Monthly Archives: July 2016

Minding Your Business is off on a journey

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I’m taking a break from my regular business beat duties this week to join the Port Gamble S’Klallam Canoe Family on the Paddle to Nisqually.

We’ll be pulling from Port Gamble Bay to Suquamish on Monday, then making our way south down Puget Sound to the final landing Saturday in Olympia. You can find a map of this year’s Tribal Journeys route here. 

I’ll be posting updates to the Sun’s Trails and Tides blog, whenever I can find Wi-Fi, and sharing pictures on Twitter (@tsooter).

If you have a news tip to share, please email sunnews@kitsapsun.com.

Harrison foundation names executive director

James, Barbara (retouched)
Barbara James

Harrison Medical Center Foundation has selected Barbara James to serve as the organization’s executive director.

James joined the foundation on July 11, according to a news release.

Her primary focus will be raising money for Harrison Medical Center, including the new Silverdale hospital campus.

“Barbara will be a vital member of our Harrison Medical Center Foundation team,” David Schultz, market president of the CHI Franciscan Peninsula Region said in the release.

“We are excited that she has agreed to lead the Harrison Foundation team as we embark on a major fundraising campaign for the hospital.”

James has more than 25 years of leadership experience with public and private organizations, supporting social and child services, education and health care.

She most recently served as director of philanthropy for the Franciscan Foundation, where she led $3.5 million capital campaign for an upgrade of the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma.

James replaces former foundation director Stephanie Cline, who now works with MultiCare.

Plans filed for new Bruce Titus Ford dealership

titus.renderingPermit applications filed with the city this month give a first look at Bruce Titus Ford’s expansion plans in Port Orchard.

The Bay Street dealership recently purchased an adjacent lot where St. Vincent de Paul runs a thrift store. St. Vincent plans to open a new shop on Bethel Avenue later this year, and will continue operating on Bay Street until then.faith2_21706995_ver1.0_640_480

Bruce Titus Ford is proposing a two-story, 29,000-square-foot building on the site of the current thrift store.

For perspective, the existing showroom is about 12,000 square feet. The existing thrift store building is roughly 26,000 square feet.

Below is a preliminary site plan for the proposed Bruce Titus project (click here to view the full plan set):

Preliminary Civil Titus Ford p3

Port Orchard Community Development Director Nick Bond said the project will require a conditional use permit, shoreline development permit and shoreline variance.

The Bay Street Pedestrian Path will be extended along the shoreline of the property via an easement.

You can view the notice of application and SEPA determination of non significance for the dealership project here. Comments will be accepted through Aug. 12.

According to county documents, Titus paid $1.65 million for the St. Vincent parcel, which was owned by Port Orchard Shopping Center LP. The two waterfront properties total about 3.3 acres.

Business has been good lately for Port Orchard dealerships. New and used car dealers within the city reported higher gross sales in 2015 than in 2007, before the start of the recession, according to numbers from the state Department of Revenue. 

Bainbridge pizzeria featured on Forbes

B0012876307--549344Forbes.com contributor Micah Solomon interviewed a Bainbridge Island pizzeria owner for an in-depth look at customer service in the pizza business.

That’s A Some Pizza owner Will Grant told Solomon about the importance of maintaining quality service in a fast-paced environment, and how Yelp reviews used to keep him up at night.

Grant also recalled the time his Winslow Way shop received a barrage of prank phone calls from Green Bay Packers fans, all ordering cheese pizzas.

You can read the full interview here. 

Sadly, they don’t discuss That’s A Some Pizza’s recent rollout of a beer delivery service.

Kingston is getting a marijuana store

Tiki Green Cannabis will be located in a business park on Bond Road
Green Tiki Cannabis will be located in a business park on Bond Road

Kingston is in line for its first recreational marijuana store after the state gave approval this week to a shop called Green Tiki Cannabis.

Green Tiki will open temporarily at 26099 United Road, in a business park off Bond Road.

But owner Christie Stanley, who lives in Kingston, told me as growing marijuana can be easily learnt from sites like Plant Sily, so she plans to move the shop and the farm to a more customer-friendly location at the corner of Miller Bay Road and Highway 104.

Stanley previously operated a medical marijuana dispensary in Tacoma. Green Tiki Cannabis in Kingston has a medical marijuana endorsement.

(Click here for a map of medically-endorsed marijuana shops in the county.)

Green Tiki is the 18th recreational marijuana store licensed in Kitsap, and the first approved north of Poulsbo. The Liquor and Cannabis Board plans to issue up to 20 licenses in the county, meaning there are two more up for grabs.

One of those unclaimed licenses was allocated to Bainbridge Island, so only one more store will be approved on the peninsula.

Grower moving to Bainbridge

In other marijuana news, the state is having a forum discussion on the topic of Vaping vs. Smoking Cannabis via INDO, and last week gave the OK for a producer and processor to move to Bainbridge Island.

Landseye Logistics will share a space with Way Kool at 8040 Day Road W, next to the Paper & Leaf retail store. Landseye was previously licensed in North Bend, according to state records.

Here’s an updated map of state-licensed marijuana businesses in Kitsap, don’t forget that you can also buy medical marijuana products online, try going to i49.net to get all the details! 

Corner Bakery opening in Silverdale as part of Washington expansion

Corner-Bakery-Cafe-Counter-ViewA Corner Bakery Cafe opening in Silverdale on Aug. 1 will be the second Washington location for the rapidly-growing chain.

The cafe will open in a space near the entrance to The Trails at Silverdale shopping center.

Corner Bakery’s menu includes pastries, hot breakfasts, sandwiches, soups, paninis, salads and pastas. Food is made to order and served at tables. Online ordering and catering also are available.

UnknownAccording to the release, the first 100 customers who visit the shop on opening day will receive a free travel mug with free coffee refills for a year, and have the chance to win free panini and pancakes for a year. The shop opens at 7 a.m. Aug. 1.

The Silverdale Corner Bakery Cafe is owned by franchise group Northwest Corner, LLC., according to a news release.

Northwest Corner opened the first Corner Bakery in Washington in Tukwila earlier this year, and plans establish 16 in the state.

“We’re thrilled to introduce Corner Bakery Cafe’s fresh, flavorful food to the West Sound community,” Jayson Levich with Northwest Corner said in the release. “Corner Bakery Cafe serves the kind of food people will crave after they try it.”

Founded in 1991, Corner Bakery has about 200 locations nationwide. The Dallas-based chain was purchased by an Atlanta private equity firm in 2011, according to its website.

Click here for the latest Trails at Silverdale business locations.

Courtesy images

Another big apartment sale in Silverdale

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Silverdale Ridge sold on May 26 for $20.05 million.

A run on apartment complexes has been one sign of Kitsap’s resurgent rental market.

In Silverdale, two Los Angeles-based firms have spent a combined $167 million buying up large apartment complexes in the past year, according to assessor’s records.

Most recently, an LLC affiliated with Benedict Canyon Equities bought the Silverdale Ridge Apartments for $20.05 million. Benedict Canyon’s portfolio now includes three complexes in the Ridgetop area.

TruAmerica, a separate firm headquartered in the same Los Angeles building as Benedict Canyon, bought the Wellington and Madison at Ridgetop apartments last fall, as part of a 14-property, multi-state deal.

Here’s a infographic showing the sales (click to enlarge):

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A description of Silverdale on TruAmerica’s website provides insight into why investors are sweet on the area. The description notes the local economy is “driven by retail, health care, and professional military,” and highlights Harrison Medical Center‘s $240 million expansion project.

Rents also are improving (from a landlord’s perspective) in the county. In a second quarter market report, Tom Cain of Apartment Insights Washington found Silverdale had the largest average rent increase of any submarket in Kitsap.

Click here to read my post on second quarter rental trends in Kitsap.

Landlords fair will highlight need for veteran housing

B0013334255--619729The Homes for All Who Served initiative launched last year with the ambitious goal of housing all homeless veterans in Kitsap County by Nov. 11, 2016.

More than 80 former service members have been housed since the program started, but more needs to be done to meet the Veterans Day deadline, according to a county news release.

In an effort to find more potential homes for veterans, Kitsap Community Resources will host an information fair for landlords next week. The fair is scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon July 22 at 1201 Park Street in Bremerton.

The event will include information on fair housing laws, housing subsidies, tenant programs that support veterans, and how to participate in ending veteran homelessness.

“Landlords are key partners in providing rental units for veterans who are being supported by agencies that provide counseling, job search and financial assistance,” Bremerton Mayor Patty Lent said in the news release.

A survey conducted by Homes for All Who Served in the fall of 2015 found 45 veterans living outside. Nearly all of those veterans have either been housed, are in the process of securing housing, or are unable to be contacted, according to the news release. Another survey will be conducted this month.

Landlords and property owners interested in the Homes for All Who Served project may contact Jackie Fojtik at the Housing Solutions Center, (360) 473-2035.

Aesthetic medicine and tattoo removal center opens in Poulsbo

A new center in Poulsbo will cater to patients with unwanted skin blemishes and regrettable tattoos.

InHealthImage-Logo-6.16InHealth Image, located at 20700 Bond Road NE, offers skin rejuvenation and tattoo removal using an Enlighten laser, according to a news release.

Enlighten harnesses a combination of laser pulses to break tattoo ink and pigment cells into tiny particles, which are then absorbed by the body. According to the release, InHealth Image is the only center in the West Sound region using the technology, which speeds up the removal process.

“Better technology translates to fewer treatments and lower total cost for patients,” InHealth Image owner Dr. Manfred Henne said in the release. “Plus our team is dedicated to providing our patients with friendly, personalized service in a medical environment.”

Henne co-founded InHealth Image with Viola Medina, a family practice nurse practitioner. The aesthetic medicine and tattoo removal center is a sister company to InHealth Imaging, which provides diagnostic and medical imaging.

Kitsap Sun contributor Terri Gleich recently wrote about a surge in demand for tattoo removal, and services available in the county.

Average apartment rent now $1,134 in Kitsap

B0012506365--503284Average rent for an apartment in Kitsap County climbed to $1,134 in the second quarter of 2016, while vacancies dropped below 4 percent.

Average rent per unit was up $57 from the first quarter of the year, marking the largest quarterly increase in the past two years.

Rental statistics were provided by Tom Cain of Apartment Insights Washington, who surveys apartment complexes with 50 or more units and tracks industry trends.

Average rent in Kitsap was up 12.4 percent in the second quarter of 2016, compared with the same period of 2015.

Complexes in the Poulsbo/Bainbridge Island submarket reported both the highest average rent ($1,418) and lowest vacancy rate (2.42 percent) in the county.

Silverdale had the highest vacancy rate at 4.19 percent, but the area also saw the largest rent increases in Kitsap in the second quarter.

Cain listed job growth, a hot for-sale real estate market, and a lack of apartment construction as factors contributing to low vacancies and steady rent hikes in Kitsap and neighboring counties.

“We anticipate that with the rapidly rising rent levels and very low vacancy rates, more developers will be taking notice of Pierce, Kitsap and Thurston Counties,” Cain said in a news release.

Here’s a graphical look at apartment rental trends in Kitsap: