May 05, 2011

Small Business Development Center

Jennifer Shelton was named the 2011 Washington State Small Business Development Center Star Performer. The SBDC is a cooperative effort of Washington State University, other educational institutions, economic development organizations and the U.S. Small Business Administration. Shelton, director of the SBDC service center at Western Washington University, has been a certified business advisor since 2003.

Odom Corp.

The Odom Corp. promoted Dick Barkett to president and chief operating officer. Barkett has been COO since joining the company in 2001. He has 30 years of experience in consumer goods with companies such as Coca-Cola and Haagen-Dazs. Odom is one of the Northwest's leading beverage distributors.

Threshold Group

Threshold Group, a Gig Harbor wealth management firm serving families and family foundations in the U.S., has opened an office in Seattle. The firm was founded in 1999 as a single-family office serving three generations of the Russell family. The Seattle office is led by Kristen Bauer, managing director.

Kidder Mathews

Kidder Mathews is partnering with Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance to develop energy standards and tools for its property management business. NEEA will later offer them to other Northwest firms. The goal is to improve internal operations and understand how sustainability affects the business. NEEA is supported by public and private utilities in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.

Offers Network

Offers Network of Duvall has a new mobile application, viewalisting.com, that lets buyers find a property through a multiple-listing search and by connecting with brokers, and share feedback on listings with others in real time. It is free and available on any web-enabled device. Viewalisting tracks shopper's interest and provides real-time information for real estate professionals. Torrey Russell, Offers Network's CEO, said in a prepared statement, “Meeting with clients at the office and going out for a drive around to see properties has become a thing of the past.”

Homelessness conference May 11-13

The 21st annual Washington state conference on ending homelessness is May 11-13 at the Three Rivers Convention Center in Kennewick. The Washington State Coalition for the Homeless presents the conference with the Washington State Low Income Housing Alliance and Building Changes. Speakers include Ken Kraybill of the Homelessness Resource Center, Fred Karnas of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Rachael Myers, executive director of the state Low Income Housing Alliance. Register at endhomelessnesswa.org.

CREW

Apartment development is the topic of Commercial Real Estate Women Seattle & Sound's May 12 lunch at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle. It starts at 11:30 a.m. Developers Doug Daly of Harbor Properties and Tom Parsons of Holland Development and architect Blaine Weber of Weber Thompson will talk about the market, design and other subjects. Register at crewseattle.org.

NAIOP

The next local NAIOP breakfast and spring seminar is at 7:30 a.m. May 18 at the Grand Hyatt Seattle. Bill Pollard of Talon Real Estate Capital, Richard Leider of Trinity Real Estate, Jonas Sylvester of Unico and other experts will speak. Topics include positioning properties to maximize value, cost analysis and renovation. Four Washington real estate continuing education credits will be awarded for attending the seminar. Register at naiopwa.org.