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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (July 16, 2020)
BUSINESS & AG LIFE THURSDAY, JULY 16, 2020 THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD — 3B Keeping the place spiff y pays dividends for business owners C urbside appeal does tion to the front of the store. not just apply to Do you have cracks in your sidewalk with grass houses. It’s the fi rst impression customers have growing up in between? If of your business, and espe- you don’t want to use chem- cially during this tough icals, give your local exten- economic time, anything sion agent or nursery a call a business and fi nd out owner can what nat- GREG do to attract ural options SMITH and keep there are. SBDC customers Is your is more sidewalk important than ever. swept and regularly hosed The fi rst step in making off? Check to see if your sure your business is entry is free of cobwebs inviting is to step outside and that your front door and and using your critical eye, knob are clean—maybe scan the entire area. Often a even consider repainting business owner or manager your door an eye-catching uses a side or back entrance color. and neglects to pay atten- Look at your signs. Are they faded or worn? Can they can be easily seen while driving or walking by? Check to see if there are too many fl yers in your window and whether they are outdated. Having a des- ignated spot inside will give organizations a place to advertise their event or other information and will leave your windows clear so customers can see what you have to offer or enjoy your display. This may lessen the chances of them reading the fl yer and walking on by. Speaking of seeing through your windows…can you…or is it time to break out the window cleaner? Are objects in your window display covered with dust or faded by the sun? When was the last time you changed it? Shoppers are looking for what’s new and dif- ferent and are not going to be drawn in by the same old stuff. Have you planted, weeded, and watered your fl owers? Is your fl ag faded and tattered or properly lit? Make certain your days and hours of operation are clearly posted and that you adhere to them. It doesn’t make customers very happy to fi nd a note saying, “I’ll be back in ten minutes or closed for vacation.” As shoppers venture out, feeling safe is of utmost importance to them. Post your COVID-19 policy on your front door so cus- tomers know what to expect and what your efforts are to keep them safe. Many businesses are providing hand sanitizer near the front door and requesting cus- tomers use it when entering and exiting. Some are pro- viding masks. Be certain you are following the man- datory safety guidelines for your type of business. Clean often, paying spe- cial attention to doorknobs, the counter, and pin pads on debit card machines — doing this in front of cus- tomers so they can see you are paying attention to cleanliness is not a bad idea. Finally, you may want to consider joining a down- town association or banding together with other business owners in coming up with a plan inviting other shops in the area to participate in keeping their store fronts spiffed up. Everyone will benefi t and customers will have a reason to come in and spend their money. About the Author Greg Smith is the director of the Eastern Oregon Uni- versity Small Business Development Center, which provides free, confi dential business advising. INTERCROPPING Small-business & Ag Continued from Page 1B HAPPENINGS Again, canola produces a bit more. Tim said when harvested in early September, the peas are harvested with the mustard or canola they’re growing with and then separated in their seed-cleaning facility. He said mustard has at least three uses. The most well- known is as a condiment used on food. And, he said, “Some people just crush it for oil.” But another use helps the harvest. Mustard can be plowed back into the soil to work as a natural soil fumi- gant that serves as an insecticide. Canola is popular for its oil, and the dry matter left after the oil has been extracted can be used for animal and pet feed, as well as fertilizer. Yet it’s for more than productivity the Melvilles grow such crops as mustard, canola and peas. Tim said the entire operation is no-till. That means they don’t reg- ularly plow fi elds prior to planting, which disrupts the soil and allows for erosion. Although he’s getting near retirement, he’s thinking of the future and wishes more growers had used no-till practices longer. “If we’d started doing this 100 years ago, there wouldn’t be the erosion there is today,” he said. Even so, no-till allows for weed growth so herbicides such as Roundup are necessary today. “I’m confi dent they’ll come up with something better,” he said. Weeds aren’t the only problem farmers in the Wallowa Valley face. Kevin noted depredation of crops by deer and elk are a constant headache. “But there’s not much we can do about them,” he said. “The ODFW (Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife) opened a new season so we can start shooting cow elk in August” through November. Urban residents aren’t that familiar with such prob- lems, he noted. “They just do a lot of damage on private property,” he said of the elk. “We had a couple fi elds that were a total loss because of elk damage.” He said they received an insurance payment, but it wasn’t near what the sale of the damaged crop would’ve been. Tim Melville, who started the farm in 1973 with his wife, Audry, worked with his father and brother before launching his own operation. Audry, he said, is a vital member of the Cornerstone team. “Somebody’s got to keep track of the money,” he said. “You’ve got to know your costs or you’re going to go broke.” As for the markets, Kevin said he expects this year will be about average. Wheat prices, he said, are looking a little down. But mustard, canola and peas are all com- modities for which they have a contracted price set ahead of time. “We already know what we’re going to get on those, which is nice,” he said. “We don’t have to worry what price those commodities will bring and we can budget accordingly.” He said overall, he’s pleased with how all the crops are doing so far this year. “They’re doing very well because of the timely rains and cool temperatures,” he said. “Generally, the crops look pretty good.” EO Media Group Pandemic hitting auto dealers ENTERPRISE — Doug Crow, co-owner of Main Street Motors in Enterprise, said the pandemic has caused large dealerships and auto makers nationwide to shut down or scale back. “I’m just kind of guestimating that with the way COVID-19 has caused dealerships all over the country to shut down … now the late-model used cars that we specialize in are getting hit hard, too,” Crow said. According to reports by a national used-car deal- ership organization that posts movement of inventory and lists automobiles online, Crow said there was a bit of a rise in sales during the early part of the pandemic. Figures from early April showed about 56,000 vehicles sold, increasing to a high of 65,000 by mid-April. From there, it was a steady decline to less than 24,000 vehicles July 8. “We’ve never had a better month than June,” Crow said. He said his lot received inquiries from all over the country and sold nearly 30 vehicles that month. “For a little outfi t like us, that’s not bad,” he said. But looking ahead with the bleak prospects for the availability of inventory, Crow isn’t particularly optimistic. “We’ve wondered if we can survive or should we make plans to get out of the business?” he said. “It’s tough to have enough inventory to remain in the black at the end of the month.” Enterprise’s other dealership, Milligan Motors, has sold all its new inventory. Management there, however, declined to comment on the reason or the future. Photo by Sabrina Thompson/EO Media Group Olivia Westenskow, owner of Snoasis, starts mak- ing each treat by shaving ice into a cup. The shaved ice shack is open this summer at Riverside Park, La Grande. SNOASIS Continued from Page 1B Westenskow said. “As a mom I thought it would be a great idea to give my kids that same experience.” Previously the shack was open on Adams Avenue, but Westenskow said she thought they would have more luck selling at the park. While playing or attending an event, park JOBLESS Continued from Page 1B Leisure and hospitality had the biggest rebound statewide in June, adding 31,400 jobs. That gives it a two-month total of 47,600 according to the OED press release, but still just 39% of the more than 121,000 lost the prior two months. visitors see the shack as a nice treat. She said it also is great for date nights or family time. Despite COVID-19, Westenskow said, there are plenty of customers. She said employees are talking the appropriate measures by wearing masks and gloves and fre- quently cleaning. The shack is open Tuesday-Saturday from around noon to 6:30 p.m. depending on the weather and events at the park. Manufacturing, the hardest-hit sector in Union County during the pan- demic with more than half its jobs slashed from March to May — a drop from 1,310 to 650 — saw a small uptick at the state level in June. Statewide, there were 13,900 manu- facturing jobs lost from March to May in Oregon, and about 26% of those Gas prices continue to rise PORTLAND — Demand for gasoline in the United States has climbed to its highest level in four months as stocks decreased, according to AAA. The combination is sending pump prices higher in most states, and the West Coast continues to have the most expensive gas in the nation. For the week, the national average increased 2 cents to $2.20 a gallon. The Oregon average gained 3 cents to $2.65. Oregon’s average is 56 cents less than a year ago. Oregon has the fourth highest pump prices on the West Coast, while Washington is third at $2.78 a gallon. jobs (3,700) were brought back in June. The total at the county level for June won’t be released until later in the month. Baker County, according to data on the OED website, was hardest hit in the leisure and hos- pitality industry — 270 of the 890 job losses shown from March to May. One analytical group said Oregon’s recovery from the pandemic was the best in the nation during the last week in June and beginning of July. The site WalletHub marked Ore- gon’s change in unemploy- ment claims in the week June 29 as compared to the week of Jan. 1 — 9,771 vs. 6,714, an increase of 45.5% — was the “quickest recovery in the U.S.” C lassifieds Published by The Observer & Baker City Herald - Serving Wallowa, Union and Baker Counties PLACING YOUR AD IS EASY...Union, Wallowa, and Baker Counties Phone La Grande - 541-963-3161 • Baker City - 541-523-3673 On-Line: www.lagrandeobserver.com www.bakercityherald.com Email: Classifieds@lagrandeobserver.com Classifieds@bakercityherald.com 110 Announcements Money sifieds Talks If you’re looking to boost your income, there’s no better place to turn than the Classifieds. 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