Archive for February, 2013
Here’s a (link) to a Bloomberg article about the Canadian dollar, which dropped to an eight-month low on expectations that the Canadian economy shrank in December.
The Canadian dollar is around 97 cents compared to the U.S. dollar, strong enough that it should continue to send Canadian shoppers into Whatcom County. It does bear watching, however; if the loonie continues to drop below, say, 95 cents, it may mean fewer southbound border crossings.
Here’s a news release about free pick-up of old appliances on remodeling projects:
Appliance Depot announced it is offering free job site removal of old appliances to contractors working on laundry and kitchen remodel projects. The job training business is seeking washers, dryers, ranges, fridges, and freezers to support its nonprofit mission of creating jobs from waste.
“There’s a double benefit for remodel projects,” said executive director Duane Jager. “By making one phone call, the contractor can avoid hauling expenses, and the homeowner can get a tax deduction for the donation.”
The donated appliances provide work for Appliance Depot’s low income clients who help run a business where appliances are tested, repaired, cleaned. and sold to low income households at about half the cost of new.
Appliance donations are welcome regardless of condition Jager said. Units that cannot be saved for reuse are stripped for parts and then recycled. A Freon recycling fee is charged for fridges and freezers, but is refundable if the unit is saved for reuse.
Contractors or homeowners who want to donate an appliance can call 527-2646 or bring it to 802 Marine Drive between 10 am and 6 pm, Monday through Saturday. Collection service for homeowners is available only within the Bellingham city limits, but is available to contractors throughout Whatcom County.
Getting a new bakery display case into The Bagelry proved to be a little more difficult than expected on Wednesday, Feb. 27.
Owners of the restaurant, which is going through a major renovation, quickly discovered the display case was too big to go through the front door so they had to get it through the window. Co-owner Marguerite Ryan took a couple of photos of the process.
Ken Ryan said they plan to re0pen the restaurant on Thursday, Feb. 28.
As a result of the renovation, The Bagelry will begin offering toasted bagels. Ryan had resisted toasted bagels for nearly 30 years because he worried about the amount of time it would add to each order, but believes the new conveyor belt toaster will quickly get the job done.
The Bagelry will also have a few new sandwich and pastry options and a new espresso machine.
UPDATE: A little more work needs to be done with the refrigeration equipment, so the restaurant may not be fully operational until Friday, March 1.
Here’s more economic happenings in Whatcom County:
– On Sunday, Feb. 17 The Crossing: At Ferndale opened at 1863 Main St. in Ferndale (near Sonic). According to its Facebook page, The Crossing is a beer and bottle shop with 10 craft beers on tap, a selection of bottled beer and wine. It’s open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to midnight on Saturday and Noon to 8 p.m. on Sunday.
– Fred Meyer has filed for building permits to do a remodel of both of its Bellingham grocery stores. The Lakeway remodel is estimated at $4 million, while the Bakerview store remodel is estimated at $3.5 million.
– Boundary Bay has filed for permits to put in new brewing tanks at its Railroad Avenue brewery.
– A spokeswoman for BevMo said they are aiming for a Friday, April 12 opening of its Bellingham store, which is going into the retail center next to United Furniture.
– According to its Facebook page, Menchie’s is opening a second Bellingham location at the Bakerview Fred Meyer shopping center. No word yet on when it will open.
– Tag, a men’s consignment store on Front Street in Lynden, is closing on Saturday, Feb. 23. A sale is currently taking place through Saturday.
– McDonald’s has applied for a permit to do $200,000 in upgrades at its Telegraph Road location (near Bellis Fair).
– Laila’s Black Pearl Restaurant has applied for a liquor license to open a restaurant at 1317 W. Bakerview Road, No. 102, in the former Thai Garden space.
– California Tacos is now open at 4260 Cordata Parkway, No. 108 in the Whatcom Plaza retail center (near the community college). It’s open Monday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Whatcom County bankruptcy filings dropped significantly in January, according to new data from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
Last month Whatcom County tallied 36 bankruptcies, the second lowest monthly total in nearly five years. It’s down from 63 in January 2012, according to the data from the Western District Court in Seattle.
Total filings for the western district, including the Tacoma court, were 1,639 last month, up 3 percent compared to January 2012.
BizBlog is back in business… I’ve been busy getting caught up in the office, so I’ll post what I can. Here’s an update on the Sudden Valley restaurant building:
SUDDEN VALLEY – The Sudden Valley Community Association is seeking proposals for a new restaurant tenant at the former Bob’s Burgers and Brew building near the golf course.
The association has hired Troy Muljat and Eric Larson of The Muljat Group to help find a new restaurant operator. The deadline to submit a bid is Friday, March 1. Larson said the association’s board would review the proposals in early March.
Larson said they’ve already heard from several interested parties with a wide range of formats. Along with a 6,100-square-foot restaurant area, there’s a separate 1,225-square-foot café area that focuses on serving golfers. Catering is also a possibility, Larson said. A new operator could open the café and starting catering almost immediately, but Larson anticipates some remodeling work would be done in the main restaurant.
“The board is quite open to the possibilities of working with a new operator to create a successful space the nearly 7,000 residents can enjoy,” Lar-son said in an email.
The former Bob’s restaurant operated in the building for 11 years, closing in September.
For details on bid proposal requirements, call Larson at 360-224-5282 or Muljat at 360-820-2000.
Brampton Court Apartments, a 171-unit apartment complex at 1470 Birchwood Ave., was recently sold to Coast Equity Partners of Everett.
The apartment complex was purchased for nearly $16 million, according to a filing at the Whatcom County Treasurer’s office. It was purchased from Brampton Court Properties LLC, an entity managed by Bellingham-based Hollander Properties.
Coast Equity Partners now owns nearly 400 apartment units in Bellingham, according to a news release from the company. The firm, whose partners are Mike Harmon, Dino Rossi, Shawn Hoban and Josh Jansen, has about 700 units in the Puget Sound region.
“We are strong believers in the strength of Bellingham’s economy; the city is progressive and its population educated. We take pride in being a part of that community,” said Harmon, the company’s president, in the news release.
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