Oct. 22 / Potlatch earnings rise

Potlatch Corp., of Spokane, reported third-quarter net income of $22.2 million, or 54 cents a diluted share, up from $18.6 million, or 46 cents a share, in the 2012 third quarter. The company reported an $8 million increase in revenues for the latest quarter. Michael Covey, the company's chairman and CEO, said Potlatch did well in all of its business segments and that the 53 sales transactions it recorded in its real estate segment was among the highest number of transactions it has recorded since its conversion to a real estate investment trust in 2006.



Oct. 21 / Council endorses ballot measure

Spokane City Council members voted 4-1 to endorse Proposition 1, a countywide tax measure to protect Fairchild Air Force Base from civilian encroachment. The measure, which is on the November general election ballot, would assess a property tax of 6.3 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation, raising an estimated $18.1 million to purchase and relocate manufactured housing in Airway Heights that's in the accident potential zone at the northeast end of the Fairchild runway. The cost would be about $12.60 annually on a $200,000 home for up to nine years.



Oct. 18 / Former Speaker Tom Foley dies

Spokane native Thomas S. Foley, one of the city's most successful and popular politicians, died at 84 of complications from strokes. Foley served for 30 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, the last five as Speaker of the House, before losing both jobs in a historic defeat in 1994. He then served as U.S. ambassador to Japan for President Bill Clinton from 1997 to 2001, was a presidential adviser on foreign matters, and served on numerous private and public boards of directors, retiring in 2008.



Oct.17 / Myst creators seek to fund new game

Cyan Inc., the Spokane company that scored a huge hit with video game players with the "Myst" game that it debuted 20 years ago and the sequel "Riven," said it has launched a Kickstarter fundraising campaign to raise at least $1.1 million money by Nov. 16 to produce a new, but similar game called "Obduction." Cyan said "Obduction" would be a downloaded game, and that it hopes to release the first version of the game in 2015. As of earlier this week, the company was nearly halfway to its goal, with more than $500,000 pledged by a total of more than 9,000 backers.



Oct. 14 / Coldwater Creek weighs options

Coldwater Creek Inc., the big Sandpoint-based specialty women's apparel retailer, said its board of directors will evaluate a number of options, including partnerships, joint ventures, or a sale or merger, to enhance value for stockholders. The company said it hasn't set a timetable for completion of the process, and it said "there can be no assurance that the exploration of strategic alternatives will result in a transaction." Coldwater Creek, which operates more than 350 stores, has had annual losses and declining sales going back five years and has seen a recent sharp decline in its stock price.



Oct. 8 / Purcell Systems sold

EnerSys, a Reading, Pa.-based company that claims to be the world's largest manufacturer and distributor of industrial batteries, said it has bought Spokane Valley-based Purcell Systems Inc. for $115 million. Purcell Systems, a 13-year-old maker of outdoor cabinetry for the telecommunications industry, has about 150 full-time employees and posts annual sales of close to $100 million. EnerSys said it expects the deal to boost its earnings by 15 cents to 20 cents in the first year.





Corrections & Amplifications

Michael L. Senske founded Painted Hills Golf Course, in Spokane Valley, and owned and operated it for 18 years before selling it to John and Linda McElhinny and their family in 2006. Senske says the McElhinnys approached him about buying the course and that it had operated at a profit for 15 years prior to the sale. A column in the Oct. 10 Journal mischaracterized the previous ownership of the course, which now is closed.