Agrium Inc., a Calgary, Alberta-based fertilizer producer, plans to close its Spokane wholesale office Sept. 30, cutting about 35 jobs here, says Jim Pendergast, Agriums director of investor relations.


The closure is part of a corporate restructuring to lower costs. Agrium recently completed a review of its operations that prompted a reorganization of senior management and other changes.


One of the things we decided in our review of general and administrative costs, unfortunately for Spokane, was to close the Spokane office, Pendergast says.


The office here occupies about 10,000 square feet of floor space at 601 W. Riverside. The Spokane operation, which includes sales, marketing, credit, and technical departments, will be consolidated into Agriums other U.S. wholesale office in Denver, he says. Some employees here were offered transfers to Denver or Calgary, and five to 10 of them are expected to make such moves, he says.


The fertilizer maker, which was part of Vancouver, British Columbia-based Cominco Ltd. until it was spun off in 1992, has maintained an office in Spokane for decades.


Agrium also operates retail fertilizer outlets under the names Crop Production Services in the Eastern U.S. and the Midwest and Western Farm Service, which will continue to maintain operations in Eastern Washington.


As part of its recent restructuring, Agrium also has closed a research and development facility in Saskatchewan, thinned its senior management ranks, and eliminated two business units that dealt with new products and sales and production outside North America.