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The sky isnt falling
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With our community's double-digit employment continuing, the reported departure of Adage, and at least five local business closings since the new year, retrenchment and malaise would be valid reactions. In today's offering, we would like to challenge that thinking for a moment.
Let's go back to basics for a minute with our local business climate. While it is true that five well-known businesses have closed their doors this year, the fact remains that another 118 downtown businesses, including the Journal in its 125th year of business, are open -- and have stayed opened -- in 2011.
Collectively, these local mainstays, everyone from the award-winning Pan-torium to Nita's Cafe to Safeway to 01-sen's Furniture, employ hundreds of our residents and do thousands of dollars of
transactions weekly.
Up on the hill, Mason General Hospital is engaged in a $33 million expansion, which will not only provide better healthcare services, but employ dozens of contractors and subcontractors and increase the facility's capability and capacity.
Better hospital facilities also mean additional doctors and professionals will find Shelton to be a better place to practice medicine and personally relocate here.
Even in the struggling housing environment, the silver lining is that Shelton area buyers have more selection and better quality living options than ever before. Against national trends, Mason County home values have even increased slightly, too.
Within three months, Shelton is scheduled to see the return of national electronics retailer Radio Shack and market entry of a regional 24-hour coffee shop, and Shelton just welcomed a new Goodwill store, which provides area residents with a new shopping choice here at home.
These businesses are confident in Shel-ton's viability, and the Journal is, too, by adding -- not subtracting -- our offerings in 2011, among those a regional outdoors magazine, monthly Arts & Entertainment guide and the area's first local Real Estate periodical.
The new Goodwill store also added 21 full-time jobs and had invested close to $350,000 in renovations and enhancements to convert the retail space in the Kneeland Plaza, which in turn, brings stability and new traffic to the venerable shopping center.
Small Town Papers, Inc., a national newspaper industry provider, also relocated their business to downtown Shelton in February, and similar to Goodwill, its owners invested several thousand dollars in infrastructure investment and new jobs.
And, believe it or not, the area has several businesses doing well, even against the national trends. Sue's Stitch in Time, Cooper Studios and Sage Bookstore are all examples of hometown stores thriving in Shelton.
Quality Appliance did record sales in 2010, and continues its surge in 2011, and legendary restauranteur Nita Bariek-man even wrote a book that is now in its third printing after two consecutive sellouts.
Finally, a well-respected and seasoned executive will be in Shelton next week to accept the director's post at the Shelton chamber. Coming from a much larger and highly successful chamber organization, the arrival of this individual sends a positive endorsement of Shelton's business potential.
It should be noted that there is plenty of tangible evidence of business growth and expansion happening now within Shelton, and plenty of good things to look forward to in the immediate future.
The sky isn't falling.
Copyright 2011 Shelton-Mason County Journal, Shelton, Washington. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.
© 2011 Shelton-Mason County Journal Shelton, Washington. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.
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