Port of Kalama sees cargo increase
The Port of Kalama’s cargo increased 14 percent from 2006 to 2007.
The port reported moving 9.6 million short tons of cargo in 2007, equivalent to 19.2 billion tons. The majority of the cargo was grain, at 9.2 million short tons. The port’s annual metric tonnage was third among Washington ports behind Tacoma and Seattle. The Port of Vancouver was fourth.
GVCC chooses board members
The Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce appointed four new members to its board of directors for three-year terms beginning in September.
The new board members are Jeff Harvey, chief executive officer of Burgerville; Daniel Kirkwood, vice president of Kirkwood and Kirkwood; William Pritchard, owner of Pritchard Orthodontics; and Rhona Sen Hoss, community partnerships manager for The Columbian. All four work in Vancouver and were elected by chamber members through mail-in ballots.
The new members will be installed at the chamber’s annual dinner at 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 15 at the Hilton Vancouver.
Business federation endorses McKenna
The National Federation of Independent Business in August endorsed Rob McKenna for reelection as Washington’s attorney general.
A poll of NFIB members showed 88 percent support for McKenna. His opponent, John Ladenburg of Pierce County, drew 2 percent and 10 percent were undecided.
The association has offices in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals.
Bullivant develops industry service group
Law firm Bullivant Houser Bailey has established an industry group to serve its clients in arts, entertainment and sports businesses.
The Portland-based firm’s clients include film studios, record labels, museums and sports teams. The industry group will assist those clients with business organization, contracts, project financing, intellectual property, licensing agreements and more.
The group includes attorneys from the firm’s Vancouver office, such as Senior Associate Candice Jackson who is co-chair of the group and Todd Mitchell, a Bullivant shareholder and Vancouver board member.
DESIGN+CONSTRUCTION
Nutter wins Turtle Place contract
Vancouver-based Nutter Corp. has contracted with Vancouver’s Downtown Association to build Turtle Place.
The 50- by 200-foot plaza will occupy C-Tran’s former Seventh Street bus mall until the space’s permanent use is set by plans for the Columbia River Crossing. Turtle Place will feature benches made of recycled concrete slabs, energy-efficient LED lighting, a mural and a water sculpture made from found objects.
The project is valued at a quarter of a million dollars, when donations, time and cash is factored in. Groundbreaking is slated for 10 a.m. on Sept. 5.
Olson Engineering reaches anniversary
Vancouver-based Olson Engineering Inc. marked its 40th anniversary in August.
Jerry Olson founded the company in 1968 in his home. It is now a multi-million-dollar firm with 45 full-time employees providing civil engineering, land surveying, landscape architecture and planning services.
The firm’s 8,000-project history includes work at Clark College, Uptown Village, Hazel Dell Towne Center and The Amphitheater at Clark County.
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
MAPS shifts focus, expands services
Mentoring Advanced Programs for Students has shifted its focus from Advanced Placement courses in a broad range of academic subjects to those centered on science, technology, engineering and math.
The organization also has broadened its audience to all high school students, not just those in AP courses, and eventually will serve middle school students and teachers. While the organization now focuses exclusively on Clark County, the board of directors plans to expand its services throughout the region and ultimately the Pacific Northwest.
Further down the road, MAPS hopes to extend classroom experiences for students and teachers and build on local business connections to help prepare more students in science, technology, engineering and math courses and careers.
SWWDC elects new board chair
Dale Lemmons, owner and manager of Kelso-based Interstate Wood Products Inc. and Signature Transport Inc., was elected chair of the Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council’s advisory board.
Lemmons joined the 34-member board three years ago and has served on its executive board for the last two years.
INNOVATION+TECHNOLOGY
Consulting group gains Midwest partner
Camas-based Columbia Technical Consulting Inc. has partnered with Schaumburg, Ill.-based Industrial Financial Systems to help mid-sized companies with resource planning.
The local company provides consultation to clients in business supply chains. Its consultants will use IFS Applications to assist its clients in enterprise resource planning, implementation and project management.
The local company was founded in 2001 and serves clients in a variety industries, from life sciences to telecommunications.
