Senior Times - December 2019 by Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business/Senior Times

December 2019

Volume 7 • Issue 11

Downtown changes coming with sale of Herald building BY JEFF MORROW for Senior Times

Tri-City hotel mogul buys mansion for $3.5M

Page 7

Holiday bazaar calendar Page 8

’Tis the season to deck the halls Page 9

MONTHLY QUIZ 2019 marks the 65th anniversary of the dedication of what iconic bridge that connects Benton and Franklin counties? Answer, Page 13

It took almost eight years and a lot of on-again, off-again negotiations with different prospective buyers, but the TriCity Herald building in downtown Kennewick has new owners. Pasco investors Mike Detrick Sr., his son Mike Detrick Jr. and their wives bought the building at 333 W. Canal Drive for $3.9 million in October with plans to transform it into multi-tenant office space. The Tri-City Herald will remain a tenant—for now—but it has plans to move elsewhere after spending 71 years there. “I think it’s a good thing for us,” said Jerry Hug, the Herald’s general manager. “We’ve been trying to sell the building on and off since 2011.” Hug said when the building went on the market, they expected it could take a few years to find the right buyer. “We’ve been close a couple of times, but then it fell apart. That’s the way these large sales happen,” Hug said. The Herald no longer needs such a big building. It has 45,000 square feet of office and 57,000 square feet of industrial space. The McClatchy Co., the Herald’s California-based parent company, invested more than $9 million to build the new building and renovate the production facilities in 2004. The Detrick family has the experience to develop the property. It already owns smaller apartment complexes in Kennewick and Richland and a multitenant office building in Kennewick, and is building an office in an industrial uHERALD BUILDING, Page 15

Photo by Kristina Lord Mike Neely prepares a tray of ranger cookies for the oven at the Meals on Wheels kitchen in Richland. He volunteers once a week. More than 500 volunteers are expected to donate 30,000 hours of labor and record nearly 100,000 miles delivering hot meals to seniors by year’s end.

Demand for senior meals growing along with need for volunteers BY KRISTINA LORD editor@tcjournal.biz

An agency that prides itself on “delivering kindness” is on track to serve 220,000 meals to 2,400 seniors by year’s end. That’s a 5 percent increase over the previous year. The volunteer drivers for Mid-Columbia Meals on Wheels distribute about 450 meals to homebound seniors each day along 45 routes in Benton and Franklin counties. More than 500 volunteers are expected

to log 30,000 hours of labor and record nearly 100,000 miles by the end of the year. Each year the number of seniors needing hot meals grows. “In 2009, we were serving 132,000 meals. That’s 90,000 less than what we’ll serve this year,” said Kristi Thien, nutrition services director for Senior Life Resources Northwest, the parent organization of Meals on Wheels. From 2017-18, the agency saw 16 percent growth in the number of meals deliv-

uSENIOR MEALS, Page 6

Minimum wage increase likely means higher costs for consumers BY ROBIN WOJTANIK for Senior Times

Tri-City fast food restaurant owners say there’s no way to avoid raising prices when the latest minimum wage increases kick in at the start of 2020, requiring workers be paid at least $13.50 an hour. “Anybody who thinks that prices aren’t going to go up, you’re fooling yourself,” said Tom Tierney, owner of the Tri-Cities’ DQ Grill & Chill restaurants. After 40 years of restaurant ownership, Tierney said, “You can only absorb so many costs. You can control the cost of food, what we pay for it, and we can control our cost of labor. When either of those goes up precipitously, we can staff less people, but we don’t necessarily want

to do that because we’re in the service business, so you don’t want to give less service. So ultimately, we’re all going to have to raise prices.” The owner of Tumbleweeds Mexican Flair in Richland said a 2 percent increase across the board is “almost mandatory.” “If the average person is buying two to three items, it could be $1 more a visit. For the people who come every day, that’s a concern of mine: Are they going to pay?” asked owner Keith Moon. A voter-approved initiative in 2016 hoisted the minimum wage from $9.47 an hour to $11 an hour beginning in 2017, and then increasing by 50 cents each year through 2020, when it will jump $1.50 an hour—from $12 an

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CORRECTION We had several days of the week listed incorrectly on pages 4 and 6 in our November issue. We regret the errors and any confusion this may have caused. Senior Times, a publication of TriComp Inc., is published monthly. Subscriptions are $21.67 per year, prepayment required, no refunds. Contents of this publication are the sole property of TriComp Inc. and can not be reproduced in any form without expressed written consent. Opinions expressed by guest columnists and advertisers do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Senior Times staff, other guest columnists or other advertisers, nor do they imply endorsement by Senior Times staff, other guest columnists or advertisers. Every effort will be made to assure information published is correct; however, we are not liable for any errors or omissions made despite these efforts.

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hour to $13.50—on Jan. 1. Starting in 2021, and every year after, the state Department of Labor and Industries will make a cost of living adjustment. The ownership group operating The Bradley in Richland has responded to the minimum wage increase by turning its servers at into commissioned staff who will no longer receive tips. Bradley co-owner Zac Mason said it will amount to a drastic difference in the amount of taxes the restaurant has to pay. “Right now, when a server works, they get whatever the person who comes in feels like tipping,” he said. “We pay taxes on those tips, but we don’t get to keep any of them, which is kind of a strange thing that I think a lot of people may not be aware of. When someone tips their server, we as business owners pay taxes on the tip they left, but it never sits in our account, so it’s just a fun little extra tax we get.” To help offset the taxes and the latest minimum wage increase, The Bradley has added a 20-percent surcharge to customers’ bills to cover the tip, as well as the tax and wage increase required for the staff. Extra tips are accepted, but aren’t required. Mason said a handful of restauranteurs have formed a Tri-City Restaurant Coalition. Members would use the same agreed-upon surcharge beginning in 2020 to maintain consistency across the community for ease of understanding. “We are working as a group to stay alive in the Tri-Cities,” he said. Moon met with his accountant to quantify the true impact to his Richland restaurant, which has been in Moon’s family for nearly 20 years. He has owned it since 2014. Moon figures he’s paid employees for 11,500 work hours in the last year. Taking the $1.50 an hour difference that will be in effect in 2020, Moon estimated at least $17,000 in additional expenses, if his labor remains the same. Moon hasn’t taken the easy route of passing the cost increases on to cus-

tomers without first tightening his own belt. He’s started to buy pre-prepped food like diced onions and shredded cheese to reduce labor costs. It costs more, but there is a savings versus paying employees up to four hours a week to dice or shred. He’s also re-organizing shifts so that Tumbleweeds can get by with one less employee at the start of the work day, saving 30 minutes before the third person on shift clocks in. Additionally, Moon plans to reduce the overall hours of business to capture their busiest times, no longer staying open after 2 p.m. Saturdays. Tumbleweeds already cut Sunday hours entirely a few years ago, which Moon said was a great move. Finding and retaining quality workers remains a constant issue, Tierney said. “The labor force is really thin so everybody is struggling to keep employees. That, by its very nature, increases wages because if you want to keep your employees, you’ve got to raise wages. And you may end up having to pay more to start people, because you’ve got to get better candidates,” Tierney said. That simple supply and demand for talented staff results in the need for higher pay at a time when restaurants are already operating close to the edge. “We lost P.F. Chang’s, we lost Famous Dave’s, we lost Dickey’s BBQ, and that’s because margins are so small. There’s less profit at the end of the day because of increased costs and decreased transactions. I’ve been through some tough labor times before in the Tri-Cities, but this is a real challenge,” Tierney said. Mason said The Bradley operates at a loss every month and thinks the latest wage increase could force the restaurant’s closure. He called The Bradley a “passion project” for its owners. “None of us have made any money off it, and we have continued to strive to keep open because we believe in it,” he said. Mason said when he crunched the numbers for October, the Richland restaurant operated in the red, but would

“We either have to choose to shut our doors in January with the latest hike or find a way to survive.” - Zac Mason, The Bradley have been in the black if it had levied a service charge due to the sheer amount of taxes paid. “We either have to choose to shut our doors in January with the latest hike or find a way to survive. This (service charge) was the viable way to do it,” he said. Moon finds that when he’s raised prices before, customers tend to buy less, keeping total ticket prices at a plateau. “What I notice in just general behavior of customers is, ‘I’ve got $10, I’ve got $12, I’m going to go get lunch.’ So they come in here and have intentions of getting a salad, a small tater tot and a drink, and that might be $13, so now they’ll just say, ‘Eh, I’ll just have a salad and a drink.’ I’ve noticed this change in behavior, ‘I can do without,’ ” Moon said. Moon expects to raise prices prior to the new year to align with menu changes and updates. “This place is what provides a living for my family and nine other people in the store. It’s a tremendous responsibility to be at the helm of the decisionmaking, to know that I have to do this to keep up with the times. I hope the increases will be understood, and in general, I think the Tri-Cities is pretty understanding,” he said. Tierney opened his third Richland DQ on Duportail Street nearly two years ago, and is focusing on operating his restaurants across the Tri-Cities, Yakima and Walla Walla efficiently and profitably despite the market shifts. “One way or the other, my job is to try to run restaurants, so we’ve got to figure it out. That’s why I wear the big boy pants,” he said.

Senior Times • December 2019

Mall celebrates 50 years of success amid changing retail market Columbia Center continues to welcome new tenants, hopes to fill vacancies around perimeter of property BY ROBIN WOJTANIK for Senior Times

Vintage advertisements once touted the Columbia Center mall as the “Manhattan of the Northwest,” and likened it to being like “Tahiti all year long,” where it was a balmy 72 degrees indoors, allowing shoppers to escape the wind inside air-conditioned stores. Now marking its 50th anniversary, today’s generation has grown up with malls and isn’t likely to recall a time when an enclosed shopping experience was a novel concept. “It’s like running a small, indoor city,” said Barbara Johnson, who has managed the mall for more than 25 years. Year-round, the mall employs about 3,500 people, with the number swelling to about 4,500 during the holiday shopping season. The Kennewick mall opened in fall 1969 with a $20 million investment, offering the first air-conditioned, regional shopping center in all of eastern Washington and Oregon. Columbia Center boasted 55 stores at the time, with anchor tenants JCPenney and The Bon Marché, now known as Macy’s. Original tenants also include Zales, Weisfield Jewelers and Orange Julius. Up to $25 million in sales were expected in the first year the mall opened, likely equivalent to about $175 million today. The current number of mall tenants

in 2019 varies between 125 and 130, due to the number of spaces needed by retailers. Johnson said the mall is consistently over 90 percent occupied. “It’s a testament to our market. We don’t have three malls that are sitting within 10 miles of each other with the same inventory and the same stores. People who are here usually do very well here compared to other locations, like Seattle and Spokane. They’re usually in the top percentages of their stores,” she said. The mall’s success has been buoyed by the recent debut of its newest major retailer, Dick’s Sporting Goods, which Johnson called a “big win” for the community. She joked that it’s also bringing men back to the mall, since shoppers typically are women ages 16 to 50. Open since late September, Dick’s occupies a 45,000-square-foot space once home to a movie theater. Johnson admitted it’s a bit of a loss no longer having a theater attached to the mall, but said the theater operator had not been taking the necessary steps to remain relevant and competitive in today’s movie marketplace. Expansion has been part of the mall’s history, as the original footprint was half of the mall’s current size, now covering nearly a million square feet in the heart of Kennewick’s retail district. The growth came in 1988 at a time the mall had undergone new ownership and the economy was

Courtesy Columbia Center Columbia Center mall opened in fall 1969 with 55 stores, a ribbon-cutting ceremony and much fanfare.

tough. “Hanford was going through a downturn and they said, ‘We’re going to invest in the mall,’ ” Johnson said. “People were like, ‘What? The market is tanking! What do they know that we don’t know?’ And sure enough, the market took off and it went from there. And you look at all the development that’s happened since then.” The mall was the first landmark on

Columbia Center Boulevard, encouraging stores, restaurants and hotels to build up around it. The most recent major expansion to the mall came in 2006-07, under current Simon Property Group ownership, with storefronts for “lifestyle tenants” on the east side of the property, including LOFT, Chico’s and Twigs Bistro and Martini Bar. uMALL, Page 12

Senior Times • December 2019

CALENDAR OF EVENTS Bring your grandchildren and families to events with a star.

SATURDAY, DEC. 7

• Tri-City Model Railroad display: 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Richland Community Center, 500 Amon Park Drive, Richland. • Numerica Hometown Holiday Holiday: parade starts at 10:30 a.m. at Kennewick Avenue between Dayton and Auburn St. Selfies with Santa, holiday treats and local merchant specials until 1 p.m. Free • Old Fashioned Christmas: 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Kennewick First United Methodist Church, 421 W. Kennewick Ave. Step back in time with music, strolling carolers, food, games and crafts. • Bells of the Desert Christmas concert: 3 p.m., Richland Baptist Church, 1632 George Washington Way, Richland. $10 suggested donation. Go to: bellsofthedesert.org. • Winter Fest: 2-6 p.m., Volunteer Park, 1125 N. Fourth Ave., Pasco. Contact: 509-545-3456. Free • Festival of Lights: 5-7 p.m., John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland. Meet Santa and his reindeer, food vendors, music and light show. Free

• Lighted Boat Parade: 6-9 p.m., parade starts under the cable bridge at Clover Island. The boats travel up river on the Kennewick side along Columbia Park up to the end of Howard Amon Park. Go to: www.lightedboatparade.com. • A Big Band Christmas: 7:30 p.m., Columbia Basin College theater, 2600 N. 20th Ave. This year’s show will feature Duke Ellington’s arrangement of the Nutcracker Suite. Cost: $20, tickets available at the door.

MONDAY, DEC. 9

• Understanding Alzheimer’s and Dementia: 1-2 p.m, From the Heart Adult Family Home, 4408 Artesia Drive, Pasco. An education program presented by the Alzheimer’s Association. Contact: 509-392-8571. Free

TUESDAY, DEC. 10

• PNNL Community Lecture Series “How does Carbon Capture Work?”: 7 p.m., Mid-Columbia Libraries, 1620 S. Union St., Kennewick. Contact: 509-542-5531. Free

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 11

• The Moneta Project Memory Café: 8-10 a.m., 1834 Fowler St., Richland. RSVP: 509-735-1911. • Tri-City Genealogical Society meeting: 7 p.m., Benton County PUD Auditorium, 2721 W. 10th Ave., Kennewick. Free

and light show, meet Santa, enjoy kettle corn and free hot cocoa. Free • 33rd annual Desert Plateau Luminaria: 6-10 p.m., lighted and decorated areas from Road 36 to Yuma and Argent Road to Burden Boulevard in Pasco. Canned food donations are encouraged.

FRIDAY, DEC. 13

THURSDAY, DEC. 19

• Festival of Lights: 5:30-7:30 p.m., John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland. Music and light show, meet Santa, enjoy kettle corn and free hot cocoa. Free • Dinner with Friends, benefiting Boys & Girls Clubs of Benton and Franklin Counties: 6-9 p.m., The HAPO Center (formerly TRAC), 6600 Burden Blvd., Pasco. Tickets: 509543-9980. • Rolling Hills Chorus Christmas Program: 6:30-8 p.m., Benton PUD, 2721 W. 10th Ave., Kennewick. Go to: rollinghillschorus.org. Free

SATURDAY, DEC. 14

• Festival of Lights: 5:30-7:30 p.m., John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland. Music

• Community Lecture Series “A Cycling Pilgrimage-Vietnam and Cambodia”: 7 p.m., Richland Public Library, 940 Northgate Drive, Richland. Contact: 509-542-5531. Free

FRIDAY, DEC. 20

• Festival of Lights: 5:30-7:30 p.m., John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland. Music and light show, meet Santa, enjoy kettle corn and free hot cocoa. Free

SATURDAY, DEC. 21

• Festival of Lights: 5:30-7:30 p.m., John Dam Plaza, 815 George Washington Way, Richland. Music and light show, meet Santa, enjoy kettle corn and free hot cocoa. Free

Senior Times • December 2019 uBRIEFS Grant to assist in Yakima River monitoring

Excessive amounts of aquatic plants growing in the lower Yakima River are reducing the river’s overall health by slowing water flow, changing how sediment moves and decreasing water quality, according to the Benton Conservation District. The district received a $250,000 grant from state Department of Ecology to monitor the plants and develop a prioritized list of actions to address the problems they create. The thick stands of plants pose issues for irrigation and recreation and could help harbor mosquitoes carrying West Nile virus, the district said. The lower Yakima River sometimes fails to meet state water quality standards for temperature, dissolved oxygen and pH. It has been observed that these standards are often not met during periods of excessive aquatic plant growth. The district has begun a two-year project to monitor water quality and plant abundance to determine how they are related and suggest how they could be improved. Although it is not realistic to completely eliminate the aquatic plants, the project’s goal

is to inform and develop strategies to break the excessive plant growth cycle that leads to worsening water quality, the district said.

Benton County closes Richland annex

Benton County’s Richland annex on Wellsian Way closed permanently on Nov. 27. The county has consolidated all services from the Richland office at its Kennewick annex on Canal Drive. The Kennewick and Prosser offices will remain open for election and voter registration services, vehicle licensing, recording and marriage licensing. Information about a new drop box location is forthcoming.

United pulls plug on nonstop service to LA

Daily nonstop service between Tri-Cities Airport and Los Angeles International Airport will cease operations on Jan. 5. The United Airlines flight began with much fanfare on April 1. The cancellation comes on the heels of United’s recent announcement to begin offering red-eye flights to Chicago O’Hare International Airport beginning June 4, 2020.

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Columbia River Treaty meeting set for Dec. 16

The Department of State and Northwest Power and Conservation Council will host a town hall to discuss the modernization of the Columbia River Treaty. The meeting comes at the request of Congressman Dan Newhouse, R-Washington. “Perhaps no one is more aware of the influence the (treaty) has on our communities and economies than those living in the greater Columbia Basin region,” said Newhouse in a statement. “Residents in Tri-Cities and throughout the area are no stranger to the critical role federal water and power infrastructure plays in our daily lives. It is crucial that their questions, concerns and feedback regarding the ongoing negotiations are heard by the State Department.” The meeting is from 5:30-7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 16 at the Federal Building auditorium, 825 Jadwin Ave., in Richland. Columbia River Treaty negotiator Jill Smail will lead the town hall, which is free and open to the public. U.S. government representatives will provide an overview of the negotiations and take questions from the public.

The 1964 Columbia River Treaty outlines transboundary water cooperation. Its flood risk and hydropower operations have provided benefits to millions of people on both sides of the U.S.Canada border. The treaty also has facilitated support for the river’s ecosystem.

Reindeer rejoins carousel circuit in Kennewick

The Gesa Carousel of Dreams has added its popular carved reindeer to the carousel menagerie for the holiday season. The reindeer is sponsored by Toyota of Tri-Cities, which named it “Jingles” after an employee contest at the dealership. It will remain on the carousel through Sunday, Jan. 12. The reindeer was crafted by local carver Mike Thornton, who also carved the carousel’s Washington State University cougar and the salmon on the ring arm. It is handcarved from basswood, a wood soft enough to carve easily, but durable enough to last through years of riders. It was painted by Sue Baldwin of Republic, Washington, and features real antlers from a reindeer farm in Alaska.

Senior Times • December 2019 SENIOR MEALS, From page 1

ered, a significant increase, Thien said. “We’re grateful it slowed down just a bit,” she said. The program also offers a noon meal at eight dining centers throughout the two counties for more active seniors. Volunteer Mike Neely helps assemble meals for the seniors once a week. Poverty isn’t just a third-world problem, he said. “We have lots of people here who don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” he said. Volunteers and staff worked Nov. 20 to assemble 700 emergency meal kits. Consisting mostly of canned goods and other shelf-stable items, like granola bars and trail mix, the kits are meant to tide seniors over when drivers can’t get to their homes because of snowy roads or road closures. Each box contains five meals. The boxes were distributed Nov. 25. The agency delivers meals Monday through Friday. On Thursdays, seniors receive frozen meals to reheat on the weekends and holidays when there are no deliveries. In the coming year, Meals on Wheels will begin preparing and assembling its own frozen meals. Right now, the nonprofit buys them. “We’ll be able to have control over the nutrients, the quality and we can do it less expensively,” Thien said. Senior Life Resources Northwest recently completed a $100,000 project to build a 1,200-square-foot facility to house a large freezer to store the meals. In addition to meals, volunteer drivers also deliver gifts to seniors around Christmas time. Each holiday season a giving tree decorates the agency’s Richland lobby that features tags highlighting items seniors would like to receive. Hats, gloves, stationery, stamps, cat and dog food, slippers, sweat pants and Walmart gift cards are among the most requested items. This year nearly 200 seniors made requests. Drivers deliver the gifts before Christmas. “They love being able to do

that,” Thien said. Because Meals on Wheels drivers often serve as the front line of defense for seniors with their daily check-ins, they know seniors can get lonely. But the drivers don’t have time to stop for long visits during their routes, Thien said. That’s why Meals on Wheels plans to roll out a new “friendly visitors” program this month aimed at connecting seniors and volunteers. “It’s a chance for people who aren’t available to volunteer during the day to sign up and visit some people who are lonely,” Thien said. At the top of Meals on Wheels’ holiday wish list is a new vehicle to replace a van stolen Nov. 12. The 1998 van equipped with a food oven was “worth very little money but is priceless to us,” Thien said. “It becomes the most valuable car you own because you don’t make a payment on it. It functioned perfectly. We used it every week to pick up bread,” she said. Replacing the van, which was found in unknown condition by Seattle police in late November, will cost more than the amount the agency will receive from its insurance pay off, Thien said. While the nonprofit is always grateful for its generous community support, nothing is appreciated more than simple monetary donations, Thien said. “Money for meals is always my No. 1 request,” she said. It’s not the first time thieves targeted the nonprofit. They once busted the back window of a sedan to steal $8 worth of food. It cost $300 to replace the window, Thien said. A security system also is on the agency’s wish list. How to get involved Volunteers interested in helping with meal delivery or the friendly visitors program must undergo a background check. The Senior Life Resources Northwest office is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1824 Fowler St. in Richland. For more information, call 509-7351911 or visit seniorliferesources.org.

Senior Times • December 2019

Tri-City hotel mogul buys Kolzig mansion for $3.5M BY ROBIN WOJTANIK for Senior Times

A prominent Tri-City mansion recently sold to a local hotel mogul for $3.5 million. The new owner of the home built by hockey legend Olie Kolzig is Gurbir Sandhu, president of the hospitality group Ignite Hotels LLC. Sandhu said he intends to deed the Kennewick property to an LLC that has not yet been formed and will include investors from California. He called the purchase of the property at 32224 S. 944 PR SE a “no brainer,” as the home came with 95 acres of undeveloped land that could be subdivided into future housing developments. “The house itself is more than free after you develop the remaining land,” said Sandhu, who said nearby lots on East Badger Road, with less expansive views than his land, are already selling for more than $500,000. Eleven qualified bidders participated in the auction, said Dan DeCaro, founder and president of DeCaro Auctions International, which handled the sale. “Four people bid him up to that

number. They were aggressive in that as well. They all had the same plans,” DeCaro said. Sandhu is unsure whether he plans to use the residence as a personal home or as an event center. He said the 15,000-square-foot home would cost about $10 million to rebuild at today’s prices. The six-bedroom home was built in 2004 by Kolzig and his wife before it was deeded to Hillside Property of Washington LLC for $2.3 million in 2013. Kolzig is a former NHL goalie player who once played for the TriCity Americans. While Sandhu already has civil engineers looking at subdividing the land, he said the home could be ideal for an event center, as he believes the Tri-Cities lacks venues for high-end weddings outside of wineries. He thinks there could be “untapped demand” for weddings with extended budgets. “Hotel venues are not in the same league,” he said. Sandhu owns the Red Lion Hotel Richland, known as the Hanford House, both Kennewick Red Lion properties and Kennewick’s Hampton Inn.

Courtesy DeCaro Auctions Gurbir Sandhu, president of the hospitality group Ignite Hotels LLC, paid $3.5 million at a recent auction for a 15,000-square-foot home built by a former NHL goalie on 95 acres of land on the Horse Heaven Hills.

Ignite Hotels is also building a $20 million Residence Inn by Marriott on South Quinault Avenue in Kennewick, expected to open in 2021. The Horse Heaven Hills property had been listed for $6.2 million earlier in the fall before the auction was

held in October, with potential buyers required to bring a $50,000 cashier’s check, as well as a blank check. The auction was held with no reserve, meaning the home could be sold to the highest bidder, regardless of price.

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Senior Times â&#x20AC;˘ December 2019

2019 Holiday Bazaars BY SENIOR TIMES STAFF

Several area groups and churches are offering bazaars around the TriCities:

FRIDAY, DEC. 6

Tri-Cities Retirement Inn Holiday Craft Bazaar: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 2000 N. 22nd Ave., Pasco. A variety of craft vendors and drawings. Free admission. Home for the Holidays: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., The HAPO Center

(formerly TRAC), 6600 Burden Blvd., Pasco. Free admission. Vibe Music Holiday Bazaar: noon to 5 p.m., Vibe Music and Performing Arts Center, 731 N. Columbia Center Blvd., Suite 110-B, Kennewick. Kids activities, food, craft and direct sales vendors. Donation wrap station benefiting Vibe Music kids. Free admission. Vintage Fix Market: Friday, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Benton County Fairgrounds, 1500 S. Oak St., Kennewick. Farmhouse, modern,

industrial, shabby chic and vintage treasures, food trucks, live music, DIY classes and a photo booth. Cost is $10.

SATURDAY, DEC. 7

Badger Mountain Holiday Bazaar: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Badger Mountain Elementary School, 1515 Elementary St., Richland. More than 100 vendors. Admission is $3, kids under 12 are free with paid adult. Bring a coat for the kidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s coat drive and receive $1 off admission. Lincoln Holiday Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Lincoln Elementary School, 4901 W. 20th Ave., Kennewick. Alliance Holiday Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Richland Alliance Church,

1400 Sanford Ave., Richland. More than 30 vendors, silent auction, baked potato bar, baked goods and refreshments. Free admission. Vibe Music Holiday Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Vibe Music and Performing Arts Center, 731 N. Columbia Center Blvd, Suite 110-B, Kennewick. Kids activities, food, craft and direct sales vendors. Donation wrap station benefiting Vibe Music kids. Free admission. Vintage Fix Market: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Benton County Fairgrounds, 1500 S. Oak St., Kennewick. Farmhouse, modern, industrial, shabby chic and vintage treasures, food trucks, live music, DIY classes and a photo booth. $5 admission. McLoughlin Middle School Christmas Bazaar: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., McLoughlin Middle School, 2803 N. Road 88, Pasco. Family Resource Center Holiday Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Best Western Plus Inn, 4001 W. 27th Ave., Kennewick. Handcrafted items, bake sale, drawings and more. Contact: www.frcwa.org. Home for the Holidays: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., The HAPO Center (formerly TRAC), 6600 Burden Blvd., Pasco. Free admission. Pasco Winter Fest: 2-6 p.m., Volunteer Park, 1125 N. Fourth Ave., Pasco. Food, vendors and activities for the family. Free admission.

SUNDAY, DEC. 8

Home for the Holidays: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., The HAPO Center (formerly TRAC), 6600 Burden Blvd., Pasco. Free admission.

SATURDAY, DEC. 14

Richland High School Bazaar: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Richland High School. 930 Long Ave., Richland. Richland FFA 2nd annual Holiday Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 3 pm., Richland High School, 715 Thayer Drive, Richland. Crafts, baked goods and booths from various student organizations. Free admission. Wear Love Winter Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Uptown Theatre, 1300 Jadwin Ave., Richland. Proceeds benefit local youth. Family Resource Center Last Chance Bazaar: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Best Western Plus Kennewick Inn, 4001 W. 27th Ave., Kennewick. Handcrafted items, bake sale, drawings and more. Contact: www. frcwa.org. Benton City Winterfest: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Kiona-Benton City High School, 1205 Horne Drive, Benton City. More than 80 vendors.

Please recycle the Senior Times when you are done reading it, or pass it on to a friend.

Senior Times • December 2019

’Tis the season to deck the halls, streets, sidewalks

BY EAST BENTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

The tinsel candles attached to the light poles gave a festive air to Kennewick’s downtown shopping district in 1978, which at the time included shops like the Coin Cradle, Brutzman’s Office Supplies and the Persian Palace. The festive spirit continues in downtown Kennewick with the annual Numerica Hometown Holiday parade, planned this year for Dec. 7. The parade features floats, drummers and the Kennewick High marching band. Some longtime locals may remember the brick planters and concrete toadstool umbrellas featured in the accompanying photo that used to grace the downtown shopping district in its big push for modernization back in the 1970s. At the time of installation, the planters and shade were part of an effort by the Chamber of Commerce to keep retailers and shoppers from migrating west to the recently constructed shopping centers near Highway 395 and Columbia Center mall. Downtown parking was a key issue of the day. Prior to the redesign, much of the downtown streets ran on coinoperated parking meters. With the

advent of the mall and free parking, something had to give. Several buildings came down near Washington Street and Kennewick Avenue to make way for more parking. Additionally, many buildings received facelifts to match the more organic and natural style of the time. Changes to facades included stone facias, wooden cladding and shingle fronts. The changes were helpful for a time, but the pull west was inescapable for some businesses. Coin Cradle moved closer to Highway 395; Brutzman’s moved to Columbia Center Boulevard. Everything comes around again. Kennewick’s downtown corridor went through a bit of a renaissance at the start of the millennium. The streets again were straightened out to make room for more parking around in the early 2000s. The straight streets, while disliked by some, seemed easier to accommodate downtown events, such as the annual car show and shine. The now dated street lights were taken back to a style now considered classic and similar to what had originally lined the avenue. Honey locust trees were planted for shade. Additionally, these changes spread beyond just Kennewick Avenue to First Avenue and some of the side streets as well.

Courtesy East Benton County Historical Society This view of Kennewick Avenue in 1978 is not just a holiday postcard, it’s a time capsule of downtown Kennewick development as it strived for relevance.

Heritage buildings along the street also were renovated to their original looks. These included the Roxy Theater, the Cascade Building and the building at 15 W. Kennewick Ave. A notable exception was Washington Hardware, which at the time had been key in the original revitalization process. The owners’ comments at the time were they had been through the process once before and they weren’t interested in doing it again. At the East Benton County History Museum, the Benton Theater Gallery features a new exhibit, “Christmas in the County.” It includes two

local holiday traditions: Christmas Carol Lane and the Lighted Boat Parade. This exhibit features an original display from the historic neighborhood off Garfield Street and its musical songbook. It also highlights photos and the history of the Clover Island Yacht Club’s annual boat parade upriver. Video presentations of the past year’s boat parades are showing in the theater. Other historic holiday items and classic holiday films also are on display in December. The museum, located at 205 W. Keewaydin Drive, is open noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

Senior Times • December 2019

Pasco First Avenue Center

505 N. First Ave., Pasco • 509-545-3459 • pascoparksandrec.com

Most of Pasco’s senior services programs take place at the First Avenue Center, unless otherwise listed. Activities, times and location subject to change. For more information, call 509-545-3459. • Basin Wood Carvers: 1-3 p.m. Thursdays. Cost: Free. • China Painting: 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays. Bring your own project and supplies.

• Cribbage: 1-3 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays. • Drop-In Snooker: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Cost: $1 per day. Closed Dec. 25. • Enhance Fitness: Class focuses on stretching, balance, low impact aerobics and strength training. 1011 a.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Call 509-545-3456 to register. Location: Pasco City Hall Activity Center, 525 N. Third Ave., Pasco. Closed Dec. 25-27.

• Foot Care for Adults (18+): Get your feet cared for by a licensed, registered nurse from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays by appointment only. Cost: $30. Call 509-545-3459. • Happy Feet Foot Care (60+): Get your feet cared for by a licensed, registered nurse from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays by appointment only. Cost: Free with suggested donation of $12 to $15 per person. Clients

must meet federal and state guidelines for eligibility. Call 509545-3459. • Meals on Wheels lunch: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday. Cost: $7.30 (18-59 years), $2.75 (suggested donation 60 years and older). Reservations required 24 hours in advance. RSVP: 509-5435706. No meals Dec. 25. • Mexican Train Dominoes: 12:30-3 p.m. Mondays. Cost: Free. • Pinochle: 7-9 p.m. Tuesdays.

Prosser Senior Community Center 1231 Dudley Ave., Prosser • 509-786-2915 • cityofprosser.com

All activities are at the Prosser Senior Community Center unless otherwise listed. Activities, times and locations subject to change. For more information, call 509-7862915.

• All-you-can-eat breakfast: 8-11:30 a.m. the last Sunday of each month. Location: dining room. Suggested donation: $6 adults, $3 for those 8 and younger. • Bingo (18+): 9:30 a.m. Wednesdays. Location: dining room. Three cards for $1.

Parkview Estates Senior Living

Holiday Buffet Live Music Meet Santa and More!

DEC

A must attend event! 12-1:30pm

Parkview Estates 7820 W. 6th Ave., Kennewick For more information, call (509) 734-9773 or visit www.parkviewslc.com

• Bingo at Night (18+): 6 p.m. second Friday of the month. $10 buy-in. • Birthday Celebration: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. third Friday of the month. Call 509-786-1148 to verify. Location: dining room. Provided by Meals on Wheels. Suggested donation of $2.75. • Enhanced Fitness: 2-3 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays. Location: dining room. Free. • Foot Care Wednesday: For appointment, call 509-303-0079. Fill out foot care application for assistance at center or $25 for private pay. • Mahjong: 1-3 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. Location: living room. Free. • Meals On Wheels: 11:45 a.m. Monday through Friday. Location:

dining room. Suggested donation of $2.75. For reservations, call 509786-1148. • Pinochle: 5:30 p.m. Thursdays. Location: living room. Bring potluck dish to share. Free • Billiards: Noon to 3 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays. Free. • Tai Chia Quan: 6 p.m. Mondays; beginners first Monday of month; 5 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays open practice for club members. Location: dining room. Call: 509-430-1304 • Wellness Class: 10:30 a.m. Mondays and Thursdays. Taught by Cheri Eisen of Sirius Therapeutics. Location: living room. $4 per session for members, $5 for others. Call 816-510-5025.

West Richland Senior Center 616 N. 60th, West Richland 509-967-2847 All activities are at the West Richland Senior Center. For more information, call 509-967-2847. • Potluck Lunch: noon, second Tuesday of the month. Bring a dish to share. • Bingo: noon, third Monday of the month. Hot dog luncheon at noon. $3 suggested donation. • Pinochle: 1 p.m. Mondays.

• Bunco Potluck: noon, first Wednesday and third Friday of the month. • TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) Fitness: 11 a.m. Thursdays. • Exercise: A co-ed, light cardio class, led by exercise video, is at 9 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. A donation of 50 cents for members and $1 for others is requested.

Senior Times • December 2019

Keewaydin Community Center

500 S. Auburn St., Kennewick • 509-585-4303 • go2kennewick.com

All activities are at the Keewaydin Community Center unless otherwise listed. Activities, times and location subject to change. For more information, call 509-585-4303. • Bingo Party: 1-3 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 11. Cost: $1 per card. • Bridge: 12:30-4 p.m. Tuesdays

and Thursdays. Cost: $1. Closed Dec. 24. • Second Sunday Party Bridge: 2-4 p.m. second Sunday of the month. Cost: $1 per day. RSVP: 509-5863349. • Bunco Party: 1-3 p.m. Fridays. Cost: $1. • Bunco Tournament: 1-3 p.m. To be determined. Cost: $5 in advance, $8 at the door. For more information

call 509-585-4304. • Chinese Mahjong: 1-4 p.m. Wednesdays. Cost: $1. Closed Dec. 25 • Creative Palette Art: 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays. Cost: $2. • Dominos: 12:30-2 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays. Cost: $1. Closed Dec. 24. • Indoor Walking: 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday. Cost: $2 per day. Location: Southridge Sports Complex, 2901 Southridge Blvd.,

Kennewick. • Pinochle: 4-8 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Cost: $1. Closed Dec. 25. • Sewing: 5:30-8 p.m. first, third and fourth Thursdays. Cost: $1. • Woodcarving: 1-3 p.m. Wednesdays and 9 a.m. to noon Fridays. Cost: $1. Bring supplies or borrow from the class. Closed Dec. 25.

Richland Community Center

500 Amon Drive, Richland • 509-942-7529 • ci.richland.wa.us

All activities are at the Richland Community Center unless otherwise listed. Activities, times and location subject to change. For more information, call 509-942-7529. • ACBL, Duplicate and Party Bridge: Various groups. For a schedule of each group, cost and location, call 509-942-7529.

• Birthday Club Social: noon to 12:30 p.m. second Tuesday of each month. Location: lounge. Cost: free. • Cribbage: 8:30 -11:30 a.m. Wednesdays. Location: lounge. Cost: free. • Fitness Room: 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday; noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. Cost: $2 per day or $8 per month. • Billiards: Daily. Cost $2.

• Foot Care for Fabulous Feet: Have a licensed registered nurse specializing in geriatrics care for your feet 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursdays. Location: wellness room. Cost: $30. For an appointment, call 509-9427529. • Greeting Card Recycling: 9-11 a.m. Mondays. Location: meeting room. Cost: free. • Golden Age Pinochle: 6-8:30

p.m. Fridays. Location: game room. Cost: $1. • International Folk Dancing: 6:45-9 p.m. Thursdays. Location: Riverview room; 6-9 p.m. the first Saturday of the month for a potluck and dancing. Location: activity room. • RSA Dance: 1-4 p.m. third Friday of the month. Location: Riverview room. Cost: $7 per person.

Senior Times • December 2019

MALL, From page 3

Johnson isn’t deterred by the closure of a number of large, national retailers in and around the mall, including Shopko, OfficeMax, Sports Authority, Payless Shoe Source, Toys R Us and Sears. “There hasn’t been a lot of available real estate and now that there is, it’s a great thing because new retailers are going to get the chance to come into the market,” she said. Mall property includes some vacancies adjacent to its main building that once held P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, Famous Dave’s and Toys R Us. Only Famous Dave’s has a confirmed

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future tenant—an Indian restaurant from Walla Walla. Johnson said she can’t speak about the other two properties because she doesn’t control the lease or the property, but said from last she’s heard, owners are “very close to finalizing a deal” for the P.F. Chang’s building at 8101 W. Gage Blvd. Johnson can confirm Trader Joe’s is not going into the buildings, despite consumers’ desire. “It’s not for lack of trying. They’ll be here eventually, but we’re not on their radar screen yet,” she said. Additionally, the mall is working to

uBRIEF Mid-Columbia Libraries to eliminate overdue fines

Overdue fines will be a thing of the past in the new year at Mid-Columbia Libraries. The Mid-Columbia Libraries Board of Trustees voted Nov. 19 to eliminate fines for overdue library books and materials and forgive any outstanding overdue fines beginning Jan. 1. Overdue fines create barriers to using the library for many in the community, according to MCL. MCL said it wants to ensure all customers—regardless of age, background, or socioeconomic status—have equitable access to the libraries’ collections. Other outstanding charges, such as lost material fees and collection agency fees, will remain on accounts. Customers will continue to receive overdue notices. MCL will continue to charge customers the replacement costs of materials that are not returned or that are damaged. Many public libraries in the state, such as Seattle Public Library and Spokane Public Library, are moving to eliminate overdue fees.

find tenants for the former Sears store. Johnson expects it could be filled with two or three new retailers, versus one single business occupying the entire area. “We’re trying to figure out the best use. The benefit of being fully-leased all the time, we hardly have that opportunity to kind of reflect on what is the best use of the space and what can we bring in to improve the customer experience,” Johnson said. A highly-anticipated new retailer remains Forever 21, which announced earlier this year that it would open a store at Columbia Center. Since then, the national fast fashion brand fell on hard times, filing for bankruptcy protection and announcing plans to close more than 175 stores by the end of the year, including the store at Yakima’s Valley Mall. This has left Forever 21’s Kennewick store in question, as it had been expected to fill three vacant spaces at the mall. “It’s probably still an option, but we haven’t had formal word from them,” Johnson said. “I think they’re still evaluating. Our people aren’t waiting to hear. We’ve got a lot of interest from other retailers. We just need something formalized from them.” The mall has lost other chains to national closures, including Gymboree, Crazy Eight, Talbot’s, Coldwater Creek and Charming Charlie. Motherhood Maternity recently announced bankruptcy and likely will close by year’s end. Johnson promised the last vacant storefront near Barnes & Noble “will be another really big, exciting tenant that we are looking forward to announcing soon.” A new, locally-owned and operated clothing store opened in the mall in September. Free Culture touts high fashion and local artists. Two other locally-based tenants are expected to open before the end of the year, including Monarca Ice Cream, currently in Pasco, and Get In Where You Fit In, which has a store in Kennewick. In an era of online shopping, John-

son estimates millions of visitors walk through the doors of the mall each year based on traffic counters once installed at the mall’s entrances. She would like people to remember the importance of supporting the shops and restaurants in town when it’s tempting to shop from a phone. “These mall stores support police, fire, school districts, where the online retailers do not pay to the local taxing authority,” she said. “The brick-andmortar stores are still relevant in that they’re paying a lot of taxes to the community to keep the property taxes down via the sales tax. I know a lot of people don’t think about how much these retailers pay in property tax and sales tax to keep the schools and the cities going.” Kennewick Mayor Don Britain called the mall a “retail linchpin” of the area and said in a written statement that it is a “mainstay of our continued economic development success.” He also pointed to the sales tax generated by the mall and the jobs it provides the community. While the mall no longer hosts car, antique and boat shows like it once did, Johnson said the mall works to incubate small, local retailers in hopes that shoppers respond and the business finds success that translates into long-term leases. Nostalgic tenants from 1969, like Hazel’s Candies, Carl’s clothing and Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour no longer serve customers at Columbia Center, but they’ve made way for retailers customers requested like Old Navy and Victoria’s Secret & PINK. Shoppers can expect seasonal favorites to return with the start of the holiday shopping season, including See’s Candies, Hickory Farms and Go! Games and Calendar Club. “We are always striving to keep up with what the customer wants,” Johnson said.

Senior Times • December 2019

 For more information about Senior Life Resources Northwest, go to seniorliferesources.org.

Just for Fun SUDOKU SUDOKU

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Washington State University TriCities welcomes the well-known and classically-trained Irish musical trio Affiniti and Howard Crosby, the nephew of Bing Crosby, for a holiday concert on Friday, Dec. 13. The event begins at 7 p.m. at the Hanford High School auditorium. Doors open at 6 p.m. Affiniti, which features soprano Emer Barry, harpist Aisling Ennis, and violinist Mary McCague, will perform an assortment of holiday classical, Celtic and chart music. Crosby, a Walla Walla business owner, will sing popular songs from Bing Crosby and those from that era, including a selection of his most famous holiday tunes. General admission tickets cost $25 online and $30 at the door. Tickets are free for all children under the age of 18, as well as for WSU Tri-Cities and Columbia Basin College students with a valid student ID. To buy and reserve tickets, go to tricities.wsu.edu/celtic-christmas. Proceeds from the concert benefit the WSU Tri-Cities Entrepreneur Fund, which supports the next generation of Tri-Cities innovators.

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• Monday, Dec. 9: Spaghetti and meat sauce, green beans, tossed salad with dressing, breadstick and citrus salad. • Tuesday, Dec. 10: Chicken fajitas, tortilla, rice and beans, chilled pears and pineapple upsidedown cake.

Monday, Dec. 23: Herbed chicken with mushroom gravy, au gratin potatoes, tossed salad with dressing, bread with margarine and yogurt with berries. • Tuesday, Dec. 24: Baked ham with raisin sauce, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, wheat dinner roll and gingerbread with whip topping. • Wednesday, Dec. 25: Closed for Christmas. • Thursday, Dec. 26: Sweet and sour pork, fluffy rice, oriental vegetables, bread with margarine and peaches. • Friday, Dec. 27: Beef tacos, refried beans, salsa and sour cream, tortilla and citrus salad. • Monday, Dec. 30: Chicken and white bean chili, corn bread with margarine and yogurt with berries. • Tuesday, Dec. 31: Lemon pepper cod, white rice, pea and cheese salad, bread with margarine and cranberry oat bar.

Meals on Wheels is a program of Senior Life Resources Northwest and is supported by donations. For those 60 and older, the suggested donation is $3 per meal. Meals may be purchased by those younger than 60 for $7.45. Menu substitutions may occur. For reservations, call between 9 a.m. and noon the day before your selected meal. For reservations in Richland, call 509-943-0779; Kennewick: 509-585-4241; Pasco: 509-543-5706; Parkside: 509-5452169; Benton City: 509-588-3094; Prosser: 509-786-1148; and Connell: 509-234-0766. The Senior Dining Café at 1834 Fowler St. in Richland serves soups, sandwiches and salads without a reservation. Hours are from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday. Call 509-736-0045.

• Wednesday, Dec. 11: Hamburger, lettuce, tomato, onion, baked beans, cabbage and apple slaw and chocolate chip cookies. • Thursday, Dec. 12: Pork roast with gravy, mashed potatoes, glazed carrots, bread with margarine and frosted cake. • Friday, Dec. 13: Dijon chicken, sweet potatoes, peas and onions, bread with margarine and cherry oat bar. • Monday, Dec. 16: Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, broccoli, bread with margarine and mandarin oranges. • Tuesday, Dec. 17: Teriyaki chicken, fluffy rice, oriental vegetables, bread with margarine and pear crisp. • Wednesday, Dec. 18: Scrambled eggs and peppers, sausage patty, chuck wagon potatoes, bran muffin with margarine and fruit cocktail. • Thursday, Dec. 19: Shepherd’s pie, spinach salad, wheat roll with margarine and peaches. • Friday, Dec. 20: Birthday day. Roast beef, mashed potatoes with gravy, Italian vegetables, roll with margarine and ice cream.

Meals on Wheels December menu

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Turn Back the Clock...

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Answer

Dec. 30: U.S. President Nixon signed the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969 into law.

The blue bridge was dedicated on July 30, 1954 — Source: East Benton County History Museum

Str8ts example

Senior Times • December 2019

Sweet potatoes or yams? Let’s unravel the myths If you’re a foodie, you’re probably head down planning your holiday dinner in earnest right about now. And this foodie would have already taste-tested new recipes, twisted from the traditional ones, and scoured local stores to ensure the ingredients recommended by Ina Gartner, host of the Food Network’s “Barefoot Contessa,” were available. This means it’s a good time to talk about the difference between sweet potatoes and yams. I’m here to help set the record straight, dispel the rumors and manage the myths. Sweet potatoes are what we find most commonly in the U.S. produce section of our grocery stores. Like Visa, they’re everywhere! They hail from the tropical Americas and can have a pretty red or raspberry skin and orange flesh, a purple skin with purple flesh, or pale ivory skin with pale flesh. Sweet potatoes, like their distant cousin, the russet, are tubers because their edible parts are grown down under. They’re typically harvested during the fall and the optimal time to eat them is of course fall and as a star attraction for your holiday feast. That pretty yam tuber you gushed over in the grocery store aisles, tucked into a bag and bought without nary a

thought as to its genuine heritage was, in fact, most likely a sweet potato. Mind you, the U.S. Marilou Shea often has had to play GUEST COLUMN catch up and backtrack either from its culinary denial or irrefutable gastric faux pas, and this, dear friends, happens to be one of those occasions. Sweet potatoes have so often been deeply confused as a yam because of vernacular tendencies that we have literally and figuratively bought into the myth that a yam is a sweet potato and vice versa. There’s the garnet and the jewel sweet potato varieties which look so similar that you’d have to do a DNA test to decipher the difference. They typically are 6 inches to 8 inches long and about 3 inches thick. They are smooth, naked and rarely hairy like a yam. They have become the darling for health aficionados because they’re offered as a healthy alternative in the fast-casual dining sector with growing popularity. They come from the genus Ipomoea and are closely related to the noxious, but lovely vine, the morning

glory. Garnet sweet potatoes are moist, sweet tasting and starchy boasting a vibrant orange flesh. White, sweet potatoes are often called Jersey sweet potatoes. They are less sweet than their garnet brethren, less soft and more fibrous when cooked. Some claim they are more like a russet in taste. The purple sweet potato that often have strange crooks to their shape are called Stokes Purple. Unlike other purple vegetables, these beauties maintain their exotic purple coloring and don’t leech out while cooking. The other added benefit is they are the sweetest of the sweet potato in flavor. Most Americans have probably not seen a real yam much less tasted one— unless you’ve lived or traveled in Asia or Africa where they set down roots. To add to the confusion, yams have a different name across many countries and many languages. Japanese yam looks like a taupe 8-inch bullet and can grow to 100 pounds with a barklike skin. They’re kind of a hairy beast with root tendrils and white flesh that’s sometimes described as crisp but slimy like okra. They are more starchy and dry than the sweet potato all around and hail from the genus Dioscorea, growing from a vine.

The confusion can be traced back to the 18th century when Africans were brought to America and yearned for yams so much so that they adopted the plentiful sweet potato as the nearest, best thing to a yam. Fast forward to the mid-1930s when branding became a thing among Louisiana growers. They decided to call their orange sweet potatoes “yams” to differentiate them from their competitors’ yellow ones and in their minds the lesser of the two varietals. Today, it’s actually illegal to market sweet potatoes exclusively as yams. Somewhere between the photo on the label and the nutritional facts mention must be made that they’re actually sweet potatoes, not true yams. Sweet potatoes are the penultimate vegetable ounce for ounce this side of the deli aisle because of their long shelf life, great taste, nutrient-rich properties and subsequent health benefits. I might add their appeal is also their low cost and all the dreamy, steamy, creamy ways to cook with them. Enjoy your holiday feast featuring one of the many and varied…sweet potatoes our country has to offer. What’s not to love? Food Love columnist Marilou Shea is an educator by day and is the founder of Food Truck Fridays.

Senior Times • December 2019 HERALD BUILDING, From page 1

park in the south Richland area. Mike Detrick Jr. owns D9 Contractors, a commercial drywall business that has already begun moving into the former press, newsprint storage and circulation areas. The company will store its construction equipment and supplies there. Detrick Sr. said they are working to secure and portion off the area the TriCity Herald now is leasing. Then it will be time to start dividing up the rest of the building. “I think we could put in anywhere from one or two, to six or seven new businesses, as related to the office space,” Detrick Sr. said. He said he’s leaning on real estate broker and senior advisor Scott Sautell of SVN Retter & Co. in Kennewick to lead the charge to find businesses interested in leasing. Sautell, who brokered the building sale, said the building easily could accommodate more businesses. Think of the Herald building as a blank canvas, he said. “The owners are in the drywall and framing business,” Sautell said. “What better guys to break this up? ” The Tri-City Herald has a lease with the new owners for the next 10 months and plans to move elsewhere after it’s up in 2020, Hug said. That’s a big change for the newspaper that’s called downtown Kennewick home for 71 years—though it wasn’t always there. The Herald moved from Pasco to Kennewick in October 1948, taking over the site of the bankrupt K&P Cannery, according to a Herald timeline once displayed on the secondfloor walls. Built in 1906, the old cannery building became the cornerstone for many expansions and remodels. It made up the northeast corner of the newspaper building, serving as the front lobby for several decades. In 2004, it was converted to a loading dock. The 8,000 square feet the Herald

is occupying now still is too much space, Hug said. Hug has been searching for the right building to move the team into. He said he’s not looking to build a new building, but instead find an existing, available one. When the Herald opened the new building 15 years ago, it was close to capacity. The building at full occupancy can accommodate up to 175 employees. Today’s current staffing levels are much smaller. Like many other newspapers nationwide, the Tri-City Herald stopped printing its own paper as a cost-saving measure in 2012, striking a deal with the Yakima Herald-Republic to use its printing press. With the press closure and subsequent staff downsizing, the 102,000-square-foot building is no longer necessary, especially as the Herald’s focus switched from print to digital. “Times have changed,” Hug said. It’s not a situation unique to the Herald. Daily newspapers nationwide have been on a decline for about a decade amid dwindling advertising revenue and subscriptions in a world where more people consume information online via smartphones. The Tri-City Herald has continued to tighten its belt. It ceased printing on Saturdays on Nov. 9. “I understand the frustration of those who want the physical newspaper. We’re making tough decisions to ensure our future. Media, like retail and other industries, has changed significantly in recent years. Our advertising model has been upended by the digital world. “And our continued digital conversion is going to be critical to our future ability to offer local journalism,” Executive Editor Laurie Williams wrote in a recent column about the changes. Newspapers have long been considered the first draft of history and an important tool for those researching the past. One of the big concerns during the

Courtesy SVN Retter & Co. Pasco investors recently spent $3.9 million to buy the 102,000-squarefoot Tri-City Herald building on 333 W. Canal Drive in Kennewick.

building sale negotiations was what to do with all of the bound newspaper volumes, which are stored upstairs in a windowless, climate-controlled room called the morgue. “There is a lot of history here,” Hug said. “There are mountains and mountains of records here that date back 40, 60 years, even longer. There is stuff that is historical, like a walk down memory lane.” The Tri-City Herald was created in 1947 when three businessmen purchased the weekly Pasco Herald from Bill Wilmont, according to the Herald timeline. The team of Glenn C. Lee, Bob Philip and Hugh Scott planned to create a daily newspaper to serve the entire region. Scott, the veteran newspaperman in the group, was named the first publisher. Readers submitted potential names for the new daily, with several providing the winner: Tri-City Herald. Bound volumes of the Pasco Herald can be found in the Herald archives. “D9, as part of the sale, will hold the bound volumes, and for the next 10 years we have access to it,” Hug said. Hug is interested to see what the Detricks do with the building. “We’ve been a cornerstone in down-

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Puzzle answers from page 13

Str8ts Solution

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town for years,” Hug said. “Everybody is worried about downtown. You want business down here, and you want to keep it flourishing.” He believes the Detricks are the right people to keep that going. And Detrick Sr. likes what he’s seen going on downtown. “It’s great. There are some new businesses, and several renovations in downtown Kennewick right now,” Detrick Sr. said. Sautell agreed: “The Herald building project is going to be great for downtown.”

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Senior Times â&#x20AC;˘ December 2019