Published September 2003

Business Briefs

Compass Health apartment building
under way
The foundation recently was laid for Alder Commons, Compass Health’s new counseling facility and apartment home for homeless people with mental illness.

The $3.4 million facility, located at 4308 76th St. NE, in Marysville, is being built by Newland Construction, designed by architect Ron Wright & Associates, and funded through a combination of Compass Health financing and grant support, the nonprofit agency said.

Alder Commons, which will include 18 studio apartments as well as space on the first floor for counseling and other support services for Compass Health clients, is expected to be completed by February 2004, according to the agency.

Merrill Gardens buys Windsor Pointe
Merrill Gardens, a Seattle-based senior housing company with facilities in Mill Creek, Monroe and Stanwood, has purchased the former Windsor Pointe assisted-living center in Marysville as part of a $45 million buying spree.

Windsor Pointe, now called Merrill Gardens at Marysville, had been owned by Campbell-Hogue & Associates of Bellevue.

Merrill Gardens announced the acquisition in early August. At the same time, it announced that it had bought three other assisted-living centers in Seattle.

While Merrill Gardens did not reveal what it paid for the Marysville property, its assessed value was a little more than $5 million, according to the Snohomish County Assessor’s Office.

The change in owners should not be noticeable to residents in the center, according to Merrill Gardens, which also will manage it.

Marysville YMCA breaks ground
on expansion
Marysville YMCA officials recently broke ground on a $1.1 million expansion of its building that is expected to be completed by Dec. 1.

The expansion, which began in late July, will add 8,000 square feet to the building’s current 42,000 square feet, said Wendy Bart, executive director. Construction is expected to take about four months. The work won’t affect current operations at the YMCA at 6420 60th Drive NE.

The cost of the expansion is being paid for by a $275,000 state Community Services Facilities Program grant, along with donations by individuals and companies that support the YMCA’s mission, Bart said.

Snohomish to receive state aid
for revitalization
The city of Snohomish was one of six communities recently selected by the Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development to receive specialized assistance from the agency’s Downtown Revitalization Program.

Through the program, Snohomish, Ellensburg, Ritzville, the White Center District in Seattle/King County, Spokane’s Hillyard District and Woodland will receive help in organizational development, work-plan assistance and other training and networking opportunities as they create plans for revitalization, the agency said.

Plexus continues layoffs
Plexus Corp. said it intends to lay off another 10 employees from its Bothell office by late September.

The layoff warning, filed with the state Employment Security Department, raises the total laid off locally by Plexus since December to more than 150. As of last year, the company had more than 300 employees in Bothell.

The Wisconsin-based company, which designs and makes products for the electronics and medical device industries, is downsizing and reorganizing across the country.

EdCC’s Center for Families
to celebrate grand opening
Edmonds Community College’s Center for Families will celebrate its grand opening from 3 to 5 p.m. Sept. 16 on the campus, 20000 68th Ave. W., Lynnwood.

The 15,500-square-foot center is the result of a three-year, $4 million capital campaign led by the Edmonds Community College Foundation and will be a model of the best practices in early-childhood education and childcare and a resource for parents and professionals, the college said. The center also will provide more child care on campus for students who are parents.

Snohomish County companies Premera Blue Cross and Snoqualmie Gourmet Ice Cream also have contributed to the center and its grand opening. The Mountlake Terrace insurance company in August volunteered time and $5,200 in materials to landscape the grounds, while the Lynnwood-based ice cream maker worked with EdCC culinary arts students to create a new flavor to debut at the grand opening.

California investment group
to buy Fisher Business Center
The Fisher Business Center in Lynnwood will be sold by Fisher Properties to a national real estate investment group based in San Francisco.

The two six-story buildings at 3400 188th St. SW were built by Fisher, a division of Seattle’s Fisher Communications Inc., in 1985-86.

The company has agreed to sell the office complex, along with Fisher’s West Lake Union Center in Seattle, for $64 million. RREEF America LLC is the buyer, according to Fisher.

Mark Weed, president of Fisher Properties, said no more than about 10 percent of the Fisher Business Center’s 200,000 square feet of Class A office space is empty.

The Fisher Business Center and West Lake Union Center, which has 180,000 square feet, were the last two large office buildings owned by Fisher Properties. The firm has sold off more than 20 other buildings during the past two years as its parent company tries to reduce debt and concentrate on its broadcasting operations, including the KOMO television and radio stations.

While it will no longer own the Fisher Business Center, Fisher Properties hopes to manage the property for the near future.

Quinton to move manufacturing jobs
to Wisconsin
Quinton Cardiology Systems will move production of its medical treadmills and electrodes from its headquarters in Bothell to its plant in Wisconsin, affecting about one-third of the company’s local employees.

Roughly 50 people are involved in the manufacturing work at Quinton’s Bothell facility, said Mike Matysik, chief financial officer. Those employees have been invited to transfer to Wisconsin or apply for any local openings.

Those who don’t want to move or can’t fill other local positions with Quinton will be offered severance packages, said Quinton President John Hinson.

The consolidation will cost Quinton approximately $2 million during the second half of this year, he said. But moving all the manufacturing activities to Deerfield, Wis., is expected to save the company up to $2 million a year, with most of the savings coming from having to pay for only one manufacturing plant instead of two.

Fluke lays off 34 at its Everett facility
Fluke Corp. in August laid off 34 people from its headquarters and manufacturing facility in Everett, the company announced.

Spokesman Larry Wilson said the staff reduction was attributed to the “economy and changes in business.” He added that there were no plans for further layoffs.

The 55-year-old maker of electronic test and measurement instruments constantly reviews its operations for efficiency, he said, and the employees let go by Fluke came from a range of departments.

Wilson said the action isn’t a sign that Fluke is not performing well. In fact, he said, the company is in good shape despite the sluggish economy. Fluke’s parent, Washington, D.C.-based Danaher Corp., posted record earnings of $125.1 million for the second quarter.

Fluke has approximately 1,000 employees at its Everett plant and 2,500 worldwide.

State agency buys
south Everett warehouse
The Washington State Department of Natural Resources recently purchased the distribution warehouse used by JanSport in south Everett for nearly $13 million.

The department expects that proceeds from JanSport’s lease of the property will amount to $1 million a year.

The state agency owns about $80 million worth of commercial property generating some $7 million to $8 million annually for the Common School Trust. Funds that go into that fund are used to help build new schools.

The agency’s new property in Everett’s Mountain View Industrial Park is a 220,000-square-foot warehouse completed last year at the intersection of Hardeson Road and Shuksan Way. Previously owned by the project’s developer, the property was sold to the state agency for $12.9 million, according to Snohomish County records. That’s not far off the assessed value of more than $11.5 million.

Everett dental practice
to celebrate 10th anniversary
Scott B. Chelgren Dentistry, located at 2722 Colby Ave., Suite 508, in the Medical Dental Building in downtown Everett, will celebrate its 10th anniversary with an open house Sept. 23 from 4 to 7 p.m. at its practice.

The celebration will include hor d’ouvres, beverages, a drawing for a free Sonicare, a dinner certificate and other goodies.

Port of Everett speeds up
process for new pier
Port of Everett commissioners in August decided to forgo screening and interview procedures and continue to work with three engineering firms that have done preliminary work on the new pier and rail spur to serve the Boeing Co.’s Everett assembly plant.

They include Berger-ABAM, Pentec Engineering and HNTB.

Typically, port officials would call for bids on the work and interview the candidates. But they set that process aside because they were happy with the earlier work by the companies.

Placing the project on a fast track should save a couple of months in securing a design, and then the necessary permits. Even so, the project isn’t expected to be completed until March 2006, port officials said.

The new pier and rail spur, expected to cost some $16 million, would be used to handle over-sized containers of jet parts shipped from overseas. Washington state officials have pledged to pay for the pier if Boeing selects Everett as the assembly point for its new 7E7 jetliner.

Cogswell College contracts
with Everett-based marketing firm
Henry Cogswell College recently contracted with Upside Down, an Everett-based marketing communications firm, to act as its agency of record.

Upside Down will coordinate media relations and advertising placement for the Everett-based college, as well as provide strategic marketing communications counsel, including a media review report, an advertising campaign and public relations support.

Decision to site SBX in Alaska
met with relief locally
The Department of Defense will anchor the controversial SBX radar platform in the small Aleutian Island town of Adak, Alaska.

The Defense Department’s August decision brought relief to Snohomish County officials and residents who had opposed stationing the 250-foot-tall missile platform on Possession Sound, just off Everett.

The $900 million platform will be used to develop a defense system for tracking incoming intercontinental ballistic missiles during the 20 minutes they would travel outside the earth’s atmosphere.

In March, Michelle Trautman of Everett and Mary Jane Anderson co-founded Concerned Citizens Against the SBX in March. More than 200 people joined the Everett group, and they gathered more than 2,250 opposition signatures from residents of Snohomish, Island and King counties.

In April, the Everett City Council passed a unanimous resolution asking the Defense Department to drop Everett from the list of candidate sites, which also included Adak and Valdez, Alaska; Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Ventura, Calif.; and a missile base in the Marshall Islands.

Military eyes Boeing 767
for surveillance role
The Boeing Co. will provide the U.S. Air Force with an Everett-built 767 that will become a test model for a new type of command and surveillance aircraft.

The 767-400ER will be a test-bed for the E-10A program, Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems division announced in August.

The plane will be built in Everett in 2005, then delivered to Northrop Grumman in Lake Charles, La., for modification. Northrup is the lead contractor for developing the plane. Raytheon will design, build and install the radar systems.

The Air Force will pay Boeing up to $126 million for the plane, with the final price still under negotiation. Boeing’s list price for the 767-400ER is between $126.5 million and $138.5 million.

The Air Force envisions the E-10A as a supplement — and perhaps an eventual replacement — to two airplanes now flying, the E-8 Joint Stars and E-3 AWACS.

Everett Clinic opens
to new Medicaid patients
Some 2,500 Medicaid patients in Snohomish County who don’t have a doctor can sign up to become patients of The Everett Clinic beginning Sept. 1.

This marks the first time in nearly three years that The Everett Clinic has opened its doors to new Healthy Options patients. Essentially a health maintenance organization for Medicaid patients, Healthy Options also serves the state’s Children’s Health Insurance Program patients, a program for children under age 19 whose families meet income guidelines.

Eligible patients will be notified this month by the state Department of Social and Health Services about details of how to sign up.

Gates Foundation awards grant
to Boys & Girls Clubs
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Snohomish County recently received a $500,000 matching grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to support its $4.75 million capital campaign aimed at expanding its services in Snohomish County.

“This is a generous gift from the Gates Foundation, and we are excited to be this close to our goal only 10 months into the campaign,” Executive Director Bill Tsoukalas said, noting that the Boys & Girls Clubs has $500,000 left to raise.

HomeStreet introduces slogan
In August, HomeStreet Bank unveiled a slogan that bank officials say reflects the values that have guided the 82-year-old Seattle-based community bank.

The theme, “Great neighbors. Great bankers,” is being supported by an advertising campaign that will run through the fall and includes billboards, radio, bank branch signage, direct mail to customers and other elements.

The introduction of “Great neighbors. Great bankers,” comes midway through what is expected to be another record-breaking year for HomeStreet, bank officials said. As of the end of July, lending volume had already passed the $2.3 billion mark.

New businesses, locations
n Dudley’s Office, a business services company, has opened in Marysville. Owned and operated by Lowell Dudley, the company offers human resources support, secretarial services, notary public services, dictaphone transcription and other services. For more information, call 360-658-0246.

n First Horizon Home Loans has opened a new branch at 12900 NE 180th St., Suite 200, in Bothell. The branch will provide in-house loan processing, underwriting and funding for home buyers, along with a range of other banking and financial services.

n Inside Out Home & Garden has opened at 115 Ave. A in Snohomish. The shop offers new and vintage gifts and home and garden items, including furniture, pottery and specialty bath products. The owner is Allison Olsen.

n The UPS Store recently opened at 2020 Maltby Road at Thrasher’s Corner in Bothell. Owned by Penny Price and Chelsey Freeman, the store offers UPS shipping and freight services, full-service packaging, mailbox and postal services, copying services and office supplies.

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