November 2017
Volume 16 • Issue 11
Vocational trade school to open in Pasco BY ROBIN WOJTANIK
for Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business
Retail
Robust holiday shopping season expected across state Page 13
Real Estate & Construction
Porter’s plans expansion of barbecue restaurants Page 23
Labor & Employment
Rural versus urban? See how region stacks up page 45
She Said It
“People are spending more money in shops and definitely supporting small business.” - Joy Slone, owner of Ariel Gourmet & Gifts in Richland
A new trade school in west Pasco will provide classroom and laboratory space for apprentices pursuing careers in skilled trades, including future electricians, plumbers and sheet metal workers, all jobs in demand across the state. The Construction Industry Training Council of Washington, or CITC, is opening its first dedicated schooling site in the Tri-Cities. The nonprofit currently uses rented space in Pasco. CITC is considered an “open shop,” as apprentices are not members of a union. The vocational trade school is headquartered in Bellevue and operates schools in Marysville, Vancouver, Tacoma and Spokane. Prior to this fall, apprentices who enrolled in their final year of the apprenticeship program through CITC would travel to Spokane once a month for two days of classroom and lab work to complete their training. The new facility on Road 90, off Sandifur Parkway, shares a building with Elite Construction and a Crossfit studio. When completed in the spring, the 9,600-square-foot school will include three classrooms, three laboratories, a conference room, student and reception area and office. “It’s exciting to be in the Tri-Cities area. There’s a lot of work and there’s a need for a trained work force,” said CITC president Halene Sigmund. CITC intends to open the facility in time for the spring quarter, which begins March 1. It will be the nonprofit’s smallest location and the newest. The trade school has a goal of offering the fourth level of training in the new Pasco facility by next fall so that it would no longer be a hardship for apprentices to travel out of town to complete their final year. uCITC, Page 35
Page 13
The 290,000-square-foot Lamb Weston plant expansion in Richland means the company can make about 600 million pounds of frozen potato products annually. Washington potatoes provide almost $7.5 billion in economic activity in the state, according to the Washington Potato Commission. (Courtesy Lamb Weston)
Lamb Weston doubles fry production with Richland plant expansion BY ROBIN WOJTANIK
for Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business
Lamb Weston’s expansion of its Richland potato processing plant adds two million more pounds of frozen french fries daily to the worldwide market. The new $200 million addition has nearly doubled the company’s output of frozen spuds in Richland. “We’ve incorporated 45 years of making french fries into this factory,” said Mark Schuster, Lamb Weston’s Richland plant manager. The new processing line opened near the company’s Innovation Center at 2013 Saint St., north of the Richland Airport. The expansion of current plant operations has resulted in about 150 jobs, providing
mostly hourly work for operators and technical-skilled processors. This adds to the approximately 2,500 people employed by Lamb Weston across the Tri-Cities. At an Oct. 16 ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new facility, leaders and politicians thanked the company for making the TriCities “the frozen french fry capital of the world.” With almost 300 operating days each year, Lamb Weston now will be able to produce about 600 million pounds of frozen french fries annually across three processing lines. “We take a lot of pride in making great french fries,” said Rick Gardner, senior director of operations for Lamb Weston. uLAMB WESTON, Page 39
Wallula’s Boise Paper mill plans $150 million in improvements BY ROBIN WOJTANIK
for Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business
A $150 million investment at the Boise Paper plant in Wallula will replace one machine for another, nearly doubling the mill’s output. Port of Walla Walla Executive Director Patrick Reay described the change as transitioning from “white copy paper to brown goods” like cardboard. The industry describes it as a conversion from a product called uncoated freesheet to coated one-side grades. The paper machine currently produces 200,000 tons per year at the Wallula plant on Highway 12, about 16 miles southeast of Pasco. The replacement machine is considered
high-performance and has the ability to produce 400,000 tons per year of 100 percent virgin Kraft linerboard, used for the creation of corrugated products. The mill is owned by Packaging Corporation of America, or PCA. Reay recently returned from a trip to PCA’s corporate headquarters in Lake Forest, Illinois, with Walla Walla County Commissioner Jim Johnson and port President Mike Fredrickson. The group met with PCA chairman and CEO Mark Kowlzan. Reay said the visit with the CEO allowed them to “say we’re here to support, encourage and assist in any way we can.” Reay and the port sees the investment as a “job retention project.” uBOISE PAPER, Page 4
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