A banker friend of mine says a colleague says these days, "In banking, 'flat' is the new 'up.'" Why bankers would laugh ruefully at such a remark was obvious when I worked on a story last issue about Sterling Financial Corp., of Spokane, from a

Star Label Co., a Spokane Valley label manufacturer, says retail giant Costco Wholesale Corp., of Issaquah, Wash., has given it a three-year contract to continue making labels for the chain's meat, bakery, and deli departments nationwide.Diana a

Personal income in the Spokane metropolitan area, though still lagging national benchmarks, grew at a faster rate last year than in the Seattle, Boise, and Portland markets, and also grew faster than the U.S. average, recently released data show. a

KDR Powersports LLC, a motorcycle, all-terrain vehicle, and snowmobile sales and service business, is expanding and remodeling its showroom and plans to move its service department to larger quarters in an adjacent building.Co-owner Dexter says

Contineo Technologies Inc., a Spokane technology company, has opened an office in Fort Worth, Texas, in response to what it sees as a growth opportunity in that region of the U.S.The nine-year-old company, which employs 13 people here, in data a

Hospice of North Idaho says it plans to begin construction next spring on a $3.5 million Hospice House facility on a six-acre piece of property it has purchased at 2212 W. Prairie, in Coeur d'Alene.The land, which the nonprofit recently bought a

Clare House LLC and Clare House Bungalow Homes LLC each have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection here, forestalling trustees' sales of a South Hill senior housing development. The three properties that comprise the development, at 4827 a

Spokane City Councilman Al French says he will run for Spokane County Commissioner Bonnie Mager's seat in the general election next year. The two-term councilman, architect, and businessman, who hasn't waged a partisan campaign before, says he a

The Spokane County hearing examiner has denied a request by Spokane developers Dennis Swartout and his son, Ben, for a height exemption to allow construction of two 12-story condominium towers on the South Hill.Michael Dempsey, the hearing a