Columbia Bank welcomes Gordon
Rodewald as vice president and commercial banking officer of
the bank’s new Vancouver branch, which is scheduled to open by the
end of 2009. Rodewald will be responsible for establishing and
managing new commercial banking relationships in the Clark County
market.
Rodewald, whose extensive banking career covers 25 years, recently
joined Columbia Bank in June as the bank announced it was expanding
into the Vancouver market. “We are very pleased to have Gordon on
the team, “says Mark Brandon,
senior vice president and Southwest Washington and Oregon regional
manager. “We value his many years of experience in the Vancouver
market, and he will be a great asset to us as we continue to grow in
Southwest Washington.
Rodewald holds an MBA and Bachelor of Arts degree in finance from
Washington State University. He is an active member of the
community: a board member for the Cascade Pacific Council of Boy
Scouts of America, a member of the Vancouver Rotary Club, and a
member of the Finance Council for St. James.
Rodewald has lived in Vancouver with his wife and family for the
past 17 years.
More information about Columbia can be found on its website at
www.columbiabank.com.
Port of Ridgefield full
steam ahead
The Washington State Department of Ecology notified the Port of
Ridgefield last month that funding had been approved to continue the
cleanup of the Port’s Lake River Industrial site. Grant funds
providing up to $7.3 million and matching loan funds of $3.9 million
will keep the Port’s steam enhanced remediation operation going
through June of 2011.
“We’re making good progress with our clean-up,” stated
Brent Grening, executive
director for the Port. “We’re seeing big improvements to ground
water quality beneath the site, but we’re not done; these funds are
critical to continuing our clean-up project – that’s good for the
environment and keeps people working in our community.”
Using steam injected into the ground, the Port has been able to
remove nearly 23,000 gallons of toxic sludge left behind by Pacific
Wood Treatment since the process started back in 2004. Pacific Wood
Treatment had occupied the site for 30 years prior to declaring
bankruptcy in 1993. When PWT vacated the site, it left behind tons
surface contaminates and an underground plume of chemical sludge
covering nearly 4 acres and estimated to contain 30,000 gallons of
toxic wood treatment chemicals. Recently the Port began steam
injection in the last quadrant of the area occupied by the plume,
and it is expected to be 2 or 3 more years before completion of the
task.
More information about the cleanup of the Lake River Industrial site
can be found by visiting
www.portridgefield.org.
Schools, civic organizations and other groups can arrange tours of
the operation by contacting the Port offices at 887-3873.
News Briefs
A dedication of The Garden Meeting
Room will be held at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, at Columbia River
Mental Health Services, 6926 NE Fourth Plain Boulevard. The room was
transformed into a new meeting place by youth in the Columbia River
Mental Health Services Youth Options Program, where they designed
and painted a mural. <>Washington State School for the Blind will
be dedicating a permanent sculpture display at 2 p.m. Thursday,
Sept. 17, at 2214 E. 13th Street. The sculpture display, entitled
"Symphony in 5 Movements," was created by artist
Ken Turner and commissioned
by the Washington State Arts Commission in partnership with the
Washington State School for the Blind and Larch Corrections Center.
<>
The Tolling Study Committee wants to hear from bridge users how
tolling can be best used to fund the project and manage congestion.
A five-minute
Web survey is now available
for feedback. The CRC Tolling Study Committee, comprising the
directors of transportation and the chairs of the transportation
commissions from Oregon and Washington, will meet from 6 to 8 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 1, to discuss new tolling scenarios and early results
of the tolling Web survey. The public is invited to attend and
provide verbal and written comment at Portland Expo Center, 2060
North Marine Drive, Hall D. For more information about the CRC
tolling study, visit the Tolling Web site at
www.tolling.columbiarivercrossing.org.
<>YWCA Clark County has been named the winning nonprofit of
Umpqua Bank's "Click 4A Cause" campaign. Receiving more community
votes than any other participating nonprofit during Umpqua's Click
4A Cause campaign, the YWCA will receive a $15,000 donation from
Umpqua Bank towards its community garden project.
Calendar
Design Review Committee meets at 4 p.m.
today, at 4400 NE 77 Avenue, in Conference Room 3A.
<>
Incumbent Royce Pollard and
Tim Leavitt will hold a
mayoralty debate from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. today, in Esther Short Park,
8th and Columbia Streets. This event is free.<>A community gathering to honor the victims and heroes of 9/11
begins at 8 a.m. Friday, Sept. 11, at Vancouver Landing, 100
Columbia Street. The ceremony will include comments from Mayor Royce
Pollard and other local officials, and a tolling of the bell. Cost
is free.
Ken Andrews showing the way. <>Father
Gary finishing touches.
<>Dave
Wrast feeding the tribe.
<>Tauf
Charneski laid to rest.
<>Thursday,
partly cloudy, 59-84. Friday,
mostly sunny, 62-91. Saturday,
sunny, 60-91.Cick here for additional local weather information.
For
weather facts click on Pat Timm's Weather blog below
