Proposed Coeur d’Alene hotel to anchor $20 million complex

Mike McLean

Coeur d’Alene businessman Ron Ayers says the hotel he’s planning would be the engine that drives an economic development campus, in addition to increasing lodging capacity near downtown Coeur d’Alene. Ayers proposes to develop a $10 million, 112-ro...

Spokane Convention Center is off to strong start this year

Though the year is still young, the Spokane Convention Center already has generated $61.9 million in estimated economic impact for Spokane-area businesses, says Spokane Public Facilities District CEO Kevin Twohig. That’s far ahead of the 2015 pace in w...

CenterPlace Regional Event Center aims for record number of events

LeAnn Bjerken

CenterPlace Regional Event Center, in Spokane Valley, celebrated its 10th year of operations last year by hosting a record 920 events, and the busy facility hopes to exceed that number by at least 5 percent this year. Owned by the city of Spokane Valley ...

For Spokane-area credit unions, auto loans are a growth drive

Spokane-area credit unions say they experienced an uptick in overall loan originations from 2014 to 2015, sparked in part by robust demand for auto loans. The demand for autos here mimicked what was a national trend in 2015. Experian Automotive, operat...

SBA small-business loan incentives help more borrowers

Mike McLean

U.S. Small Business Administration loan incentives are helping a growing number of businesses start up or expand, some lenders here say. In 2015, lenders in the Spokane branch of SBA’s Seattle district issued 522 SBA-backed loans totaling $183 million,...

SNAP Financial Access expects loan volume to hit $700K this year

LeAnn Bjerken

SNAP Financial Access, a community development financial institution here, saw a 26 percent increase in loan volume last year and hopes to continue its goal of providing small business development resources through new programs and partnerships, a program...

GoJoe Patrol to franchise

Major Bambino is a retired Washington State Patrolman who once served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves. Harry Sladich is a 30-year veteran of the hospitality industry and currently is executive vice president of sales, marketing, and distribution for Spo...

UI center aims to teach cybersecurity specialists

Mike McLean

The University of Idaho has launched its Cybersecurity Training and Operations Center, in Post Falls, where it hopes to educate and certify 350 information technology security specialists through hands-on simulated cyberattack response training in the nex...

Lack of banking options exposes marijuana industry

LeAnn Bjerken

The number of identity fraud victims in the U.S. increased by 3 percent, to 13.1 million consumers, last year, but the amount stolen decreased by 6 percent, to $15 billion, says a study released earlier this month by San Francisco-based Javelin Strategy ...

Pilgrim’s Market to grow its own produce

Mike McLean

Joe Hamilton, owner of Pilgrim’s Market and a pioneer in Coeur d’Alene’s natural and organic food sales, now is blazing a trail for urban farming in the Lake City. Hamilton recently bought an 8,000-square-foot residential lot next to the 25,000-squ...