Nationwide housing affordability rose to a record level during the fourth quarter of 2011, while prospective home buyers continued to feel the constraints of tighter credit standards and a soft economy, according to National Association of Home of

The Coeur d'Alene City Council's recent decision to revamp McEuen Park brought back a rush of memories for me.Not about the ball fields. I never played on the lakeview diamonds just east of the Coeur d'Alene Resort. Nor about the boat launch.

Couple in Valley starts roof-coating companyEmpire Roof Coatings LLC, a Conklin Roof Systems provider for buildings with flat and low-sloped roofs, has opened in Spokane Valley.Isaac Cornelius and his wife, Gail, own the business and currently

Glacier Bancorp Inc., the Kalispell, Mont.-based holding company with 11 bank subsidiaries, including Coeur d'Alene-based Mountain West Bank, says it plans to combine all of its subsidiaries into one bank charter.That means Mountain West Bank

Westside MotorSports, a big West Plains motorcycle and all-terrain vehicle dealer, says it has added a line of hot tubs as part of an effort to diversify its product offerings and meet the changing demands of the marketplace.Scott Schmidtman, is

Liberty Lake-based Seasons Cafe LLC has won a contract to offer food service beginning this month inside the 8,000-square-foot cafeteria and dining center in the large Meadowwood Technology Campus building in Liberty Lake.Seasons Cafe is to open

Spokane business owner Mary Moltke plans in June to open a new eatery, called E.J.'s Garden Bistro, in a newly remodeled and updated 19-century home in Spokane's historic Browne's Addition.Moltke says she encountered a number of unexpected the a

Shoshone Silver/Gold Mining Co., a Coeur d'Alene-based concern with mineral projects in several western U.S. states, has signed a letter of intent with a Spokane-based mining company to acquire mineral properties in Utah.Shoshone agreed to $10 a

Ecova Inc., the Spokane-based Avista Corp. subsidiary that provides energy-management services to large corporations with multiple sites, has launched a new feature to enable residential utility customers to monitor their energy consumption.The