A trio of Columbia Bank executives visited New York this week – and plan to return tomorrow after speaking with investment brokers concerning a proposed stock issue worth some $80 million.

Details of the underwritten public offering, announced Monday, are being finalized, said Columbia spokeswoman JoAnne Coy earlier today.

Melanie Dressel, Columbia president and CEO, made the trip with CFO Gary Schminkey and Chief Credit Officer Andy McDonald, Coy said.

A press release this week said the bank would use the proceeds of the common-stock sale “for general corporate purposes, more specifically to support opportunistic growth and the bank’s capital needs.”

“It gives us the option,” Coy said, of repaying what remains of a $76.9 million boost last year from the U.S. Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program stimulus package.

“This gives us the flexibility to look at all the ways to use capital,” she said. “It gives us a lot more flexibility to look at our strategies.”

That strategy could include expansion of Columbia's branch system, which this year sees the addition of a Vancouver store. The money could also be used to acquire another bank.

Columbia stock closed today at $12.99, up 54 cents or 4.33 percent from Tuesday’s price – and up from a 52-week low of $4.93 recorded on March 9.

Bruegger's Bakery-Cafes, which once had nearly two dozen stores in the Puget Sound area, is scouting the area for new locations.

Bruegger's pulled out of Western Washington as the company changed hands repeatedly in the late '90s. The company shrank its nationwide profile as it struggled to cope with debt and to revitalize its business.

According to a press release from the chain, the company wants to open 25 franchised locations in the Puget Sound area and 15 in the Portland area.

The bagel chain said it is seeing evidence that business in lower-cost restaurants is growing as families adjust their dining budgets to cope with the recession.

Tom Spilman, president of KeyBank’s South Puget Sound Region, has been promoted to the position of president of the bank’s Colorado division.

Spilman has held the Tacoma-based job for four years and has, according to spokeswoman Anne Foster, led the region to become “one of the top performers in Key’s 22 districts nationwide.”

"Tom’s achievements in the South Puget Sound, and his expertise in consumer banking, make him the ideal choice to lead KeyBank’s expansion in Colorado,” said Wes Lawrence, president of the bank’s Rocky Mountain and Pacific Northwest regions.

Spilman has immediately assumed the responsibilities of the new position and will transition away from the South Sound portfolio within the next 30 days. A successor has not been named, and Foster said today that the search is a priority.

“Speed is of the essence,” she said.

She noted Spilman’s community service, and said the person selected as the new president will also become active. "That is a priority for Key,” she said.

In 2008, under Spilman’s leadership, Key donated some $900,000 in direct and in-kind support for events and charitable organizations, while representation on nonprofit boards has doubled. Spilman serves on boards for United Way, Tacoma Community College, the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber, University of Washington-Tacoma, Executive Council for a Greater Tacoma, Junior Achievement and Pierce County Economic Development.

“Leaving Tacoma,” he said, “will be the most difficult professional move in my career.”

Credit Suisse downgraded Federal Way-based Weyerhaeuser Co.'s stock today from "neutral" to "underperform," but the company's stock rose more than $2.00 a share.

The company Monday reported losses of 59 cents a share, but that was better than Wall Street had expected. Analysts on average had predicted a loss of 71 cents a share.

At midday, the company's stock was selling for $37.43 a share, up $2.24. During last year's second quarter, the company reported a lost of $1.25.

Closed sales of homes in Pierce County rose in July compared both to June and July last year.

According to the Northwest Multiple Listing Service, 903 home sales were closed in July in the county, compared to 747 deals closed in June and 796 a year ago.

The median price of a home sold in Pierce County this month fell to $228,500, down 10.4 percent from $255,000 a year before.

Statewide, sellers closed 5,527 home sales, up from 5,271 in July 2008. the median price of a home statewide was $279,000, down 10 percent from $310,000 a year ago.

The number of pending sales in Pierce County, 1,251, was up in July by 20.75 percent from 1,036 home sales pending a year before.