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Puget Sound Business Journal
Port of Everett hires veteran exec to oversee its budget
The Port of Everett has hired someone new to oversee its $83 million operating and capital budget. <\p> Monique Liard, who has joined the agency as its chief administrative and financial officer, started in late May after a nearly five-year stint as CFO for the Spokane Transit Authority. She replaces former CFO Eric Russell, who retired in March, after five years at the port. <\p>
Lower Queen Anne mixed-use building sells for first time
The Uptown Queen Anne Apartments has a new owner: Trinity Real Estate, which paid $19.9 million for the 60-unit mid-rise building in an off-market transaction.<\p> It's a rare multifamily sale as high financing costs have throttled investment sales. The total number of units sold in the Seattle metro declined from over 25,000 in 2019 to fewer than 10,000 last year, according to Kidder Mathews, which announced the sale of the property at 315 First Ave. W., last week.<\p>
Acclaimed Washington winemaker sells label to California buyer
A California wine and spirits company has acquired a Walla Walla winery from Washington's largest independent winemaker. <\p> Acclaimed winemaker Charles Smith has sold his Substance Wines label to Larkspur, California-based O'Neil Vintners & Distillers, the two parties announced Monday. Financial terms were not disclosed. <\p>
Sustainable aviation startup Universal Hydrogen shuts down
Sustainable aviation company Universal Hydrogen has run out of money and is shutting down.<\p> Universal Hydrogen co-founder Jon Gordon confirmed the move in a Sunday LinkedIn post. The Hawthorne, California-based startup is shutting down after completing a hydrogen-powered flight from Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake in March 2023.<\p>
Boeing reaches deal to reacquire embattled supplier
The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) will hand over $4.7 billion in equity to reacquire its largest supplier, Wichita, Kansas-based fuselage maker Spirit AeroSystems, in its most significant move yet to address quality and safety problems throughout its production system.<\p> Spirit has been at the center of Boeing’s supply chain woes after a series of production missteps, including the improper installation of a panel on a 737 Max 9 fuselage that blew out during an Alaskan Airlines flight on Jan. 5. The incident has prompted inquiries from federal transportation and aviation regulators, attracted renewed interest from the U.S. Department of Justice and civil lawsuits from passengers on the flight.<\p>
Small-business grants you can apply for this month
Small-business owners might be more confident about their future, but they are still worried about inflation.<\p> That’s the big takeaway from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Small Business Index, conducted in partnership with MetLife, which hit the highest level of optimism since early 2020, with about 73% of business owners expecting their revenue to grow in the next year. <\p>
Russell Investments relocating in downtown Seattle, report says
Russell Investments has leased space in Rainier Square, according to Savills' second-quarter report.<\p> Russell sublet 55,286 square feet from Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN), states the report, which characterizes the deal as a relocation, signaling the global investment management company is vacating the namesake tower it moved into in 2010.<\p>
Clearbrief CEO shares hiring plans after latest funding round
Seattle-based legal tech startup Clearbrief is looking to bolster its ranks after raising $4 million Wednesday.<\p> Founder and CEO Jacqueline Schafer said the company, which has roughly 20 employees, is adding sales and engineering staff. She said she didn't have a specific headcount target for a year from now, but likes having "a small, agile team." <\p>
Seattle Foundation's CFO on why impact investing is the new focus
Larry Buycks was on the receiving side of philanthropy as a kid growing up in Lansing, Michigan, in a family just above the poverty line. His younger brother Jacob was born with a rare developmental disability.<\p> “We got to do a Make-a-Wish Foundation trip (to Disney World) when I was 11 years old. Jacob was also the beneficiary of the Kidney Foundation of Michigan, so I got to see philanthropy do this beautiful work for my brother and for my family at a time when we needed it,” Buycks says.<\p>
Seattle biotech company raises $20M to accelerate product development
Seattle-based biotech company RareCyte has raised $20 million.<\p> With the funding, announced Thursday, RareCyte will expand its Orion platform for spatial biology, a way for researchers to view molecules within individual cells or tissues. The company said the money will also go toward international expansion.<\p>
Developer closes on site for over 400-unit multifamily Kitsap project
Seattle-based Bode, an active multifamily developer, has teed up its next project, 438 apartments in eight buildings on the west side of state Route 3 in Silverdale.<\p> Orange County, California-based Mogharebi Group on Thursday announced it arranged the $2.4 million sale of properties that total 14.3 acres at 10239 Old Frontier Road NW.<\p>
These Seattle-area restaurants made Wine Spectator's 'best of' list
Welcome to The Digest, the Business Journal's weekly roundup of restaurant news. On Fridays, I chronicle openings, closings and other happenings in the culinary and beverage scenes across the Puget Sound region. I also check in on where the top chefs are expanding, where to grab a business lunch and what's new in the restaurant scene. And yes, I work for tips — contact me at jthompson@bizjournals.com or 206-876-5440.<\p> Wine Spectator has named 24 Seattle-area restaurants to its annual Restaurant Awards list, highlighting the best wine lists in the world.<\p>
Former corporate execs put Bellevue home up for sale (Photos)
A Bellevue couple who spent much of their careers at prominent Seattle-area companies have put their Lake Sammamish home on the market for $5.8 million.<\p> Bryce Hausmann was director of business development at Microsoft for 23 years. His wife, Denny Meadows, held vice president and director roles at Nordstrom for 13 years. <\p>
Supreme Court decision marks 'seismic shift' on federal rules
Federal agency rules that target businesses and the workplace have been dealt a blow by the latest Supreme Court decision.<\p> The case, Loper Bright Enterprises v. Secretary of Commerce, was specifically focused on fees in a rule by the National Marine Fisheries Service, but ultimately targeted the four-decade framework for federal agency rulemaking known as Chevron — named after a previous Supreme Court case. <\p>
Homebuilder pays $29M for downtown Woodinville property
The MainStreet Property Group-HAL Real Estate joint venture has sold a slice of their Eastrail mixed-use development in downtown Woodinville.<\p> An affidavit that King County posted Thursday shows Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) paid a joint venture of MainStreet Property Group and HAL Real Estate $29 million.<\p>
Giant Silverdale apartment project begins welcoming tenants
The first four buildings of what will become an 18-building, 570-unit apartment complex in Silverdale have opened to residents.<\p> Tenants have begun moving into the property at 11501 Clear Creek Road SW now that a temporary certificate of occupancy permit has been issued, said Courtney Blair, director of business development for the developer, Russell Square. The current occupancy rate was not available.<\p>
Tacoma bank C-suiter and 2 staff members to depart
Commencement Bank's chief financial officer is leaving the Tacoma-based financial institution next month.<\p> In a Wednesday all-staff email obtained by the Business Journal, CEO John Manolides said CFO Tom Dhamers' last day will be July 5. Employees Charlene Pearl and Alicia Bulldis will also move on from the bank.<\p>
Kent industrial complex sells to local investor
Kent-based real estate company Davis Property & Investment acquired an industrial complex in Kent for $11.4 million in a deal that closed last week. <\p> The four-building Central Commerce Center totals 63,270 square feet and sits on a 2.7-acre site on the 1000 block of Central Avenue South. The sales price for the buildings, which were developed around 2001, works out to $180 per square foot. <\p>
These CFOs know their business is more than the sum of its parts
The most effective financial leaders are the ones who find a way to step beyond the role of the “numbers person.”<\p> The 2024 CFO of the Year program honors 11 of those executives who have not only withstood the often challenging and unpredictable market conditions of the past few years but refined them into growth opportunities for their organizations. <\p>
Harrell proposes citywide expansion of new public safety department
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell on Wednesday said he will expand the Community Assisted Response and Engagement (CARE) Department across the city.<\p> Launched as a pilot program last fall, CARE is the city's new public safety department that complements the work of firefighters and police officers. It includes an unarmed six-member pilot team. <\p>
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