Feb. 9 / Potlatch posts higher earnings for quarter, year
Spokane-based Potlatch Corp. reported earnings of $2.9 million, or 7 cents a diluted share, for the fourth-quarter of 2009, compared with a net loss of $4.4 million, or 11 cents a diluted share, for the year-earlier quarter. The company reported net earnings of $77.3 million, or $1.93 a diluted share, for 2009, compared with $52.6 million, or $1.32 a diluted share, for the previous year. Michael Covey, chairman, president, and CEO of Potlatch, said timber prices have stabilized and are improving in the first quarter of 2010.

Feb. 3 / Ambassadors reports improving income
Ambassadors Group Inc., the Spokane-based provider of international educational travel programs, reported a net loss of $6.1 million, or 32 cents a diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2009, compared with a net loss of $6.5 million, or 34 cents a diluted share, for the year-earlier quarter. For the year, the company reported net income of $20.3 million, or $1.05 a diluted share, up from $18.5 million, or 95 cents a diluted share, in 2008. Though participation in its travel programs decreased, the company said it increased its operating income for the year by managing its prices, travel costs, and operating expenses actively.

Feb. 3 / Developers donate land for Armed Forces museum
The Armed Forces & Aerospace Museum Society said a group of Spokane developers donated three acres of land adjacent to Interstate 90 as a site for the proposed Armed Forces & Aerospace Museum. The property, located at the intersection of Thomas Mallen Road and Geiger Boulevard south of Spokane International Airport, was donated by development partners Tim Welsh, Al Payne, Bruce Morelan, Jack Gillingham, Kevin Edwards, Pete Thompson, and Dick Edwards. The museum will buy an additional three acres there, with an option to buy six more acres later for future expansion.

Feb. 3 / Next IT wins additional Army contract
Next It Corp. of Spokane, said it signed an agreement with the U.S. Army Recruiting Command to incorporate its virtual recruiter, Sergeant STAR, into a software suite for Army recruiters called Recruiter's Workstation. Next IT originally designed Sergeant STAR for use on the U.S. Army's Web site, GoArmy.com. The Spokane company also is developing enhancements to Sergeant STAR with GoArmy.com, to enable its use on mobile Web browsers, on social networking sites like Facebook, and to enable the virtual recruiter to send and receive text messages via cell phone.

Feb. 1 / Sterling posts $333.1 million quarterly loss
Sterling Financial Corp., the Spokane-based holding company that owns Sterling Savings Bank and Golf Savings Bank, reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $333.1 million, or $6.41 a common share, compared with a loss of $356.3 million, or $6.87 a share, in the year-earlier quarter. The loss included a $340.3 million allowance for loan losses. For all of 2009, Sterling reported a loss of $855.5 million, or $16.48 a common share, compared with a loss of $336.7 million, or $6.51 a share, for 2008.

Feb. 1 / December passenger, cargo numbers up
A total of 264,300 airline passengers arrived and departed at Spokane International Airport in December, up 6.3 percent from the year-earlier month. For all of 2009, passenger numbers at the airport decreased to 3.06 million, down 10.8 percent from 3.42 million in 2008. Inbound and outbound air-cargo tonnage in December rose to a total of 4,929 tons, up 6.3 percent from December 2008, while shipments for all of 2009 totaled 46,863 tons, down 10 percent from 2008.

Jan. 31 / County considers raceway safety improvements
Spokane County Parks Director Doug Chase said the county is considering a proposed reroute of a half-mile of the Raceway Park track and $500,000 worth of additional safety improvements there. Chase said the potential improvements eventually would be repaid through raceway revenues. Separately, a raceway committee was scheduled to review this week four applications from private concerns seeking to become the track operator.

Corrections & Amplifications
Independent-living apartments at Waterford on South Hill range from about 500 square feet to about 1,600 square feet of floor space and cost $2,030 to more than $4,000 per month. Those fees include meals, transportation, and other services. This information was reported incorrectly in the Jan. 28 Journal.