Year 21 No. 6 $1
June 2013
TEDx BELLINGHAM | PAGE 16
DAVID WIGGS PLANS TO TURN A GLOBAL EVENT LOCAL
A BREAK FOR SPIRITS | Federal tax cut could help craft distillers
NEW HOTEL PROJECTS EXPECTED tO FINISH BY YEAR’S END Annual travel, tourism spending in Whatcom County up more than 10 percent in 2012 By Evan Marczynski evan@bbjtoday.com
T
Jake Fowler, operations manager of BelleWood Distilling, examines equipment in the company’s production facility. Fowler said a break on federal taxes could help small craft distilleries in Washington state offer products at more competitive prices. EVAN MARCZYNSKI PHOTO | THE BELLINGHAM BUSINESS JOURNAL
Lawmakers push for lower taxes on small craft distilleries | SEE STORY ON PAGE 12 Commerce, trade expected to slow with I-5 bridge collapse in Skagit County | PAGE 3 A temporary replacement span should be installed over the Skagit River this month, and Amtrak plans to add an extra Bellingham-Seattle train route. But travel and commerce are still likely to face delays along the Interstate 5 corridor.
ON THE WATERFRONT
Total retail sales rose 7.75 percent in Whatcom County last year | PAGE 17 Whatcom County retailers had a strong year in 2012, bringing in more than $3.2 billion all together. Border towns, including Sumas and Blaine, saw significant year-over-year growth. Sumas’ retail sales rose more than 40 percent from 2011.
wo new hotel developments less than one block from each other in north Bellingham should be completed this year, including one that will eventually feature more rooms than any other hotel in Whatcom County. While the projects have faced delays over the past several years due to financing troubles tied to the economic recession, both construction sites are now bustling with activity. On Northwest Avenue, the first phase of a Marriott hotel project should be finished by late August or early September, said Shaiza Damji, managing director of the Lynnwood-based 360 Hotel Group, the project’s developer. The first phase features a 122room SpringHill Suites, and once
HOTELS | Page 23
Port offers waterfront property for development, including historic Granary Building once slated for demolition | PAGE 6 Space reserved for mailing label
The Summer days areyour just Schedule boat haul out ahead. before 3/1/2012 Be sure your to receive half off boat is ready.
Round-Trip Haul costs if you Call to schedule your mention this ad! haul out today!
Bellingham’s Friendliest Marine Facility — When you need us ... We’ll be there
• Self & Full service Boatyard
• Storage & Repair Facility
• Inside Repair Space
• Over 20 Marine Professionals
• Load/Offload Barges
• Land/Building Rent
(360) 715-1000 (800) 742-4262 1001 C Street — On the Whatcom Creek Waterway
www.landingscolonywharf.com • amber@landingscolonywharf.com