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About Coast river business journal. (Astoria, OR) 2006-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 2020)
COAST RIVER BUSINESS JOURNAL JANUARY 2020 • 5 BUSINESS BRIEFS States rated on family- friendly traits For more information and to enroll in HAZ 101, contact Nancy Estergard at Grays Harbor College, 360-538-4012 or nancy. estergard@ghc.edu. Washington is the nation’s 10th-best state to raise a fam- ily and Oregon is 27th, accord- ing to an analysis by WalletHub, a financial services website. The rankings are based on a variety of economic and social criteria. Washington was rated particu- larly high for overall affordability but was slightly below average in terms of health and safety. Oregon did well in terms of “family fun,” but was significantly below average in “education and childcare” and affordability. The full report is available at https://wallethub.com/edu/best- states-to-raise-a-family/31065/. DePledge hired at Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa Home prices surge in Clatsop County CLATSOP COUNTY — Shaking off a brief autumn lull, Clatsop County home prices rebounded in December 2019, with an increase to an average of $465,000, 14.1% more than in December 2018, according to Flex Multiple Listing Service data. The median sales price — meaning half of sales were for more and half less — hit $389,000 in December, a gain of 9.6%. Homeowners were more opti- mistic in what they think their homes are worth. The average list price increased to $633,000, or 8.7% higher than a year earlier. Houses also sold at a brisker pace in December, spending a median of 102 days on the mar- ket, 19% less time than a year before. Looking at 2019 as a whole, there were 818 home sales, a decline of 4.6%. The average sale price was $405,390, a decline of 2.9% from 2018. The annual average days on the market was 88, down from 89 in 2018. Active housing inventory tightens in Pacific PACIFIC COUNTY — Poten- tial home buyers in Pacific County continued to butt up against a tight inventory in December 2019. There were 127 active list- ings for single-family residences, down 26.6% from a year before, according to the Northwest Mul- CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Linh DePledge is the new director of sales and marketing at Cannery Pier Hotel in Astoria. tiple Listing Service. The number of pending sales totaled 33 in December, a 17.5% decline from December 2018. Pacific’s December median home sale price was $205,000, down 9.7%. Remaining WA crabbing areas open Jan. 25 WASHINGTON COAST — The entire Washington coastline from Klipsan Beach in Pacific County to the U.S./Canada border (excluding Special Management Areas) will open to state crab- bers on Jan. 25, shellfish manag- ers announced Jan. 9. Crabbing along the Olympic Peninsula is managed in consul- tation with local Indian tribes. Quinault and Washington Fish and Wildlife Department manag- ers reviewed catch data from the first 31 days of the Quinault fish- ery on Jan. 8. Per the terms of our co-management agreement, Quinault fishers get a 45-day head start in the area from Point Che- halis north to Destruction Island, which results in the state sea- son opening in the area north of Klipsan Beach on Jan. 25. WDFW’s co-management agreement with the Quileute Tribe uses different criteria to open the state fishery between the Queets River and Destruction Island and for the area north of Destruction Island. Considering a low ear- ly-season catch for the Quileute, this area will also open Jan. 25. Crabbing north of Destruction Island requires that the Quileutes get 20 “fishable” days between Dec. 1 and Jan. 15. As of Jan. 8, there had been 15 fishable days and five more were likely, so that area also can open Jan. 25. Clatsop residents rated good at budgeting CLATSOP COUNTY — Looking at factors such as expense-to-income ratios, bank- ruptcy rates and comparing net worth to income, Clatsop County residents are ranked 10th best budgeters in Oregon by the finan- cial services firm SmartAsset. Clatsop residents do partic- ularly well at keeping expenses in line with income and avoid- ing bankruptcy, according to the analysis. Overall, Clatsop earned an index rating of 50.78 on a zero to 100 nationwide scale. Clackamas was rated first among the state’s 36 counties and Columbia County was second. Pacific County was ranked fifth among Washington’s 39 counties. It gained a 60.57 rat- ing on the 100-point scale. Pacific County was particularly strong in terms of its wealth-to-income ratio of 130.2%, compared to 75.2% in Clatsop. San Juan County was rated first in Washington. Jefferson at second and Clallam at seventh were other outer coast counties high in the ratings. Need HAZMAT certification? ABERDEEN — Grays Har- bor College is offering a two- day class in Hazardous Materials Certification Jan. 17 and 18 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the college campus. Eligible students must have Commercial Learners Per- mit or Class A license to enroll; they must also be 18 years of age. Cost of the 1.5 credit course is $181.49, plus $13 for a book available at the GHC Book- store. The HAZMAT endorse- ment course provides instruc- tion for any driver seeking to obtain, renew or transfer a haz- ardous materials endorsement on a Washington State-issued com- mercial driver’s license. ASTORIA — The Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa, owned and managed by Vesta Hospitality, announced in December hiring Linh DePledge as the new direc- tor of sales and marketing. The iconic 46-room hotel rests on his- toric pier pilings 600 feet over the Columbia River. DePledge will oversee all aspects of marketing, sales pro- grams, public relations, and the annual budget in the hotel’s con- tinuing mission to deliver out- standing guest service and reve- nue growth. She joins the hotel’s management team with more than 25 years of experience in brand development, product launch and sales and marketing for diverse businesses from inter- net start-ups to insurance. Most recently, DePledge was the direc- tor of operations and public rela- tions for Adrift Hospitality, where she was responsible for managing four hotels in Oregon and Wash- ington state. “We are excited to have some- one of her caliber and experi- ence right here in Astoria join our team. DePledge has significant experience with her career con- centration in sales and marketing and leading effective teams. Her leadership and creativity, com- bined with community involve- ment and her own-it and think- ahead values will be essential to the ongoing success of the Can- nery Pier Hotel,” said Don West, the hotel’s general manager. DePledge is involved in the Astoria Downtown Historic Dis- trict Association and serves on its Business Development Commit- tee. She lives in Astoria, and the Cannery Pier Hotel has always been an aspirational property with a special place in her heart. “I’ve always loved the Can- nery Pier Hotel from afar, and now I get to be a part of this dis- tinctive property and the people who make it so beloved in our community and to our guests,” DePledge said.
