Published January 2003

Business Briefs

Darrington sawmill undergoes
equipment upgrade
The sawmill in Darrington shut down for three weeks beginning in mid-December, enabling crews to upgrade the facility’s equipment during a slow time in the lumber market. Most of the mill’s nearly 150 workers will return to work in early January, said officials at Hampton Affiliates, the mill’s owner.

The equipment being installed will more efficiently cut small logs and maximize the amount of wood used in all the logs running through the sawmill, said Ron Parker, president and chief executive officer of Portland, Ore.-based Hampton. He added that current low prices for lumber underscore the need to make the mill more competitive.

Even with the temporary layoff, the future seems more certain for Darrington now than it did in December 2001. At that time, locally-based Summit Timber had ceased operations at the mill and was still completing its sale to Hampton.

Since taking over and restarting the mill last spring, Hampton has hired about as many people as Summit employed in 2001.

Credit union to relocate Marysville branch
Educational Community Credit Union will be relocating its Marysville branch to the Tulalip Tribes’ Quil Ceda Village during the first quarter of 2003, said Karen Canaday, credit union president.

The credit union has outgrown the facility at 9315 State Ave., Canaday said, and the new facility, to be located in the development that now houses the Greater Marysville Tulalip Chamber of Commerce and other businesses, will be twice as large — about 2,500 square feet.

With its drive-up service, ATM and secure night drop, the new branch location, 8825 34th Ave. NE, Suite K, will provide greater convenience and access for members, Canaday said.

Opening of the new location is tentatively set for March 1.

Along with its north-county presence, the 9,980-member credit union has branches in Monroe and the Silver Lake area of Everett.

October, November sales-tax revenues higher than year-ago numbers
in Snohomish
Despite a sluggish economy, sales-tax revenues in the city of Snohomish were up for the second month in a row in November.

November sales-tax revenues, based on September sales, were $166,885, about $10,500 more than what was collected in November 2001. October revenues also were up, mainly due to more construction in the city, including construction of the new library.

Unless December sales tax falls significantly, sales-tax collection in 2002 is expected to be about 2 percent higher than in 2001.

WebPE nets contract
with Army Corps of Engineers
WebPE, an Edmonds-based environmental software company, and BHE Environmental of Cincinnati have been awarded a three-year, $3 million contract to perform automation projects for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The contract includes licensing and deploying WebPE’s environmental management information software to support compliance, prevention and restoration programs at the Fort Leonard Wood Army installation in southern Missouri, according to WebPE.

The company is under contract for $270,000 during the first phase of software implementation, set for delivery in June 2003. The entire contract is expected to have a value of at least $1.5 million to WebPE, the company said.

Plexus to consolidate in Bothell building
Plexus Corp., which designs and makes products for the electronics and medical device industries, said in December that it will consolidate engineering and manufacturing offices into one building in Bothell.

The engineering group, which is housed in an 81,000-square-foot building in the Canyon Park area, will move south into the company’s manufacturing facility on North Creek Parkway. The move is part of a larger restructuring for the Wisconsin-based company.

Spokesman Kristian Talvitie said there could be a “smattering” of layoffs in Bothell, but the bulk of the 400 people the company is laying off will be in San Diego, Calif.

The Bothell operations, which employ more than 300 people, once were part of SeaMED Corp., which Plexus bought in 1999.

Dexterra raises $6 million,
appoints new CEO
Dexterra Inc., a maker of mobile software for service technicians, announced in December that it has raised $6 million and appointed a new chief executive officer.

The company, formerly known as Accompany-ME Technology, recently moved its headquarters from Oakland, Calif., to an office on Bothell’s North Creek Parkway.

Dexterra’s first software program is designed for service technicians who work outside the office to use on handheld or wireless computer devices. The applications can be used, however, even when the computer is not communicating with a central network.

Sigma Partners of Menlo Park, Calif., provided the company’s latest round of funding. The company previously raised $600,000 in seed money.

Robert Loughan, the new CEO, co-founded the company and already was serving as the chairman of the board. He previously co-founded Octane Software, which was sold in 2001 for $3.2 billion.

Founded a year ago, Dexterra bought Corollary Solutions of Oakland in May. David Shoup, who co-founded Corollary and was a partner in Octane Software, became the CEO at that time. He is now the president and chief operating officer.

Lumera receives $1 million
federal contract
Lumera Corp., a subsidiary of Microvision Inc. that is working on speeding up the information superhighway, has received $1 million from a federal contract, the company announced recently.

The Bothell-based company was awarded a contract extension to continue development of new polymer-based optical modulators. Its original $1.6 million contract with the U.S. government was signed in 2001. This second stage of the contract is scheduled to be completed within 11 months.

Lumera is developing equipment that uses organic molecules called polymers to speed up data transmissions through fiber-optic networks. In addition to achieving higher speeds, the polymer-based electro-optic modulator switches use less power than today’s devices.

Formed through a partnership between Microvision and the University of Washington in 2000, Lumera raised $24 million in 2001 in a round of financing led by technology giant Cisco Systems.

Anthony’s event raises $81,000
for hospice, home care
Anthony’s Woodfire Grill in Everett raised $81,000 for Providence Hospice and Home Care of Snohomish County during October’s “Brunch by the Bay” event.

Anthony’s donated its space, all food and beverages and the services of its chefs and servers for the event, which specifically benefited The Carousel Program, which offers hospice and home health care for children.

Clyde Revord Motors re-opens
Clyde Revord Motors has re-opened after completing a multi-million-dollar expansion and remodel.

The dealership — known for its visible and topical window art — is at 7900 Evergreen Way in Everett. It sells Buicks, Pontiacs and GMC trucks.

Financial Advantage adds office space
Mortgage broker Financial Advantage recently expanded its south Everett location, growing into two adjacent offices and going from 1,574 square feet to 3,140 square feet, said Bob Winston, who heads up the office at 1000 SE Everett Mall Way, Suite 203.

Along with space, Winston said he plans on adding staff as well, including nine more loan officers and additional off-site loan officers in the coming months.

Financial Advantage also has another branch, operated by Jeff Umperovitch, at 2709 Wetmore Ave. in downtown Everett.

EvCC to hold workshops
for small-business owners
Everett Community College’s Continuing Education department is offering its “Small Business Management Series” throughout the winter quarter.

Designed with the small-business owner — or entrepreneur in training — in mind, the series includes eight different workshops focusing on business planning, free business resources, and financing, marketing and growing a business.

The low-cost workshops, which range in length from one hour to five hours, run from January through March, with convenient evening and weekend classes included.

For more information or to register, call Continuing Education at 425-267-0150.

Survey: County hotel/motel
occupancy rates up
In 2002, Snohomish County’s hotels and motels had noticeably improved occupancy rates compared to 2001, defying the trend in most other areas of the state.

Through the end of October, the number of people staying at local accommodations was up more than 8 percent compared with the first 10 months of 2001, according to the latest survey from Wolfgang Rood Hospitality Consulting.

In comparison, Seattle saw a decline in hotel occupancy of nearly 2 percent, and the Eastside was down by 6.7 percent compared to 2001.

Sandy Ward, executive director of the Snohomish County Tourism Bureau, said this area continues to benefit from the fact that many who stay overnight here are traveling by car, which has proved a popular mode of vacation travel in a down economy.

Occupancy numbers also received a boost from the 300 shipyard workers from Mississippi who stayed at hotels in south Snohomish County during the autumn while they worked on the USS Shoup in Everett. The last group of those workers left in December.

For the year, however, average room prices in Snohomish County were down more than 7 percent from 2001.

EdCC offers travel marketing class
Edmonds Community College’s Travel and Tourism program is offering a travel marketing class this winter quarter, from 11 to 11:50 a.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays beginning Jan. 7.

The class will focus on how advertising, public relations and customer service fit into a travel company’s marketing plan.

For more information, call 425-640-1208, send e-mail to travel@edcc.edu or visit http://business.edcc.edu on the Web.

New businesses, locations
n Countrywide Financial Corp. is the new name of Countrywide Credit Industries. It is the parent for a number of mortgage banking, insurance and financial services companies, including Countrywide Home Loans, which has offices in Everett and Lynnwood.

n Firehouse Tails, a pet boutique, has opened at 127 Ave. A, Suite 4, in Snohomish. The owner is Debbie Kvamme.

n Northwest Family News, formerly known as Northwest Family Magazine, has moved its offices from Bellingham to Edmonds. Formerly owned by MMB Publications Inc., the company was bought by Best Solution Co. of Mountlake Terrace. The publication serves King, Snohomish, Pierce, Skagit, Island and Whatcom counties. For more information, call 425-775-6546, send e-mail to nwfamily@earthlink.net or visit on the Web at www.nwfamily.com.

n Summit Home Mortgage Inc. recently opened in Everett. The mortgage banking company, located in the Everett Mutual Tower in downtown Everett, is owned by business partners Scott Katz and Bud Brummel, a longtime Snohomish County mortgage lender previously with Phoenix Savings Bank. For more information on Summit Home Mortgage’s services, call 888-388-4510.

n Manna Cafe and Catering Co. has opened at 1707 Hewitt Ave. in Everett. The cafe is open for breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday. The owner is Michelle LaJune.

n Raymond James Financial Services is opening a new office at 2825 Colby Ave., Suite 303. The branch manager is Carolyn Christoferson. Her telephone number is 425-252-1802.

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