Richland Cash & Carry is now a CHEF’STORE

The Richland Cash & Carry Smart Foodservice store has been rebranded as a US Foods CHEF’STORE, effective March 1.

US Foods acquired Smart Foodservice Warehouse Stores in April 2020 to accelerate growth in the cash and carry market. This change combines the US Foods brand with the assortment, pricing and customer service of Smart Foodservice Warehouse Stores, paving the way for an enhanced customer experience, according to US Foods.

As part of the rebranding, all 72 Smart Foodservice Warehouse Stores, including the one in Richland at 1939 Fowler St., updated store signage, marketing and promotional materials, associate uniforms and other elements in and around the stores.

Shoppers can still expect the same service and products at the whole foods and restaurant supplier. Over time, stores will begin to introduce US Foods Exclusive Brands to expand product assortment.

US Foods operates 33 stores in the state, including a new one in Clarkston.

US Foods, headquartered in Rosemont, Illinois, is a foodservice distributor, partnering with about 300,000 restaurants and foodservice operators.

Trios Health opens spine and pain clinic

Trios Health opened a spine and interventional pain clinic at Trios Care Center at Southridge, 3730 Plaza Way, Kennewick.

The clinic opened Feb. 22 in the former Pinnacle Pain space in suite 6100.

The medical team is led by neurosurgeon Dr. Matthew Fewel and intervention pain management specialist Dr. Michael Kolczynski.

Fewel joined Trios in 2019 and Kolczynski in 2020.

Baker Boyer buys neighboring office

Baker Boyer Bancorp, a Walla Walla bank, bought the office condominium next to its Kennewick office as an investment in its future.

Baker Boyer paid $525,000 for a former hearing aid clinic that occupied 3,239 square feet on the other side of its building at 1149 N. Edison St., Suite D.

Vesna Dodge, branch manager, said there are no plans to expand the 18-person staff into the other side of the two-unit building. The bank already owned the unit it occupies.

Buying the space buys flexibility to grow in the future or sell the entire building as a single unit.

Baker Boyer has branches in Kennewick and Yakima. The local branch provides trust and wealth management services as well as business banking.

Tri-Cities Airport puts development on display

The Tri-Cities Airport has debuted a new artwork project that celebrates the history of development of the region.

The 2021 display, curated by the Airport Art Committee, highlights the people, buildings and events that shaped the community.

The local chapter of the American Institute of Architects, the Pacific Northwest Aviation Museum and the Franklin County Historical Society and Museum each assembled a collection of images to display in the terminal for the coming year.

Meadow Springs is U.S. Open final qualifying site

Meadow Springs Country Club is one of 11 final qualifying sites for the U.S. Open golf tournament.

The U.S. Golf Association identified 109 local sites and 11 final sites to serve as the lead-up for the tournament, which will be held June 17-20 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.

Players who advance from the local qualifying process in 43 states and Canada advance to the finals.

In addition to Richland, finals will be held in Texas, Ohio, California, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, New York and in Japan and Canada. Meadow Springs will host a U.S. Open final on June 7, according to Golf Week magazine.

Sandhill Crane Festival heads online

The Othello Sandhill Crane Festival will be held online from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 20. The cost is $10.

The speakers are Gary Ivy, who will discuss the cranes that migrate through Othello; Bruce Bjornstad, who will discuss the ice age floods; Mike Denny, who led tours for the festival for more than 20 years; and Jason Fidorra, who will discuss burrowing owl habitat.

Go to othellosandhillcranefestival.org/online-registration.

Foreclosure ban is keeping the zombies at bay, for now

At least one feature of the Great Recession has not made an appearance during the economic upheaval of the Covid-19 pandemic: The vacant, often foreclosed, zombie house.

Prohibitions against foreclosures are depressing the number of abandoned or unoccupied properties to a minimum, according to the First Quarter 2021 Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report from ATTOM Data Solutions.

ATTOM, parent to RealtyTrac, reports 1.4 million vacant properties, or 1.5% of the 99 million homes in the U.S. The data is based on publicly recorded real estate data, including foreclosure status, equity and owner occupancy status.

The foreclosure rate was 38% lower than a year ago and 12.3% lower than the previous quarter. The “zombie” rate translates to one out of every 14,825 homes, compared to one in 11,405 a year ago.

ATTOM attributes the drop to a moratorium against lenders foreclosing on government-backed mortgages, which has been in place for a year. The mortarium affects 70% of home loans in the county and was extended to June 30, 2021, by Congress in 2020.

“These days, you can walk through most neighborhoods in the United States and not spot a single zombie foreclosure. That continues a remarkable turnaround from the (Great Recession) when many communities were dotted by abandoned properties,” said Todd Teta, chief product officer for ATTOM who also noted the numbers will worsen when the moratorium is lifted.

New York had the most zombie properties, followed by Florida, Illinois, Ohio and New Jersey. California led the West.

Blue Mountain Land Trust plans virtual film fest

Blue Mountain Land Trust, a Walla Walla nonprofit focused on preserving natural areas, will screen its annual Wild & Scenic Festival online at 6:30 p.m. April 1.

The event pairs inspirational films that celebrate the natural environment while attendees chat and vie for door prizes.

Walla Walla area residents can sign up for special food packages as well, with special meals available from AK’s Mercado in Walla Walla, Little Canyon Food Cart in John Day and Sundown Grill & Bar-B-Q in Pendleton.

General admission is $25. Go to bmlt.org/wild2021.

Northwest Farm Credit Services raised dividend rate

Northwest Farm Credit Services paid a one-time patronage dividend of 1.5% of customer-members’ eligible average daily loan balance instead of the customary payment of 1.25%. Eligible beneficiaries received a portion of the payment in mid-2020 and the balance in mid-February 2021.

NWFCS, a $14 billion financing cooperative, paid $177 million to more than 9,000 customer-members for 2020.