State budget includes $7.5M for Pasco development

The Port of Pasco was awarded $7.5 million in the state capital budget to develop roads and other  infrastructure for its next project, the Reimann Industrial Center.

The funding is contingent on a new large food processor committing to building a facility at Reimann, which is currently undeveloped.

The 300-acre center is on the east side of Railroad Avenue between Foster Wells Road and Vineyard Avenue.

The state funds will be combined with port money to prepare the site for future industrial development. Reimann is intended to host food processing, cold storage and distribution facilities.

Monitor vit plant melter heatup online

Bechtel National Inc. has launched a website to track the process of starting up Hanford’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, better known as the vit plant, which will encapsulate nuclear waste in glass logs for long-term storage.

Bechtel, the U.S. Department of Energy contractor for the project, will begin heating up the first melter later this year.

Two 300-ton waste melters inside the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste Facility will heat waste from Hanford’s tanks to 2,100 degrees F together with glass-forming materials to create glass logs.

Track the progress at melterheatup.hanfordvitplant.com.

Benton, Franklin nonprofits can apply for grants

The Three Rivers Community Foundation is inviting nonprofits in Benton and Franklin counties to apply for $415,000 in grants to support efforts to improve housing, food insecurity and mental health.

The deadline to apply is 5 p.m. May 15.

The funding is available through the Greater Columbia Accountable Community of Health Fund in collaboration with the Benton Franklin Community Health Alliance and the community foundation.

The awards prioritize supportive housing for those living with addiction or mental health issues, sheltering homeless middle and high school aged youth, expanding school-based food programs, providing free or low-cost healthy foods at places where youth gather, suicide prevention and adding mental health counselors.

Some of the investments supported by prior grants include a clinical social worker at Chaplaincy Health Care, a psychiatric nurse practitioner at Grace Clinic and social skills training for Tri-Cities Residential services residents.

Apply for grants at 3rcf.org/non-profits/how-to-apply-for-a-grant. 

Donate at 3rcf.org/donations.

At Home going private in $2.8B deal

At Home Group Inc., which opened a massive home décor store in Kennewick shortly before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, is being taken private.

The Dallas, Texas-based company announced it has entered a deal to sell itself to private equity firm Hellman & Friedman in an all-cash deal valued at $2.8 billion.

At Home stockholders will get $36 per share, representing a premium of about 17% over the May 4 closing stock price of $30.67.

At Home operates 226 locations in 40 states. It entered the Tri-City market in 2019 when Shopko vacated its 106,000-square-foot store on Columbia Center Boulevard. At Home opened in September 2019 following a $2.5 million remodel.

’Tis the season for paving scams

It’s spring, which means it’s time for unscrupulous contractors to hit the streets.

The Washington state Department of Labor & Industries warns residents of the common paving scam. “Contractors” show up, offering to pave a driveway, typically with asphalt purportedly left over from a nearby job.

When the project is done. Shady contractors raise the price and demand payment for shoddy work with substandard materials.

Go to protectmyhome.net for tips on avoiding getting scammed and how to hire contractors.

Houston partnership to build PNNL ‘Launchpad’

A pair of Houston- based partners will build the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s $75 million Grid Storage Launchpad.

Harvey | Harvey-Cleary and Kirksey Architecture were selected to design and construct the project by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity, which announced the ambitious clean energy development center earlier this spring.

The partners also are the design-build team for the $90 million Energy Sciences Center being constructed on the PNNL campus in north Richland. In 2008-09, Harvey | Harvey-Cleary was the general contractor for a biological and computational sciences research center.

The Grid Storage Laboratory will provide validation and testing of grid storage technologies. The 85,000-square-foot building will include 30 research laboratories and other amenities to serve scientists and researchers.

The state of Washington is supporting with project with an $8.3 million grant to pay for equipment and instruments.

HFG Trust expands to Oregon, California

HFG Trust, a Tri-City wealth management firm, is expanding to Oregon and California with the acquisition of Prime Wealth Management of Berkeley, California.

With the acquisition, HFG Trust manages nearly $1.1 billion in client assets.

HFG Trust, led by William Wang, is a locally owned and privately held financial services organization with headquarters in Kennewick.

It employs 124 and provides comprehensive wealth management services, including portfolio management, 401(k) services and private banking in partnership with its parent, Community First Bank.

Physician leases space in Pasco

Dr. Sergio Flores signed a lease for 890 square feet in Captain Gray Plaza, 115 W. Court St., Pasco, for a family medicine practice.

Jason Goffard of Kiemle Hagood represented the landlord, Lakeshore Investment Corp.

Restaurants eligible for millions in grants

The U.S. Small Business Administration will provide up to $10 million to hard-hit restaurants and other gathering spots to compensate for the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The money does not have to be repaid.

The Restaurant Revitalization Fund was established with $28.6 billion from the American Rescue Plan, signed into law by President Joe Biden.

The program opened on May 3 and recorded 186,200 applications in its first two days. About a third of the applications were from businesses with less than $500,000 in pre-pandemic revenue, representing some of the smallest businesses in the country.

The program is open to restaurants, food stands/trucks/carts, caterers, bars/saloons/lounges/taverns, snack and beverage bars, bakeries, brewpubs, wineries and other facilities where the public may taste, sample or purchase products.

Businesses can apply for up to $10 million to compensate for actual losses, up to $5 million per site.

Go to sba.gov/restaurants.

Pasco wine shop offers free local delivery

CD Wine Ventures, an online wine shop, has opened in downtown Pasco.

Owners Emily and Craig Maloney and Damien Davis created the business to offer monthly club shipments and online purchases of unique wines for pickup or delivery in the Tri-Cities. 

Go to cdwineventures.com.