Here's the full story from C.R. Roberts:

DaVita will remain in downtown Tacoma.

With some 900 employees at its Tacoma support center, the kidney-care service company is the city’s second-largest private employer and over the past year had considered moving its operations elsewhere.

Full details of the deal, signed Thursday, have not been released. The company did offer a statement late Friday afternoon saying it “has completed negotiations to extend its lease on office space at 1423 Pacific Ave. as well as at the Columbia Bank Center.”

Jim Hilger, DaVita vice president and controller, said in the statement, “Tacoma is a great location for many of DaVita’s important support operations.”

He continued, “The City of Tacoma and the Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County have gone out of their way to assist DaVita during our search for solutions to our local office space needs.”

“I’m really glad about the news,” said Ryan Petty, director of the city’s Community and Economic Development Department, on Friday. “I think it’s just tremendous. Here we are in this recession, and a company that has a lot of available choices makes a decision to stay downtown. I think they see strategic advantages in that.”

Offers, Petty said, had come to DaVita from “across the South Sound region, and Tacoma, and south of Tacoma. It’s nice to have this as an indicator of corporate resolve to stay here.”

Although full details of the deal were not released, reports earlier this year had the city proposing sales tax exemptions on new construction, the provision of parking downtown and infrastructure improvements including new sewer connections.

In Thursday’s deal, the company agreed to a long-term lease – perhaps for a period of 10 years – on the current Schoenfeld Furniture Building, along with a sublease of at least three floors in the nearby Columbia Bank Center.

The lease on the Schoenfeld property had been set to expire in April 2011.

“It looks positive for DaVita to stay in Tacoma. We’re close to final execution,” said Nick Cassino, managing director of the Tacoma office of CB Richard Ellis Commercial Real Estate, which led the Schoenfeld negotiations and examined other possible locations on behalf of DaVita.

“DaVita has made a long-term commitment,” he said.
John Barline, who led negotiations on behalf of the Columbia space, said Friday, “I think that’s a great win for Tacoma and a big win for DaVita. It’s a positive for everybody. It’s a positive for the Columbia Bank Center. We welcome DaVita as a new tenant.”

The Columbia space had been occupied by Tacoma-based Russell Investments, which is itself reviewing siting options in the area.

Bruce Kendall, president and CEO of the Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County, said Friday that efforts continue to retain Russell in its Tacoma headquarters.

Meeting a Friday deadline for proposals, a group of Tacoma proponents made a final submission to Russell on Friday, Kendall said.

“We’re in the midst of very robust negotiations with Russell, and those continue,” he said.

Washington's largest publicly traded company, Costco, reported lower earnings today as weaker consumer demand made itself felt even at the discount retailer.

The warehouse retailer posted third quarter income of $209.6 million or 48 cents a share down from $295.1 million or 67 cents a share in the same quarter last year.

That income was less than analysts had predicted. The average of analysts' predictions was 53 cents a share.

Revenues decreased 4.8 percent to $15.48 billion.

Some of those decreases were the result of lower gas prices and a $34 million charge the company took to settle a lawsuit over membership renewals.

Employee benefit costs also rose mainly due to heavier usage of health insurance by employees.

Average Tacoma gasoline prices continued their steady ascent this week rising 6.4 cents since last week, but prices still look reasonable compared with this week last year.

Prices then were $4.054 for a gallon of unleaded regular gas and rising rapidly. Those prices would peak in mid-July 2008 at more than $4.34 a gallon.

Fuel prices then fell below $2 a gallon in mid-December.

While Tacomagasprices.com reports the average price for unleaded is more than $2.60 a gallon in Tacoma today, gas is still available for as low as $2.41 a gallon at a Puyallup ARCO station and at Puyallup's Costco.

News Tribune business columnist Dan Voelpel will become Puyallup's new economic development director beginning June 15.

Voelpel's thrice-weekly column has appeared in The News Tribune since May 2003.

"Writing this business column was the best job I've ever had," said Voelpel in explaining his move to the city job. "But Puyallup's offer to do something different and challenging was too attractive to pass up."

Puyallup City Manager Gary McLean said the city hopes to tap Voelpel's extensive knowledge of the business community and development issues.

"Dan's regional contacts, insight, background and energy make him the right choice for Puyallup," said McLean. "For the last six years, while working for The News Tribune, Dan developed a deep understanding of economic issues facing the South Sound. Prior to that, his 12 years working in the Tacoma City manager's office gave him the government experience that is essential for this job."

The new economic development director served as communications supervisor for the City of Tacoma from July 1991 to May 2003.

Voelpel said he's eager to begin the new job.

"If you look around the Puget Sound region for cities with the greatest upside, Puyallup tops the list. It has positioned itself as a desirable destination for a wide range of business and investment opportunities," Voelpel said.

In recent years, Puyallup has redeveloped its downtown, improving streets and infrastructure, building a new city hall, library and market pavilion. On South Hill, the city is working with the new owner of a former microchip plant to renovate that high-tech campus into a more marketable property.

Alaska Airlines has added Fiji-based Air Pacific to its stable of airline partners, the two airlines announced today.

The partnership will allow the two airlines to grant mileage credit to each others' frequent flier program members and to offer codeshare flights.

Codeshare flights are flights that appear on one airline's schedule but are flown by another airline.

Travelers will be able to receive Alaska Mileage Plan miles for flights they take on Air Pacific.

The first fruit of the new collaboration will be an arrangement under which Vancouver, B.C. travelers can book a flight to Fiji on Air Pacific. The first leg of that flight will be flown by Alaska from Vancouver to Los Angeles where travelers will transfer to an Air Pacific Boeing 747 for the onward flight to Fiji.

That Vancouver-Fiji hookup will be available six days a week. It will replace a twice weekly service through Honolulu on an Air Pacific Boeing 737.

The Port of Tacoma Commission plans to meet Friday in executive session to discuss the performance of the port's Executive Director Tim Farrell, according to port commissioners.

The meeting follows a tense past two weeks that resulted in the commissioners receiving a petition -- signed by about a third of the port's staff -- declaring a "no confidence vote" in Farrell.

The petition began circulating shortly after the port notified 47 of its 256 employees that their jobs had been eliminated.

Commission President Clare Petrich said today that Friday's meeting is "a review of the performance status of Tim and of the situation of the layoffs."

Executive sessions are not open to the public and can be held to discuss only specific topics, according to the state's open meetings law. Governing bodies are not allowed to make decisions in executive session.

The commission met Wednesday -- also in executive session -- with Farrell and the port's senior management to discuss details of the layoffs, Petrich said this morning.

Friday's meeting is just between commissioners and Farrell will not be in attendance.

Under the state's open meetings law, governing bodies can meet in executive session to discuss a charge or complaint brought against a public officer or employee.

The employee being discussed can "request that a public hearing or open meeting be held regarding the complaint or charge," according to the state Attorney General's Web site.

Farrell said this morning that he was unaware of that provision in the law. He had no comment regarding the commission's meeting.

He has said that the port needs to reduce its staff to match its shrinking business. Cargo volume has dropped dramatically over the past two years.

Issaquah-based Costco will report third quarter earnings Thursday, but analysts are unsure whether the wholesale warehouse company's results will benefit from the recession.

Costco, on one hand, has seen shoppers migrating from other stores in search of lower prices, but even its affluent customers are being conservative with their outlays.

The company's gross sales are also expected to decline because of lower gas prices than at this time last year. Costco sells gas at most of its stores.

The average of analysts' predictions is that the company will report a profit of 53 cents a share. That compares with 67 cents a share in the third quarter a year ago.

Some analysts say Costco is well-positioned to take advantage of a recovery as well-heeled customers loosen up their spending.

A new airline bearing the same name of a California carrier purchased by SeaTac's Alaska Airlines a quarter century ago will begin flying in mid-July.

That low-cost, no-frills airline, JetAmerica, won't have any connection with Alaska.

The new airline, modeling itself after the now-defunct Skybus Airlines, is scheduled to launch service in July 13 from the New York area's Newark Liberty Airport.

The old Jet America was a carrier based at Long Beach Airport in Southern California. Jet America's fleet of 10 McDonnell Douglas MD-80 jets connected Long Beach with a network of cities throughout the country including Chicago and Minneapolis.

Alaska absorbed that fleet and Jet America's personnel

Alaska spokeswoman Bobbie Eagan said Alaska is aware that the new carrier is using the name, but has no plans to challenge their right to do so.

=> Read more!

Retailers in downtown Seattle's premier shopping street have little to complain about compared with their peers in other tony shopping district around the world.

A new study by global real estate firm Colliers International comparing retail space rents in well-known shopping districts in dozens of cities throughout the world, shows Seattle's retail rents are on the reasonable end of the spectrum.

The study shows Seattle Fifth Avenue rents average $40 a square foot annually. That's less than three percent of the rental rates on Fifth Avenue's New York namesake, the most expensive retail street on the globe.

There retail space is renting for $1,400 a square foot on average. And that's a substantial drop from the $1,650 a square foot average retail rent merchants paid last year.

New York's Fifth Avenue is followed on Colliers' list by the Champs Elysees in Paris at $1,203 a square foot, by Russell Street in Hong Kong at $1,192 a square foot and New York's Madison Avenue at $750 a square foot.

Other notable retail locations in North America and their average rents: San Francisco's Union Square, $400 a square foot; Vancouver's Robson Street, $192 a square foot; Chicago's Michigan Avenue, $250 a square foot; Beverly Hills' Rodeo Drive, $400 a square foot, and Las Vegas Boulevard, $140 a square foot.

Port of Tacoma Commissioner Dick Marzano recently announced that he plans to run again for his seat.

The five-person port commission has three seats up for election this year.

Marzano was first elected to the commission in 1995. He has been re-elected two times since.

"I believe my experience on the commission and working my entire adult life on the waterfront will help in the problems we face," Marzano said in an e-mail to The News Tribune.

Marzano has worked as a longshoreman for almost four decades.

He is also former member of the Freight Mobility Strategic Investment Board, appointed by both former Washington Gov. Gary Locke and current Gov. Christine Gregoire, according to the port's Web site.

"The Port is experiencing some rough times as is most of the state, but I am confident we will come out of this better prepared to meet the challenges ahead and continue to be one of the economic engines of Pierce County," he said.

Marzano is 61.

Wildlife officials will remove young Red-tailed hawks from nests near Sea-Tac Airport Wednesday in an effort to keep the birds and jetliners from colliding.

The young hawks will be re-introduced to other territories in northern Washington, far from the airport.

The airport has successfully relocated more than 200 raptors since 2001. Only one pair of the tagged hawks eventually returned to the airport.

Six pairs of adult hawks live in the airport vicinity, but the airport allows them to stay because they've learned to stay away from the incoming and outgoing planes.

Having resident hawks in the airport area also prevents other hawks, not so wise to the ways of aviation, from moving in.

Airliners and birds are not a good mix. Planes, most recently an Airbus US Airways A320 departing from New York's LaGuardia Airport, have been downed when their jet engines have ingested birds and shut down. The US Airways flight was forced to land in the Hudson River.

Three of four Boeing 767-based aerial tankers have become operational in Japan's Air Self-Defense Force, Boeing announced today.

The three tankers mark a milestone for Boeing which has struggled to get the new tankers into service. A fourth tanker will join the Japanese forces soon.

The Japanese tankers are somewhat similar to the 767 tankers that Boeing hopes to sell to the U.S. Air Force.

Boeing is also building 767 tankers for the Italian Air Force. The tankers are a derivative of the 767 twin-jet Boeing supplies to commercial airlines.

Boeing and its European rival, Airbus, are in a dogfight to win the multi-billion dollar contract from the Pentagon for new tankers.

Boeing won the first competition, but that result was set aside because of Boeing misconduct in influencing a Pentagon procurement official with the promise of a post-retirement job.

Airbus won the second contest, but that award too was vacated after government investigators declared the competition was skewed toward Airbus.

The Obama administration has said it will start the competition anew this summer.

A national home price tracking index says home sales prices declined by more than 22 percent in March in the Puget Sound area from year-earlier prices.

The S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index released today said home prices nationwide dropped 19.21 percent in that same period.

In the Puget Sound area, those March figures were the twelfth month in a row prices fell.

The decline here, according to the index, began in July 2007 and dropped in 19 of the 20 months since then.

The Puget Sound area index stood at 149.03 in March. That compares with 152.12 in February, and 154.37 in January.

A year ago March, the index stood at 178.29 for Puget Sound homes.

Phoenix and Las Vegas were the worst performers on the index with drops of 36 percent and 31 percent respectively.

Dallas has been the least harmed with only an 11 percent drop since its June 2007 peak. Phoenix prices have fallend 53 percent from June 2006, the home sales highest point in the desert city.

In this economy, the endurance and strategies necessary to find a job can wear you down. So, Paul Anderson, a career psychology consultant with ProLango Consulting, Inc., will present a free job search and networking seminar Wednesday.

The seminar begins at 1:30 p.m. at Blue Water Business Center,
3323 Pacific Ave. in Tacoma. Space is limited. To reserve your place, RSVP to Jane Milhans, jane_milhans@yahoo.com, 253-279-4245 or
Joanna Felt, joannafelt@hotmail.com, 253-222-3510.

Sponsoring Anderson's presentation is A Future and a Hope Networking Group, which meets at 9 a.m. Mondays, for support, prayer, networking and encouragement for those who are facing financial challenges due to loss of work, income, reduced hours or wages.

Anderson, formerly of Microsoft and Expedia, travels the country offering seminars in a wide range of career development subjects, including the psychology of job interviews, advanced resume writing and the psychology of sales.

Looks like they got it right.

The Employment Security Department said today in a release that a large majority of unemployment benefits were paid accurately in 2008.

A federally required internal audit sampled 480 out of 319,440 unemployment claims that were paid in 2008, the release said, and the results indicated that 88.6 percent were paid accurately. The audit found that excess benefits were paid in 11.4 percent of the reviewed claims.

Most overpayments were due to inaccurate information received from claimants, the department said. Common issues involved claimants who were not meeting the weekly work-search requirements; were not available to work; or did not accurately report when they returned to work.

By law, claimants must repay any excess benefits they received and may be barred from receiving additional benefits.

“It’s a small sample, but it’s enough to show us where we’re doing well and where we might be able to achieve additional improvements,” said ESD Commissioner Karen Lee. “It is important to us to pay benefits as accurately as possible and to prevent fraud.”

Over the last few years, Employment Security has stepped up its efforts to detect and prevent people from receiving benefits they’re not entitled to. The department cross-matches records with other state and federal agencies, monitors address and telephone information, and investigates tips from the public.

And should you wish to report an unemployment cheat, call 866-266-1987.

A week after publicly announcing his candidacy, former Tacoma Mayor Brian Ebersole has said he will not be a candidate for the open seat on the Port of Tacoma Commission.

I spoke with Ebersole last night at the World Trade Center Tacoma awards banquet, and he said he would switch his support to candidate Don Meyer, current head of the Foss Waterway Authority.

Along with being mayor, Ebersole has served as a speaker of the state House and as president of Bates Technical College.

“I didn’t know when I announced that Don Meyer, a friend, was planning to run,” Ebersole said. “As soon as I learned it – I thought, that’s the guy I’d like to vote for. It didn’t make much sense to run against Don when he’s the guy I’d vote for.”

Ebersole said he and Meyer met Thursday morning. “I explained that my real intention was in international relief efforts, international understanding.”

Along with being involved with a hotel in The Philippines, Ebersole is working on the Cambodian “Village Pig Project” and a clean water initiative aimed at improving the health of children in Asia.

Meyer also attended last night’s banquet, and said, “I’m pleased that Brian has indicated support for my candidacy. The ironical part – the very issue Brian was taking about – Tacoma must come around as an international city.”

Yes, that’s the same Zak Nelson.

It was only last February that Nelson was featured in The News Tribune business section in a Q&A concerning his efforts to start a job club in Tacoma (and get a job).

The club has grown to contain 73 members – from a beginning core that you could count on one hand – and sister-clubs have grown in Seattle and Bellevue. Other interested folks have contacted Nelson from around the country to ask about starting clubs in their own cities.

Meanwhile, Nelson has a new job. He started last week as communications manager at the Tacoma Regional Convention + Visitor Bureau.

Nelson, 31, told me yesterday afternoon that he heard about the opening from a few contacts he’d made during his search. He sent in a cover letter, his resume and he took the time to list his qualifications line-by-line against items in the posted job description – and he heard from CVB head Tammy Blount a few days later. An interview followed, then the offer of a position.

He’ll be handling media relations as well as helping to design a new Web presence for the organization. He’ll also be working on some “online marketing pursuits and communications strategies,” he said.

Meanwhile, the job club he founded still meets at the ParkWay Tavern at 1 p.m. every Wednesday.

He sounded a bit bittersweet on the phone, leaving (to a round of applause from his colleagues) the club to begin a new career.

The union that represents the Port of Tacoma's facilities and equipment maintenance people and its clerical workers said today it is concerned about plans for layoffs at the port.

Dave Fjeld, business agent for International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 22, told Port of Tacoma commissioners he is concerned that the layoffs could prove shortsighted.

Fjeld said union officials meet with the port's top three officials Wednesday including port director Tim Farrell to discuss possible alternatives to layoffs.

Farrell sent out notices to 47 Port workers early this week putting them on notice that they could be laid off by July 30.

The port's container traffic is down nearly 15 percent in the first quarter, and the port administration is cutting expenses to match revenue declines.

Fjeld said that while container traffic is down, maintenance requirements continue regardless of container volume.

The port's container cranes, he said, need maintenance and safety inspections no matter how many container lifts they've handled. With fewer workers, that maintenance could be neglected.

The union is looking for creative money-saving solutions to the port's money issues without cutting vital services, he said.

Container traffic at the Port of Tacoma during the first quarter dropped significantly, according to new figures from the port, but things could have been worse.

The Port of Tacoma, for instance, could have been the Port of Long Beach.

The plunge in container traffic at that Southern California port was more than double the fall in Tacoma, -29.5 percent for Long Beach versus 14.7 percent in Tacoma.

New statistics presented to port commissioners at their Thursday noon meeting, showed Tacoma fared better in this declining economy than any established West Coast port.

Oakland was down 15.7 percent. Los Angeles container volume was off 17.4 percent, and Seattle recorded numbers down 23.1 percent from the first quarter of 2008.

Only Prince Rupert in British Columbia, a new container port, posted a gain, 94.8 percent, but on a relatively small number of containers, 40,956.

That compares with Tacoma's 379,174 in the same period.

The two Rolls Royce jet engines on Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner fired up for the first time about 9:30 a.m. Thursday, moving Boeing closer yet to the first flight of the revolutionary plane.

The engines ran for about 40 minutes on the first test aircraft, Boeing said. The engines operated at several power settings, and the systems the engines power were tested successfully, the company said.

The 787 engines are unique in that they are started using electrical power rather than bleed air as other airliner engines have been.

The 787 is the first major jetliner to power most of its systems with electricity rather than air bled from the engines.

That's most important in the heating and air conditioning systems, where electrically-powered systems offer fuel savings and better control flexibility.

The 787 is due to take its first flight before the end of next month, nearly two years behind schedule.

Arthur Erickson, the Canadian architect who designed the award-winning Museum of Glass in Tacoma, died Wednesday in Vancouver, B.C.

The National Post of Canada carried this story about Erickson's passing today.

This Aug. 8, 1982, photo shows architect Arthur Erickson displaying a photo of Roy Thompson Hall, which he helped design, in Toronto, Canada. Erickson first achieved international acclaim for his award-winning design for Simon Fraser University. He was also handpicked by Pierre Trudeau to design the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C. Erickson died Wednesday in Vancouver at the age of 84. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press)

After the Museum of Glass opened in 2002, its uniqueness, especially the iconic cone, drew rave reviews – a new, positive attention to Tacoma.

"I was extremely dubious because Tacoma has always been a place to drive through," Julie Ovenell-Carter, a free-lance travel writer based in Vancouver, B.C., who was here for the Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail, told The News Tribune during the museum opening. "I have been happily surprised at every turn, not just by this museum. Now I feel like I could, in good conscience, go back to my readers and say, 'Yeah, stop in Tacoma.'"

Erickson's work drew that kind of praise.

The startup the two Rolls Royce engines on the first test Boeing 787 Dreamliner is imminent in Everett, aviation sources said this morning.

Pre-startup tests have been performed, and it appears that the engines on the test plane are ready for their first ignition on the aircraft.

Those engines or ones identical to them have been tested for hundreds of hours on test stands and on test aircraft other than the 787.

The engine start is likely to be accompanied by big plume of white smoke as oil used to keep internal parts of the engine lubricated and safe from corrosion burn off during the initial few seconds of the engines' run.

The engine start is another prelude to the 787's first flight, now nearly two years behind schedule.

The engine test will demonstrate how the plane's systems perform independent of ground power or of the plane's auxiliary power unit, which has already undergone its test.

Next expect taxi tests and then high speed taxi tests on the runway. Boeing says that during high speed taxi tests, the plane could accidentally leave the ground for a few seconds. That's much like Howard Hughes huge Spruce Goose seaplane whose only "flight" resulted from high speed tests in the Long Beach Harbor when the plane rose briefly from the water for a few feet.

The full-blown "first flight" when the plane leaves the runway and climbs to higher altitude, is due before the end of June.

The Washington State Investment Board on Wednesday filed a lawsuit to recover more than $100 million in losses related to the purchase of investments from Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc.

Among the defendants are former Lehman executives and directors, underwriters for the offerings and Ernst and Young, the firm’s outside auditor.

According to a release today, the lawsuit alleges violations of federal and state securities laws, negligent misrepresentation and breach of fiduciary duty.

Lehman itself is not named as a defendant as it filed for bankruptcy protection last September.

“We have a fiduciary duty to pursue recovery of these losses,” said WSIB Acting Executive Director Theresa Whitmarsh. “It’s our belief that had the defendants been more transparent and accountable, these losses could have been minimized or even avoided.”

Attempts to reach some of the defendants Wednesday were unsuccessful.

The suit, filed in Thurston County Superior Court, alleges that documents filed in connection with the securities offerings failed to disclose Lehman’s negative returns on troubled mortgages, including sub-prime loans, and the true value of its mortgage-related assets. Also, the lawsuit alleges that Lehman’s financial statements failed to comply with applicable accounting standards.

The suit was filed on the investment board’s behalf by the Office of the Attorney General and the law firm of Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP. The Coughlin firm was hired for its expertise in federal securities law and securities litigation and is serving as a special assistant attorney general pursuant to a contract with the office, the release said.

Previously, the firm successfully represented the state in a suit to recover losses related to securities fraud at telecommunications giant Worldcom.

According to Whitmarsh, the state board was also successful in recovering some assets from Enron.
“We did receive recoveries,” she said in an interview Wednesday. In the Lehman case, she said, “we’re optimistic.”

A copy of the suit is available here.

The suit was filed in the 9 a.m. hour today, said Dan Sytman, spokesman for the state attorney general. Commenting on the breadth of the Lehman controversy and other claims, he said, “I know there are a lot of folks who want a piece.”

The suit notes that former Lehman Chairman and CEO Richard Fuld, also a defendant, “received $111.8 million from FY 2003 to FY 2008 in salary, bonuses and restricted stock unit awards.”

Other defendants include Citigroup Global Markets, Wells Fargo Securities LLC, Commerzbank Capital Markets Corp. and Countrywide Securities Corp., as well as various consulting groups, investment banking concerns and auditors Ernst & Young.

At one point in the 64-page suit, the state alleges that “the borrowers or brokers inflated the income reported on the ... ‘liar loans.’ The brokers and mortgage bankers had every incentive to make the loans as they were paid generously no matter whether the loan later went into default or not.”

Even with the loss, the state investment fund remains strong, Whitmarsh said Wednesday.

The board manages investments for 17 retirement plans for public employees, teachers, law enforcement officers, firefighters and judges. The accounts comprise assets of $67.6 billion under management.

“We’ve got a lot of time to recover,” Whitmarsh said, speaking about the current recession. “This isn’t the first recession we’ve lived through. I think it takes being patient.”

The board, she said, will over the next few months review its asset allocation plan.

Need a 1 cent stamp?

Well the folks at Can Do Real Estate Group have got you covered -- at least if you are on their mailing list.

The real estate team, part of Windermere West in Federal Way, sent out 400 to 500 letters this month to people they consider their "A-plus" clients notifying people that postage went up 2 cents.

The mailing included 10 cents worth of stamps "so you don't have to make that last minute trip to the post office."

And a note reminding people to think of them for real estate needs.

"We appreciate them and we hope they appreciate what we provide for them," said real estate agent Cheryl Crutcher. "We're trying to create the business and personal relationships that keeps our business going and hopefully gives them something of value in return."

Crutcher said her real estate group has been doing monthly mailings to its clients -- including everything from stamps to lottery tickets to calendars -- for almost 10 years.

They can be silly such as forget-me-not flowers or helpful such as articles on how to protect your home from burglars.

The extra touch may be working.

Crutcher said her team just added a new person and plans on adding another later this year.

"We are growing by leaps and bounds," she said.

First quarter expense cuts have paid off for the Port of Tacoma.

The port's operating income -- or profit made from the business it does and not including money earned from the tax levy -- was up 3.3 percent to $4.8 million as of the end of April when compared to what the port forecast in its 2009 budget.

That number is still 26 percent below where the port was last year at this time.

The port made several cuts to its expenses earlier this year including delaying pay raises, reducing benefits and cutting travel to combat declining revenue brought on by the global recession.

Port revenue as of April was down almost 9 percent to $30.3 million when compared to what was budgeted and the previous year.

The port commission will hear a budget report at its meeting Thursday.

Such cuts translated to a 10 percent reduction in operating expenses from what the organization had originally budgeted and a 4 percent reduction when compared to the previous year.

But the biggest – and most painful – cut came Monday when the port notified 47 of its 256 employees that their jobs had been eliminated. Cost savings from the staff reduction aren’t reflected in the port’s current budget numbers.

A few have questioned why the port is doing layoffs at all, especially after hearing that port’s return on revenue remains above 15 percent.

The return on revenue – the port’s operating income or profit divided by its total revenues - is one metric the port uses to measure its financial health and indicates the port’s ability to stay profitable.

Port Executive Director Tim Farrell said Wednesday that there’s a difference between being able to “retain employees and having work for them to do.”

The current downturn in trade means the port doesn’t have enough work for all of its current employees – and won’t for awhile, he said.

The number of containers coming through the port was down 16 percent as of April when compared to the previous year. And at the end of last year container volume at the port remained 10 percent below its peak in 2006, when the port handled more than 2 million containers.

The port earns its money through a combination of rent from its shipping terminals and services such as moving containers on and off of trains.

Farrell said Wednesday that he doesn’t anticipate container volumes to get back to those peak levels for eight or nine years.

Issaquah's Costco Wholesale Corp. got an upgrade from a Credit Suisse analyst today, and the stock responded with a 3.33 percent price increase.

Analyst Michael Exstein said in his note to investors that Costco's in-store traffic is at "historically high levels."

If the economy begins reviving, the wholesale retailer could profit as customers begin buying more discretionary goods, he said.

Even if the recession remains with the country, Costco should be able to hold its own with prices at stable levels, he said.

Exstein improved his rating for Costco from "neutral" to "outperform."

Costco closed at $48.78 Wednesday, up $1.57.

Meanwhile, another local company, Tacoma's TrueBlue Inc., didn't profit from an analyst's upbeat remarks.

Temporary labor provider TrueBlue's stock fell 2.31 percent Wednesday.

That's in spite of generally favorable comments by Deutsche Bank analyst Paul Ginocchio regarding temporary labor companies such as Milwaukee's Manpower Inc. and TrueBlue.

Ginocchio said that rising overtime by factory workers and a boost in average workweek hours is a sign favorable for temporary staffing companies.

Both Manpower and TrueBlue, he said, are in a good position to see their demand for workers rise as the economy revives.

TRA Medical Imaging of Tacoma has acquired Olympia-based Northwest Radiology Group, LLC, effective June 1, 2009.

The main office of Northwest Radiology Group is located at 500 Lilly Road N.E., in the Memorial Medical Plaza. Under the agreement, Northwest Radiology Group’s owner, Randall Patten, M.D. and staff will become TRA employees, according to a recent release by TRA.

"The physicians and staff of Northwest Radiology Group have created a trustworthy and valued radiology practice with a reputation for caring staff and experienced radiologists," said Michael T. Dowd, M.D., TRA president.

"In order to continue serving our patients with excellent care and state-of-the-art technology we felt the time was right to partner with TRA Medical Imaging," said Randall M. Patten, M.D., Northwest Radiology owner.
Founded in 1943, TRA Medical Imaging is a local partnership of board certified radiology physicians who operate outpatient medical imaging clinics and provide diagnostic imaging, interventional radiology and neurointerventional surgical services within the Franciscan Health System and MultiCare Health System.

TRA’s outpatient medical imaging clinics are in the Tacoma, Lakewood and Gig Harbor, according to the release.

Founded in 2004, Northwest Radiology Group serves patients and clinicians in the Olympia area.

Laurette Koellner, a retired Boeing Co. senior vice president, may soon find herself on the board of one of the recession's billboard companies, American International Group Inc.

Koellner, who retired from a career at Boeing last year, is one of six people nominated to join the insurance giant's board.

Shareholders will vote on those nominees at AIG's June 30 annual meeting.

AIG has found itself in the congressional spotlight in recent months after the federal government invested billions in the company to keep it afloat.

AIG insured many of the subprime mortgage instruments that crashed in value when the housing market collapsed.

Koellner served as president of Boeng's international division for two years before her retirement and previously had led the company's Connexion airborne Internet operation.

AIG is replacing six of its nine board members at the behest of federal officials who want the board majority to be independent of the company.

Koellner also serves on the board of food maker Sara Lee.

What with 100 years having passed since the first race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and what with the 93rd running of the Indy 500 just days away – and what with the American automobile industry facing a race of its own these days – the U.S. Census Bureau has put together some numbers of interest:

• 4.7 million – Number of adults who attended an auto racing event once a month or more in 2007.
• 743 – Number of U.S. automobile manufacturers in 1909.
• 85,000 – Number of people employed in auto manufacturing in the U.S. in 1909.
• 223,000 – Number of people employed in 2007.
• $680 – Average annual wages in automobile manufacturing in 1909.
• $29.23 – Average hourly wage in 2007.
• 11,260,000 – Motor vehicles produced in the U.S. in 2006 (39 percent were passenger cars).
• 17,771 – Ford Model T’s manufactured in 1909.
• 14,606 – Buicks manufactured in 1909.
• 312,000 – Motor vehicles registered in the U.S. in 1909 (98 percent were cars).
• 244,166,000 – Motor vehicles registered in the U.S. in 2006 (55 percent were cars).
• 52,172 – Number of automobile dealers in the U.S. in 2006.
• 1.3 million – Employees at U.S. dealerships.
• $55 billion – Annual payroll at U.S. dealerships.
• $1,280 – Average price of a new car in the U.S. in 1909.
• $28,715 – Average price in 2009.
• 6 cents – Average price of a gallon of gas in the U.S. in 1909.
• $2.31 – Average price this week.

Alaska Airlines' nearly 1,500 pilots have ratified a new four-year contract that will at least partially restore their pay after big pay cuts they took in their last labor agreement.

The new contract will give captains a first-year increase of 11.84 percent followed by yearly increases of 1.5, 1.5 and 1.8 percent in the next years, said Air Line Pilots Association spokeswoman Jenn Farrell.

First officers will receive even greater increases, ranging from 16.35 to 29.52 percent raises in the first year of the new deal.

The pilots took pay cuts ranging from 21 to 35 percent in their last contract after an arbitrator ruled that their pay should be decreased to bring the SeaTac-based airline into line with competitors who had reduced salaries through bankruptcy proceedings.

The union's contract then provided for binding arbitration.

The union had been negotiating with the airline since early 2007, but hadn't made significant progress toward a new agreement until this spring.

Some 84 percent of pilots voting cast a ballot to approve the contract recommended by union negotiators.

The new contract gives veteran pilots a choice of pension plans, but converts the traditional defined benefit plan to a 401K-style defined contribution plan for new hires.

The contract, Farrell said, provides more flexibility in scheduling for pilots, particularly for pilots on the reserve list. The new work rules also give the airline more options in setting up its monthly flying schedule.

Alaska has the largest share of passenger traffic at Sea-Tac Airport. Together with its regional partner, Horizon Air, Alaska has captured nearly half the business at Sea-Tac.

The Port of Tacoma notified 47 people Monday that their jobs were being eliminated.

That represents about 18 percent of the port's staff, said Tara Mattina, the port's spokeswoman.

The final working day for port staff members losing their jobs will be July 30.

The port's business has been shrinking as the the global recession takes its toll on international trade. The number of shipping containers moving through the port was down 16 percent year-to-date in April when compared to 2008.

In addition to the layoffs, the port initiated a "voluntary separation" program earlier this month. The program provides a package of incentives including money and benefits for people willing to voluntarily resign from their jobs.

That programs remains open until June 8.

As part of the restructuring caused by the staff reductions, the port did create five new positions, Mattina said. Those positions may be filled in house or by job candidates from outside the port.

CDG Management, a New Jersey-based telemarketing company, will shutter its call center in Olympia and lay off 41 employees by May 29, according to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act notice the company filed.

Besides the Olympia location at 2303 Harrison Ave., the national telemarketing firm employs 4,000 people at 45 call centers in the U.S. and Canada, according to the company’s Web site.

Contact information for the Olympia call center was not available.

CDG has announced the closures of other locations across the country, most of which will close by May 29, according to WARN notices.

The company will lose 32 full-time and 67 part-time employees as it closes a call center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and 41 employees will lose their jobs as a call center in Durham, N.C. closes. A call center in Troy, NY with 95 employees will close as well, bringing the total job loss to more than 300 workers.

Calls from telemarketers at the firm mostly pertain to fundraising campaigns for police benevolent associations, veterans groups and other charitable organizations.

The Federal Trade Commission and others had begun to scrutinize the company’s fundraising tactics, alleging that CDG exaggerates the amount of donations that go to charitable causes.

But the company said in its notice about the Fort Laderdale closure that it has suffered three consecutive years of losses and must resort to "drastic measures.”

“Despite our efforts to restore the company to profitability, the current economic climate has taken its toll,” the notice states.

Washington's unemployment rate, growing steadily for the last 17 months, took a breather in April, settling in at a 9.1 percent, the same figure as in March.

The new figures were announced this morning by the state's Department of Employment Security.

The story in Pierce County was slightly different with unemployment continuing to rise to 10.3 percent seasonally unadjust in April. That's .1 percent higher than in March, but the growth rate was greatly diminished from other recent months.

In neighboring Thurston and King counties, according to figures from the state's Department of Employment Security, seasonally unadjusted unemployment actually fell in April.

The Olympia metropolitan area unemployment was 8.1 percent unadjusted in April, down from 8.2 percent in the previous month.

In King County, the unemployment rate fell from 7.9 percent in March to 7 percent in April.

The Employment Security Department's chief economist, Mary Ayala, said the figures don't necessarily mean that unemployment growth is over, but they're good news nonetheless.

"It's much too soon to assume that the unemployment rate will begin going down," she said.

Historically, the unemployment rate has continued rising for a few months after a recession is over because employers are reluctant to begin hiring again until they're positive the recession is done.

From an unemployment perspective, this recession is not yet as bad as the 1981-1982 recession, said Greg Weeks, the director of the department's labor market information branch.

In that recession, unemployment peaked at 12.2 percent in late 1982. The unemployment rate stayed above 7 percent for five years after that.

In the more recent 2001-2002 recession, unemployment topped out at 7.7 percent, well below the figure we've already reached in this recession, he said.

Unemployment stayed above 7 percent through all of 2003, he said.

"We don't know what the future holds," said Employment Security Commissioner Karen Lee. "But for now it's great to see our unemployment rate holding steady."

Adding more jobs in April were government (up 2,400 jobs), leisure and hospitality (up 700), financial activity (up 400 jobs), education and health services (up 200). Transportation and warehousing gained 100 jobs.

That positive outlook in the government sector could change in the next few months as the effects of tighter budgets become evident in the layoff of teachers and government workers.

Europe's largest discount airline, Ireland's Ryanair, is implementing yet more pay-as-you-go features to extract more revenues from passengers.

The airline, which is phasing out check-in counters, has announced it will charge its passengers $7.50 for the privilege of printing out their boarding passes on their home computers.

If you don't have a printer at home or can't get access to one on the road to print your boarding pass, the airline will print one for you for $60.

This comes from an airline that is considering charging for restroom access aboard its planes.

The Irish carrier is also reportedly considering eliminating checked baggage entirely. Passengers would carry their bags through security and deposit them at the bottom of the stairs or in the passenger boarding tube where baggage handlers would stow them aboard.

The bags could be reclaimed at the bottom of the stairs or in the passenger boarding corridor when the plane reached its destination.

That's not unlike the system Horizon Air uses at Sea-Tac as an option for travelers who are in a hurry. The process is much simpler, however, with the smaller regional planes Horizon flies.

The upside of Ryanair's charges is that the basic airfare is cheap. But the airline charges for everything else.

Boeing has delivered one of its first 777 Freighters to a new cargo company based in Leipzig, Germany.

The freighter is owned by Deucalion Capital and leased to AeroLogic GmbH. The new carrier is a joint venture of Lufthansa Cargo and DHL Express.

The leasing company and cargo airline have eight additional 777 Freighters on order from Boeing.

As one of the launch customers for the 777 Freighter, Deucalion and AeroLogic have had a hand in designing the new plane and its features.

Assembly of Boeing's first fourth-generation 747, the 747-8 Freighter, is moving forward quickly with the company finishing assembly this week of the plane's forward section.

The nearly 90-foot-long section has been stretched more than 18 feet longer than that of its predecessor, the 747-400F. The freighter version of the new aircraft will have 16 percent more cargo volume than the previous plane, Boeing says.

The new freighter will be able to carry four additional freight pallets on the main deck and three additional one in the cargo hold.

The company last month completed assembly of its first set of wings for the new aircraft.

In its passenger version, the new plane will carry 40-some more passengers than the 747-400 and carry them with less fuel use per passenger.

The plane is being built at Boeing's Everett plant, the same plant where the company is preparing for the first flight of its first 787 Dreamliner twinjet.

For the first time in more than a year, diesel prices have dropped below gas prices in Pierce County and around the country.

A survey by TacomaGasPrices.com shows a gallon of diesel fuel is available in Tacoma for as low as $2.35 a gallon.

That's two cents below the lowest price for regular unleaded gasoline in the county.

Diesel prices now are less than half the amount that briefly hit last summer in Tacoma when some stations were selling diesel for nearly $5 a gallon.

Credit the slowdown in commerce for the slackening of demand for the fuel, much of which is used in over-the-road trucks, farm equipment and locomotives.

Railroads have parked and stored hundreds of locomotives in recent months as imports and exports have slowed.

Meanwhile, gas prices in Tacoma rose to an average of $2.523 a gallon in Tacoma, according to Tacomagasprices.com.
. The lowest price, $2.37 a gallon was available at several stations.

That's about 3.6 cents a gallon up from Sunday, but still nearly $1.34 less per gallon than at this time last year.

In Olympia, prices are somewhat higher now than in Tacoma. The lowest price in the Olympia area Monday was $2.41 a gallon at an ARCO station on Martin Way.

The federal Small Business Administration is launching a new loan guarantee program designed to help struggling small businesses meet loan and interest payments on existing debts.

The program, which begins June 15, will guarantee so-called America's Recovery Capital loans. The loans are no interest and have no SBA fees. Payments are deferred.

"These ARC loans can provide the critical capital and support many small businesses need to make it through these tough economic times," said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills.

The loans of up to $35,000 are available to established, viable small businesses.

For more information on the ARC loans, visit www.sba.gov.

A coalition of labor, business and government groups is launching a new ad campaign this week to raise the awareness of workplace safety in Washington.

The group, led by the state Department of Labor and Industries has created television, radio and Internet ads that emphasize the importance of on-the-job safety to workers'families.

"Running this campaign now is particularly important because there are significant risks to workplace safety during an economic recession," noted Labor and Industries Director Judy Schurke.

Workers may be less likely to report unsafe conditions for fear of losing their jobs, and businesses may be tempted to take safety shortcuts to cut costs during hard times.

The Association of Washington Business, the Washington State Labor Council, Associated General Contractors and the Washington State Building and Construction Trades Council joined L&I in sponsoring the ad campaign.

The News Tribune article on the Copper River salmon that arrived in the state Friday included when the famous fish would be pulling into area retailers, but shoppers at some store locations might have to wait a little longer.

Though Fred Meyer's Gig Harbor and Ballard locations had the fish on Friday, other stores, including three Tacoma locations, are expecting the salmon to trickle in today and tomorrow, said Fred Meyer spokeswoman Melinda Merrill.

The salmon is currently available at varying price points at a number of local grocery stores while the stock lasts, including TOP Food & Drug, Metropolitan Market and Johnny's Seafood.

Many grocers are expecting another shipment of the fish this week.

Wiseworker.com and The Employment Guide say they are "putting America back to work" one job fair at a time.

And one of the coalition's 200 fairs in 50 states is coming to Tacoma Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

About 15 area companies, schools or recruiters are participating in the fair, ranging from Menzies Aviation Group to Avon and Mary Kay consultants. The Web site did not advertise the number of positions these companies may have open and lists no contact information for the host.

The convention center's records show the fair expects up to 450 people to attend.

Interested parties should bring 20 to 30 copies of their resume and $5 for parking at Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center for the otherwise free fair.

The companies say job seekers should dress business professional and consider this event as a first interview.

They also suggest researching the companies online to prepare. The full list of companies and other details is available at www.wiserworker.com/job-fairs/view/2929.

To the Tacoma Community College class that's studying investments:

You've not been forgotten. We're still working on getting the stocks you're tracking in the paper. Until then, here are the Friday closing prices:

ConocoPhillips $43.93 -81 cents or -1.81 percent
OfficeMax Inc. $6.97 -17 cents or -2.38 percent
TriQunit Semiconductor $3.68 -8 cents or -21.3 percent
MassMutual Corporate $21.60 -2 cents or -.09 percent

Seattle-based HomeStreet Bank today joined the list of Washington banks to sign a cease-and-desist order with regulators.

The $3-billion bank has agreed with provisions authored by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Washington Department of Financial Institutions.

With the order, the bank must raise capital as well as make certain changes to its internal business practices.

Many of the ingredients of the order have already been addressed, said HomeStreet President and CEO Bruce Williams this afternoon.

“It doesn’t require us to do anything about how we deal with our customers,” he said. “It doesn’t change how we’re doing business. We’ve agreed to a number of things. If you’re already doing something, it’s easy to do them.,”

For example, he said, the bank has been ordered to appoint a chief credit officer – and one is already in place. The bank has been ordered to reduce its construction-loan portfolio, and such a reduction is in force.

“It also requires us to raise our capital levels,” he said. The requirement calls for the bank – within 150 days – to raise its Tier 1 capital to 10 percent and its risk-based capital to 12 percent. As of March 31, according to a statement issued by the bank, HomeStreet had a Tier 1 ratio of 7.6 percent and a risk-based ratio of 7.4 percent.

Asked to provide a figure equal to the requirement, Williams estimated the bank would be required to raise “about $70 million.”

Williams said the bank has already seen improvements in its position, with deposit growth of $500 million since last summer and home-loan originations of “more than a billion.”

“We have some problem loans, and we also have some strengths,” he said.

Williams expressed frustration that no funds are available for community banks to borrow, but said he and his staff would make a “good-faith effort” to secure the funding.

He said he could have extended negotiations with regulators, but preferred to receive the order rather than draw out the process. “We just want to stay focused on our business,” he said.

HomeStreet is privately held, and operates branches or lending centers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Hawaii. In the South Sound, the bank operates in Tacoma, Federal Way, Kent, Lakewood and Olympia.

The first question from the audience of some 300 accountants at lunch today recognized the elephant there in the room.

The room was the ballroom at the Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center, the accountants were attending the Fifth Annual Financial Reporting Conference sponsored by the Milgard School of Business at University of Washington Tacoma, and the question was addressed to the keynote speaker, Greg Stark, managing director at Russell Investment Group.

Was Russell planning to stay in Tacoma?

The morning, following a welcome by Milgard School Dean Shahrokh Saudagaran, comprised sessions led by Financial Accounting Standards Board member Tom Linsmeier and Security and Exchange Commission Senior Advisor Robert Malhotra. The subjects of the presentations centered on accounting issues currently of interest at the FDIC and SEC.

Stark began his keynote humorously, saying that he loved studying cost accounting – love it so much that he took the course twice in college.

He went on to discuss Russell and the recession, beginning with the reassuring comment: “Things are getting less worse.”

He spoke of good news and not-so-good. The market is volatile, he said, but that volatility has led to a 30 percent increase over the past six weeks. January was the third-worst month the market has seen; February saw the worst; and March was one of the best.

It’s “the roller coaster we are all on.”

The programs around the economic stimulus plan are “starting to work,” he said, although “it’s going to take a while.”

Banks are lending again, he said. Consumers are buying. “The recovery’s not going to be smooth. There are still a few shoes to to drop.”

He said that “we are about one-third to halfway through this recession,” he said, and he predicted that in “the first part of 2010 we’ll see economic growth.”

He named March 9 as the bottom.

Her is sanguine in part, he said, because stocks are outperforming bonds, small-cap stocks are outperforming large-cap, and growth is outperforming value.

Russell as a company has had its challenges lately, he said, but 900 associates remain at 909 A St. in Tacoma and 900 around the world. The company has been – is being – reengineered to become smaller, smarter and more efficient, and, “frankly better.”

He reiterated the Russell mantra of active portfolio management and asset allocation, and proclaimed the well-earned truth: “It takes bad markets to remind us of what matters.”

And will the company remain in the city where it was born?

There will be, Stark said, “a decision by the end of the third quarter.”

A new report from an airline industry group predicts air travel, already battered by the soft economy, will see a seven percent decline in business during the critical summer vacation season.

The Air Transport Association predicts that the number of passengers flying this summer will fall to 14 million. If that prediction holds true, the association predicts further schedule cuts when demand drops in the fall.

A weak summer season could be good news for travelers who are likely to see even further discount fare reductions in a season when fares usually rise.

The House this week approved a war spending bill that includes a $2.2 billion lifeline for Boeing's C-17 transport program.

That program is due to end in 2001 as orders for the four-engine transport end.

The Obama administration has targeted the C-17 program for cuts to trim the Pentagon budget.

The program is the last aircraft construction program in California. The plane is built at a former McDonnell Douglas plant in Long Beach, Calif. Boeing and McDonnell Douglas merged in 1997.

The House version of the spending bill contains money for eight more C-17s. The Senate version contains none.

Intense lobbying from Boeing and other companies that make parts for the C-17 have given the airlifter strong support in Congress. The plane has 650 suppliers in 43 states.

Here we are half way through 2009's fifth month and the net total for Boeing airliners this year is negative one.

That's 49 orders and 50 cancellations. Many weeks this year have been just like the one past: no new orders.

This comes on the heels of three years, 2005, 2006 and 2007, when Boeing orders topped 1,000 aircraft and even hit a record 1,413 in 2007.

That buildup of orders in more prosperous times is one reasons orders are so low this year, when the economy is tanking.

The unprecedented misery in the airline business and the economy as a whole are giving airlines anxiety about spending anything on new equipment.

And the delays in the company's 787 program are giving nervous airlines excuses to cancel long-standing orders for the new plane.

If Boeing's orders don't revive soon, expect the total orders this year to fall way below the low of 249 set in 2003 when the travel industry was still recovering from the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The inaugural Copper River Alaskan salmon have arrived and are trickling into area retailers and restaurants.

Johnny's Seafood Co. rolled its stock of salmon into both its locations on Lakewood Drive and Dock Street a little before 1 p.m., fresh off the Alaska Airlines plane that landed at 7:40 this morning.

Johnny's retail clerk Sheri Jacob said customers – who have been calling for months asking for an estimated time of arrival on the celebrity salmon – can get 'em while their cold from her counter right now. She may need a minute to fillet them though.

Jacob said fish buyers eager to shell out $33 a pound for a fillet of the first sockeye salmon of the season should call ahead to reserve an order. Johnny's is selling whole sockeyes for $24 a pound, King fillets for $42 a pound and whole king salmon for $30 a pound.

The summery weather makes Jacob think these pricey symbols of the season may go faster than usual.

Mike Carver, seafood manager at Metropolitan Market in Proctor, said he thinks his limited supply of the new arrivals will be gone by 3 p.m. Metropolitan is selling fillets of King for $29.99 and fillets of sockeye for $24.99. He said the less than 100 pounds of fish he got today will not be enough to sell whole, but the store will be getting more of the shipment in through the weekend.

If they run out, Carver suggests the Taku River king salmon he's selling for $24.99, which he says is "just as fatty and delicious" as the Copper River breed.

If you're looking for a lower price point, Fred Meyer stores in Gig Harbor and Ballard will begin selling sockeye for $14.99 a pound this afternoon, said spokeswoman Melinda Merrill. She said the price is $4 to $5 less than it was last year.

Top Food & Drug store on 23rd Street in Tacoma will begin selling a limited supply of the salmon this evening or tomorrow morning, said Russ Casteel, seafood buyer for Haggen Food and Pharmacy. Casteel called between flights on his way back from the opening Copper River run.

On your way to the store, Jacob from Johnny's suggests picking up some barbecue sauce to bring the summer out of your salmon, but keep it on the side. Or just enjoy this anticipated first batch au naturale. Either way, retailers say you should hurry if you want a bite of today's booty.

Tacoma's Russell Investments is putting into action a plan it claims will improve service to its customers worldwide.

The new plan organizes investment adviser Russell into five lines of service businesses that reach out to customers around the globe.

Those service lines are:

* Consulting and Advisory Services
* Defined benefit and defined contribution pension outsourcing
* Retail investments
* The company's OpenWorld program that provides investment professionals access to niche fund managers specializing in leading edge investments such as climate change and emerging markets.
* Russell Investment Services

The new organization will allow Russell clients complete access to the company's full expertise on investments no matter where they are located, said Russell chief executive Andrew Doman.

Boeing's much-delayed 787 Dreamliner is moving ever closer to its first flight.

Reports from Boeing's Everett plant say the first 787's auxiliary
power unit has been fired up for the first time. That small turbine engine powers aircraft systems after the plane's main engines have been shut down.

The second test Dreamliner, painted in All Nippon Airways colors, has been rolled out of the assembly plant. That plane is expected to take flight for the first time about three weeks after the first plane.

The first plane is due to fly for the first time before the end of June, nearly two years behind the original schedule.

Puyallup's South Hill Mall, which is undergoing a multi-million dollar renovation, will soon be getting a new logo.

The logo, says the mall's owners, is designed to as "a tribute to clean, green scenery of Puyallup's South Hill and the surrounding area. The mall's owner is Ohio-based Cafaro.

The new signage features earthy green and brown color scheme with a leafy stylized tree branch anchoring one end of the sign.

The 21-year-old mall is receiving new floors and ceilings, more skylights and a new entrance. The mall's food court will be reconfigured with a stone fireplace. Outside, new lighting and landscaping are being installed.

The renovation is being done at night. The project is projected to be completed by November.

With demand for air travel remaining weak, the nation's airlines have announced summertime air fare sales with prices lower than they've been during the vacation season for years.

These fares may not be good news for the airlines, but they're good news for anyone planning to fly this summer.

Here are some sample one-way fares from Sea-Tac:

* Boise - $49
* San Diego – $59
* San Francisco – $49
* Denver – $65
* Las Vegas – $68
* Los Angeles – $69
• Baltimore – $83
* Tampa – $98

Most airlines are matching each other's fares on competitive routes. Remember seats at the lowest prices are limited. Midweek and Saturday flights are most likely to have seats available at these prices.

How about this for an easy way to do something good?

Real estate agents from Keller Williams will staff the entrances to two Tacoma grocery stores Thursday to collect your donations for local FISH food banks.

Thursday marks a national day of giving back for Keller Williams Realty. The Tacoma office chose to support the food banks, said George Atz, a Keller Williams agent.

Agents will collect the donations outside the Top Foods, 3130 S. 23rd St., off Union Avenue; and the Safeway, 707 S. 56th St., from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Alliance of Angels, an investor program of the Seattle-based Technology Alliance, on Wednesday officially launched its new Seed Fund with more than $4 million in capital.

The fund will invest in worthy start-ups with growth potential throughout the Northwest.

Until now, the individual alliance members would chose whether to invest in young companies seeking early stage capital. Alliance investments resulted in five successful exits for its investors last year.

“AoA has an excellent track record of providing access to capital for entrepreneurs while offering attractive deals to our members,” said AoA Chairman Dan Rosen, CEO of Dan Rosen & Associates. “Having made a total of 80 investments just in the past two years, AoA continues to actively invest in great local companies and now will be able to put even more money to work.”

“With this additional vehicle available to benefit both investors and entrepreneurs, (the alliance) is poised to take angel investing in the Pacific Northwest to a new level,” he said.

The alliance expects its Seed Fund to make seven to 10 investments per year, over a period of three to four years.

Do you want some of that capital? You'll have some hoops through which to jump.

Qualifying companies will have successfully progressed through the alliance's screening process, pitched their company's business plan to the membership and secured investments totaling at least $100,000 from two or more alliance members.

If you make it that far, eligible companies undergo another review by volunteer investment committee members Peter van Oppen of Trilogy Partnership, Tim Porter of Madrona Venture Group, and angel investor Gaylord Kellogg. The committee will focus on ensuring proper due diligence and diversification when making investment decisions on behalf of the Fund’s investors.

Pierce County saw the state’s second-highest rate of foreclosures in April, compared with other counties, while the number of foreclosures fell 17.07 percent from March.

Although down for the month, foreclosures remain 50.28 percent above March, 2008.

Data released Wednesday by RealtyTrac show one in every 385 housing units being foreclosed in Pierce County in April, compared to one in every 320 in March.

The 816 units being foreclosed in April compare to 914 in March. In April of 2008, 543 units were in some form of foreclosure.

RealtyTrac, based in California, monitors foreclosure-related filings that include notices of default, notices of trustee sales and “REO” properties that have been foreclosed and are now owned by the lender.

Thurston County in April ranked ninth in the state for total foreclosures, with a total of 116 units, or one on every 866. In March, 214 units faced foreclosure; and in April 2008, RealtyTrac recorded 87.

The total in Thurston County is down 45.79 percent from March, but up 33.33 percent from the year before.

Clark County recorded the state’s highest rate with one of every 327 units facing foreclosure.

Statewide, one in every 817 units was in foreclosure – and the number of foreclosures was down 20.7 percent from March. Nationwide, one in every 374 units faced foreclosure, with the number of foreclosures increasing 0.25 percent fro the previous month, RealtyTrac said.

A resident near the Port of Tacoma didn't know what to make of what looked like a car carrier being escorted by the U.S. Coast Guard early this morning.

So she called The News Tribune wondering what all the blue flashing lights were about.

Tara Mattina, spokeswoman for the port, said the Guard was not escorting cars, but military equipment that is eventually headed to either Iraq or Afghanistan.

The ship came in late last night to pick up a second load of equipment and left early this morning via flashing-light escort. Mattina said the port is used to ship military equipment anywhere from two to four times per year.

The first ship to transport such equipment attracted attention from protesters a couple weeks ago. Once the port worked with the military officials and Tacoma Police to block the road where the equipment was destined, demonstrators moved their efforts to Ft. Lewis, Mattina said.

She said no protesters were present at the second shipment leaving this morning, but they probably didn't know about it.

"We generally don't advertise that information," she said.

The numbers are in for the first quarter at the Port of Tacoma, and they're all negative.

Total container volume was down 14.7 percent. International containers declined 17.8 percent, and domestic containers wer off 5.5 percent.

Auto imports and exports dropped a stunning 40.2 percent while total tonnage fell 21.6 percent.

Breakbulk cargo, cargo not carried in containers or in bulk like grain, declined by 50. 1 percent and grain was off 23.9 percent, according to figures from the port.

Intermodal lifts, the measure of container traffic between ships and trains, was off 33.5 percent in the first three months of 2009.

The customary villan, the worldwide recession, was responsible for the declines, said the port.

Brian Ebersole announced this week that he will run for a spot on the Port of Tacoma commission.

Ebersole is campaigning for the seat currently held by long-time commissioner Ted Bottiger.Bottiger hasn't announced whether he intends to run again.

Ebersole's prior positions include Speaker of the State House of Representatives, mayor of Tacoma, and president of Bates Technical College.

Don Meyer, head of the Thea Foss Waterway Authority, is also running for the same position.

The five-person port commission has three seats up for election this year. The spots now held by commissioners Dick Marzano and Connie Bacon also are up for election.

Ebersole said via e-mail that he's fascinated by the outreach of the Port of Tacoma and "the way the Port connects us to the rest of the world."

"I want to help use the great resource of the Port to increase international trade, and in so doing, to help improve the quality of life of the people the Port represents," he said.

Ebersole, 61, is currently the founding the board member of a small nonprofit effort in Cambodia named The Village Pig Project, and owner of a small resort hotel in the Philippines named the Blue Lilly Villa.

He lives in Tacoma.

Toyota's gas sipping Prius hybrid car and Ford's thirstier F-series pickup trucks topped the popularity list for new car sales in Tacoma in March, new figures show.

Pierce County dealers sold 47 Prius hybrids ad 45 Ford pickups in the county in March, statistics from auto sales tracking company Cross-Sell.com revealed.

In third and fourth places were another odd couple, the small, economical Kia Spectra in third place and the much larger and expensive Dodge Ram pickup in fourth.

Among Pierce County auto dealers, Cross-Sell.com reported Larson Chrysler sold the most vehicles in March with 65 new cars sold. They were followed by Toyota of Puyallup with 61 vehicles and Car Pros Kia of Tacoma with 59 cars.

Kitsap Community Credit Union was the top provider of financing for Pierce County cars in March, the site reported with 131 vehicles financed. Toyota Motor Credit was second with 91 cars bankrolled.

New car sales fell steeply in March compared with the same month last year. Dealers in Pierce County sold 1,256 new vehicles this March compared with 2202 in the same month in 2008.

The Toyota Corolla was the best-selling vehicle statewide in March with 770 sold. The Toyota Prius was second with 398 sales. The big Ford F-series pickups wiere in third place with 395 sales.

The Boeing Co. will move its Missile Defense Systems headquarters from Arlington, Va. to Huntsville, Ala. and its FA-18 maintenance operation from Mesa, Ariz. to Jacksonville, Fla., the company said in separate announcements today.

Some 50 workers will transfer from Virginia to Alabama when the missile headquarters moves to Boeing facilities in Huntsville.

The company already has 3,200 workers in Huntsville, many of them working on missile defense programs. Boeing is Alabama's largest aerospace employer.

The Arizona maintenance operation will move to a former naval air station in Jacksonville. The state is subsidizing Boeing's operation there for two years as an incentive for the company to bring new jobs to the area.

The move to Florida will involve about 60 jobs.

In both cases, Boeing said it was moving to consolidate operations to cut expenses.

Some analysts are worried that Boeing may move some of its airliner production facilities from the Puget Sound area to the South when Boeing builds its successor to its popular 737.

Wage rates are lower in the South and some taxes are less south of the Mason-Dixon line.

Unions in the Puget Sound area note that part of Boeing's problems with its new 787 Dreamliner originated at new plants built by Boeing partners in Charleston, S.C. The major subassemblies produced in Charleston were shipped to the 787 final assembly site in Everett missing vital parts and with wiring and other systems incomplete.

The 787 is now almost two years behind in making its first flight.

Online coupons are growing in popularity as the scissors-free to save this recession. But the Better Business Bureau advises that some deals - especially pop-up, flashy ads - aren't as good as they seem.

The number of American shoppers using online coupons climbed 39 percent to 36 million from 2005 to 2008, according to a survey conducted by Simmons/Experian Research and Coupons, Inc. The survey also found that online coupon users account for one-fourth of the total 148 million consumers who clip coupons.

The CEO of Coupons.com said the Web site saw 192 percent increase in the value of coupons printed from March 2008 to March 2009, totaling $57 million worth of possible savings in March 2009.

Though the discounts can add up for avid coupon hunters, BBB says consumers should be cautious about the coupons they click online. Here are some things to look for:

- Be careful about coupons offered through a third party rather than directly through the store. If the coupon company requires you to divulge personal information to receive the savings, you may want to check out the company first at http://www.bbb.org/.

- Be wary of pop-up coupon offers that require you to click immediately to redeem. Clicking on the ad may automatically sign you up to be billed for services you do not want.

- Read the coupon's terms and conditions. Check the expiration date, limitations of use and whether the online coupon is good only for online purchases.

- Not all stores are eager to redeem online coupons, because they may be concerned about fraud. BBB suggests contacting the store where you wish to redeem the coupon to find out whether or not it is being honored.

- Don't fall for the coupons in your e-mail inbox. Many fake coupons are circulated via e-mail and may even seem to be sent from a friend or family member's account. BBB says not to assume such coupons are legitimate.

Don Meyer, executive director of the Thea Foss Waterway Authority, announced Monday that he is running for a spot on the Port of Tacoma commission.

Meyer, a former deputy executive director at the Tacoma port, is vying for the seat currently held by long-time commissioner Ted Bottiger. Bottiger hasn't announced whether he intends to run again.

The five-person port commission has three seats up for election this year. The spots now held by commissioners Dick Marzano and Connie Bacon also are up for election.

"As Port Commissioner, I will use my 30 years of management experience to sharpen the competitive focus for meeting customer expectations, aggressively pursue investments and jobs while seeking new solutions for environmental issues in the Puget Sound," Meyer said in a news release.

"We also need greater accountability for port operations while holding the line on tax increases,” he said.

Meyer has headed up the waterway authority for 10 years. The organization is responsible for creating economic development along the shoreline and managing the waterway.

His prior work experience includes 14 years at the Port of Tacoma in senior management positions.

Meyer,65, lives in Spanaway.

RecruitMilitary is hosting a job fair May 28 in Tacoma for job seekers with military backgrounds and their spouses.

RecruitMilitary, a recruiting firm focused on people with military experience, urges "all job seekers who have military backgrounds to attend."

This includes veterans who already have civilian work experience, men and women transitioning from active duty to civilian life, members of the National Guard and reserves and military spouses, according to a news release from the recruiting firm.

Organizations attending the job fair range from corporate employers and law enforcement agencies to education institutions and government employers.

The Bank of America, DeVry University, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Good Samaritan Hospital, Health Net, Inc., International Academy of Design and Technology, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Northrup Gruman, UPS and Walgreens are some of the organizations planning on attending the Tacoma event.

Recruit Military is producing the job fair in cooperation with The American Legion, HireVetsFirst, which is a unit of the U.S. Department of Labor, and the Military Spouse Corporate Career Network.

The event is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center.

The recruiting firm offered the following tips on its Web site to potential job seekers planning on attending the career fair:

* When you arrive, stop at the registration desk and pick up a copy of the exhibitor's list and Search & Employ. Reviewing the ads in Search & Employ will give you an idea of some of the position employers are looking to fill. Keep in mind, however, that companies cannot list all the openings they have.

* Be sure to visit every employer's booth. You never know what positions might be available. Plus, networking is key when conducting a career search. You may meet someone who could lead you to a new opportunity you may not have considered.

* Show up at the door with at least 12 copies of your resume, but if a recruiter asks you to email your resume to his/her company, don’t feel you are being brushed off. Some companies require their recruiters to direct job seekers to their sites to obtain HR information as required by law and to direct desirable job seekers to different departments -- a good reason for you to network for unlisted open jobs!

* Don’t stand in a long line for one of your "A list" companies if the recruiters at a "B list" booth don’t look busy – - even if the event is in its last hour. Take advantage of the opportunity to tell your complete story to the "B" recruiters.

For more information go to www.recruitmilitary.com

A Verizon Wireless job fair Tuesday in Bellevue could make 200 job seekers into finders.

The cell phone company will meet with applicants for its 200 open call center positions at a fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Bellevue Customer Financial Service Center, 3245 158th Ave. South.

Interested candidates who fill out applications online beforehand will be interviewed at the fair. The positions' duties include managing call center support, working with businesses of all sizes and providing a variety of services to the general consumer, according to the company's press release.

With the available positions, Verizon is offering health care coverage, a 401(k) matching program and profit sharing.

Verizon's Bellevue campus currently employs 1,300 people in customer service, sales, network and marketing.

Boeing has delivered the 50th 767 jetliner to Japan Airlines, the fifth-largest 767 operator in the world.

The 767-300ER is the 404th Boeing airplane delivered to Tokyo-based JAL Group, a Boeing customer since 1960.

The jet was delivered to JAL at Everett's Paine Field where it was built.

Though Boeing has made no formal announcement, industry sources believe Boeing is furnishing JAL more 767s to provide the airline with new capacity until its 787 Dreamliners are delivered.

The Dreamliner is now nearly two years behind schedule in tkaing its first flight. That flight is set for sometime before the end of June.

Boeing is once again offering its aircraft customers the option of installing either sleeper berths or lounges in unused space over the passenger cabins of 747 jets.

Boeing several years ago offered the extra accommodations as "Skylofts", but found no takers for the optional passenger amenities.

Now two companies have ordered the beds to equip two yet-to-be-built 747-8 VIP jets and two existing VIP versions of the 747.

The sky beds are the size of a regular twin bed. They will be installed over the main cabin of the jumbo jets. As many as 16 beds can be installed in the space.

That same space is also available for an intimate lounge.

Airlines were unenthusiastic about the extra beds because safety rules require passengers to be belted into regular seats for landing and takeoff, so the beds wouldn't add to the capacity of the jets. The lofts are a better fit for executive jets because their owners are more concerned about comfort for passengers than revenues.

Without actually announcing a date, this is about as close as you can get to the news that the LeMay Automobile Museum will break ground in Tacoma within the next four months.

“The board did approve the financing plan we put together, and they did approve the contract price and authorize a small committee to negotiate a final contract,” said museum President and CEO David Madeira late this afternoon.

The LeMay board met this weekend in Colorado.

“They’ve authorized us to go forward and plan to break ground pending our ability to pull the financing plan together,” Madeira said.

That plan comprises two elements – finalization of Department of Housing Development Section 108 loan, which has been approved by the Tacoma City Council, and approval of funding from the federal New Market Tax Credit program. Authorization of this second element is being finalized by US Bank.

“The board told us that if you close those things in the next 30-45 days you can get the executive committee to give you the final authorization,” Madeira said. “We’re proceeding on the assumption that we will. We’ll be meeting with the city this week to close on the land.”

The board meeting, he said, “Was the most productive we’ve had in six years. Everybody was gearing up – the building committee, the collection committee, every committee, development and marketing – each committee was unanimous in going forward.”

The Washington Department of Financial Institutions has taken possession of Bremerton’s troubled Westsound Bank.

The agency cited “severe asset problems, significant losses and inadequate capital” as reasons why the bank was closed. As the bank branches closed at 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. Friday, and as the agency took possession, DFI immediately appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as receiver.

FDIC immediately entered into a “purchase and assumption agreement” with Kitsap Bank of Port Orchard. Kitsap Bank will therefore take posession of all deposits and other business once conducted by Westsound.

On Monday, the corporate office and branches of Westsound will reopen under the supervision and ownership of Kitsap Bank. Online services will not be available until Monday.

Calls to Westsound Bank late Friday went unanswered.

“It is regrettable to take such actions, but DFI did so to ensure the soundness and stability of banking in Washington State,” said Brad Williamson, DFI director of banks late Friday. “This unfortunate event is the result of very poor lending practices during the past several years. While the current management team worked diligently to overcome problems with the bank’s loan portfolio – a combination of the downturn in the local real estate market and the overall economic situation combined to make it impossible for the institution to continue.”

Kitsap Bank will assume all deposits of Westsound Bank except brokered deposits, which the FDIC will pay. No losses by Westsound customers are anticipated, DFI said in a statement.

Depositors of the former Westsound Bank can access their funds by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Loan customers are advised to continue making payments.

Scott Jarvis, DFI director, said late Friday that “reality set in and they gave up the ghost. I think it’s fair to say that poor lending practices in the past years were too much for the bank’s new management. They really did try.”

Jarvis said the closure was not an indication of further and imminent bank closures in the state, although he said, “I don’t think there’s any question that there is strain in the commercial banking system.”

Westsound Bank operated branches in Bremerton, Gig Harbor, Federal Way, Poulsbo, Sequim, Silverdale, Port Townsend, Port Orchard and Port Angeles. Agents of both the federal and state agencies were at each branch Friday evening beginning to facilitate the transition of ownership.

Click here for information from the FDIC.

Click here for information from DFI.

Tacoma/Pierce County was the only region in the state to see both a month-over-month increase in revenues per hotel room and increases in room occupancy and average daily room rates for March, according to a study on hotel industry trends by Wolfgang Rood Hospitality Consulting of Bellevue.

While Tacoma/Pierce County hotel room revenues jumped more than 8 percent in March, state revenues dipped 17.4 percent compared to the same month last year.

Bellingham/Northwest Washington was the only other region with increased in room occupancy in March, though less than Tacoma/Pierce County’s 4.6-percent increase.

Though room rates in the city and county are in the lower half of those offered in the state, at an average of $81.90 per stay, a 3.6-percent rate increase in Tacoma/Pierce County was higher than in any other region. Statewide room rates fell nearly 10 percent, with the highest decrease in Downtown Seattle at nearly 12 percent for March.

Both hotel occupancy and average daily room rates declined in most markets of the Pacific Northwest compared to the first quarter of last year.

The statewide revenue per available room slumped 19 percent year over year for the first quarter, with decreases in each region ranging from 2.6 to 24.6 percent.

Seattle freight forwarding and logistics company Expeditors International reported lower first quarter profits this week but rejected using layoffs to pump up its short-term results.

“We obviously would like to have reported higher quarterly earnings,” said Expeditors Chairman Peter J. Rose said in a statement. “However, we saw no long-term benefit in resorting to short-term measures, like employee layoffs or other actions which could severely damage the value of our network by compromising our customer service capability, just to pick up a couple of cents per share.

“We have not forgotten that ours is a service business. Our people are our most valuable assets.”

Expeditors reported net profits of $59.3 million in the first quarter or 27 cents a share. That compares with $66.5 million or 30 cents a share in the same quarter a year earlier.

The first quarter's gross was off 30 percent to $912.7 million.

That firgure reflects dampened activity in the import-export business because of the recession.

The lighted Chihuli mice dancing nightly across Blue Mouse Theatre’s front have something more to celebrate in the building’s 85th year.

State legislators recognized this week Proctor District’s prized theatre – believed to be the oldest continuously running movie theatre in the state – for outstanding achievement in historic preservation.

The theatre’s first nod came in March from the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (DAHP), which issues yearly awards to individuals and organizations for preserving pieces of history across the state.

Despite decades of steep competition from large movie theaters moving into the area, a group of devoted patrons called the Blue Mouse Theatre Associates have helped keep the quaint picture shows alive.

The Associates, headed by longtime Proctor resident and shop owner Bill Evans, raised more than $200,000 to restore the building to its original 1923 charm. The theatre now plays mostly second-run films as well as work from local filmmakers.

The picture shows began in 1923 with the silent film "Green Goddess,” starring George Arliss and Alice Joyce.

Smells Like Tacoma, a film featuring local skateboarders, will be playing tonight at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Tickets are available at the box office for $5.

Three of the top five airports ranked by on-time arrivals in April are located on the West Coast, according to new figures from an on-line flight tracking firm.

Flightstats.com said Oakland, Calif., was the top performer among the North America's major airports with 88.27 percent of its flights on time in April.

Salt Lake City was second followed by Minneapolis, Vancouver, B.C. and Portland.

Seattle was 15th on the list with 82.63 percent of its flights on time last month.

At the bottom of Flightstats' ranking were New York City's three airports, Newark, La Guardia and JFK.

Newark flights were on schedule just 54.88 percent of the time in April.

SeaTac-based regional airline Horizon Air was second among the nation's 40 top airlines in on-time arrivals in April, according to Portland's Flightstats.com.

The airline, owned by the same holding company as Alaska Airlines, earned an 89.56 percent on-time record last month.

Only Hawaiian Airlines with a 91.44 percent on-time record beat Horizon.

At the bottom of the list was Freedom Airlines with 65.93 percent of its flights on time. Freedom, based in Irving, Texas, operated as a Delta Connection carrier flying from New York's Kennedy Airport.

Among major U.S. carriers, Horizon's sister airline, Alaska, was in the top spot in April with an on-time arrival record of 84.27 percent. Alaska and Horizon have the largest market share of passengers at Sea-Tac Airport.

The bottom-rated major carrier was Continental with 71.82 percent of its flights arriving within 15 minutes of schedule.

It’s been exactly 101 years since Anna Jarvis organized the first observance of Mother’s Day – in West Virginia – and 95 years since Congress officially designated a day to honor mothers nationwide.

Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Retail Federation, here’s a look at Mother’s Day 2009 in the U.S.:

• $123.89 - amount the average American will spend for Mother’s Day
• $14.1 billion - total amount expected to be spent
• 83 percent - of Americans will celebrate Mother’s Day
• 62.4 percent - of Americans will buy a gift for mom, stepmom or wife
• 1.6 percent - will buy a gift for a godmother
• 66.8 percent - will buy flowers
• 54.8 percent - will make an outing for dinner or brunch
• $2.7 billion - amount that will be spent on dinner or brunch
• $416 million - value of cut flowers by 15 leading states
• 82.8 million - number of mothers in 2004
• 55 percent - of 15-44-year-old women who were mothers in 2006
• 80 percent - of women 40-44 who were mothers in 2006
• 2.1 - number of births-per-woman in 2006
• 4.3 million - number of registered births in 2006
• 112,513 - births to women 40 and older in 2006
• 494 - births to women over 50 in 2006
• 25 - average age when giving birth for the first time in 2006
• 40 percent - of births that were a mother’s first in 2006
• 18,674 - number of births in 2006 that were a mother’s eighth or more
• 38,568 - number of births in 2006 that did not occur in hospitals
• 387,798 - births in August, the highest of any month
• 13,482 - average births every Wednesday, the highest birth-day of the week
• 2007 - the year in which Jacob and Emily were the most popular names for newborns
• 5.3 million - number of stay-at-home moms in 2008
• 757,616 - number of childcare centers in the U.S. in 2006
• 67 percent - women who gave birth for the first time between 2001 and 2003 who worked during pregnancy (44 percent during 1961-1965)
• 83 percent - of working mothers returned to their former employer within a year of giving birth
• 9.8 million - single mothers living with children under 18
• 58 percent - of children under 6 who ate breakfast with their mother every day in 2006

You still can't describe a trip to Sonic: America's Drive-In on South Hill as "fast food."

This afternoon's lunch trip broke down like this:
- 14 minutes in the southbound left-turn lane on Meridian Avenue
- 5 minutes on 136th Street East waiting to turn into the parking lot
- 11 minutes to get through the parking lot to the queue for a drive-in parking stall
- 13 minutes in the queue
- 5 minutes to get the food delivered to car
- 18 minutes to eat the Extra Long Chili Cheese Coney, large Tater Tots, Reese's Ice Cream Blast and medium Diet Cherry Limeade
- 6 minutes to get out of parking lot

Total lunch time: 72 minutes – not counting travel time.

The Sonic opened April 27.

Washington's average prices for a gallon of unleaded regular gas have risen to the highest among the 48 states, lower only than prices in Alaska and Hawaii.

With fuel prices rising swiftly as summertime approaches, the average price in Washington is now $2.392 a gallon, according to Tacomagasprices.com.

That compares with $1.896 in Arizona, the lowest average price in the country.

Washington gas prices typically are in the upper 25 percent of gas prices among the states. Part of the reason for the high prices has to do with taxation.

At 55.9 cents a gallon for total state, local and federal taxes, Washington gasoline taxes are the second highest in the country. Only New York with a total tax burden of 59.7 cents a gallon, has higher gas taxes.

The average tax per gallon nationwide is 45 cents a gallon.

Supply and demand also plays a significant role. When local refineries curtail production in the spring to convert from winter to summer blend gasoline, the demand versus supply equation is altered affecting the price.

Washington isn't always among the most expensive states for gas. Last December when prices dropped below $2 a gallon, Washington's prices fell significantly below the national average.

In Tacoma, the unleaded regular price jumped three cents from Wednesday to Thursday according Tacomagasprices.com.
The average here is now $2.394 a gallon according to the Web site.

That price is nearly nine cents a gallon more than a week ago.

In Olympia, the Web site reported average gas prices Thursday of $2.391 a gallon.

=> Read more!

Economists attempting to forecast the future of the U.S. economy disagree over what letter of the alphabet a chart of the economy will resemble.

Some economists say it will look like an L: a steep decline followed by a period of no growth or very slow growth.

Some say it will look like a V: a steep decline followed by a steep recovery.

Others say it will look like a W: a steep decline, with a slight upward tick due to the federal government's stimulus package, a drop back down and a steady climb up.

During a speech this morning at a meeting of Lakewood United, I asked the audience members to predict which letter would come true. The vote came out:

L = 4 votes
V = 5 votes
W = 19 votes

The people have spoken.

A major Boeing supplier predicts the planemaker could drop its 737 production rate at Renton to as few as 21 a month next year.

That compares with the present production pace of 31 a month for the popular single-aisle jet.

That prediction comes from GKN Aerospace chief executive Marcus Bryson, in an article on FlightGlobal.com. Bryson recently returned from a tour of U.S. aerospace companies.

Boeing has yet to announce any planned cuts in the production rates of its 737. The company did announce last month that it will reduce its 777 production to five a month in Everett and postpone planned production rate accelerations on its 747 and 767 jets.

Boeing spokesman Jim Proux refuted the prediction of a major 737 rate cut saying the company has no plans to slow down the assembly line. Any deferrals of 737 deliveries, he said, will allow other airlines to move up in the queue to receive new planes.

Airbus, Boeing's main rival, has announced reductions in production plans for its A320 family of aircraft, a direct rival to the 737. Airbus now is producing 34 A320s a month.

Airlines, suffering from the side effects of the recession, are looking to delay capital expenditures as passenger traffic drops. The drop in fuel prices from last year has also diminished the incentive for those airlines to mothball older, less efficient aircraft in favor of economical new 737s.

An unidentified airline customer or customers this week canceled orders for 25 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, Boeing revealed in its weekly order update today.

That brings total Dreamliner cancellations to 57. With a Gulf Air order for eight more of the super efficient twin-engine jetliners, Boeing's order book is down 49 in the Dreamliner column this year.

The company still counts orders for 861 of the new jets.

Boeing doesn't reveal which customers canceled orders.
The only airline on Boeing's 787 order book with 25 Dreamliner orders is German low-cost carrier Air Berlin.

On the positive side, Boeing booked new orders for five 777s from Turkish Airlines and 13 737s from yet-unidentified customers in the past week.

The Dreamliner cancellations give Boeing a year-to-date order total of minus one.

Boeing's rival, Airbus, is reporting net orders of 11 aircraft for the year.

Both planemakers have suffered order cancellations and deferrals this year as airline customers struggle with lower traffic and fares.

The Dreamliner's first flight is scheduled from Everett's Paine Field by the end of June. That flight is now nearly two years behind schedule.

In the past being named among the best restaurants in the nation's airports would have been an honor equivalent to being selected as the best seafood place in Midland, Texas.

But with recent renovations and enhancements at airports nationwide emphasizing local food, the naming of a Sea-Tac eatery as among the best airport restaurants in the country is indeed an honor.

The prize in this case goes to Sea-Tac Airport's Ivar's in the airport's central terminal. The honor comes from Frommers.com, the travel guide people.

Ivar's was among 13 restaurants in terminals around the country that won the honor.

Among other restaurants honored nationwide were Encounter at LAX, Ike's Food and Cocktails in Minneapolis, Harbor Village and Ebisu in San Francisco, Legal Seafoods in Boston and Gallagher's Steakhouse in Newark.

Here's a link to the best airport restaurants story.

The Northwest Multiple Listings Service breaks down Pierce County into more than 100 neighborhoods and then groups those into 17 areas including Central Tacoma, North Tacoma, Gig Harbor, Lakewood and Brown's Point.

Here's a look at the median price of homes and condos sold in April by area and the percentage change when compared to the median home price a year ago.

Areas that had less than 10 homes sold -- Roy/McKenna/Harts Lake and Anderson Island -- are not included in the chart.

The median home price for the county was $225,000 last month. That represents a 14.5 percent decrease from the April 2008.

If you're between 16 and 24, and looking for work, then Tacoma Goodwill, The Business Connection and WorkSource Pierce want to help.

The three agencies will host a "Just For Youth" job fair tomorrow, May 7, in Building 19 at Clover Park Technical College, 4500 Steilacoom Blvd.

The fair runs from 3:30-5:30 p.m. and admission is free. Bring your resume and wear "business attire."

Employers scheduled to attend include: AAFES, Best Buy, Old Navy, K-Mart, Aflac, U.S. Army, Social Security Administration, LESA, Pierce County Sheriffs Department, State Farm Insurance, Right at Home, REACH, The Home Depot, CDS and Macy’s.

For information, call Diana Small, 253-219-4606.

Port of Tacoma Commissioner Connie Bacon announced this week that she will run again for her seat. Bacon has served three terms as a port commissioner.

The five-person port commission has three seats up for election this year. The spots now held by commissioners Dick Marzano and Ted Bottiger are also up for election.

Marzano and Bottiger have not yet announced whether they plan to run again.

"The Port of Tacoma has worked hard to earn its’ reputation as the ‘economic engine’ of Pierce County," Bacon said in a news release.

"I want to continue my efforts to seek new ways to attract diverse business opportunities for the Port while focusing my work to develop sound fiscal policies that provide oversight of every aspect of the Port operation," she said.

Bacon has been on the commission 11 years. Bacon said she's determined to keep the tax rate steady and noted that this year the port reduced the rate slightly.

She supports conservative financial policies so that "the Port of Tacoma is in a strong position to weather the current economic crisis," she said.

Bacon, 76, lives in Lakewood.

SeaTac's Alaska Airlines announced major changes to its route structure today adding Houston and Atlanta to its timetable and doubling the number daily Seattle-Honolulu nonstops to two.

Alaska also announced it will begin service from Oakland to Maui and the island of Hawaii beginning in November.

The airline also advanced the startup of its Portland-Maui service from a previously planned Aug. 7 to July 3.

"Hawaii has become a major market for Alaska Airlines in just a short time thanks to the loyalty of our customers and great service provided by our employees," said Alaska marketing vice president, Steve Jarvis.

The airline now has 59 weekly flights to Hawaii. Three years ago, it had none.

Meanwhile, the airline announced a reduction of 37 percent to Mexico beginning July 2. Alaska won't pull out of any Mexican market, but will reduce frequencies to match demand.

Other airlines, including Continental, have reduced their Mexico flying by as much as 50 percent because of the swine flu outbreak south of the border, drug violence in Mexico and recession-caused weakness in the vacation market.

Alaska will begin daily service to Houston on Sept. 23 and daily service to Atlanta Oct. 23.

On the Houston route, Alaska will face Continental Airlines, which has its largest hub in Houston.

On the Atlanta route, Alaska will go up against Delta and AirTran, both of which make the southern city their hub.

Alaska Mileage Plan members can earn double miles on the Houston and Atlanta routes for two months after their inauguration.

On the Oakland-Hawaii and Portland-Maui routes, the airline is offering introductory fares of $169 each way for tickets purchased by May 21.

With airlines around the world suffering from weak travel markets, Airbus announced today it will reduce its production of its Airbus A380 super jumbo jet to 14 this year.

Analysts have been predicting the production rollback for months as Airbus' airline customers report anemic traffic on international routes.

Airbus' biggest A380 customer, Dubai's Emirates, recently pulled an A380 out of Dubai-New York service and substituted a smaller Boeing 777.

The A380 is the world's largest jetliner, capable of carrying as many as 800 passengers in all-economy seating layouts. No airline has thus far configured an A380 that way, preferring to use much of the airliner's space for premium seats. Typical configurations now carry about 500 passengers in mixed class configurations.

Airbus had been predicting it would build and deliver 18 A380s this year.

Turkish Airlines has signed final order paperwork to buy five extended range 777-300ER jetliners from Boeing.

The order is valued at $1.36 billion at list prices for the long-range twin jet.

Turkish has 777-300ERs in its fleet, but those aircraft are leased. The five planes ordered today are the first Turkish has purchased directly from Boeing.

Turkish operates a fleet of 65 Boeing aircraft that also includes smaller, single-aisle 737s.

Both of Alaska Air Group's airlines, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, saw substantial passenger traffic reductions in April, new company statistics reveal.

Alaska Airlines' revenue passenger miles were down 5.9 percent compared with April 2008. A revenue passenger mile is one paying passenger carried one mile.

Horizon's traffic was off 13.1 percent in the same period.

The two airlines compensated for the recession-fed passenger traffic reductions by cutting their capacity, Alaska by 8.3 percent and Horizon by 13.1 percent.

Because Alaska's capacity reduction was higher than its traffic reduction, it planes were fuller this April than last year. The seaTac-based airline filled 78.9 percent of its seats in April 2009 compared with 76.9 percent in April of 2008.

At regional carrier Horizon Air, the percentage of seats filled during April was the same as last year, 69.2 percent.

The Boeing Co. has already reduced its Washington workforce by 2,027 since the first of the year as moves toward a total 2009 employment reduction of 4,500 here.

New figures from the company show that Washington remains Boeing's biggest employment center by far with 74,277 workers. That compares with 76,417 at the end of December last year.

California has the second largest number of Boeing employees with 25,615 at the end of last month.

The company's Commercial Airplanes Group, headquartered in Tukwila shed 1,687 workers this year so far. It ended April with 65,972 workers.

Those figures for Washington are far below Boeing's previous peak in Washington in the late '90s when employment in the Puget Sound area and elsewhere in the state moved past 100,000 workers.

Boeing worldwide has reduced its workforce by 3,030 this year, company figures show. The company has said it intends to cut its employment companywide by 10,000 workers this year.

I’m guessing that most of the 600 people who attended this morning’s Goodwill “Ready to Work” breakfast left feeling a bit more inspired than when they arrived.

And a few – judging by the reaction of some of the folks at my table - left with tears in their eyes. Inspirational tears.

Goodwill Board President Bob Bruback began the breakfast presentation with news that the agency last year assisted 5,200 people, garnering 1,000 jobs and saving taxpayers $11 million in discontinued welfare and other payments.

CEO Terry Hayes followed by saying that in 2009 Goodwill will serve 6,000 people and hopes to find jobs for 1,500 people. “We have people ready to work,” she said.

She announced the opening of four Goodwill stores – North Tacoma, River Road, Des Moines and Bonney Lake – within the next six months. The openings, she said, will provide 125 jobs.

She further announced that Goodwill has received $1.85 million from the state budget to help pay for Goodwill’s Milgard Work Opportunity Center, now under construction and scheduled to open on 09/09/09.
Other funding she announced comes from a $380,000 federal grant.

The campaign to fund the center is nearly 80 percent complete, she said. “We’re on track, and that’s exciting to say in though economic times.”

The highlight of the morning, for me, came with the presentation of annual awards. The Tacoma Rainiers organization was named Small Employer of the Year, and Home Depot was named Large Employer - but that’s not what brought those tears.

It was instead the stories told in brief videos about – and personally by – the individual winners:

• The Michener Inspirational Award to Michael Belden, a young man who essentially raised himself, knew the streets, found trouble with the law and somehow, somewhere found the courage to find passage away from nowhere and then to later earn an education and work in construction trades.

• The Achiever of the Year to Carley Covell, a woman who survived a serious automobile accident and, with rehabilitation, fought beyond a disability to earn a position in online sales. No smile was wider than hers as she accepted the honor.

• The Graduate of the Year to Cody Brown, a young man with cerebral palsy who has trained for and earned a job at the Orting Safeway, a young man whose gratitude for employment seemed matched only by his willingness to assist his customers. This is where people at my table began wiping away tears, as Cody spoke: “There is a large number of people who want to work,” he told the crowd, proudly. “Don’t look at the disability. All of us have disabilities. We all have something messed up in our lives." He wants one day to graduate from customer service to the check-out slot. He gives himself 20 years to become a store manager.

I predict he’ll make it in less than half that.

Michael Cade, executive director of the Thurston County Economic Development Council, reports today that the Spring Air - Consolidated Mattress assembly plant in Lacey has closed.

The Washington State Employment Security Department said today that it received a notice on Monday that 45 people had been laid off last Friday from the facility.

Calls today to Spring Air at Lacey’s Meridian Campus business park went unanswered.

With a long history in Tacoma, Spring Air left for Lacey in 1999. The company merged with Consolidated in 2007.

A Denver Spring Air plant closed in 2008, and manufacturing switched from there to Salt Lake City and Lacey. The closure in Denver was the company’s fourth since consolidation, according to an article in a furniture industry trade publication.

“I don’t see this as a harbinger of things to come,” Cade said.

Rather than being an indication of the business climate in Lacey, he characterized the move as “more of a market strategy from the owners.“

“They were a nice fixture in the Puget Sound market,” he said.

Throughout the South Sound, the recession is affecting us all. In small ways for some, with harsh realities for others, the economic slide has touched our lives. From workers who have lost their jobs and families forced to leave their homes, to business owners unable to find financing or children who may not understand why parents worry – the recession has become a part of us.

The News Tribune is launching a special online project titled “Uncertain Times in the South Sound” where readers can post their unique hometown perspectives of the economic downturn.

We’re looking for photos that document store closures, business failures, the impact of layoffs or foreclosures in your neighborhood. We seek to share with readers any original viewpoint that represents the tough times we face.

We would like to see what you have seen.

The idea for this project comes from Slate.com, which is chronicling the images of the recession among its readers worldwide. We propose to focus on the life and times of our readership in Western Washington.

As Slate explains, the Great Depression is remembered for images of the Dustbowl, of displaced families travelling toward a better life, of children stained by hunger and fear.
But what is the image – what images will we remember – of the Recession of 2009?

Please send us images that depict your own unique view of these troubled economic times.
View images submitted to the project or submit your own via Flickr.com

A dramatic downturn in railroad transportation since the beginning of 2009 means the end of the line for Tacoma's Coast Engine and Equipment Co. (CEECO), which announced it will close July 3.

The Washington Cos., a group of individual companies ranging from construction to air transit, added CEECO to its fleet in 1988, shortly after the company moved to its current location on 14 acres in the heart of Tacoma's port.

The Walker family originally founded CEECO in 1947 with a focus on repairing EMD (Electromotive Division of General Motors) marine engines in a variety of boats.

The railroad equipment maintenance company currently has 111 employees, 30 of whom lost their jobs Monday. The rest will be laid off incrementally between now and July, CEECO President Dave Swanson said.

He said the closure is in no way reflective of those employees' efforts.

"Our employees are the best in the business, but, at this point with the economy, we just can’t find enough work to have the business be profitable," Swanson said.

In recent years, the company has grown with the railroad industry by morphing into one of the nation's larger independent locomotive repair and overhaul facilities.

CEECO has adapted to the railroad industry's changing economics by diversifying its focus and becoming more technology based over the years.

But Swanson said there was no time to react to the economy's latest curve ball - a 60-percent drop in profits over last year that hit in a four-month flash.

"It was right after the first of the year things went south," he said. "We had such a dramatic downturn that we couldn’t catch up with it ultimately."

The decline is nationwide with a 22.4 percent decrease over last year in freight traffic on U.S. railroads during the week ending April 25, according to the Association of American Railroads.

The press release showed loadings were down 20.7 percent in the West for the same time period.

Swanson said 30 percent of rail cars in North America are currently in storage because they are not in use, the highest that number's ever been.

He estimates CEECO's customers - including main regional carriers such as BNSF and Union Pacific railroads - have 20 to 30 percent of their cars in storage. And railroad companies can't afford to repair machines they aren't using.

"(Our customers) are reacting to the market and to the shipping community to operate their businesses properly." Swanson said. "They've made the correct response for their businesses. The fallout is there isn't enough business anymore."

More news from the coffee wars: Starbucks announced today that it will sell its iced brewed coffee for $1.95.

This comes the same week McDonald's launches an advertising campaign aimed at upscale drinks.

The Seattle-based coffee company described the drink: Starbucks Terraza Blend is served over ice, lightly sweetened and customized with or without milk.

"Many of our customers enjoy coffee and espresso-based beverages over ice during the summer months," said Dub Hay, Starbucks senior vice president, Coffee & Tea. "Our unmatched coffee expertise provides a consistent, delicious cup of coffee - whether served hot or over ice. We’re committed to offering customers the world’s highest quality coffees available."

The promotional price is good through June 29. Depending on the market, customers will save anywhere from $0.25 to $0.45.

Weyerhaeuser Co. posted losses today of more than a quarter billion dollars as nearly every segment of its business declined from a year earlier.

The good news from the earnings announcement this morning is that the Federal Way-based timber company's earnings were better than the pessimistic predictions from Wall Street.

Before special items such as the costs of shutting down mills and the write off of good will were considered, Weyerhaeuser lost $264 million or 68 cents a share. That compares with the consensus among analysts of a first quarter loss of 80 cents a share.

Just after midday in New York, Weyerhaeuser shares were up 96 cents or 2.67 percent to $36.98 a share.

The company has been swiftly closing mills, distribution centers and wood products plants in recent plants in attempt to bring its production in line with the weak demands of the market.

"The recession hit us hard," said Weyerhaeuser's chief executive Dan Fulton. "Declining revenues in the first quarter reflect reduced volume and depressed prices across all of our product lines."

=> Read more!

File your claim early this week if you’re one of the 190,000 Washingtonians currently receiving unemployment benefits. That’s the word from the state Employment Security Department.

Congress and the Legislature each approved temporary increases in weekly unemployment benefits as part of economic stimulus efforts, and the increases will arrive in benefit checks beginning May 11, ESD said in a release.

To implement the changes, telephone and Web access for filing weekly unemployment claims on active accounts will close at noon Friday – May 8 – and will reopen at midnight on Saturday.

Weekly claims for April 26-May 2 should be filed before noon on May 8. Anyone who misses filing a weekly claim should call the unemployment hotline (800-318-6022) during the week of May 11-15 for assistance, ESD said

People filing new unemployment applications are encouraged to file any time by visiting www.esd.wa.gov. Web application will not be affected by the temporary shutdown. New claims also can be filed via the unemployment hotline all day on Friday but not on Saturday.

The Internet and phone claims systems will be fully functioning again on Monday, May 11.

That’s not the only change pending at the call centers.

=> Read more!

OK, so I got the new digital box from my cable provider. (It wouldn’t be fair for me to name which one, what with the power behind a blog and this being somewhat of a personal matter.)

I follow the instructions for installation, variously connecting the wall outlet, TV, digital box and my DVD/VCR.

Everything seems to work just fine. It’s a little complicated, but I am able to watch digital cable TV, or a DVD or a tape. Fine. No problem.

Except...I can’t record a tape. I try, and all I record is static. I try again, and again, flipping various buttons within my sphere of control. Still static. There are programs I’d like to tape - either when watching something else or when I'm away. This is a procedure I was previously able to accomplish. Now I can’t. I want to be able to push a button or two and record a program whether I’m home or not. Why is this so difficult?

Yes, I called the customer service line. After once being disconnected (I’m confident it was a technical glitch having to do with telephonic technology), I was able to speak to someone who seemed to have a firm grasp of the situation. She spoke to me of splitters, and she might just as well have been talking about spoons. That’s my fault. A splitter to me is something a pitcher throws.

Anyway, I’m thinking that this does not signal “progress” to me. I am now unable to do something I was previously able to do, and I am guessing that it will eventually cost me more. I know: Welcome to the 21st century.

But I’m also thinking that someone else, an adapter earlier than me, has gone through this very same thing. In plain language, is there a button to press, a switch to throw, a prayer to say that will get me what I want?

Let me know if you know. Thanks.

Boeing's newest airline has moved to the flight line at Everett's Paine Field as it progreses toward its first flight.

The aircraft will undergo fueling this week as the next step in its preparation for taking to the air for the first time.

The first test 787 has completed a battery of tests including build verification tests, landing gear tests and systems and structural tests.

Boeing has said it will fly the plane for the first time before the end of June.

But at the pace the plane is moving through pre-flight testing, the plane may fly sooner rather than later.

"We are making great progress, and moving ever-closer to first flight," said Scott Fancher, vice president and general manager of the 787 Dreamliner project.

The Dreamliner is the most successful pre-production airliner in history with a backlog of 886 orders from 57 customers world-wide.

The super-efficient airliner, made largely of composite materials, is nearly two years late in leaving the ground on its first flight. Those delays were due to manufacturing setbacks, parts shortages and design redos.

Olympia and the Tri-Cities have been named among the nation's 35 most-"recession resistant" cities in a study by Moody'sEconomy.com and MSNBC.

The study of 381 American cities singled out areas that have experienced fewer than nine months of recession in the last 15 years.

Many of those cities such as Jacksonville, N.C. depend on the government or the military for much of their economic sustenance.

That's the case both in Olympia and the Tri-Cities. Olympia as the state capital, has a large base of government workers, and the Tri-Cities' economy is kept rolling by large government expenditures to mothball nuclear facilities and waste storage.

The study said the Olympia area had experienced only nine months of recession in the last decade and a half, seven months in 2001 and two months this year.

The Tri-Cities area has seen seven months of recession in the same period ending in February this year. Six months were in 1995-96 and a single month this year.

If you know the difference between FASB and an Frisbee, and if you know the SEC has little to do with Some Enchanted Calculus – then you likely already know about the upcoming Financial Reporting Conference (the Fifth Annual, by the way) sponsored by the University of Washington Tacoma Milgard School of Business.

Previously held in Seattle, this is the first appearance of the popular conference in Tacoma - slated for the Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center on May 15, from 7:30 a.m. through 5 p.m.

According to a release form the school, the conference “brings together accounting standard setters, SEC officials, corporate financial executives, professional accountants and academics to discuss current issues in financial accounting and corporate reporting.”

Scheduled speakers include Tom Linsmeier, FASB Board Member, and James Kroeker, Deputy Chief Accountant at the SEC.

Greg J. Stark, managing director at Russell Investments, will provide the luncheon keynote address.

Two panels will discuss the current financial crisis – the first with an overview and the second discussing the role of accounting during troubled times.

Milgard School Dean Shahrokh Saudagaran and Terry Shevlin, chair of the accounting department at the Foster School of Business, will provide the welcome.

The event is sponsored by Moss Adams LLP, Clark Nuber PS, KPMG LLP, Port of Tacoma, Propel Insurance, Resources Global Professionals and Russell Investments.

The cost to attend ranges from $295 to $350, and conference participants will be eligible for eight hours of CPE credit. For more information, call Cynthia Silvernale at 206-685-4484 or contact silvec@u.washington.edu.

(FASB, for those of you uninitiated to such things, is the Financial Accounting Standards Board; SEC is the Securities and Exchange Commission; and XBRL you already know.)

A new study commissioned by the Port of Seattle shows that importers seeking the lowest carbon footprint for importing goods from Asia should use Pacific Northwest ports over rivals in California and in the East.

The study conducted by Herbert Engineering, a California consulting firm, analyzed carbon footprints of trade from Hong Kong, Shanghai and Singapore to U.S. distribution hubs in Chicago, Columbus, Ohio and Memphis.

The study compared the fossil fuel usage through the Northwest ports of Seattle and Tacoma to other ports such as Los Angeles, New York and Savannah.

"The carbon study results are good news, and a great boost to our efforts to measure and reduce our environmental impact," said Port of Seattle chief executive Tay Yoshitani.

Fast-growing Emirates Airways has accepted delivery of its 75th 777 jetliner from Boeing.

The large twin-jet 777-300ER (Extended Range)flew from Boeing's Everett plant where it was built to Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates nonstop.

Emirates will soon become Boeing largest 777 customer. The Dubai-based carrier is also Airbus' largest customer for its super jumbo A380.

Tacoma Rail has won the 2008 Jake Award, presented by the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association. The award, according to a release from the agency today, recognizes short line railroads that have a yearly Frequency/Severity Index rate better than the industry average.

Tacoma Rail has received the award three times over the past four years.

The association presents Jake Awards to railroads that have not had an injury that required reporting to the Federal Railroad Administration, a lost workday, or a fatality during the year.

Tacoma Rail Assistant Superintendent Alan Hardy accepted the award at the association’s annual convention.

“Tacoma Rail employees deserve this recognition,” Superintendent Dale King said. “We make safety our top priority, which benefits our employees, the public, our customers and our community.”

CB Richard Ellis has issued its latest quarterly survey of office and industrial space in the Puget Sound Region – and, well, it could be worse.

If the region has not fared “too badly,” it’s thanks to “Microsoft, Amazon and Expedia and the like,” the company said in a release this week.

For office space, the Seattle central business district fared not so well, with 627,766 square feet of negative absorption – which means that much space, previously occupied, was counted as not rented during the period.
Eighty-three percent of the downtown Seattle figure was due to Washington Mutual vacating its spaces.

The Tacoma central business district showed 2.82 million square feet or rentable space in the quarter, with a vacancy rate of 10 percent and total absorption of negative-36,322 square feet.

Suburban Tacoma saw total office space of 1.12 million square feet, with a 5.4 percent vacancy rate. Fife showed 81,217 net square feet with a 35.8 percent vacancy rate, and Puyallup marked 138,962 square feet with 18.5 percent vacant.

The total average asking rental rate for office space in the Puget Sound region was $30.07 per-square-foot, with the Tacoma-Fife area asking $22.86, the lowest but for South King County.

For industrial space, CBRE reported nearly 27.7 million square feet of net rentable area in the Tacoma-Fife area, with 9.3 percent of the space vacant at the end of the quarter. There are 900,000 square feet under construction in the area.

The overall region recorded 240.9 million square feet of industrial space, with a vacancy rate of 6.3 percent and 2.2 million square feet under construction.

The direct asking rate for industrial space in the Tacoma area was 34 cents per-square-foot, with the larger market averaging 52 cents.

Yes, poet T.S. Eliot called April cruel. But where was Tom when the stock market started to recover?

Tacoma-based Russell Investments has issued April results for the small-cap Russell 2000 Index – which recorded an increase of 15.5 percent. This is the second-greatest monthly gain in 30 years of available data.

Only February of 2000 offered a larger return, at 16.5 percent. Even with this recent surge, the index continued to reflect a negative year-to-date return, down 1.8 percent, through April.

“The small-cap segment wasn’t alone in April as every segment of the U.S. equity market measured by Russell Indexes added value for the month, ranging from 6.8 percent for the Russell Top 50 Index to 16.7 percent for the Russell Midcap Value Index,” the company said in a release today.

=> Read more!

Expedia, the on-line travel booking service based in Bellevue, reports it's losing about $3 million a month on its no-fee airline ticket booking promotion.

The Internet travel agency debuted the free service seven weeks ago. It formerly changed a small fee to book airline tickets on its Web site.

The no-fee promotion ends June 1. Expedia hasn't yet decided whether to extend the deal.

The travel service is attempting to attract the thousands of travelers who compare airline fares on its site, but then book them on airline sites because those sites charge no extra fees.

Expedia hoped to entice those travelers to buy extra travel services such as rental cars and tours on which Expedia makes a healthy commission on those products.

Expedia CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said this week he would consider competitors' countermoves before reinstating the fees.

When The News Tribune recently moved to an abridged stock table, we unintentionally omitted from our listing several stocks that a Tacoma Community College class was following.

In the interests of continuity and education, here are those closing prices for Friday:

ConocoPhillips $42.50, up $1.50 or 3.66%

OfficeMax Inc. $7.35, down $0.10 or 1.34%

TriQuint Semiconductor Inc. $3.83, unchanged.

MassMutual Corporate Investor $20.70, up $.060 or 2.99%

Are you intrigued by the towering container cranes, the massive grain silos and the web of rail lines at the Port of Tacoma?

Here's a way to satisfy that curiosity and learn more about Tacoma's working waterfront:

Take the guided bus tour the Port of Tacoma is offering on Monday, May 11. The price is right -- free.

The tour begins at 1:30 p.m. and lasts until 3 p.m.

You'll need reservations. Call 253-383-9463 or e-mail the port at bustours@portoftacoma.com to secure your seat. Children over six are welcome. A photo identification is required for participants over 17.

The tours begin at the Fabulich Center, 3600 Port of Tacoma Road.

Mexico's loss is becoming Seattle's gain as cruise ships once headed for the Mexican Rivera are rerouted to domestic destinations because of the swine flu outbreak south of the border.

Five major cruise lines with Mexican destinations have canceled calls at those ports because of the possibility that passengers could become infected and spread the virus to other passengers.

With a ship full of passengers and no place the ships can travel southward from home ports in Los Angeles, Long Beach and San Diego, some cruise lines are sending their ships north.

Royal Caribbean Cruises, for instance expects to make about a half-dozen previously unscheduled calls in Seattle in the next few weeks. The company's ships will bring 3,000 passengers on each call to tour Seattle. Carnival Cruises may do the same with some of its vessels.

Because federal law prohibits foreign-flagged vessels from serving itineraries with only U.S. destinations, those vessels calling on Seattle will also call on Victoria or Vancouver, B.C. during their cruises.

Other cruise lines, not wanting to travel the more than 2,000 miles back and forth from Southern California to Seattle and Canada, are making "technical stops" in Ensenada, Mexico and then cruising to destinations such as Santa Barbara, San Diego and Catalina in California.

Those "technical stops" are brief visits to the northern Mexico port during which no passengers or crew members leave the vessel.

Fortunate for the cruise lines, many of the vessels now deployed in the Mexican market are moving northward to cruise to Alaska for the summer from Seattle and Vancouver.

Other ports benefiting from the diversions include San Francisco and Astoria, Ore., both of which will see more ship calls than normal.