Kennewick chocolate shop to close

A balloon, party and chocolate shop in Kennewick is closing at the end of August.

The owners of Baum’s at 513 N. Edison St. announced Aug. 14 in a social media post that they’re retiring and “will be closing our doors at the end of the month.”

“We want to express our deepest gratitude for your amazing support and loyalty to Baum’s since 1981,” Don and Mindy Sandlin wrote in a Facebook post. 

They said they’re stepping away from balloon and party side of the business, “but as for our chocolates, we are still deciding on the next steps and will keep you updated,” they wrote.

Hydrogen association earns federal funding award

A multistate nonprofit with partners that include Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Washington State University has received up to $27.5 million in federal funding for the first phase of its work. 

The Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association’s goal is to create a network of clean hydrogen suppliers and end-users in the Pacific Northwest.

“We are excited to embark on Phase 1 and lead the way in building a new clean energy commodity in the U.S. that will benefit generations of families throughout the region,” said Chris Green, president of the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association, in a statement.

Gov. Jay Inslee added that, “I look forward to seeing how this effort helps us decarbonize transportation and industrial sectors and create good-paying jobs for Washington workers and families for decades to come. This is exactly what we have been working for here in Washington state over the last 12 years and the PNWH2 is among the leaders in this effort.”

Lamb Weston ‘disappointed’ by fourth quarter performance

Lamb Weston is “disappointed” by its fourth quarter performance in fiscal year 2024 and expects fiscal year 2025 to be challenging as well, the president and CEO recently said.

“Our price/mix results were below our expectations, while market share losses and a slowdown in restaurant traffic in the U.S. and many of our key international markets were greater than we expected. We also incurred losses related to a voluntary product withdrawal,” said Tom Werner, president and CEO, in a statement.

The company reported a net sales decline of 5% and a net income decline of 74%. Income from operations increased 14% to $213 million, the company reported.

Looking ahead to 2025, Werner said a supply-demand imbalance will likely persist.

“Accordingly, we are making some operating adjustments in the near term to fit the macroeconomic reality and business environment, including reinvigorating volume growth, targeted investments in price and trade support, decisive measures on cost, supply chain productivity initiatives, and a rephasing of investments to modernize production capabilities to better match the demand environment,” he said in the statement.

Despite the headwinds, “we remain focused on executing on our long-term strategies and improving customer service. We believe the actions we are taking to continue to strengthen our portfolio and capabilities, position us well to continue to support our customers and create value for our stakeholders over the long term,” he said.

Local Bounti credits Pasco greenhouse for contributing to growth

Local Bounti, which recently opened a large indoor greenhouse in Pasco, reported a second-quarter net loss of $25.3 million. But officials pointed to the Pasco operation as contributing to the company’s sales growth in the same period.

Sales increased 31% to $9.4 million in the second quarter.

“We celebrated a significant milestone for Local Bounti in the second quarter, with our new Washington and Texas facilities commencing commercial operations,” said Craig Hurlbert, Local Bounti CEO, in a statement. 

“These purpose-built, state-of-the-art facilities feature our patented Stack & Flow Technology and are already demonstrating significant advantages in efficiency and capacity,” he said, adding that the company now is focused on building out product assortment, expanding distribution and strengthening partnerships with major retailers.

“We believe this tremendous commercial progress, combined with the sales generated from our new optimized facilities, keeps us on a clear path towards our goal to double our revenue this year and achieve positive adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) in early 2025,” he said in the statement. “Our mission is to revolutionize local, sustainable produce production and distribution across the nation in a manner that maximizes capital efficiency.”

HAPO taps new president and CEO

A longtime HAPO Community Credit Union leader has been tapped for the top role. 

Scott Mitchell is the new president and CEO. HAPO announced his selection on Aug. 8.

“We have worked with Scott for many years and have always been impressed with his

communication skills and financial knowledge, but more importantly, his commitment to our members and the communities HAPO serves,” said Ken Hohenberg, board chairman, in a statement. He added that the board is confident Mitchell will lead with dedication to ensure the organization’s goals are met, and that he’s “the right person to create a viable financial plan that will carry the credit union through future growth stages.”

Mitchell, who grew up in Kennewick, has worked with HAPO for 19 years, including serving as acting president/CEO and executive vice president and CFO.

“It is a tremendous honor to lead the HAPO team. I am very appreciative of the board’s confidence in me. I’m excited to step into this new role and will work to further strengthen our credit union and provide additional value to our members,” Mitchell said.

HAPO has 20 branches in Washington and Oregon.

Thousands of WA households eligible for electricity bill credit

About 20% of all residential electricity customers in Washington are eligible for a $200 energy bill credit through a new program. The Washington Families Clean Energy Credits grant program is paid for by the state’s Climate Commitment Act.

“We are committed to ensuring that the benefits of the state’s clean energy transition reach everyone, especially those most burdened by energy costs,” said Gov. Jay Inslee in a statement. “The Climate Commitment Act is helping thousands of low-income families and communities reduce their home energy costs through things like weatherization, heat pumps and solar installations. While we continue to make those tools available for more people, this credit offers an immediate benefit.”

More than 675,000 low- to moderate-income electric utility customers are eligible.

Go to: wacleanenergycredits.com.

STCU acquiring Community Bank

The Liberty Lake-based STCU has announced plans to acquire Community Bank.

The deal requires regulatory and shareholder approval and other closing conditions, and it’s on track to wrap up in early 2025, a joint STCU-Community Bank statement said.

Community Bank has 10 branches in Washington and Oregon, including Umatilla and Walla Walla counties near the Tri-Cities. It has $550 million in total assets.

STCU has 39 branch locations spread across Eastern Washington and North Idaho, including the Tri-Cities. It has $5.8 billion in total assets. 

When the transaction closes, it will have about $6.4 billion in total assets, with 49 branches in Eastern Washington, North Idaho and Eastern Oregon, the news release said.

STCU is committed to keeping all the Community Bank branches and offering jobs to all Community Bank employees, the news release said. 

“Since our founding in 1955, Community Bank has been proud to support the communities of our region, and the many neighbors who are our customers,” Tom Moran, Community Bank president and CEO, said in the release. “As the banking and business environment of our region grows increasingly competitive, this transaction with STCU will ensure expanded product offerings, more locations, and a continued high level of services.”

STCU President and CEO Ezra Eckhardt added that the transaction aligns with STCU’s commitment to rural communities. It’s expanded its branch network in 12 small communities through similar transactions since 2020, the release said.

“We are committed to making this transaction as seamless as possible for Community Bank customers,” Eckhardt said in the release. “We look forward to continuing Community Bank’s long tradition of supporting the communities it serves.”

Tri-Cities-based IT provider acquired

A Tri-Cities-based IT services provider is becoming part of an international company.

VC3, which has headquarters in South Carolina and Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, has announced the acquisition of Inline Computer & Communications in Richland.

VC3 is a managed IT and cybersecurity services provider that works with municipalities and businesses across North America. The acquisition expands its Northwest presence.

“Longevity in the IT industry is difficult to sustain. Inline has served clients since 1988, and they’ve become a fixture in Southeast Washington. Not only have they mastered the basics of managed services, data backup, and technology planning, but they also specialize in compliance,” said Ryan Vestby, VC3’s CEO, in a statement. “...VC3 is excited to bring on this stellar team to expand our presence in the Northwest U.S. and increase our IT, cybersecurity and compliance capabilities.”

Greg Hammer, Inline’s CEO, added that, “At Inline, we’ve made it our mission to provide our clients with superior technology services, keep our lines of communication open with them, and speak in plain language so that they understand what’s going on.”

When they looked into the future, “we realized that further growth in our capabilities and customer service needed to happen by partnering,” he said.

Becoming part of VC3 “offered a unique opportunity to maintain our company culture and continuity of service to clients while providing us a national backbone of support, resources and expertise. Together with VC3, Inline looks forward to the next chapter of our business,” Hammer said in the statement.

Kennewick celebrates completion of intersection project

The city of Kennewick recently celebrated the completion of the Deschutes Avenue-Columbia Center Boulevard intersection project.

The large-scale infrastructure project, which began in the summer of 2023, was designed to enhance traffic flow and improve safety.

Key improvements included a new traffic signal system; a new roundabout; the installation of curbs, gutters, sidewalks, concrete traffic islands and retaining walls; and paving and restriping.

This work prepares for the widening of Columbia Center north of Deschutes and adding a third lane for northbound and southbound traffic to Quinault Avenue.

The project was funded through grants from the Benton-Franklin Council of Governments, Federal Highway Administration and the state Transportation Improvement Board.

Ellison Earthworks LLC was the contractor.

Apple industry forecasts return to more average crop size

A new apple forecast for the state shows a return to a more average crop size after an unusual two years. The 2024 crop is estimated at 124 million standard 40-pound boxes.

The 2020 crop was 122.5 million boxes, followed by 122.9 million in 2021. Cool and wet weather in 2022 resulted in a smaller crop of 103.9 million, and then a much larger rebound crop in 2023 of 136.1 million boxes.

The report from the Washington State Tree Fruit Association also noted the five most popular apple varieties.

Gala is No. 1 with 19% of the state’s production, followed by Granny Smith at 14.5%, Red Delicious at 13%, Honeycrisp at 12%, and Fuji at 10.5%.

The newest variety, Cosmic Crisp, is estimated to be 9% of the total crop.