County’s most vulnerable residents.

Uninsured or strapped for cash, patients could rely on the community health center for treatment.

“We were the care providers of last resort,” CEO Barbara Malich put it succinctly.

The Bremerton-based nonprofit care center still serves as a safety net for many, but its role is rapidly evolving.

Changes brought on by health care reform and the expansion of Washington’s Medicaid program mean nearly all PCHS patients now have some form of insurance.

Those patients are better able to establish a steady relationship with their primary care providers and seek specialty services.

PCHS continues to expand its programs to meet a broader spectrum of needs, from behavioral health to dentistry.

Once a destination of last resort, the community health center has simply become a destination, Malich said.

“Now we want to be the medical home for the patients we serve,” she said. “And we are, perhaps more than most.”

In the midst of this evolution, PCHS will soon undergo a change in leadership. Malich, 65, will retire at the end of July. Her successor has yet to be named.

“I’ve put in 22 really good years here at PCHS, and it’s time to turn that over to somebody else,” Malich said.

Malich joined PCHS (Kitsap Community Clinic) in

1993, as the health center was first securing federal funding. At the time the clinic was a bootstrap operation, with a tiny staff and volunteer board.

“It was very much a forming kind of idea,” Malich said.

“There was no money.”

Gaining status as a federally designated community health center gave PCHS a shot in the arm.

“We’ve steadily grown and grown and grown ever since,” Malich said.

The health center now maintains six locations across the county, with more than 30 providers offering services.

EXPANDING ROLE

Three years ago nearly 60 percent of PCHS patients were uninsured. After the rollout of the Affordable Care Act, the uninsured rate fell below 5 percent. About 70 percent of the center’s patients this year have used Medicaid to pay for services.

While improving access to care for patients, the dramatic shift in coverage also was a financial boon for PCHS. With more of its costs reimbursed, the center can invest more in expanding services and closing gaps in care.

“We’re very actively focusing on what we can do in our program, and then how and what the future is going to look like as far as collaborating across the community,” Malich said. see peninsula | 6

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JUNE 2015 | 5

Pain management specialist has many methods to use

By Terri Gleich KPBJ contributor Dr. Dawn Sparks specializes in pain management, but she doesn’t just focus on a patient’s sore back or throbbing temples. She treats the whole person.

“As an osteopathic physician, it’s what I’ve been taught since day one of medical school,” she said. “I learned to treat people as a whole because that’s how people function.”

Sparks, who trained at the renowned Cleveland Clinic, recently joined the staff at Pain Solutions in Silverdale.

She practices as an interventional pain management specialist there, typically on Mondays and Tuesdays. The rest of the week, she travels the state as an anesthesiologist for her Edmonds-based business, Pacific Pain Free Professionals.

“If somebody Patients typically come to tells me they Sparks when they’ve sufget relief from fered long-term a chiropractor chronic pain and their primaor yoga, ry physician has not been able to I would never tell help them control it. them not to get that “I might not treatment. You have be able to get rid of all the to hit all the triggers pain, but I want patients to have to have the patient get a better quality complete relief.” of life,” she said.

Her areas of exDr. Dawn Sparks pertise include low back pain, headaches, pelvic pain and abdominal pain.

Treatments Sparks provides include surgical procedures such as installing a pump to deliver medication directly to the cerebral spinal fluid, and implanting a spinal cord stimulator that uses electrical impulses to disrupt pain messages to the brain.

“One day I’m the surgeon. One day I’m the anesthesiologist,” she said.

The two specialties go hand-in-hand because both deal with managing medication to control pain while monitoring a patient’s physical condition.

Sparks said diet, exercise, physical therapy and psychological counseling can all play a role in relieving pain.

“I’m a big proponent of a multi-disciplinary approach.

If somebody tells me they get relief from a chiropractor or yoga, I would never ever tell them not to get that treatment,” she said. “You have to hit all the triggers to have the patient get complete relief.”

The other physician at Pain Solutions is Matthew Marcuson, who specializes in acupuncture in addition to being a board-certified pain management anesthesiologist.

Pain Solutions is in the new Silverdale Wellness Center started by a group of four chiropractors. The center also offers massage therapy, thermography and a weightloss program, so patients have access to complementary treatments.

Pain management is a new and growing area of medicine. The American Board of Medical Specialties approved the certification in 1991.

“There are more and more elderly people in the population,” said Sparks. “And there will be more and more people dealing with chronic pain.”

She said there are many promising treatments on the horizon, including new medications to treat inflamma-

tion, which can cause pain and disease.

Meanwhile, one of the oldest methods of treating pain, prescribing opioids such as hydrocodone, oxycodone and morphine, is coming under increased scrutiny because of the potential for addiction and abuse.

Sparks said prescribing opioids is still an important part of pain management, but she expects that over time fewer primary care physicians will prescribe the drugs and it will be left to pain specialists.

The best way to prevent abuse is through a collabora-

tive approach, she said. “We work with the primary care physician, neurologist and surgeon to have close communication and make sure that the patient has only one prescription from one doctor.”

Doctors also must closely monitor patients to make sure they’re taking the drug as prescribed. Opioids work by reducing the intensity of pain signals reaching the brain and affecting the brain areas controlling emotion.

Sometimes patients will seek to intensify the effects by see pain | 6

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pen i nsu l a | f rom 4

Perhaps no gap in care remains more daunting than the lack of dental services for low-income adults.

The state recently added dental benefits back into Medicaid, but because of low reimbursement rates, only a handful of Kitsap dentists will accept Medicaid patients.

PCHS began offering non-emergency dental care to adults last year on a limited basis, but there remains a “critical lack of access” in the county, Malich said.

The health center plans to chip away at demand this year by opening a new dental clinic in Port Orchard. The clinic will be located on Pottery Avenue, and will offer six dental chairs in addition to 10 at PCHS in Bremerton.

“It will be a chance for us to get started,” Malich said.

PCHS has offered more behavioral health care to patients by building up its own program, with help from a recent grant from the John A. Hartford Foundation.

The center is also working more closely with Kitsap Mental Health Services, which experienced skyrocketing demand after the rollout of the Affordpa i n | f rom 5

snorting or injecting medication meant to be taken orally.

Sparks said medical researchers are searching for alternatives to opioids but none have been found that are as effective.

“They do work well, but people build up a tolerance and need more and then there are side effects,” she said. “At this point, they have not found an ideal pain medication.”

Sparks wants people living with debilitating pain to know that there is a wide range of solutions and she looks forward to working with more Kitsap patients.

“It’s very gratifying to see a person’s pain and status in life improved,” she said.

“Our doors will always be open to those people who need access to our care without means.”

Barb Malich, retiring CEO of Peninsula Community Health Services

MEEGAN M. REID

Peninsula Community Health Services CEO Barb Malich is retiring after 22 years with the Bremerton-based nonprofit. able Care Act. “What we’ve found is we have literally hundreds of patients in common,” Malich said.

By sharing more resources, the organizations can ensure their mutual pa-

tients receive both physical and psychological care, Malich said. A Harrison HealthPartners physician already sees patients at Kitsap Mental Health one day a week. PCHS hopes to locate a nurse practi-

tioner at Kitsap Mental Health one or two days a week beginning this fall.

Malich said the two organizations will continue to work in concert to make sure mental health patients are linked with primary care providers, and vice versa.

“We’re building a much stronger relationship going forward.”

THE SILVERDALE SHUFFLE

As the health care landscape changes philosophically, it’s also shifting geographically in Kitsap. The county has seen a steady march of medical services

out of Bremerton and into Silverdale, which offers a more central location.

Harrison Medical Center plans to close its flagship Bremerton campus and combine acute care services in a new Silverdale hospital by 2018. The Doctors Clinic closed its East Bremerton locations in the past year, moving services to Silverdale. More Bremerton practices are expected to follow suit.

Malich said the shuffle of services to Silverdale keeps her up at night. She understands why the consolidation makes sense on paper, but she is still concerned by the loss of treatment options in the coun-

ty’s largest city.

“I still worry about the homeless people who are sleeping at Lions Park,” Malich said. “It’s going to be really hard.”

The shift of medical services to Silverdale “absolutely” makes PCHS’ role in Bremerton more critical, Malich said. She sees the center continuing to grow in the Bremerton area, likely with the construction of a large, multidisciplinary center sometime in the future.

“There will be a need for some significant growth,” she said.

For all the changes, Malich believes the community health center’s core values remain the same as it did two decades ago.

“Our doors will always be open to those people who need access to our care without means,” Malich said. “That will continue to be at the heart of what we do, but the needs of the community we serve are very different.”

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JUNE 2015 | 7

health care news briefs Kitsap Public Health receives national accreditation The Kitsap Public Health District has achieved national accreditation through the nonprofit Public Health Accreditation Board. The accreditation program works to improve and protect the health of the public by advancing the quality and performance of the nation’s tribal, state, local and territorial public health departments.

Kitsap Public Health joins the Washington State Department of Health and Spokane Regional Health District as the only three accredited public health agencies in Washington. Out of more than 3,000 governmental public health departments nationwide, only 75 public health departments — less than 3 percent — have received this recognition of quality service and performance.

“We are pleased and excited to be recognized for achieving national standards that foster effectiveness and promote continuous quality improvement,” said Scott Daniels, Kitsap Public Health administrator. “The ac-

Poulsbo CVS selling adjacent 1-acre parcel When a CVS was first approved in Poulsbo, plans called for both a pharmacy and a fast-food restaurant.

The drug store opened in February. The restaurant never materialized.

Now CVS is selling the leftover parcel on Highway 305. Colliers International listed the 1.07-acre property for $1.25 million.

The assessed value of the lot is about $285,000.

The CVS property is located on the corner of Highway 305 and Hostmark Street. A large retail building was torn down to make way for the development.

• From the Minding Your Business blog by Kitsap Sun reporter Tad Sooter.

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creditation process helps to ensure that the programs and services we provide are as responsive as possible to the needs of our community.”

The national accreditation program is jointly supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. To receive accreditation, a health department must undergo a rigorous, multi-faceted, peer-reviewed assessment process to ensure it meets or exceeds a set of quality standards and measures.

The process took Kitsap Public Health nearly five years to complete, beginning with the development of the strategic plan and a community health assessment in 2011.

More information about the Public Health Accreditation Board is at www.phaboard.org.

The Doctors Clinic staff takes part in walking challenge No, there’s no contract dispute.

The Doctors Clinic employees and physicians are participating

in the fourth annual Workplace Walk-off Challenge.

The Challenge, created to encourage employee health and well-being, helps staff focus on increasing their activity each day by monitoring steps on their personal pedometer or one supplied by TDC. Participants can join as part of five-person teams or as individual walkers.

Participants set weekly step goals, with the incentive of making it into the 10,000-step-club by the final week. Depending on a person’s stride, 10,000 steps equals approximately five miles.

Ken Blancaflor, imaging manager for The Doctors Clinic, has taken to holding “walking meetings.”

“We get the same work done.

We’re just not sitting at a table.

It gets people out of the office,” he said.

Lori Schindler on The X-Raycers team, one of two teams from the Radiology Department at Salmon Medical Center, said the Challenge definitely steps up your activity level.

“I walk on my lunch break, in the morning on the treadmill, when I come home from work.

That’s something I would never do before,” she said.

Jennifer Woydziak, TDC’s human resources recruiting specialist who is coordinating this year’s Challenge, said that establishing healthy habits is the goal of the program.

“We are in the business of promoting health and wellness to the community, and we don’t want to forget to take care of our very own,” she said.

Woyzdiak said roughly a third of TDC’s workforce, or 152 people, committed to the four-week voluntary program, which began April 27.

Woydziak will participate with others from TDC in the 2015 Seattle-to-Portland bike ride as well. A number of staff regularly compete in marathons and triathalons.

Harbor Speech Pathology opens South Kitsap location Harbor Speech Pathology is expanding its patient services with an additional office in Port Orchard.

“We are excited to be able to offer services to the children and

families of Kitsap County,” says Channa Beckman, founder and clinical director. “Families are now able to receive speech-language pathology services closer to their homes. We are hoping that having an office in Port Orchard will alleviate commute time for our busy families.”

Beckman is a certified brain-injury specialist with more than 30 years experience in the field of speech-language pathology.

Harbor Speech Pathology in Port Orchard will open for new patients on June 22. The new location will specialize in pediatric speech and language therapy and will include social language groups. Adult services eventually will be offered at the new facility as well.

The new office is at 1230 Bay St., and the phone number is 360-876-1717.

Harbor Speech Pathology opened in Gig Harbor in 2007.

Both offices accept all major insurances.

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v i rt ual | f rom 4

the end of April through Doctor on Demand, a company that specializes in virtual care. Patients are only treated by board-certified physicians who have been additionally credentialed by MultiCare.

The visit costs $40 (first one is free). The service works on any platform — either through an app or the MultiCare website.

After completing the screening questions, the patient is placed into a queue for a callback. So far, the turnaround time has been under five minutes, with two minutes average, according to Christi McCarren, RN, vice president of Retail Health at MultiCare.

She expects the service to be especially popular with busy professionals and the younger generation.

“The new generation coming up is very technologically savvy and they want healthcare when they want it, where they want it — and they want it to be affordable,” she says.

A Growing Trend

Besides the tech-savvy generation, a major factor impacting virtual health care is the shortage of primarycare physicians. Some of that shortage is likely due to the Affordable Care Act. Nationwide, the American Association of Medical Colleges estimates a shortage of 45,000 primary-care physicians.

“The volume of patients has skyrocketed and we believe that is in part because people have healthcare coverage where they didn’t in the past,” McCarren says, adding that many of the primary-care clinics struggle with getting patients in because of the demand.

One way virtual care lessens the strains on brick-andmortar urgent care clinics is by offloading the high-peak morning visits, Levi says. But it’s also freeing up primary physicians’ time — for example, Franciscan is seeing a 50 percent reduction in follow-ups for doctors who are on call (which is not considered virtual care).

“Most of the physicians I know are incredibly busy,” Diamond says. “We have to do something differently from what we’ve been doing, and virtual care is a more appropriate use of resources.”

Both Franciscan and MultiCare are looking to telemedicine in some specialties as well. Franciscan, for example, is piloting it for routine conditions like diabetes and other chronic diseases.

MultiCare has been offering a virtual visit option for four years for pregnancy care. Women who have low-risk pregnancies can choose to have every other visit virtually until four weeks before their due date. At that point — or if there are complications in the meantime — care reverts to all-office visits.

McCarren says that initially, this option was mostly popular with women who have had a previous pregnancy.

“What we’re seeing now — especially because everyone has a smartphone — is more interest even from first-time moms and Spanish-speaking moms,” she says.

Diamond noted that the new trend in healthcare is to move from a physician- or hospital-centric environment to a patient-centric one.

And patients seem to be ready to give up their in-person encounters with their doctor. An American Well survey estimates that 64 percent of Americans would be willing to do a video visit — and an American Hospital Association report estimates that 76 percent of patients find access to care more important than the need for interaction with their providers.

Soderberg is one of those patients. She says she will definitely use virtual urgent care again.

“Even if I had health insurance, if I’m really sick, I would still try this first,” she says.

health care

Legislative Discussions

Telemedicine would not only help solve capacity and access (including to places like nursing homes) but could also save on the costs of healthcare delivery. The American Telemedicine Association estimates that delivering care via hybrid technologies could save 850,000 transports to the emergency room every year. That is $537 million in savings from emergency care alone.

So perhaps it is not surprising that insurance companies are slowly embracing the idea of virtual care. United HealthCare, for example, announced at the end of April that it will cover virtual care physician visits for employer self-funded funds, and will expand it to employer-sponsored and individual plans next year.

But many states aren’t waiting for insurance carriers

to volunteer. Currently, about a dozen states either have some type of telemedicine-parity legislation or are in the process of discussing it.

In Washington state, Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill in April requiring insurance companies, Medicaid-managed plans and state-employee plans to reimburse providers for telemedicine services. But the bill does not apply broadly to all virtual care situations. For example, carriers only have to reimburse providers who have a contract with them.

Still, McCarrey, of MultiCare, sounds optimistic.

“There are numerous conversations happening (legislatively),” she says. “There’s enough traction and support for virtual visits because of what it brings to the market.

This is an option we must have for patients.”

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JUNE 2015 | 9

Medical cannabis patients prepare for industry reboot

By Tad Sooter KPBJ contributor

J

im Boyer has no interest in getting high, but marijuana has made his life more livable.

For the last four years, Boyer has used cannabis-infused creams to ease his crippling back pain.

“It just relaxes the body,” the 70-yearold said. “It doesn’t take away the pain, it just allows you to tolerate it.”

Boyer is one of the untold number of Kitsap residents who’ve come to rely on cannabis-based products to treat a wide range of ailments since voters allowed medical marijuana use in 1998. The passage of the law birthed a loosely regulated medical marijuana industry that allowed collective marijuana gardens and medical dispensaries to flourish with little oversight.

LARRY STEAGALL Those freewheeling ways will soon Spenser Haley (left), who suffers from PTSD, gets a smell of marijuana from come to an end. Gov. Jay Inslee signed Scott Blevins, co-owner of Hope Alternative Medicine in Silverdale. Haley says a bill into law last month that will the medical marijuana helps his symptoms. overhaul Washington’s medical marijuana rules and roll the industry in“It really makes it hard,” Blevins said. to the state’s intensely regulated recreational marijuana Those challenges aside, Blevins and Rodgers welcome market. Most key provisions of the law take effect next many reforms the new law will bring to the industry. year.

They expect the law change to shutter most of the flyLocal patients and business owners are already scruby-night gardens and dispensaries that gave the medical tinizing the changes. Some welcome the legitimacy the marijuana a bad name. new regulations will bring to the medical marijuana sys“I think that’s a really good thing,” Blevins said. tem. But they fear the rules make it hard for many gardens and dispensaries to transition to the recreational system, and more expensive for authorized patients to obtain their medicine.

“They made it so recreational is more important than medical, and I don’t believe that’s right,” said Tom, a Kitsap medical marijuana cooperative manager who declined to give his last name.

OVERHAULING AN INDUSTRY

Medical marijuana was big business in Washington well before voters legalized recreational use in 2012.

Industry tracker Marijuana Business Daily estimates 500 medical dispensaries are operating in Washington, generating more than $80 million in annual sales. Online directories list about a dozen medical marijuana outlets in Kitsap County.

Despite legalization of medical marijuana, dispensaries operate in a legal gray area in Washington, said Nick Rodgers, co-founder of Hope Alternative Medicine in Silverdale.

“It’s not legal and it’s not illegal,” Rodgers said. “One reason I was excited for regulation is because it gets that off our backs.”

The reform law offers an avenue medical marijuana enterprises like Hope Alternative to become licensed under the recreational system, and obtain endorsements to sell medical products. First priority will be given to medical marijuana providers that applied for recreational licenses, had paid taxes or had been in business for several years.

Rodgers and partner Scott Blevins plan to pursue a retail license, but they don’t expect it to be simple. To make the transition, medical marijuana outlets will have to adhere to the same rules placed on recreational retailers, which means locating outside of the 1,000-foot buffer zones established around schools, parks and other places frequented by children.

Recreational marijuana entrepreneurs have already struggled to find allowable locations in the county.

Recreational marijuana retailers are also looking forward to the reforms. Since retail shops began opening last July, prices for recreational marijuana have been significantly higher than prices charged at dispensaries and in the black market, due in large part to excise taxes imposed by the state.

The overhaul of the medical industry should help level the playing field, said Jake Rosner, operations manager at Greenway Marijuana, a recreational shop in Port Orchard.

“Hopefully, business will increase due to less competition,” Rosner said in an email. “Patients will be coming to retail stores to ‘fill their prescriptions,’ thus less competition from previous medical and black markets.”

Rosner said Greenway already plans to obtain endorsements for selling to medical patients, as allowed by the new law.

“We will absolutely cater to medical consumers at our stores,” he said.

PATIENT PERSPECTIVE

While gardens and dispensaries are closed, or shoehorned into the state’s recreational system, authorized medical marijuana patients will still enjoy benefits not available to recreational pot users.

The law creates a voluntary registry for patients. Those who join will be able to possess up to 3 ounces of marijuana — three times the legal recreational amount — and grow up to six plants at home. Those who don’t register will be limited to possessing 1 ounce, but can still grow up to four plants. Patients can also form small growing cooperatives.

Big changes are in store for patients who don’t grow see medical | 29

10 | JUNE 2015

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The new diet? Try abundant eating improve intestinal bacteria to help fight disease and regulate digestion.

“Start with the gut. The gut is the foundation of everything,” she said. “A lot of times, once you get the gut in shape, the ripple effects are huge.”

Many clients come to

Image Source White

By Terri Gleich KPBJ contributor

I

n an era when popular diets are all about restricting what we put in our bodies, Bainbridge Island nutritionist Jennifer Adler stands out for advocating joyful, abundant eating.

There are no forbidden foods. Rather than going vegan or gluten-free, Adler says you should eat when you’re hungry, focus on whole foods and give yourself a break if you eat the occasional Twinkie.

“I get so frustrated with the nutrition world, the medical world, it’s take away, take away, take away, restrict, eliminate, avoid,” she said. “My belief is that’s a knee-jerk reaction.”

Adler’s message, shaped by her experience overcoming a malnourished childhood as well as her work with clients, is detailed in the new book, “Passionate Nutrition: A Guide to Using Food as Medicine from a Nutritionist Who Healed Herself from the Inside Out.” Passionate Nutrition is also the name of Adler’s food-focused counseling business, which has 20 offices in the Seattle area and on Bainbridge. The book is her “practice on paper” and sets out a stepby-step method for transforming your eating habits that Adler promises will improve your health and change your life.

Chief among her tenets is to listen to our bodies.

“Our bodies are wise,” she said. “What will steer us wrong is our brains.”

Dieting fads come and go, she said, as does conventional wisdom about healthy eating. And when people fail to adhere to the latest restrictive diet, they blame themselves for being weak.

“Instead of saying there’s a flaw in the system, we say there’s a flaw in me.”

Adler advocates eating fewer things in packages and more things your ancestors would have eaten — butter, grass-fed beef, organ meats, full-fat milk.

“Throughout history, we were much healthier than we are now,” she said, noting rising rates of heart disease, diabetes and obesity. As the cost of health care has risen in the United States, she noted that food has become increasingly unfoodlike, filled with additives, pesticides, antibiotics and hormones.

Instead of restricting fat or counting calories, Adler counsels clients to add protein and fermented foods to their diets. Adequate protein increases energy and reduces sugar cravings; fermented foods

Adler for help with weight loss, and the nutritionist admits that her advice about increasing fat and calorie intake to slim down is not only counterintuitive, it’s downright scary for many who have struggled with eating disorders and out-of-control

cravings.

But, she said, it works.

Eating enough fat is crucial for bone health, immunity and, most importantly for dieters, feeling full. In the book, Adler points to a 1930 agricultural bulletin that recommended feeding pigs skim milk and grain to fatten them for market.

Because the pigs never felt full, they never stopped eating.

“So basically, the lowfat diet we’ve been conditioned to embrace over the last half century is the same one farmers used to fatten pigs almost a century ago,” she wrote.

She encourages readers and clients to trust that limiting processed foods, along with adding good bacteria through fermented foods, eating adequate see abundant | 28

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JUNE 2015 | 11

Port Ludlow man hoping new business takes off

By Tad Sooter KPBJ contributor The drone lifted off a dusty patch of gravel Friday morning, its four rotors making a noise like a swarm of angry bees.

Mike Porter flicked the joysticks on a handheld controller and sent the shoeboxsized quadcopter whirring up a hillside at Poulsbo’s Fish Park. The drone paused above a salmon sculpture at the top of the hill and trained its camera lens down on Porter. He gave the machine friendly wave as it snapped his photo.

“They’re really easy to use,” Porter said of drones. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to fly one of these guys.”

Ease-of-use is a main reason compact, unmanned aircraft have gained mainstream popularity among hobbyists. Just about anyone can now buy a small drone off the Internet and learn how to operate it.

What’s not easy is legally using a drone to make money, which is what Porter aims to do.

It took the Port Ludlow resident several months to obtain authorization from the Federal Aviation Administration to operate “unmanned aircraft systems” for commercial purposes. He believes his High Flight Photo company was the first in the state to earn federal approval when he received his certificate May 5.

The 74-year-old specializes in real estate photography, using his DJI Phantom drone to shoot photos and videos of residential and commercial properties. He’s also authorized to shoot group photos.

The FAA started approving exemptions for commercial drone use about a year ago. The exemptions are only issued

MEEGAN M. REID

Mike Porter of Port Ludlow looks on as his drone hovers next to him at Poulsbo’s Fish Park on May 29. Porter is the owner of High Flight Photo. Below: Porter’s drone takes off from the path at the park. to licensed pilots, which gave Porter, a retired Air Force and airline pilot, a leg up.

“That stops a lot of people right there,” he said.

While clearing him to fly legally, Porter said FAA authorization was also allowed him to obtain liability insurance for his business. Porter said some drone operators fly commercially without FAA authorization or insurance, putting themselves and their clients at risk.

Quadcopter drones are lightweight and

easy to fly, but they can still do damage when they crash. When a rotor breaks, the

drones spin out of control.

“What people forget is this is an aircraft,” Porter said. “And it can be a dangerous aircraft.”

The FAA is in the midst of crafting new rules to govern unmanned aircraft flight.

In the future, operators will likely be required to pass a safety course before flying. Until then, Porter said he wants to educate the public about the requirements for flying drones safely and legally.

“I just want people to be safe, and understand what they can do out there,” he said.

Aerial drone photography has become popular in the real estate industry as a cheaper alternative to airplane flyovers.

But with the FAA still hashing out new rules for unmanned aircraft, many real estate agencies are approaching the technology with caution.

Northwest Multiple Listing Service CEO Tom Hurdelbrink said his organization is monitoring the FAA’s rule-making process. The group doesn’t have a policy in place on drone use, Hurdelbrink said in a statement.

Kitsap County Association of Realtors CEO Mike Eliason said it was encouraging to hear operators like Porter are receiving authorization for commercial drone flights.

“Drones could be a great benefit,” Eliason said. “Especially if it’s cost effective.”

High Flight Photo is online at www. highflightphoto.com. For information on FAA drone regulations, go to www.faa. gov/uas.

• Tad Sooter is a business reporter for the Kitsap Sun and contributes to the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal.

Seafood and wine shop moving sales to Silverdale KPBJ STAFF REPORT

The owners of Northwest Seafood and Wine decided not to renew their lease at the Port Orchard Public Market, and will move operations to Silverdale.

The business, owned and operated by Annie and Craig Fitzgerald, was one of the anchor tenants at the market that opened last year. However, their business had been listed for sale on commercial real estate websites since late 2014.

A post to the Facebook page for Northwest Seafood and Wine on May 27 announced the closure, and the shop was offering 20 to 30 percent off its inventory before closing May 30.

The owners also posted on Facebook that they “will be selling our shellfish and smoked products at our processing plant in Silverdale and will also be at several local farmers markets.”

The Silverdale processing plant at 9435 Provost Road NW is part of Dabob Bay Oyster Co., the shellfish farming operation on Hood Canal started by Annie

Fitzgerald’s father in the 1990s. She and her husband run the business along with her sister, Katie King, and her husband.

The Facebook announcement of the shop’s closing reads in part, “we are so grateful for all of the great people we have met over the past year, but it is with heavy hearts that we announce that we will not be renewing our lease at the Port Orchard Public Market and will be closing our location in the market.”

The post was shared on the Port Orchard Public Market page on Facebook, and a subsequent post on that page reads: “Due to imminent changes within the Market, the Jazz Night scheduled for June will be postponed. Stay tuned for information on more events.”

Annie Fitzgerald restocks artisan cheeses in one of the display coolers at Northwest Seafood and Wine at the Port Orchard Public Market in February. The family-run business did not renew its lease and closed its market location May 30.

MEEGAN M. REID | file

12 | JUNE 2015

Make timely adjustments to 529 plans Article provided by Edward Jones for use by financial advisor Ed Finholm of Kingston.

I

f you have school-age children, you might greet the arrival of June with some relief — for at least a few months, you don’t have to worry about “encouraging” kids to do their homework, study for tests, give you their permission slips for field trips, and so on. But one day, these obligations will give way to a substantially bigger one — paying for college. If you’ve already begun preparing for that day with a tax-advantaged college-savings vehicle, such as a 529 plan, you’re taking a positive step, because higher education is expensive. But it’s not enough to just set up your 529 plan — you may also need to adjust it over time.

Up until this year, you were only allowed to change the investments in your 529 plan once a year. This caused concern among some investors, who wanted the freedom to change their 529 investments in response to movements in the fi-

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financial focus | Edward jones nancial markets. But late in 2014, President Obama signed into law the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) act, the key purpose of which was to create tax-free accounts allowing people to save for disability-related expenses. And one provision of the ABLE act also allows 529 plan investors to change their investments twice a year, rather than once.

If you invest in a 529 plan, you might welcome this additional freedom to adjust your investments. Still, keep in mind that a 529 plan is a long-term vehicle that’s not really designed to accommodate frequent “tweaking.” And, as is true with any investment account, such as your IRA and 401(k), you don’t want to over-react to short-term market fluctuations by making radical changes to your investment mix.

Nonetheless, you will almost certainly want to adjust your 529 plan investments somewhat — at least in the long term. If you’ve opened a 529 plan when your children are young, you have many years until you need to tap into the money — which means your account has more time for growth potential and more time to “smooth out” those periods of market volatility, which will certainly occur. Consequently, you may be able to afford to invest somewhat more aggressively when your children are young.

However, as your kids near college, you will probably want to revisit the level of see 529 plans | 13

Should you make investment moves based on a strong dollar?

Article provided by Edward Jones for use by financial advisor Debi Tanner of Kingston.

C

urrently, the U.S. dollar is pumpedup and powerful. But what does a strong dollar mean to you, as an investor?

To begin with, it’s important to understand just what is meant by a “strong” dollar. The U.S. dollar does not exist in a vacuum — its value, from a global perspective, is determined by its changing strength relative to that of other currencies. Let’s look at an example: Suppose that, in 2011, you traveled to Europe and wanted to trade in one dollar for its equivalent value in euros. At that time, your dollar would have converted to about .75 of a euro. Fast forward to early 2015; if you returned to Europe now, your dollar would fetch you almost one full euro. In other words, you can buy more euros because the dollar is “stronger.”

In fact, earlier this year, the euro hit a 12-year low versus the dollar. And it isn’t just the euro; the dollar is strong against almost every other major currency in the world. What has led to this strength? It’s

not always easy to determine what’s behind foreign exchange rates — which can fluctuate even more than the stock market — but the recent surge in the dollar seems to be due, at least in part, to its obvious connection to the American economy, which has been growing faster than many other economies around the world.

The stronger dollar is also due to expectations that interest rates will remain higher in the U.S. than in many other countries.

But whatever the reasons for it, the dollar’s strength may be having an impact on your investments. A strengthening dollar typically lowers returns from international investments because you get fewer dollars in exchange for the value in euros or other foreign currencies. And some U.S. companies with a global presence may face challenges due to lower earnings from their international operations.

These results might lead you to think that a strong dollar would be bad news for the stock market, but that hasn’t been the case in the past. At different times, the markets have performed well with both a strong and a weak dollar. see dollar | 13

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JUNE 2015 | 13

BUSINESS STRATEGY | DAN WEEDIN

The ROI of Y-O-U

I

work with a lot of very smart people.

They are small business owners, entrepreneurs, consultants and business coaches, and a myriad of professional service providers. They are skilled at assessing the return on investment (ROI) they get from all their “investments,” such as professional development, computers and other critical equipment and tools, vendors, contracts, licenses, and software.

They are also savvy when it comes to gauging the return on investment brought on by their human assets — their employees. All that being said, many of them struggle in appraising the return on investment of maybe the most crucial asset they have in their business — themselves!

While humility and modesty are admirable personal traits and hallmarks of good character, they need not be overdone when considering your worth and value in your role in your business. Regardless of your vocation — business owner, executive, manager, supervisor or employee — you must consider what you bring to the table in order to fully maximize your strengths and talents.

You will first start in self-assessing your mindset. Is it one of ambivalence or boldness? These kind of inward thoughts and statements would mark an ambivalent mindset: • You fear being “found out” by your clients, customers, or employees;

• You fear what others might think of you based on your ideas; • You fear being rejected for those ideas or opinions so you keep them to yourself; • You don’t take bold risks, rather remain conservative and timid in being assertive, contrarian, or daring; • You avoid tough conversations and conflict for fear of being “not liked;” • You procrastinate making any decisions at all when they relate to advancing your “personal” brand, or that of your company.

I recently watched the movie “The Gambler,” starring Mark Wahlberg. There was a scene in the movie when one of his students said that she intentionally “stayed in the middle because the middle is the safest place to be.” The “middle” may be the safest place, however it’s no place for you as a business professional. It’s the quickest path to apathy, complacency, and boredom.

If you find yourself caught (or even creeping into) an ambivalent mindset and want to switch over to a bold mindset, start by invoking these thoughts into your brain: • Ask yourself how you help people every day. It might be clients or it might be co-workers. What is it that you do that helps improve the condition of others?

This is your value and your ROI. • Use outcome-based language. Outcome-based language entails action verbs like increase, enhance, reduce and improve. You might say, “I help my clients exponentially increase their personal

dol l a r | f rom 1 2

protect against loss, it can help reduce the impact of volatility on your portfolio. Be aware, though, that international investing carries special risks beyond currency fluctuations, including political and economic instability.

The strong dollar may have attracted your attention, but don’t be distracted by it — and don’t overreact. Currency exchange rates can fluctuate rapidly, and no one can predict how long a strong dollar environment will last. By sticking with a solid, long-term investment strategy, you can help keep up the “strength” of your own dollars.

In contrast to its impact on U.S. companies, a strong dollar can help foreign companies compete and may give them an earnings boost from their U.S. sales. Also, the stronger dollar can help make foreign investments “cheaper.” Even more importantly, by taking advantage of the stronger dollar and investing an appropriate amount internationally, gaining exposure to different economies and markets, you can help diversify your holdings, which is important. Although diversification can’t guarantee a profit or always 52 9 pl a ns | f rom 1 2

risk in your 529 plan. So, during the last couple of years before you need to access your plan, you may want to consider moving some of your investment dollars to more conservative allocations. By doing so, you’ll cut back on your growth potential, but you’ll also lessen the risk of taking a big hit if you have to start taking withdrawals during a “down” market.

Some 529 plans offer an option that automatically adjusts your investment mix

toward a more conservative approach as your children near college age. But you may want to make your own adjustments, possibly with the help of a financial professional, to ensure that your 529 plan accurately reflects your own preferences and risk tolerance.

As you save for your children’s college education, you may find a 529 plan to be a great help. Just be sure to keep a close watch on your plan’s investments as the years go by.

wealth;” or “I help my employees dramatically enhance their professional skills and talents;” or “I help my clients significantly reduce their anxiety by protecting their future.” Outcome-based language is NOT about your methodology (what you do). Instead, it’s about how you make others better.

• Ask yourself how you help others in your personal life. Using the same outcome-based language on the value you bring family, friends, the charitable causes and organizations you work with, and anyone else that you’re donating your time to.

How are you making them better?

• Start going to bed and waking up reinforcing your value. I am not suggesting you mindlessly regurgitate trite aphorisms for 15 minutes. You don’t need to scream at yourself that you’re a good person. What I do suggest you do is quietly and quickly remind yourself that you have tremendous value to help others. You’ve developed it through education, experiences, observations, and professional and personal wisdom. You manifest it everyday to be beneficial to others as individuals and organizations. Take 10 seconds and remind yourself at night and in the morning so you develop a strong “muscle memory.”

• Then don’t be shy about showing it through your actions and words. You don’t have to literally “tell” anyone. However, confident people clearly state their case by how they carry themselves, the strength and power of the language they use and the attitude they exhibit.

Bottom line — you make investments every day. You make a decision on that investment based on the “return” you expect. You create metrics and closely monitor those “investments.” It’s time now to sell yourself on you.

Final note: Some of you might be saying, “Dan, I’m already confident in myself and my abilities. This sounds nice for some people, but I’m good.” That might be true; however, even the most confident business professional must be conscious to avoid the trap of slipping into ambivalence. I find it’s a daily routine that increases the likelihood of maintaining and growing your own confidence. There are too many trials and crises that we deal with not to be consistently propping up your own ship to weather the storms.

So what’s the R-O-I of Y-O-U? The best person to determine that is YOU. Why not start calculating your returns today?

• Dan Weedin is a strategist, speaker, author and executive coach. He helps business leaders and executives to become stronger leaders, grow their businesses, and enrich their lives. You can reach him at 360-697-1058; e-mail at dan@danweedin.com or visit his web site at www.DanWeedin.com.

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14 | JUNE 2015

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Fun for sale: Online playset supplier opens retail spot Family-run business sets up display of slides, swings and other playground parts at its Bremerton warehouse

By Tim Kelly KPBJ editor One of Glenn Stockton’s recent customers was a KOA campground in Connecticut that spent $80,000 for three custom tube slides (the longest is nearly 100 feet) installed by a swimming pool, but his family’s e-commerce business in Bremerton has gone largely unnoticed locally.

That’s changing, he hopes.

Stockton and his wife, Lori, operate Swingsetmall.com, an online supplier of specialty parts and components for playground equipment. Now they’ve converted part of their warehouse off Wheaton Way into a new retail space.

The building they bought in 2013 has been repainted in bright primary colors, and they’re adding a row of six flagpoles along one side of the large fenced parking lot in front of their warehouse. They’re trying to make the location more visible and inviting, which is a challenge because the building sits at the back of their 1.6-acre property that’s well off Wheaton Way behind the old Parker Lumber site.

Their retail space isn’t large enough to set up full playsets, but it displays some of the swings, slides and other accessories and hardware that make up the bulk of their online sales.

If things go well and the new venture draws lots of walk-in customers, they could add a larger retail area in unused space in the warehouse, and possibly an outdoor display area on their lot for full playsets.

Why would a successful online business need to add a retail outlet? They don’t, Stockton said, but it’s something they wanted to try.

“It’s not so much for a business reason, either,” he said. “It’s just fun to have people come in your store and see what you’re doing. You’re providing products they can’t get anywhere else, ... and helping kids and families have outdoor fun.

It’s kind of a nice thing to do.”

Their involvement in the family fun mar-

Photos by MEEGAN M. REID

Lori and Glenn Stockton stand with their son-in-law, Andrew St. Hilaire, inside the new retail showroom of their family business, SwingSetMall.com, in Bremerton.

Left: Glenn Stockton and Andrew St. Hilaire unfurl a new banner that they had made to place on the fence in front of their building.

ket began with an encounter at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe.

“The reason we’re in the playground

business at all is because we had kids back in the ‘80s and we needed a playset,” Stockton said.

A deluxe model a vendor had set up at the fairgrounds caught their eye. The price, however, was more than they could afford.

“But I asked the guy if we could become a dealer,” Stockton recalled. “He said ‘sure, and I’ll give this to you for half price.’ see swingset | 16

16 | JUNE 2015

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“Our average order value, up to this year anyway, has been $170, but we have 10,000 orders a year.”

Glenn Hoffman, SwingSetMall.com custom tube slides, which sell from $8,000 to $30,000. Stockton, who’s 63 and has turned over a lot of the day-to-day operations to his son-in-law, is focusing more of his time on that segment of the business. “More than half of the ones we sell are going into people’s houses,” he noted.

They’ve also installed slides as replace-

Photos by MEEGAN M. REID

Dale Linwood packages orders for shipping from the SwingSetMall.com warehouse in Bremerton off Wheaton Way. sw i ngset | f rom 14

“So we get our first really nice playground set in our backyard, … and we became a dealer, and we sold a few of these things to schools and places like that.”

The potential seemed limited, though, for selling the full playset kits, which are expensive.

What seemed like a more viable business opportunity was selling specialty playground hardware and components such as belt swing seats, rope ladders and monkey bars — an approach geared toward the DIY segment of the market.

The retail area includes an example of custom tube It didn’t take off at first, slides the company sells. Glenn Stockton said the though, because they weren’t slides are becoming an increasingly popular item. finding enough local customers Eventually they started looking to buy for their niche products. a separate building for the business, and “There weren’t enough people in the arin 2012 they put in an offer on the Parkea that were looking for a tire swivel,” said er Lumber property, which was sold to Stockton, a former newspaper ad sales rep.

Kitsap Transit for a planned bus transfer However, their potential customer base center. vastly expanded when the Internet began While the Parker site is still vacant, the transforming sales and marketing in the Stocktons have been operating SwingSetlate 1990s. That made it possible to sucMall.com for two years in an 18,000-squareceed with a “long-tail” strategy — offering foot warehouse they bought for $475,000. It a large number of unique items with relaused to be a truss manufacturing facility tively small quantities sold of each. connected to Parker Lumber.

“We did the market research, and found “This is actually a much better buildthere were a couple people that had maybe ing for us,” Stockton said, adding that the 20 parts and pieces up on a website back in price was about half what they offered for 1999. So we put up 600 parts and pieces for the Parker property. playgrounds,” Stockton said. “Even at that Their online sales have grown steadily time there were quite a few people selling — even through the recession — by stickthe entire kits. That didn’t look like a great ing to their business model of selling lots market, so we really kind of pursued the of components rather than depending on lowest common denominator.” big-ticket orders for the high-priced kits.

In the first year of operating online, “We sell the complete sets kind of because the business generated about $350,000 in we have to — it draws people to the site sales, Stockton said. A few years later they and then they see that we sell the parts and changed from drop-shipping to maintainpieces,” Stockton said. “Our average order ing their own inventory of products, startvalue, up to this year anyway, has been $170, ing out with 600 square feet of space in but we have 10,000 orders a year.”

Kingston, where they lived at the time.

“And we will always want to rely on that In 2007 the couple moved to Bremerkind of customer, because then you’re not ton and bought the old Manette firehouse, dependent on making the big sales that where they lived and set up their e-comcan easily disappear.” merce operation in about 4,500 square However, sales are on the upswing their feet of space used for a warehouse.

ments for fireman’s poles in fire stations.

The new retail venture could draw people from around the Puget Sound area to Bremerton, Stockton believes, but he cheerfully acknowledges it might not last — like plenty of other unsuccessful businesses the self-described “risk-taker” has started in the past.

“My wife and I, we’ve had innumerable businesses that didn’t succeed,” he said, adding that some of those ventures might have worked out if the Internet had been available to boost them. “But this one is what really made us successful.”

Back in his days of selling newspaper ads, he said, “It was to hold things together financially until I could try the next thing. Like I say, I’m a risk-taker.”

18 | JUNE 2015

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Roofing company’s new showroom a sign of recovery Hanley Construction will move into renovated building in Port Orchard

By Tim Kelly KPBJ editor A job site on Bethel Avenue in Port Orchard is evidence of one local company’s re-emergence as a thriving business after weathering the lean years of the recession.

That’s not surprising when you consider the resilience of Hanley Construction’s 70-year-old founder, Oliver Hanley, who started out putting in septic systems as a side gig on weekends and during the summer when he was a fifth-grade teacher at Orchard Heights Elementary School. After taking a three-year leave from teaching in the 1990s when he survived a bout with cancer, Hanley returned to the school and finished his teaching career in 1999, qualifying for full retirement.

A year later, his son Morgan graduated from Washington State University and joined the family roofing business.

Morgan, 37, runs the company now, though his dad is still actively involved.

The elder Hanley is sidelined for a month while he recovers from heart bypass surgery, but he should be back before the business moves into a new office and showroom in the Bethel Avenue building undergoing extensive renovation.

“Up until the surgery he was in the office every morning,” Morgan Hanley said of his father. “He’s always been busy. He does all the close-out meetings with clients. At the end of a job when everything’s done, he meets with the client and does a final inspection” to make sure customers are satisfied.

Tim Kelly

Ed Lilley, left, and Javon Torres of BJC group work on a renovation project at a building on Bethel Avenue in Port Orchard that will be a new office and showroom for Hanley Construction.

The younger Hanley — who as a boy was “my dad’s shadow” on construction jobs — said quality workmanship has always been a hallmark of the company his father started.

“We don’t have any seasonal employees, and everybody’s paid by the hour. Nobody’s on production-based pay,” he said, noting that a good number of roofers have worked there for more than 10 years.

Hanley Construction, which does almost all of its work on the Kitsap Peninsula, has recovered from the economic downturn and is busier than ever. About 70 percent of its business is residential roofing, and the rest commercial jobs such as the

new Salvation Army center under construction in Bremerton.

Morgan Hanley, who saw business quadruple between 2000 and 2008, said the company operates more efficiently since recovering from the recession years.

“We leaned out really well when the economy took a nosedive,” he said.

The tough part of that was letting go 19 of the 45 employees the company had before the downturn. But the business has regained its momentum the last couple of years, to the point that Hanley said the biggest challenge now is wait times before their crews can get to all the jobs being booked.

“It was really tough for about three

Kitsap Bank acquiring Fife Commercial Bank

By Tim Kelly KPBJ editor Kitsap Bank announced it has an agreement to acquire Fife Commercial Bank, a strategic move that will expand Kitsap Bank’s presence in Pierce County.

“As we have looked at adjacent markets we want to grow in, Pierce and King counties are at the top of the list,” CEO Steve Politakis said.

He said Fife Commercial is a “high-performing bank” that does a lot of commercial real estate lending, and the acquisition “fits well into Kitsap Bank’s long-term strategy, as we expand our presence and services in the Pierce County market.”

Fife Commercial Bank, which was founded in 1988 by Jim Davis and has total assets of $88 million, will become a fullservice branch of Kitsap Bank. The transaction has been approved by the boards of directors of both banks, but still requires

regulatory and shareholder approval.

Davis, the president and CEO of Fife Commercial, will become an executive vice president of Kitsap Bank and continue to work out of the Fife location.

“I think over the last five years if you look at average return on equity for banks headquartered in Washington, we’re close to the highest or the highest,’’ Davis said.

“It’s time to maximize our shareholder value, and we look at this as a very positive transaction.”

By becoming part of Kitsap Bank, which has more than $1 billion in assets, Fife Commercial will be able to offer its customers SBA loans and mortgage loans, which the bank currently does not offer, Politakis said.

“They’re going to have increased lending limits, so they’ll able to lend more money to their existing clientele,” he said. “Those are just a few of the things we think are really going make a difference, and drive

revenue for us, … and increase our market share in that good market.”

Tony George, president and chief operating officer of Kitsap Bank, also said the location of Fife Commercial near Tacoma is a plus, since it’s roughly midway between Kitsap’s Pierce County branches in Gig Harbor and Bonney Lake.

“The great thing about Fife is it’s not only a great bank, very profitable and efficient, but we also really like that location,” George said. “It’s a good fill-in for us; Pierce County is growing and we need to be where growth is happening, because we need loans.”

Davis, who’s known Politakis for a long time, said they started discussing the deal in December.

“It’s kind of a relationship transaction; we didn’t go to a broker,” he said. “We kind of knew what we wanted on both sides.”

The two banks “share a history of local ownership and operation, truly knowing

years, then in 2012 we started to see a little pickup again,” he said. “By the end of 2013, we were caught up from all the down time. Last year was our best year on record, and 2015 looks to be even better.”

That rebound has made it possible for Hanley Construction to relocate its office from a cramped, second-floor space on the company’s truck lot. It’s not an ideal place to meet with clients, so sometime in July the business will move from a residential part of town to the more spacious and visible site near downtown.

“We’ve got seven people working in a 500-square-foot space,” Hanley said. “We have a lot of walk-ins, and I really wanted to have a showroom.”

Hanley Construction has long owned the 2,200-square-foot building on Bethel, which until recently had Port Orchard Signs as tenant. The company is investing about $300,000 on the renovation, and doing it without taking out a loan.

“I wanted to do a new office before, but I don’t like taking loans out. I like to work on a cash basis,” Morgan Hanley said. “It’s all out of pocket.

“If the economy ever does go down again, and I’m sure it will at some time, I don’t want to be leveraged.”

The new location will have seven offices, a showroom, a conference room, a kitchen and a patio out back. The BJC Group is the contractor for the project, which includes putting up a new façade.

“We’ll use the exterior to showcase a lot of what we can do,” Hanley said. There will be four different metal roof profiles on the exterior, and a corrugated metal wainscoat on an inside wall.

“I’m really excited for clients to come in our showroom,” he said. “It should be one of the nicest offices in downtown Port Orchard.” and understanding our customers’ needs,” Davis said, adding that the merger will be “great for our customers, our employees, and our shareholders.”

The 17 employees at Fife Commercial will be retained after the acquisition.

Once the banks are combined, Davis plans to stay at least a year. He will devote more time to business development, and Politakis said he will be a valuable member of Kitsap Bank’s management team.

“His entrepreneurial spirit and business acumen are well known and respected in the Puget Sound region,” Politakis said.

He compared the deal to acquire Fife Commercial with Kitsap Bank’s acquisition in 2006 of Mariner Bank in Port Townsend.

Port Orchard-based Kitsap Bank, which also acquired the failed Westsound Bank in 2009, currently operates 20 locations in six Western Washington counties and has 255 employees.

“We’re really excited to be expanding into that market, and we think we’ve got a great partner in Fife Commercial and Jim Davis,” Politakis said.

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WWW.KPBJ.COM some of the electrical,” Tommy said. “The countertop on our bar, a good buddy of ours Bob Cook did that; he’s a retired engineer out of the shipyard.

“That was fantastic.”

Not only did a band of familiar faces show up to help with the remodeling, a lot of the folks who’ve come through the door since Cash Brewing opened May 3 have been friends who came up from South Kitsap.

“It’s been way busier than it would have been if

LARRY STEAGALL

Tommy Cash stands behind the bar in the newly opened Cash Brewing Co. in Silverdale. He and his wife, Ester, previously owned the popular sports bar and restaurant Tommy C’s, but it closed in February after a bank foreclosure on the owner of the building they rented in Port Orchard.

Game on, again, for sports bar Cash Brewing Co. is the reincarnation in Silverdale of the former Tommy C’s

By Tim Kelly KPBJ editor Silverdale’s newest restaurant and sports bar doesn’t have any gender bias; the establishment has 32 TV screens, including one in the women’s restroom, same as in the men’s room.

The only thing Cash Brewing Co. lacks is ... a brewery. But that’s coming, and in the meantime the proprietors are producing sample batches of their own beers at another Kitsap craft brewery.

Cash Brewing opened in early May in Old Town Silverdale, a little more than two months after owners Tommy and Ester Cash closed Tommy C’s, a popular sports bar in Port Orchard. Their four-year run operating that business ended when they were evicted from their leased

space by an out-of-state bank that foreclosed on the Bethel Centre, which had Tommy C’s and a skating rink as anchor tenants.

Although it was devastating when they were blindsided by the eviction notice in December, the owners never considered not reopening in another location. They had hoped to find another South Kitsap spot, but now they’re adapting nicely to their new place in Old Town, right across the street from Silverdale Marina Park.

“I think that in the end, it will be a blessing in disguise,” Ester Cash said.

“We’re in a good location, even though we had to leave Port Orchard.”

They started working on an extensive remodel of their 4,500-squarefoot space in the Seaport Building before Tommy C’s closed at the end

of February. For several years the site was a wine bar and nightclub called Old Town Bistro, but it closed last summer and the space now has an allnew look inside and out.

“I think that in the end, it’s going to be a blessing in disguise.

We’re in a good location, even though we had to leave Port Orchard.”

Ester Cash The Cash Brewing proprietors put in 8-foot-wide roll-up doors with glass panels on both sides of the front entrance on Byron Street, and a 10-foot one

on the side of the building that has a covered patio.

Raising the doors creates an open-air feeling that takes advantage of being near the waterfront, which is a contrast with their Tommy C’s location that was on the second floor of a building and had no outdoor seating.

The Silverdale building’s interior has new brick walls and a more open look since a drop ceiling was removed.

“We basically took everything out of here except for the exterior walls,” said Tommy Cash, who grew up in Silverdale and used to work in construction.

“We did it all ourselves.”

“We were here every day for two months, basically,” his wife added.

By “we,” they mean themselves and a crew of handy volunteers who were regulars at Tommy C’s and wanted to help get the new place open.

“All the brickwork was done by a volunteer, and

it was just Silverdale people finding out about us,” Ester said, “because we haven’t really done any advertising,” other than Facebook updates.

“We’ve been very fortunate to have the customer base we did,” Tommy said.

“I think we built good relationships with people at that restaurant, and it’s transposing to here.”

The relationship with their staff endured as well; 14 of the 18 Tommy C’s employees came to work at see cash | 28

26 | JUNE 2015

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business openings

Tractor Supply Co. opens in former grocery store site New farm and garden store supplants Del’s that closed in Port Orchard

By Tim Kelly KPBJ editor

Meegan M. Reid

Tractor Supply Co. opened in May in the former location of Saar’s Market in Port Orchard.

Customers at the new Tractor Supply Co. store in Port Orchard can get everything from hay bales and animal feed to farming implements like tillers and cultivators, but they won’t see any tractors there, not the classic farm machines with a seat perched above huge rear tires.

“Just garden tractors,” store manager Zack Heuring said.

The highest-priced model at Tractor Supply is parked right outside the store entrance — a 60-inch cut Bad Boy ZT Elite Zero-Turn Mower, for $5,000.

Tractor Supply opened May 22 in the former Saar’s Market site at Olney Avenue and Mile Hill Drive. The 42,000-squarefoot building — which is still owned by Saar’s — had been empty since the grocery store closed a year ago in the retail center with mostly vacant spaces.

The opening coincided with the closure of Del’s Feed & Farm Supply, which had operated for 10 years on Mitchell Road in Port Orchard. Tractor Supply owns the Del’s chain, which includes about two dozen stores in several Western states.

Tractor Supply is a full-service farm and garden retailer that has many more products than Del’s carried, such as hardware, tools, workwear and outdoor clothing, garden equipment from trimmers to Tractor Supply Co. opened its full-service farm and garden store in May in the former location of Saar’s Market in Port Orchard. tim kelly

More new tenants coming to Kitsap Mall Kitsap Mall was already having a busy year, with the addition of Buffalo Wild Wings and the announcement of an H&M clothing store coming this fall.

News of new tenants just keeps piling up.

As was announced earlier, Victoria’s Secret reopened May 31 following a remodel, and a new PINK shop also made its debut.

Mall general manager Erin Leedham said work will begin soon on a Just Sports athletic apparel store. A Potbelly Sandwich Shop is “coming soon-ish” according to its signage.

Leedham said Dairy Queen was remodeled and expanded its menu, while Hot Topic opened in a new location. Lane Bryant is undergoing an expansion.

Building permit applications indicate Qdoba Mexican Grill has a restaurant planned for mall. The mall hasn’t confirmed Qdoba as a tenant, and a Qdoba representative didn’t respond to a request for comment.

As new stores arrive at the mall, others are exiting. A representative at Forever 21 confirmed the Silverdale store will close Friday, though there’s a chance it could reopen in another space.

• From the Minding Your Business blog

by Kitsap Sun reporter Tad Sooter.

chainsaws, and light truck equipment.

The building has been divided into a 20,000-square-foot main sales floor, with a feed room in the back and a storage area called the “Hay Barn” behind that can hold a truckload-and-a-half of stacked bales. The store carries orchard grass, straw and alfalfa.

A large area walled-off on one side of the store holds fencing, posts, gates, stock tanks, etc., and has a separate loading door.

“Basically everything that was outside at Del’s is indoors here,” Heuring said.

Out on the parking lot are a row of three-point implements on one side, and utility trailers on the other side next to a large new propane tank.

Heuring said the new store will likely sell a lot of feed and forage, as Del’s did.

“There’s not a lot of open pasture around this area, so people rely more on buying hay,” he said.

The store does not sell live animals, except for seasonal sales of poultry and duck hatchlings in early spring.

Tractor Supply plans to connect with the community through partnering with 4-H groups, the Humane Society and animal rescue groups to hold pet adoption days at the store.

Heuring said all nine employees at Del’s transferred to the Tractor Supply store, which has about 20 employees. He came to Port Orchard from Minnesota, and this is the second store Heuring has opened during his eight years working for the company.

Tractor Supply Co., which bills itself as “the largest rural lifestyle retail store chain in the United States,” is based in Brentwood, Tenn., and has 1,400 stores across the U.S., all of which are companyowned, not franchises. The Port Orchard store is the company’s second in Washington state, along with a Del’s in Puyallup that was rebranded as Tractor Supply last year.

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ca sh | f rom 2 4

a bu n da n t | f rom 11

Cash Brewing, which has a staff of 25.

There’s room for plenty of old and new friends, with a seating capacity of 210 at the new place, where a lane through the center of the large open room separates the bar from the family-friendly dining area.

They’re also working on an upstairs banquet room.

The pub fare on the menu includes burgers, nachos and house specialties such as Ichiro Tuna, a sashimi appetizer served with homemade wasabi.

As the operation gets established, they plan to add more seafood items.

There’s a full bar and 18 beer taps, six of which will be for Cash Brewing’s own beers once the brewery gets set up.

An on-site microbrewery had been in the works at Tommy C’s, and Cash said they were in the final stage of the lengthy permitting process before the place closed. He and veteran brewmaster Bill Poss had to start over again, and the equipment they bought for a three-barrel brewing system last year is stored in a trailer for now.

“We did receive the permit to do the construction inside the brewery, just before we opened,” Cash said.

“We’re hoping to have that finalized before our grand opening,” which will be later this summer, he added. “It would be nice to have that as a focal point for the grand opening; even though we probably won’t be brewing in there, we’ll have it all set up.”

For now, they’re doing a

protein and fat, eating regularly and eating enough calories will ultimately lead to weight loss and better metabolism. She calls her approach the “anti-diet.”

“Passionate Nutrition” includes nutrient-dense foods that Adler recommends clients and readers add to their diets, along with recipes and serving suggestions. What it doesn’t do is specify how much fat or how many calories to eat each day. That’s where listening to your body comes in. Everyone is different and has to figure out what works for him or her, she said.

At a recent lunch hosted

by Liberty Bay Books, readers talked with the author while dining on applewalnut chicken salad and broccoli roasted with butter and ume plum vine-

As part of Cash Brewing’s remodel of the Seaport Building in Silverdale, the double windows on both sides of the front entrance (photo at right) were replaced with roll-up doors (top photo) that are opened to create an open-air feel in the restaurant.

seven food miracles

Photos by LARRY STEAGALL

limited amount of brewing in cooperation with Hood Canal Brewery in Kingston, which has given their customers a chance to try beers such as Nightgame IPA and Touchdown Brown Ale. Cash said they’re brewing a special Pot Bunker Pale Ale that they hope to make available at Chambers Bay Golf Club when the course near Tacoma hosts the U.S.

gar. The dishes were prepared by That’s-a-SomeItalian Ristorante owner Tom Pelland from recipes in the book.

Diners were appreciative of the food and Adler’s approach.

“You can get so much anxiety about nutrition and food,” said Diane Digleria. She’s more relaxed about it. I like her approach of whole foods and getting back to basics.”

Lisa Miller agreed.

“There aren’t a lot of rules.

You can be flexible.” Since reading the book, Miller said she’s been following Adler’s suggestion to include more protein in her diet and is finding that she feels more satisfied.

“This is teaching us how to love ourselves,” said Dorothy Leibrant. “I appreciate that. If we learn to love ourselves, we automatically take care of ourselves.”

Open in June.

The Cashes also own a real estate development company, and they have a purchase option on the building where they’ve reestablished their restaurant and bar.

“We’re going to try to exercise that option next year,” Tommy said.

Cash, who put himself through college working in restaurants and once was

a deckhand on a $22 million yacht that sailed from the Caribbean to New Zealand, said he and his wife tried to stay positive despite what happened with Tommy C’s, and decided to persevere with their business.

“We talked about different things,” he said, “and we came to the conclusion that we both love what we do.”

Like Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal on Facebook.

Nutritionist Jennifer Adler says adding these nutrientdense foods to your diet can make you healthier: Seaweed: It has the broadest nutrient range of any vegetable and can easily be added to foods you normally eat, including spaghetti sauce, soups and salads.

Foraged foods: Wild stinging nettle, dandelion, chickweed and sorrel are full of vitamins and nutrients, free of pesticides and abundant.

Shellfish: Oysters, mussels and clams are an excellent source of vitamin B12, zinc, essential fatty acids and the mood-regulating L-tryptophan.

Sardines: The small, oily fish are a dietary staple in cultures around the world and one of Adler’s favorite “miracle” foods in fresh or canned form. They have higher levels of essential fatty acids than salmon and, because they are smaller, accumulate fewer toxic heavy metals.

Red meat: Adler advocates eating grass-fed beef for its iron and zinc, as well as the saturated fat that can help you feel full and the cholesterol that is essential for healthy synapses in the brain and proper immune system function.

Organ meats: Packed with iron and vitamins A, D and K, organ meats also contain the right ratio of fat to help you absorb the nutrients. Try buying ground organic organ meats and mixing them into burgers, tacos, chili and meatloaf.

Fermented foods: Filled with healthy bacteria, foods such as kefir, miso, kimchee and krauts, can help heal your gut, prevent colon cancer and spur weight loss.

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HUMAN RESOURCES | JULIE TAPPERO

Family ties in the workplace

J

ust when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” Michael Corleone famously laments in The Godfather: Part III. While the “family” he was working with had a bit more sinister and, well, let us say organized quality than does the traditional definition of the word, it is certainly true that hiring and working with family members can cause even people of a much less scenery-chewing bent than Al Pacino to tear their hair.

Employing family (either yours or other staff members’) can undoubtedly pose certain pitfalls — but it also offers great benefits that are worth exploring. The key to maximizing the positives and minimizing the negatives of nepotism is simply an issue of using the right approach.

First, let’s address the pitfalls — since knowing the potential problems is the first and best step toward avoiding them altogether. When hiring your own relatives, you run the risk of causing resentment amongst your other staff, or of giving the impression of favoritism. There is also an often overlooked flip-side to nepotism, in which family members can be expected to do or give more than other employees simply because of their blood ties, causing them to feel exploited or put-upon. Working with relatives can also create discord if family tensions or problems fail

to remain at home where they belong.

Unfortunately this last issue requires a mature and determined effort to overcome the natural imperfections of human nature, so its success depends entirely upon the individuals involved. The other problems, however, have more concrete, easily implemented solutions.

Employing family (either yours or other staff members’) can undoubtedly pose certain pitfalls — but it also offers great benefits that are worth exploring.

Creating well thought out job descriptions is a good idea for any company, and not just one looking to employ family members. In the case of family employment, a thorough job description objectively clarifies what knowledge and skills are required for a position. Provided that the family member you place in that position actually meets those pre-defined requirements — and receives compensation commensurate to their role — an impression of favoritism will not be created.

Medical marijuana user Jim Boyer ( right) shows his approved paperwork to co-owner Nick Rodgers of Hope Alternative Medicine in Silverdale.

m edica l | f rom 9

their own marijuana. They’ll have to purchase their medical products through retail stores with medical endorsements, which could mean paying steep retail prices.

Boyer estimates he spends $60 to $80 per month on medical marijuana products. He expects his costs would skyrocket if he has to pay the excise tax at retail stores. That would be a tough pill to swallow, Boyer said, particularly for patients living on fixed incomes, and those battling serious illnesses like cancer.

The Legislature is considering cutting the excise taxes charged on marijuana. A tax break could also be offered to patients who join the registry.

If you wish to train and groom a relative for a particular job that they are not yet qualified for, first give them a trainee position with a title and wage that are reflective of this. Manage your family members and appraise their performances as you would any other staff member. In essence, treat the employment of relatives with fairness and transparency and you will effectively defang nepotism of much of its worst potential.

As for hiring the relatives of other employees, this too has its positives and negatives. A family member or close friend of a great employee may end up being a great employee too. However, as with your own family, there is the possibility that employing staff members who are related to one another will result in family issues and tensions inappropriately rearing their heads in the workplace. Be especially careful about employing people who are spouses or domestic partners — not only because of the possible troublesome blurring between home and work life, but also because this can put you in a bind during vacations or family emergencies, and can make issues of pay, advancement, or termination particularly thorny.

Again, having well-constructed job descriptions is critical. Knowing exactly what a job requires allows you to determine if a staff member’s friend or relative really is the best fit for the position, and also gives you a good out if they’re not right for it — rather than having to issue a flat-out “no” to considering them, you can simply cite the job description’s clear-cut requirements. “Unfortunately, your brother doesn’t have the computer skills that this position calls for,” is a more gentle let-

LARRY STEAGALL

“If that happens, we’ll be able to keep costs low for our medical clients,” Rodgers at Hope Alternative said. “But the state has to meet us in the middle some-

where.”

Supply of medical marijuana is another concern. With the medical industry rolled into the recreational industry, Rodgers and Blevins fear there will be little incentive for growers to cultivate the strains of marijuana needed to produce the multitude of products used by marijuana patients.

“Our biggest worry is the supply chain,” Rodgers said.

down than, “I don’t think your brother is right for this position.”

The benefits of employing family are actually many. For starters, you are more intimately familiar with their weaknesses, strengths and potential than you are with any other employees. There’s no need to perform background checks on your relatives, and you can trust them with critical and confidential aspects of your business in ways you cannot with many other people. Relatives have a vested interest in seeing you and your business succeed.

In times of need, you can depend on family members to go the extra mile for you, working long or odd hours, taking less pay, or just functioning as confidantes and cheerleaders (but don’t take too much advantage of your blood-ties, or you could find problems following you home from work).

Employing family even has financial benefits (although most tax advantages on a federal and state level are predominately for sole proprietors). There are tax deductions available for your business when you pay for health insurance for a spouse or child who is employed by you. Additionally, because a survivor’s benefits under Social Security are only half of the deceased spouse’s benefits, hiring a spouse — particularly a non-working one — helps to build up each of your Social Security earnings.

• Julie Tappero is president and owner of West Sound Workforce, a professional staffing and recruiting company based in Poulsbo and Gig Harbor. She can be reached at julie@westsoundworkforce.com.

The biggest worry for patients has long been losing access to medical marijuana altogether. While overhauling the system, the reform law ensures medical marijuana will remain available to people like Linda Rosenblum of Port Orchard.

Rosenblum recently obtained authorization to buy medical marijuana for her 36-year-old son James, who is developmentally delayed and suffers from frequent seizures. The tinctures have made a huge difference in his quality of life, she said.

“His seizures haven’t completely subsided but they’re so much better,” Rosemblum said.

She hopes the state will settle on a system that keeps medical marijuana affordable and accessible.

“I’m just hopeful it will remain available for people,” Rosenblum said. “Because it’s just such a need.”

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score mentoring | ken sethney

What’s the best way to communicate with your customers?

Y

ou’ve seen people so absorbed with their smartphones that they appear oblivious to what’s going on around them. True, everyone is entitled to a bit of privacy, and perhaps that message or video is really, really important. However, spending too much time in a “heads-down” mode can be offputting, and sometimes dangerous.

Many entrepreneurs, particularly those who work from home, operate their small businesses much the same way when they rely too heavily on email to communicate with clients. Email is convenient, particularly for work-related issues and updates, but numerous studies have come to the same conclusion — cus-

tomers want to be treated as people, not as return email addresses.

When you take a technologycentric approach to communication, you’re missing an opportunity to build a relationship with your customers. Don’t you think they would rather do business with someone they know?

Wouldn’t you?

“Sixty percent of communication is nonverbal, 20 percent is tone of voice,” says Sam Richter, an internationally recognized expert and author on sales and marketing. “That means only 20 percent is actual content. So if you’re doing email only, you’re losing 80 percent of your communication.”

That’s why it’s a good idea for a home-based business owner to pick up the phone every now and then and talk with customers.

The idea isn’t to fish for work,

but rather check in and see how they’re doing and talk a little shop. Maybe offer a thank-you for their last order or quick payment.

That connection may or may not result in new work immediately, but it’s sure to leave a positive impression.

Just make sure the reason for calling is relevant, particularly if you find yourself leaving a voicemail. “Think about how busy you are, and what you want and don’t want to hear in a voice message,” advises Richter.

Here are some other suggestions for adding a personal touch to your customer interactions: • Make a date. Arrange a time to meet in person at a mutually convenient location, or close to the customer. Ideally, you want to do this as early in your work with the client as possible to discuss processes and expectations.

But any opportunity to meet and catch up is a good one.

• Write a note. When you learn of good news about your customers or their organization, send them a handwritten note of congratulations. Even a few sentences expressing heartfelt feelings are sure to make you and your business memorable.

• Follow them. Social media has lived up to its name, adding some personality to our online connections. Make it a point to follow your customers’ Twitter feeds and blogs, like them on Facebook, and weigh in on discussions as appropriate.

Also, use these connections to forward timely articles on industry-related issues, and your customer’s personal interests.

But don’t be condescending.

Insincere flattery and blatant attempts to earn someone’s favor can quickly turn a valued ac-

quaintance into an unwanted annoyance.

• For more help with valuing your small business, contact SCORE — Mentors to America’s Small Business. SCORE is a nonprofit organization with more than 12,000 volunteers who provide free, confidential business mentoring and training workshops to small business owners.

To contact Kitsap SCORE, email kitsap@scorevolunteer.org, call 360-328-1380 or visit kitsapscore. org.

• Ken Sethney is a volunteer business mentor and branch manager with Kitsap SCORE. He is a former ad agency creative director and marketing coach who worked with the owners of midsize companies throughout the U.S. Contact Ken via email at ken.sethney@scorevolunteer.org.

People in business Leadership Kitsap grad named foundation director Katie Walters, a graduate of the Leadership Kitsap Class of 2014, has been named executive director of the Leadership Kitsap Foundation. She will replace Kathy Nelson, who’s retiring at the end of June after 10 years with the organization.

Walters is a longtime resident of Kitsap County who has more than 20 years’ exKatie perience in nonprofits and Walters education. She was most recently the marketing and community relations director at Bainbridge Island Museum of Art. She is also on the board of trustees for Kitsap Regional Library, representing Central Kitsap and Bremerton.

“I am honored and humbled to assume the role of executive director as Leadership Kitsap celebrates its 20th year serving our community,” Walters said in a

Guest services training offered for tourism businesses in North Mason In preparation for the busy summer tourism season, the North Mason Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center is offering free customer service training for employees/managers from Mason County businesses.

news release. “I look forward to making a positive contribution to the vision and mission of Leadership Kitsap.”

Leadership Kitsap (www.leadershipkitsap.org) is a nonprofit, volunteer organization that offers a yearlong educational program for existing and emerging community leaders in Kitsap County.

First Federal staffers move into commercial lending First Federal has announced the transition of two internal employees to the commercial lending department.

Kasi O’Leary is now a commercial relationship manager, after previousKasi ly working since 2005 supO’Leary porting the commercial lending process as a commercial credit analyst, portfolio analyst and credit underwriter.

Jesse Long recently transitioned from “Through our Mason County Lodging Tax grants, we spend money in three areas — our visitor centers, festivals and events, and general marketing outside of the county,” said Stephanie Rowland, Stephanie president and CEO of the Rowland North Mason Chamber. “It seemed to us that we were missing something. We invite people to come here, we

managing the Sixth Street and Eastside branches to the role of commercial relationship manager.

First Federal is a Washington-charted, community-based savings bank headquartered in Port AnJesse Long geles. It has eight full-service banking centers in Clallam and Jefferson counties and one in Kitsap County, and a loan production office in Bellingham.

Lindsay Masters has been named executive director of Bainbridge Arts & Crafts, effective July 1. She will succeed Susan Jackson, who is retiring from the nonprofit art gallery after 13 years.

Masters has wide-ranging experience with cultural nonprofits on Bainbridge Island. She joined Bainbridge Arts and Crafts in January 2013 as publicist, and

previously worked for Bainbridge Island Arts & Humanities Council (now Arts Humanities Bainbridge), the Bainbridge Island Review, and Microsoft. A native of Atlanta, she holds a degree in EngLindsay lish Literature from DartMasters mouth College.

Founded in 1948, Bainbridge Arts & Crafts is one of the oldest nonprofits on the island and the first nonprofit art gallery in Washington state. The gallery specializes in contemporary Northwest art, through its retail gallery and monthly special exhibitions. The organization presents numerous community art education programs throughout the year. BAC also holds annual student art shows, awards scholarships for graduating high school seniors who plan to study art, and provides grants to all the public schools on the island to augment their art supply budgets.

For more information about programs and community services, visit www.bacart.org.

host fabulous festivals, and we do a good job of welcoming them in our visitor centers, but what about all of the stops they make along the way? We want to help.”

Rowland will conduct three 45-minute sessions on June 12, 19 and 26 to help prepare those who have opportunities to make a good first impression on visitors.

The sessions are free to anyone in the county, but reservations are required.

The North Mason Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center welcomes thou-

sands of visitors every year, Rowland said.

In addition to her work at the chamber, Rowland has been a certified etiquette consultant since 1998, when she started her own speaking and consulting business, Top Dog Etiquette.

Her training sessions will be at North Mason Library from 9-9:45 a.m.on consecutive Fridays — June 12, 19 and 26.

To RSVP, email Adena Clark at adena@ northmasonchamber.com . For more information, call 360-275-5007.

Bainbridge Arts & Crafts names new director

32 | JUNE 2015

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CB’s Nuts grows into a bigger Kingston building CB’s Nuts quality assurance worker Jerry Dunbar shovels up freshly roasted peanuts at the company’s new processing plant in Kingston.

By Tad Sooter KPBJ contributor CB’s Nuts peanut butter contains exactly one ingredient: peanuts.

No salt. No oils. Just carefully roasted nuts.

It’s the kind of straightforward approach that has been key to the Kingston company’s unabated growth over the past decade.

“That’s part of the beauty of our products,” said CB’s Nuts President Tami Bowen, who runs the business with her husband, Clark. “They’re really simple, they’re low input, they’re fresh, they’re clean, so they have a really broad appeal.”

The appeal is evidenced by the swelling roster of retailers carrying CB’s Nuts.

About 700 stores stock its products, including more than 250 Whole Foods.

Keeping up with national demand has meant continual expansion in Kingston.

Last month, the 30-em-

LARRY STEAGALL

ployee company opened an 11,000-square-foot production facility in the Kennedy Business Park off Minder Road, roughly twice the size of their previous facility. The building, purchased in partnership with a Bainbridge Island investor, will allow the company to sustain its growth for the longterm, while maintaining the quality of its products, Clark said.

To help equip the new

space, the Bowens landed an $80,000, low-interest producer loan from Whole Foods, the second such loan they’ve received from the trendy grocery chain.

“Their passion and dedication to their craft of roasting nuts was contagious. I knew right away that this was something I wanted to be part of,” Whole Foods Pacific Northwest forager Denise Breyley said in an an-

Brewery marks third anniversary with first bottled beers, new logo Bainbridge Brewing is marking its third anniversary with a celebration on June 12-13 at the brewery’s taproom on Bainbridge Island. Coinciding with the anniversary is the debut of the brewery’s new logo and the release of its first widely available bottled beers.

The brewery’s anniversary celebration will feature the release of its 3rd Anniversary Ale, which is an intense whiskey barrel-aged Doppelbock. The beer will be available in a limited-edition commemorative glass at the brewery’s two-day event.

Both days will include live music by local bands, including Celtic group Rye and Barley on Friday and funk rock band Luau Cinder on Saturday. Food will be available from local vendors The Dog Wagon on Friday, and B.I. BBQ on Saturday.

The brewery’s anniversary coincides with the release of its beer in bottles.

“There is a huge demand, both on and off the island, for bottles of our beer and it opens whole new avenues for us to let people across Western Washington enjoy Bainbridge beer,” said general manager Chuck Everett. “It’s been a long time coming but

we wanted to take the time to do it right, and I believe we have.”

The brewery’s initial bottle releases are its two most popular beers: Eagle Harbor IPA and Kommuter Kolsch. In addition, there will be a limited release of the Bainbridge 3rd Anniversary Ales. All three beers will be available in 22-ounce bottles, which will be available for sale at the brewery’s taproom, select bottle shops, and at a growing number of grocery stores and other outlets across Western Washington. Additional bottled beers from Bainbridge will be released in the months to come.

The brewery also introduced a new logo on its bottles, and as part of its rebranding effort the brewery’s name was shortened from Bainbridge Island Brewing to Bainbridge Brewing. “We knew it was time to simplify our name for the new bottles and taphandles,” Russell Everett said.

Bainbridge Brewing was founded in 2012 by father and son owners Chuck and Russell Everett. The brewery’s taproom is open seven days a week in Coppertop Park on Bainbridge Island.

nouncement for the loan. “... I’m excited to see the growth that will come from this.”

CB’s will use the money to refurbish its antique roasters, add a new oven for pumpkin seeds and an improved shrink tunnel for sealing plastic wrappers to its glass peanut butter jars, among other additions.

Many improvements will be aimed at continuing to

meet stringent food safety requirements, a weighty responsibility for small producers. An X-ray machine, for example, is required for scanning packaged foods to ensure no bits of metal like errant earrings wind up getting consumed.

Tami estimates the new facility is operating at about one-third capacity, allowing plenty of room for growth.

“We have a lot of opportunity,” she said.

CB’s will produce about 173 tons of peanut butter and 108 tons of inshell peanuts this year, using nuts purchased from farms in Texas and New Mexico. The company will produce another 50 tons of pumpkin seeds, a popular product it added in 2011.

The Bowens have brought the company a long way from where they started, selling fresh peanuts out of a tent in Seattle’s stadium district.

They bought their first brick-and-mortar location,

cb’s nuts What: A producer of roasted peanuts, peanut butter, pumpkin seeds and related products.

Where: A tasting room and retail shop is located at 6013 NE Highway 104, between Poulsbo and Kingston.

Online: www.cbsnuts.com

a 1,000-square-foot Highway 104 building, in 2007. It remains open as their only tasting room and direct retail outlet.

They shifted production to a Kennedy Business Park building in 2012.

The move to an even larger production facility this spring marks another leap forward.

“We’ve always known we wanted to grow the company, it was never accidental growth,” Clark said, “... but what a journey in getting here.”

• Tad Sooter is a business reporter for the Kitsap Sun and contributes to the Kitsap Peninsula Business Journal.

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Fresh venture hopes to click with farmers, consumers New co-op will operate as online farmers market

By Tim Kelly KPBJ editor The most abundant crop at Smithshyre farm may be raw enthusiasm.

Erin and Roni Smith will talk chickens ... well, until the cows come home.

And turkeys, lambs, goats, berries, tomatoes, herbs, eggs — as well as sustainability concepts such as permaculture they’re adopting at “the Shyre.”

“We’ve got big plans,” Roni Smith says.

The Smiths are a couple free spirits who bought five acres near Poulsbo a year and a half ago, after getting started in hobby farming on the Key Peninsula.

They lease another three adjacent acres, and they’re working to create their ambitious vision of a “sevenlayer forest farm” — a symbiotic layout that one day may have gooseberry and currant shrubs growing in the shade of chestnut trees; an apple orchard with an understory of beaked hazelnut bushes; and the protein-rich nuts providing fodder for turkeys, pigs and other animals.

They haven’t even added pigs to their farm yet (they plan to this summer), but “imagine a chestnut-finished hog that was pastureraised its whole life,” Erin says. “I bet you there’s some chefs in Seattle that would be excited about that.”

The Shyre owners already have implemented “pastured poultry” — chickens roam on grass inside portable enclosures that are moved around the fields twice a day. They have laying hens, and sell the eggs for $6 a dozen at a self-serve stand by their driveway. They also just finished the year’s first harvest of nearly 100 meat birds, selling the whole fresh chickens ($6.50 a pound) to customers who came to the farm.

The Smiths also have

become proficient in canning, a necessary skill when they brought in a bumper crop of tomatoes from 50-some plants on their Key Pen farm.

“We like to think of ourselves as a modern homestead,” Erin says.

The modern part includes using the Internet to connect directly with consumers who want to buy locally grown food.

Starting a co-op

They’ve organized a likeminded group of ag partners to launch a venture called Kitsap Fresh, a coop that will function as an online farmers market.

The Smiths sold eggs, lettuce and other vegetables through Fresh Food Revolution, a co-op that’s been operating on the Key Peninsula for several years.

Kitsap Fresh is using the same approach, with the co-op’s producer members posting what they have ready to harvest each week, and consumer members placing orders in time for pickup on Wednesdays at a central location, the Slippery Pig brewery in downtown Poulsbo.

Co-op memberships are $30 a year, and online ordering should be available by mid-June at kitsapfresh.org.

The Smiths and other Kitsap Fresh board members say their goal is to create a local food hub, and the online co-op gives

MEEGAN M. REID

Roni Smith gives her chickens fresh water at Smithshyre farm, which she and her husband Erin operate in Poulsbo. The couple raise their chickens in a pastured poultry setup. ag producers a way to connect with potential customers who don’t shop at farmers markets.

“In different circles around Kitsap, people have been talking about doing something like this for probably the past year or so,” says Julia Zander, the Bremerton Farmers Market manager who’s on the Kitsap Fresh board.

Zander, who grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin, says when the Smiths got their Poulsbo farm going and started talking with other growers about their experience with Fresh Food Revolution, it galvanized people to start something similar in Kitsap.

“They were really like a kickstarter for the whole idea of Kitsap Fresh,” Zander says. “They got a group of us together and we all started getting things done.”

One of the first recruits

was John McGarrity, an engineer for the state ferry system who operates Hansville Creamery with

his wife. Erin Smith discussed the idea with McGarrity during a visit to the dairy to mate the Shy-

re’s farm dog — a white Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepherd mix named Avalanche — with the McGarritys’ female counterpart.

“When I looked at what Fresh Food Revolution did and how it’s been successful, it made a lot of sense to me,” says McGarrity, who agreed to be on the Kitsap Fresh board. He will sell cheeses made from the milk of his microdairy’s 16 goats.

He and others involved say growers in the online co-op will pick and package only what they need to fill weekly orders, whereas vendors at farmers market don’t know how much they’ll sell or have left over each weekend.

“Farmers markets are great, but what happens is not as reliable,” McGarrity says. “We’re really looking for a stable marketplace, that people can shop and have access to all the producers that are online with the click of a mouse.”

Persephone Farm is a well-established operation

WWW.KPBJ.COM in Indianola and a longtime vendor at the farmers market on Bainbridge Island. Coowner Rebecca Slattery agreed to become a member of the Kitsap Fresh co-op, even though she’s “not really an online shopper myself.”

She prefers the sensory experience of shopping at farmers markets, but she sees the potential of the new online ag venture.

“They (the Smiths) represent a whole different generation of buyers, and they seem to think it can reach a whole group of consumers that isn’t being reached right now,” Slattery says.

Persephone Farm has been selling to local consumers for years through a traditional CSA (community-supported agriculture) model in which people buy an advance share in a farm’s production and receive a delivery of whatever is harvested each week through the growing season.

Consumer members of the new co-op will choose what to order from the weekly online offerings, and Slattery’s farm will have vegetables, herbs and flowers available.

“I’m really supportive of the idea, and grateful they’re going to do it,” she says.

“It sounds like from the farmer’s end it’s going be easy for us, so there’s really no reason not to participate.

“We’re always looking for new customers, and I want to support them and get the project off the ground.”

As McGarrity says, “We’re all a bunch of farmers trying to bootstrap this thing together.”

Zander notes that Kitsap farmers markets have a diverse group of vendors, but “we miss out on some of the really small businesses that don’t have the capacity to come to a market every week.

“The Kitsap Fresh concept will allow for more of those type of producers to get started, and they may eventually come to a market.”

That includes the Smiths. They have extensive plans for developing the Shyre, but for now it’s just the two of them trying to create a self-sustaining farm.

“We can’t be gone an entire day to a farmers market,” says Roni, who works half-time as a registered nurse to provide the couple’s non-farm income. “And the other thing is that we don’t like to harvest our crops and let them sit in the sun and see if they’re going to sell, or if they’re just going to wilt. With Kitsap Fresh, we don’t harvest it until it’s already ordered. That’s my favorite part about it.”

“And I’ve heard from farmers who do set up at farmers market, they’re desperate for a midweek sales point,” Erin adds.

Farming converts

Although she fondly recalls summers on her grandparents’ North Dakota farm while growing up, Roni Smith, 41, never aspired to an ag career. Neither did her husband, a 38-year-old former river rafting guide and substitute teacher. Roni used to work as a traveling nurse, interspersing vacations with temp jobs that lasted a few months, and while working in Kitsap she met Erin, who’s from Bremerton.

Neither of them have experience running a business.

“We’re really coming from a little bit of

JUNE 2015 | 35 Kitsap fresh Local producers who are members of the new Kitsap Fresh co-op: • Around the Table Farm • Full Tilth Farm • Hansville Creamery • The Smithshyre • Presephone Farm • Grounds for Change • Cottingham Farm • Patchwork Farm • Blackjack Valley Farm

Above: Farm-fresh eggs are sold at Smithshyre.

Left: Roni Smith nuzzles Nigerian dwarf goat Feely in the pasture.

Smiths are aware it’s a touch ironic that they are writing it.

“We went from outdoor enthusiasts and we didn’t care about any material possessions other than our kayaks and our sporting clothes and whatever,” Roni says, “to being super grounded and super rooted and feeling like this is what we want to do.”

They and their Kitsap Fresh cohorts are motivated by wanting to provide alternatives, even though very small, to the industrialized food system.

“We don’t plan on becoming rich on pastured poultry,” Erin says, “but we want our neighbors, our community to have a seasonal, clean option that isn’t a factory farm.”

Not competing

Followed by a few chickens and the farm’s collect eggs at Smithshyre Farm. a deficit, because we’re learning farming, and we’re learning business,” Erin says.

But the effervescent couple’s experience growing their own food and selling surplus produce and eggs through the Fresh Food Revolution co-op got them hooked.

For the past few years they’ve been learning all they can about sustainable smallscale farming, from books, magazines, blogs and many of the folks they’ve met in the Kitsap ag community.

Their homesteading self-education intensified during the eight months between losing their lease on the Key Pen place (the landlord’s son moved home), and buying the Shyre acreage that had been farmed by the Foss family through much of the 20th century.

“In that time we did a lot of research

Kitsap Fresh proponents stress that the co-op is meant to supplement farmers markets, not compete with them.

One such backer is Kitsap County Commissioner Rob Gelder, who directed $1,000 in discretionary county funds for his district to Kitsap Fresh.

Gelder says the venture will help foster a local food hub without requiring capital investment in a building. “It uses an established and tested website platform to connect producers with purchasers, and thus helps to open new MEEGAN M. REID business markets,” he adds. dog Avalanche, Erin Smith heads for the hen houses to Zander says the consumers who want convenience will appreciate online ordering and the about how we could be bigger farmers, and ease of picking up their fresh food. actually use it to try to pay the mortgage,” “If you’re able to purchase local proErin says. “It was really hard to find good duce from multiple farms online the same farmland in Kitsap that we could afford.” way you purchase something off Amazon When the Smiths moved there in De… and then be able to pick up that box of cember 2013, the land and the rundown produce in five minutes time, you’re makhouse on it needed a lot of restoration. But ing it easier” for people to support comthere are also some special hallmarks on munity agriculture, she says. the property, such as a root cellar behind And farmers markets will still be around the house and a couple enormous cherry for those who like a more social setting for trees that are likely over a century old. their transactions, Zander says.

Erin even has a personal connection to McGarrity of Hansville Creamery sees the Foss property, which at one time had Kitsap Fresh expanding the growers’ cona slaughterhouse. “My grandfather would nection with more local customers. raise one or two pigs a year, and I remem“I meet more and more people every day ber him bringing his pigs up to the Foss who are food-conscious and want to know packing house.” where their food comes from,” he says. “I Now a new chapter’s in the works for haven’t met anybody who doesn’t think the farm, and the formerly freewheeling it’s a great idea.”

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JUNE 2015 | 37

Regional economy | john powers

OC’s servant leader extraordinaire

O

n May 20, Dr. David Mitchell, president of Olympic College, was honored by the Association of College Trustees (ACT) as the Community College CEO of the Year in Washington state.

If you have ever had the privilege of working with Dr. Mitchell, you know why he was so honored — honored for his self-effacing servant leadership. Our Kitsap Eco-

nomic Development Alliance has had the privilege of working directly with Dr. Mitchell, and his outstanding leadership team, in making sure OC succeeds in fulfilling its mission to educate, train, develop and deploy the next generation of citizens and skilled workers in Kitsap.

David Mitchell is a true servant leader. He articulates and pursues a vision for Olympic College in such a manner that those he serves from students, to faculty, to the college’s trustees, to the community at large know they are

heard and that he can be trusted to act in their best interests. Dr. Mitchell is a man of integrity and keen intellect — and most importantly a leader with a passion to advance the mission of Olympic College to build a stronger, more just, more prosperous community … one OC student at a time.

In nominating Dr. Mitchell for this award, Jim Page, chair of OC’s Board of Trustees, noted the following among many achievements attained during the college president’s 13-year tenure: opening a new campus in Pouls-

business commentary | don brunell

Reusing water can help farmers, fish Over the last few years, one of the remarkable successes is the record salmon returns to the Columbia River and its tributaries.

Conversely, one of the biggest disappointments is low recovery of delta smelt in San Francisco Bay. To protect the smelt, a federal court ordered that water be flushed into the San Francisco Bay — 1.4 trillion gallons since 2008. That was enough water to sustain 6.4 million drought-stricken Californians for six years. Yet a survey of young adult smelt in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta last fall yielded just eight fish, the lowest level since 1967.

Increasing river flows in the Northwest to wash young salmon

to sea has worked; nevertheless, once water goes down the river, it is gone. What if we could recycle that water in key parts of the Columbia River reservoir network?

It’s called “pumped storage.”

It works in West Virginia and it could work in the Northwest.

In West Virginia, the Bath County project is the world’s largest pumped storage hydro system, producing about half the amount of electricity generated by the Grand Coulee Dam. During peak electrical demand, water flows through power generators draining into a lower reservoir and conversely, during periods of low demand, water is pumped back into an upper reservoir.

The difference in the price of electricity between low and peak usage makes the plant economically feasible and the plant operators have the option to power

the pumps by substituting electricity from other sources, including wind and solar.

That concept may work at Grand Coulee Dam. For example, during peak demand, generators in Grand Coulee’s third powerhouse alone produce enough electricity to light Seattle. What about capturing that water below the dam and pumping it back into Lake Roosevelt during the late night and early morning hours when electricity demand is slack?

Traditionally, pumped storage is thought of in terms of power production, but sending water back into a reservoir such as Lake Roosevelt would not only increase power production, but the water could be available for irrigation, navigation and augmenting fish runs.

Since Northwest electric rate-

bo; multiple expansion projects in Bremerton; dramatically improving access to all populations while enhancing student success and degree completion; and significantly expanding four-year degree opportunities in Kitsap.

Also, just this year our community celebrated a crowning achievement, for both Dr. Mitchell and the college, when OC was recognized by the Aspen Institute as among the top 10 community colleges in the U.S. Dr. Mitchell has long served on our alliance’s board of directors, and I have had the privilege of serving on his board of business advisors. He insures that OC works directly with our employer community, both public and private sector, to ascertain the

needs of employers; and, in turn, effectively prepares students and apprentices to fulfill the present and future demands of the local and regional marketplace.

Under Dr. David Mitchell’s exceptional leadership Olympic College has evolved into the No. 1 asset on Kitsap’s economic development balance sheet.

For that, our Kitsap Economic Development Alliance is truly grateful.

Please join me in thanking President Mitchell for his leadership, and in congratulating him on being recognized as the College CEO of the Year by ACT. On Kitsap!

• John Powers is executive director of the Kitsap Economic Development Alliance.

payers already are charged for salmon recovery, perhaps some of those funds could be used to underwrite the costs of pumping.

It may be an approach to consider in the vast Columbia River system, which supports agriculture and salmon and produces 75 percent of our state’s electricity.

In 2000-01, when low streamflows in the Columbia system curtailed hydropower production, this region lost most of its aluminum smelters and the family-wage jobs that went with them as electricity was reallocated to household and commercial use.

Pumped storage could also avert water conflicts such as those occurring in California. As Californians suffer through their fourth year of record drought, hydropower’s share of the state’s total electricity supply has dropped from 18 percent to 12 percent. The deficit has been replaced by natural gas-fired generation, which adds to greenhouse gas emissions.

The University of California at Davis estimates the state-

wide economic cost of the 2014 drought totaled more $2.2 billion, including $810 million from lost crop revenue, $203 million from lost livestock and dairy revenue, and $454 million from the additional costs to pump groundwater to keep production going. The state has lost 428,000 acres of irrigated cropland and an estimated 17,000 part-time jobs.

Now, Gov. Jerry Brown has ordered a 25 percent reduction in water usage because there isn’t enough water for cities, farms and factories.

Rather than put ourselves in the same predicament as California, why not look at alternatives such as pumped storage, because when the pie is larger, there are fewer family fights over a smaller and smaller pie.

• Don C. Brunell is a business analyst, writer and columnist.

He is the retired president of the Association of Washington Business, and now lives in Vancouver. He can be contacted at theBrunells@msn.com.

business news briefs Kitsap Business Forum will discuss Engaged Leadership The Kitsap Business Forum’s presentation on June 9 will be “Engaged Leadership: Leading beyond your business to impact your community.”

There will be a panel discussion featuring Charlie Davis from YMCA Pierce and Kitsap Counties, Chris Benson from Central Kitsap Food Bank, Monica Blackwood from Rice Fergus Miller, and Charlie King of Charlie King Coaching.

The forum will explore how leaders are leading beyond the walls of their companies, and what difference they are making in their community?

The aim is to help attendees learn how to create a lasting legacy from the work they do in the community. This will be an opportunity to learn from business leaders who are doing it.

The discussion will cover: • What opportunities are available • How it helps your business • How it influences your daily life • What your personal gain can be from being engaged The Kitsap Business Forum is free and takes place from 7:30-9 a.m. in the thirdfloor meeting room at Kitsap Conference Center in Bremerton. To reserve a spot, go online to KitsapBusinessForum.com or call 360-692-6800.

Pierce Transit trolley returns for summer in Gig Harbor Pierce Transit, in partnership with Gig Harbor stakeholders, will operate seasonal trolley service in Gig Harbor for the third summer. The PT Trolley – Get Around Gig Harbor! will provide passengers with service every 30 minutes between Borgen Boulevard, the downtown waterfront district and the Uptown shopping district. Schedules are available at piercetransit.org/pt-trolley. The seasonal trolley service will run through Sept. 7.

Fares are 50 cents a ride or $1 for a Pierce Transit All Day pass when purchased on board a trolley with cash. Riders showing

a Regional Reduced Fare Permit may ride free. Fares are subsidized by the PT Trolley Partners.

The seasonal service is made possible in cooperation with a Gig Harbor Community Investment Team, which is comprised of the City of Gig Harbor, Gig Harbor Chamber of Commerce, Merchants of Uptown and the Gig Harbor Downtown Waterfront Alliance.

The trolley will complement existing service on Pierce Transit’s Routes 100 and 102 in Gig Harbor. During the days and times the trolley runs, Route 100 will follow a detour route and adjusted schedules. Passengers can connect to routes 100 and 102 at Kimball Park-and-Ride. see briefs | 38

38 | JUNE 2015

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car review | 2015 mitsubishi outlander

Mitsubishi Outlander Sport: Better than you think

By Lary Coppola For KPBJ

M

itsubishi is the Rodney Dangerfield of auto manufacturers — “It don’t get no respect.” Yet its products are generally better than they are perceived to be, and in April, the company reported its best sales in seven years. Perhaps the dubious paint colors on the lower-end models have colored the public’s brand perception.

That aside, in 2014, the Outlander was all new, and carries over unchanged but upgraded in some areas for 2015. It comes standard with front-wheel drive, with all-wheel (AWD) available.

While the Outlander seats seven, having a standard thirdrow seat, the Sport version — which this review will focus on — only seats five, which makes just about every other mid-size crossover a competitor. Meanwhile, the Kia Sorento, Hyundai Santa Fe and Nissan Rogue all seat seven.

However, the Sport boasts a new, more powerful engine; two trim levels; a separate, stylish front fascia to differentiate it from the standard Outlander; a 10-year/100,000-mile limited powertrain warranty; a completely transferable, five-year/60,000mile new vehicle limited warranty; five-year/unlimited mileage roadside assistance program; a $21,295 starting price — and it’s built in America. Also, the 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport crossover has been named by Kelley Blue Book as one of its “10 Most Affordable SUVs.” Walkaround: The Outlander Sport’s smooth lines include a color-keyed front bumper, door handles and mirrors accentuat-

2015 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport ed by chrome beltline trim, for a clean look — something Mitsubishi calls an “urbane design with mainstream appeal.”

The High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights flow around the flared front fenders while recessed LED foglights and running lights are framed in black and sit low. The chrometrimmed, blacked-out, aggressive Evo-like front fascia is unique to the Sport.

The rear features combination LEDs and a chrome-tipped exhaust below the color-keyed rear bumper, which flows from the flared rear wheel wells. Eighteen-inch alloy wheels are standard, as is a built-in accommodation for an optional roof rack.

Interior: The interior boasts a soft-touch instrument panel with easy to read instrumentation that’s simple, and clean.

It offers high-contrast gauges

br i efs | f rom 37

For more information about the trolley visit Pierce Transit’s website, piercetransit.org/pt-trolley.

Blue Frog Solar honored as emerging manufacturer Poulsbo company Blue Frog Solar has earned a Silver Award among Washington’s emerging manufacturers. The 2015 Washington Manufacturing Awards were sponsored by Seattle Business magazine,

with a full-color LCD Multi-Information Display that houses Mitsubishi’s FUSE Hands-Free Link System, the back-up camera, along with audio and climate controls. Audio is a fourspeaker, 140-watt AMFM/CD/ MP3 system with available HD and Sirius/XM satellite radio. A USB port, two 12-volt power outlets and Bluetooth are all standard, as is a leather-wrapped tilt/telescopic steering wheel with cruise and audio controls, and leather-wrapped shift knob.

Also standard are power door locks, mirrors and windows with one-touch up/down on the driver’s side and remote keyless entry with a panic button.

The front seats feature a sixway manually adjustable driver’s seat and 60/40 split folding and reclining high-back rear seats.

The air conditioner features a pollen filter and is pretty out-

and presented at a gala event April 29 at the Boeing Museum of Flight.

“It’s great to be honored as an up-andcoming manufacturer, more so for what it says about Washington’s thriving solar industry,” said Tim Bailey, Blue Frog cofounder. “So many people in our state are committed to a clean-energy future, and we’re pleased to help meet the demand for quality solar products while creating local jobs.”

Blue Frog Solar, founded in Poulsbo in 2011, manufactures certified Made In Washington microinverters under license from global solar technology leader APS. Honorees in the 2015 Washington Man-

standing, with a very quiet fan — even on full blast. In fact, thanks to thicker window glass, the whole cabin is exceptionally quiet, something that we didn’t expect in a vehicle this size.

Under The Hood: New for 2015 is a larger displacement 2.4-liter, 4-cylinder engine that produces 168 horses. It uses electronic valve timing, which Mitsubishi calls MIVEC. However our AWD test vehicle had the highly capable, standard 148-horse MIVEC DOHC 2.0-liter-based drivetrain.

Performance gets a boost from a next-generation continuously variable transmission (CVT) — standard on both powerplants — that mimics a seven-speed automatic, and uses paddle shifters.

Not only does it provide better response and performance from a standing start, the 2.0-liter engine fuel economy ratings are 23

ufacturing Awards were chosen by a panel that included executives from throughout the state’s manufacturing and business sphere.

“The winners were companies with innovative products who found ways to boost their competitiveness through improved manufacturing processes and effective marketing,” said Leslie Helm, editor of Seattle Business magazine. “It’s companies like these that remind us of the current strength and future promise of Washington’s manufacturing sector.”

Washington manufacturers account for 12 percent of the state’s economy and close to half of all its exports, Helm noted.

city/28 highway/25 combined for the two-wheel drive models and 23 city/26 highway/24 combined for the AWD version. With either engine, the Outlander is classified as a low emissions vehicle.

Behind The Wheel: Mitsubishi’s AWD system is all but bulletproof — with numerous world rally victories under its belt.

They call it Super All-Wheel Control, or S-AWC. The Super stands for torque vectoring (shifting the power between the front wheels when needed for grip) to enhance control during cornering. S-AWC has four driving modes: ECO, Normal, Snow and Lock, which gives the most drive to the rear wheels. In Eco mode, up to 20 percent of the power will go to the rear wheels if needed for traction. In Normal up to 50 percent, while in Snow it stays off the throttle, and in Locked it’s mostly 50/50 — but can to go 30/70 if necessary.

Torque vectoring happens when you push the vehicle. You can feel a quick vibration in the wheel, almost like a split-second of ABS. Meanwhile, power and braking will shift between the front wheels in corners for better handling. More drive to the outside wheel, less to the inside, for quicker, more precise turning.

We had the opportunity to put the Outlander Sport to the test at the Northwest Automotive Press Association’s annual offroad competition called Mudfest — which was held in the Tahuya State Forest in rural Mason County. It handled the mud course like a Sunday drive.

On the highway, and in our regular everyday driving during our weeklong test period, we found the Outlander Sport to be a surprisingly fun, quiet ride. It‘s nimble, handling quite well, has more than acceptable performance — even with the 2.0-liter fourbanger. The electric power steering has a nice feel, and braking is strong.

Whines: The perceived knock see outlander | 39

Bill Virgin, editor and publisher of Washington Manufacturing Alert and a member of the selection committee, said winning businesses in the competition shared a number of traits, including: a continuous record of innovation and improvement; an unwillingness to coast on legacy; enthusiasm for remaking the business, if that’s what customers, the market and competition call for; and attention to detail in internal operations.

For information on the Seattle Business magazine’s 2015 Washington Manufacturing Awards, see www.seattlebusinessmag. com.

WWW.KPBJ.COM

JUNE 2015 | 39

car review | 2015 mazda miata

Mazda MX5 Miata — Pure driving fun

By Lary Coppola For KPBJ

tops of rural Mason County, as well as the twisty back roads between Rainier, Oregon and the burbs west of Portland.

The Miata has been around for more than 20 years, and has remained true to its roots — an affordable, front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, two-seat roadster. It boasts an energetic, small-displacement powerplant offering vivacious performance, responsive handling, and a high fun-to-drive quotient. It’s everything and more ’60sera British sports cars like the MG and Austin Healey aspired to be — without their infamous undependability. While there are bigger, faster, flashier sports cars (can you say Jaguar?), the MX-5 Miata’s universal appeal to both sexes of all ages is unmatched and the 2015 MX-5 Miata perfectly upholds its tradition of affordable, reliable, pure driving fun.

Walkaround: Styling of the Mazda MX-5 Miata isn’t groundbreaking, but evolutionary.

Although continually refined over the years, its basic styling is much the same as it was upon its 1989 Chicago Au-

to Show debut — making it immediately recognizable as a Miata.

Interior: The MX-5 Miata is not a big car, and doesn’t offer any spare interior room. It’s a snug but comfortable fit for someone our size — 6 feet tall and 215. Both legroom and the seats may be a tight fit for larger people; however, the seats are appropriately supportive for enthusiastic driving.

Fit and finish are excellent, with quality materials. Available features include heated leather seats, a seven-speaker Bose audio system powering the AM/FM/6-CD/SiriusXM Satellite radio, Bluetooth, and even automatic climate control — all of which our test model featured, along with a tilt leather wheel with controls for the audio and cruise. It also had A/C, remote power door locks and windows, and an auto-dimming rear view mirror.

A welcome improvement from the original is a surprisingly spacious trunk considering the size of the MX-5 Miata. We were able to fit a medium-size suitcase and some other items,

as well as lay a dress suit in a hanging bag down over them with room to spare.

The original Miata had barely enough room for a briefcase. Also, the retractable hardtop — which isn’t offered with the Sport version — doesn’t intrude upon that trunk space, giving up only a small storage spot behind the seats.

Under The Hood: Unlike some other cars, there’s no supercharged or turbo V6 shoehorned under the hood to throw off the 50/50 weight balance. Instead, the MX-5 Miata sports a high-revving, 2.0-liter inline four-banger pumping out 158 horses with the automatic, and 167 with the stick. It responds enthusiastically while putting down 140 lb-ft of torque and sipping fuel at the rate of 28 mpg (21/city, 28/highway, combined 24).

Transmission choices include a five-speed manual on the Sport version, and six-speed manual or six-speed automatic with a manual shift feature and available paddle shifters on the Grand Touring models.

Behind The Wheel: As we found out — once again — it’s almost impossible not to love driving the MX5 Miata. At around 2,500 pounds, it’s light, tight and nimble, with nearly equal front-to-rear weight distribution. It rides on a very sophisticated fully independent suspension engineered to deliver the ultimate fun-to-drive experience, totally connecting the driver to the pavement. The electronic power rack-and-pinion steering is sharp, and braking is excellent thanks to fourwheel discs.

We had opportunities to drive the curvy backwoods of Oregon Highway 47, along with Washing-

them. Luckily, you can go a very long way before that happens.

Bottom Line: With styling that’s smooth and contemporary, an exceptionally clean and quiet inte-

rior, handling, ride and performance as good as anything in this segment, the Mitsubishi Outlander Sport is definitely worth a look. The standard fourbanger engine is smooth

and fast enough, and the CVT is impressive. At $29,945 as tested, it’s a value-priced sleeper in comparison to some other offerings in this very crowded market segment.

I

n our normal rotation of vehicles to review, we rarely seem to get a convertible in warm sunny weather. Somehow, they always appear during the gray, rainy Pacific Northwest winter. However, we totally lucked out both during this past 5-Star summer, and again during a warm, sunny spell this spring, getting to drive two versions of the last of the 2015 Mazda MX-5 Miata. After a mild refresh in 2013, the third-generation Miata, which comes in three trim levels — Club, Sport and Grand Touring — is the last fun little roadster of this generation.

Mazda announced on April 20 that it had begun production of the fourthgeneration, 2016 MX5 Miata — co-developed with Alfa Romeo — and on May 4 that it was accepting pre-orders. From the press materials we’ve seen, the new car doesn’t appear to lose the magic that’s made it the most-raced vehicle on any given weekend — worldwide. With over 950,000 sold worldwide, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, the MX-5 is the “Best-Selling Two-Seat Roadster” on the planet.

So if this was to be our last time behind the wheel of the current generation MX-5 Miata, we couldn’t have asked for a better goodbye than the Zeal Red automatic with the paddle shifters, or the Meteor Gary 6-speed stick Grand Touring model with the power retractable hardtop.

The weather was great for some exhilarating driving that included several tours up and down both sides of Hood Canal, including the winding two-lane black-

outlander | f rom 3 8

on Mitsubishi vehicles is resale value — you seemingly have to drive them until the wheels fall off to get your money out of

2015 Mazda Miata

ton’s 101 and 106. All were an absolute blast. Aggressively using the perfectly positioned paddle shifters, and the six-speed gearbox — rather than the brake pedal — was just pure driving delight. This car hugs the road like a cat, while freeway driving isn’t at all unpleasant, and your body doesn’t get beaten up by bad pavement.

Whines: If getting in and out of the car challenges your physical dexterity, the Miata might not be your ideal daily driver.

Bottom Line: If you’re in the market for a two-seat sports car, the Mazda MX5 Miata should be high on your short list. Besides being a stellar performer, a bonus factor is its historically high resale value — a salute to its long-term desirability as well as reliability. We’ve driven other sports cars that are faster, bigger, more luxurious — and of course pricier. However, none are more fun to drive. Personally, we’d buy this car in a New York minute. Zoom Zoom.