Ray Rantanen breaks into excited laughter as he describes how microscopic cutting teeth form on the blades of the knives he crafts when his customers begin to use them—actually making the carefully honed edges sharper with use.Simply put, a

The total value of Spokane-area construction activity held relatively steady in 2008, with nonresidential projects offsetting a steep decline in new-home construction. Some industry observers say, though, that the pace of commercial construction in

It's not just the nation's megabanks that are getting infusions of capital through the U.S. Department of the Treasury's massive Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP). Three Inland Northwest banks have received a combined $454 million from the and

Foreclosures in Spokane County shot up 84 percent in the last year, but economic analysts here say that increase isn't too alarming yet, compared with the soaring foreclosure activity in other parts of the country.The county auditor reported 560

Avista Utilities' customers in Washington and Idaho far exceeded the Spokane-based company's goals to save energy through its rebate and other incentive programs last year, and that success is being mirrored across the Pacific Northwest.The says

One of the Village at Riverstone's most anticipated retail anchors, Barnes & Noble Inc., apparently has canceled its plans to open at the Coeur d'Alene mixed-use development.A lawsuit, filed last month in U.S. District Court, in Spokane, by the