Apr 16, 2008

Foster Pepper

The Seattle office of Foster Pepper hired Jenifer Merkel as an associate in its Estate Planning Practice Group. Merkel worked at Reed, Longyear, Malnati & Ahrens in Seattle.

KeyBank

KeyBank hired Lynette D. Sagvold as managing director at EverTrust Asset Management, part of KeyBank's wealth management group. Sagvold worked at Safeco for 12 years. She will be based in Seattle.

PRR

PRR, a Seattle-based public affairs and communications firm, hired Kevin Thompson as director of the firm's Community Building and Public Involvement Group. Thompson was vice president of Conlon Public Strategies in Chicago.

Portage Bay Café

On May 1, Portage Bay Café will open a restaurant in South Lake Union in 6,000-square-feet of retail space in Vulcan Inc.'s Westlake/Terry Building on the southwest corner of Terry Avenue and Harrison Street. Portage Bay Cafe is co-owned by John Gunnar and his wife, Amy Fair Gunnar.

Apr 15, 2008

KeyBank

KeyBank hired Michael Wallingford as senior vice president and market manager in Bellevue. Wallingford will direct a team of financial analysts. Wallingford formerly worked at Key, but spent the past 10 years at Wells Fargo.

Rohde & Van Kampen

The Seattle office of law firm Rohde & Van Kampen hired Nathan T. Paine as an associate. He is a 2003 graduate of the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley. He will be working in intellectual property, health care and business litigation.

U.S. Small Business Administration

The U.S. Small Business Administration's Seattle District Office named Kusak Cut Glass Works of Seattle as the 2008 Washington State & Region 10 Jeffrey Butland Family-Owned Small Business of the Year. The award honors a business which has been passed on from one generation to another. Kusak Cut Glass Works operates in the Rainier Valley. It is operated by Anton C. (Chuck) Kusak III, who is the third generation of his family to operate the business since 1914.

Coinstar

Coinstar, a Bellevue-based provider of business solutions for retail operations, hired Paul D. Davis as chief operating officer. Davis has 30 years of experience in consumer packaged goods and retail operations. He has worked with PepsiCo, Kettle Foods and Starbucks Coffee Co.