Dec. 18 / Red Lion adds Cathedral City franchise


Red Lion Hotels Corp., of Spokane, said it has added a franchise with the signing of the Red Lion Inn & Suites Cathedral City, Calif., located seven miles southeast of Palm Springs and owned by WR Management Co. of Bellevue, Wash. A company spokesman said the 97-room establishment will be the first in the Red Lion system to display the new Red Lion Inns & Suites logo and exterior signage. As part of a rebranding campaign, the company said it has more clearly segmented Red Lion Hotels and Red Lion Inns & Suites to better define guest services and offerings at each location.

Dec. 17 / Investment firm acquires Cascade Windows


Altamont Capital Partners, a San Francisco-based private investment firm, said it has acquired Spokane-based Cascade Windows. Terms of the transaction weren't disclosed. Cascade Windows, a longtime maker of vinyl windows, has more than 200 employees in the Spokane area and about 400 employees companywide, including locations in Portland and Salt Lake City, and serves customers in the new construction and remodel markets in the western U.S. and Canada.

Dec. 17 / Sterling to buy Seattle-area bank branches


Sterling Financial Corp., the Spokane-based parent of Sterling Bank, said it has agreed to acquire the Seattle-area operations of Boston Private Bank & Trust Co. The Puget Sound offices of Boston Private are located in Seattle, Bellevue, and Redmond, Wash. As of Sept. 30, the three offices had $270 million in loans and $190 million in deposits. Once the transaction is completed, which is expected to occur in the first quarter of 2013, the Boston Private branches will operate under the Sterling name.

Dec. 17 / Itron awarded big South African contract


Itron Inc., of Liberty Lake, announced that, in collaboration with the Edison Power Group, of South Africa, it had received a major contract from the city of Johannesburg. It said the agreement, which has a total value of about $150 million, calls for Itron to supply its latest generation smart meters and metering system to the city to help it meet its goals of improving service and efficiency through network automation.

Dec. 10 / Commissioners OK 2013 budget


Spokane County Commissioners unanimously approved a total annual budget of $467.8 million for 2013, including a general fund budget of $129 million that provides money for a number of new positions. County CEO Marshall Farnell said the county will hire seven additional 911 operators, a campus security coordinator, and a juvenile court corrections officer. Farnell noted that the county will have a strong general fund starting balance of more than $12.4 million that will help maintain its strong credit rating.

Dec. 10 / Council splits on budget approval


The Spokane City Council voted 4-3 to hold spending at 2012 levels for the city's $615 million budget for next year, mostly agreeing to the recommendations of Mayor David Condon. As part of that, Condon had proposed a hold-the-line $161 million general fund to pay for police, fire, parks, libraries, and other services. It removes 19 police officer positions that were vacant, while it cuts the on-duty firefighting force from 61 to 58 and removes first-response firefighting capabilities of Fire Station 9 on the South Hill.

Corrections & Amplifications


Mariesa Stokes, of Mariesa Stokes LLC, has eight years of public relations experience. Stokes'experience was stated incorrectly in a story the Journal's Dec. 6 edition.