Scott Maben

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News >  Spokane

Young Post Falls inventor meets his hero, Ellen DeGeneres, leaves with $25,000

UPDATED: Thu., May 25, 2017

Alexander Knoll, a 12-year-old inventor from Post Falls, grew emotional when he met his idol. Dressed in a suit and blue tie, the boy with red hair and freckles broke out in tears

News >  Business

Spokane County unemployment rate drops to 5.2 percent

UPDATED: Tue., May 23, 2017

Spokane County’s unemployment rate dropped one percentage point, to 5.2 percent, in April. That’s also one point below the April 2016 unemployment rate, the Washington Employment Security Department said Tuesday.

News >  Business

Canadian company says it wants to buy Bunker Hill Mine for $30 million

UPDATED: Thu., May 18, 2017

There’s talk once again of reopening the storied Bunker Hill Mine in the Silver Valley.

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News >  Spokane

New branding effort seeks to define Spokane as creative, natural and enterprising

UPDATED: Fri., May 12, 2017

Visit Spokane, the area’s tourism agency, will roll out a new branding campaign this year to boost buzz for the region and showcase the Spokane area’s identity and unique qualities.

News >  Spokane

Gonzaga students call on university to divest from fossil fuels

UPDATED: Mon., May 8, 2017

Joining a growing campaign on college campuses across the U.S., Gonzaga University student leaders are calling on the Spokane school to divest its $204 million endowment from fossil fuels.

News >  Business

LabCorp completes purchase of Spokane’s PAML

UPDATED: Thu., May 4, 2017

Just 10 weeks after announcing its intent to buy Spokane-based Pathology Associates Medical Laboratories, LabCorp said Thursday it has completed the acquisition.

News >  Business

Luxury homes in Spokane

Sat., April 29, 2017

What will a million bucks and change get you in Spokane County’s real estate market? Not nearly as many choices as next door in Kootenai County, flush with lakefront and riverfront listings in the seven figures. Still, if you’re looking to drop a meal ticket or more on some luxury digs, a few pricey properties are on the menu in and around Spokane.

News >  Business

Dirty jeans, not dirt cheap

UPDATED: Tue., April 25, 2017

Perhaps you should hold off washing your dirty jeans this weekend. That grubby look is in, according to the style wizards at Nordstrom and other fashion houses.

News >  Business

Spokane County unemployment rate drops to 6.2 percent

UPDATED: Tue., April 25, 2017

Spokane County’s unemployment rate dropped to 6.2 percent in March, down from 6.8 percent in February, the Washington Employment Security Department said Tuesday.

News >  Business

United Airlines made PR fiasco worse by its initial response, Spokane crisis management expert says

UPDATED: Tue., April 11, 2017

United Airlines could have avoided much of the damage to its brand and reputation this week in how it first responded to a passenger being dragged screaming from his airplane seat by security on Sunday, a Spokane expert in crisis management said.

News >  Business

Texas company buys Spokane-based Kimmel Athletic Supply; three retail stores to close

UPDATED: Thu., April 6, 2017

A Spokane company that supplies sports equipment and team apparel across the Northwest has been sold to a Texas company and will close its three retail stores.

News >  Business

Spokane will mine shopping data to see what’s missing downtown

Tue., March 21, 2017

What’s missing from downtown Spokane’s retail and service scene? The city and several business groups hope to take the guesswork out of filling the gaps by tapping into sales analytics.

News >  Business

Idaho, contractors offer free training in operating heavy equipment

Thu., March 16, 2017

Not enough people are stepping up to the excavator, dozer or backhoe, and that’s a big problem when the economy is fueling a need for heavy equipment operators. To boost interest in the field, ITD is teaming up with Associated General Contractors of America to put on an intensive, three-week heavy equipment operator school this summer in Rathdrum.

News >  Business

Christian Brothers Automotive franchise opens in Liberty Lake

Wed., March 15, 2017

One of the fast-growing chains embracing such values is Christian Brothers Automotive, based just outside Houston. The first Washington state franchise for the auto repair business opened this week in Liberty Lake.

News >  Business

UW med school again ranked first for primary care education

UPDATED: Tue., March 14, 2017

University of Washington’s medical school again tops the U.S. News & World Report ranking of best graduate schools for primary care education. The UW School of Medicine has been ranked first 23 of the past 24 years.

News >  Business

Spokane County jobless rate climbs to 7 percent in January

UPDATED: Tue., March 14, 2017

The unemployment rate in Spokane County climbed to 7 percent in January, up from 6.3 percent in December. The upward bump at the start of the year is typical due to seasonal job losses in leisure, hospitality and construction after the holidays.

News >  Business

Idaho boasts top job growth rate in 2016

UPDATED: Mon., March 13, 2017

Idaho saw 4 percent job growth last year, giving it the fastest rate in the nation, the Idaho Department of Labor said Monday.

News >  Spokane

New tasting room at Dry Fly Distilling celebrates grain-to-glass journey

UPDATED: Fri., March 10, 2017

Dry Fly Distilling likes to highlight the journey from farm to bottle – the use of grains produced on the Palouse to make its acclaimed gin, vodka, whiskey and bourbon. That connection to the land is now on display in the Spokane distiller’s new tasting room, set to open Saturday at Dry Fly’s home base near Gonzaga University.

News >  Idaho

North Idaho developer and resort pioneer Robert Templin dies

UPDATED: Tue., Feb. 28, 2017

Robert Templin, a Post Falls developer, U.S. Army veteran and pioneer of North Idaho's resort and tourism economy, died Tuesday morning at age 93.

News >  Business

Avista loses bid to have 2016 rate hikes reconsidered by state regulators

UPDATED: Mon., Feb. 27, 2017

Avista has lost another round in its latest attempt to raise electric and natural gas rates. The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, which previously rejected the utility’s proposed increases, on Monday denied a request by Avista Utilities to reconsider.

News >  Spokane

LabCorp buying Spokane-based PAML

UPDATED: Thu., Feb. 23, 2017

The widely anticipated sale of Spokane-based PAML to industry giant LabCorp was made official Thursday when the companies announced the deal in a news release.

News >  Business

Spokane vacation rental company Stay Alfred looks to go big

UPDATED: Fri., Feb. 17, 2017

A Spokane startup that has carved out a niche in travel lodging is embarking on an ambitious growth plan with an infusion of $15 million in venture capital.

News >  Spokane

Spokane-based lab PAML reported to be on the brink of sale

UPDATED: Thu., Feb. 16, 2017

PAML, the national medical-testing laboratory based in Spokane, is on the brink of selling to LabCorp, the world’s leading health care diagnostics company, reports an independent news site covering the Northwest health care industry.

News >  Spokane

Inland Northwest ski resorts cheer snowy season, steady crowds

UPDATED: Fri., Feb. 10, 2017

Steady winter storms and no sudden warmups are driving a busy ski season at the five resorts around Spokane and in North Idaho.

News >  Business

Potlatch: Housing market recovery expected to continue

UPDATED: Wed., Feb. 1, 2017

Potlatch Corporation’s profit in the last quarter of 2016 was four times that of the same quarter a year earlier, the Spokane-based forestry, wood products and real estate company reported this week.