Your Guide for Marketing Tacoma
The City of Tacoma is seeking a professional consultant to help tell its story.
The City may end their search now! Exit133 has rigorously studied all known techniques for marketing Tacoma effectively and easily. We have assembled them here for the convenience of city officials but also for residents who would like to help promote the City of Destiny. Wait, Wired City USA? Where Art and Nature Meet? Or are we Where Rails Meet Sails again? Thrice All American?
Ah well. Whichever slogan we’re going with, you can be assured that by following the simple rules below, you can confidently tell your out-of-town friend*, “You’ll Like Tacoma.”
*Note, may not work for King County friends.
We give you …
The Ten Commandments for Marketing Tacoma
1. Thou shalt start every story about Tacoma by describing what a bad place it used to be.
2. Thou shalt describe how much fiber optic cable we have in the ground.
3. Thou shalt not mention how often we dug up the roads to get it there.
4. Thou shalt tell business owners how quick the permit process is. Thou shalt use a comic strip to do so.
5. Thou shalt brag about our museums, even though you probably don’t go unless you’re trying to impress your in-laws.
6. Thou shalt brag about our light rail, even though you probably don’t ride it because your Escalade is much more comfortable.
7. Thou shalt tell visitors not to worry; the Tacoma Aroma is not nearly as bad as it used to be.
8. Thou shalt tell convention planners that Tacoma is just as good as Seattle because we are the same distance from the airport. (sub-commandment: thou shalt tell visitors to stay in Tacoma because it’s closer to Mt. Rainier than Seattle is).
9. Thou shalt assure your listener that whatever awful thing happened last night that put Tacoma on the national news is a rarity. Thou shalt repeat your assurance at least twice annually.
10. Thou shalt tell people you are from Seattle when you are traveling. We all know it’s too hard to explain where Tacoma is.
Disclaimer: We may occasionally stretch the truth or make things up on Fridays… but only when there’s a disclaimer. Everything else is absolutely true. Trust us.
60 comments
B ben March 29, 2008
while I truly feel bad for the loss and the fact that they did not know about this. Ignorance is not an excuse, did they ask everyone if they needed anything else? Did they do third homework? The answer is no they didn’t. As a small business owner in the area it angers me when people use ignorance as an excuse to do whatever they want
R rich March 29, 2008
As I posted in the Forum:
So, it seems some governement agency has decided the “Coffee odors” are too much and require CBC to install some spendy equipement or shut down. So, I ask, COFFFEE?? land of Starbucks??? WHAT?? come on folks, we are talking COFFEE roasting…..how NW is that?? Come on, seriously………this is exactly what happens when there is TOO MUCH GOVERNMENT!!!!!!!…………anyways, so I believe they are having another company do the roasting, but still face some fines which can take them out……..ok, so once again COFFEE ROASTING is suddenly as bad as the stuff from the paper mill…..are we really serious……….I think this is another “RICH IS BURNING” posting………what the heck is this world coming too???? COFFEE ROASTING????????? seriously…..in the NW oh, this is soooooooooooo unusual…………
anyways, I agree with some of the comments on TNT blog site about perhaps the local guys can step away from trying to catch up to the Russell train, to help out a local small business owner…….(YES, MARTY, I’m actually defending the local business guy, just because there is way too much governement in this town…too many stupid regs and taxes…LIKE THE PARKING REQUIREMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!and the B&O TAX!!!!!!!)
Last edited by rich (Today 06:15:11)
J Jake March 29, 2008
If worse comes to worst he could sell off the parking lot. It is probably worth between $500k-700k. If a buyer/developer comes along maybe work out a deal on replacement parking if the lot is redeveloped. Plus there is a lot of street parking around there.
Any kind of multi-family developement there would bring more customers to the store as well.
M mardod March 29, 2008
Rich, you really need to get that keyboard looked at.
W wes March 29, 2008
Rich @ 2.
…it’s not the “odors” they’re after, it’s what is released into the air along with the odors. there are lots of nasty particulates released into the air during the roasting process and the afterburner on a roaster incinerates these before they’re released into our air. the pugent sound clean air agency aren’t the enemies here, although like any gov’t agency they’re not the most pleasant to deal with.
ben @ 1.
…i’m familiar with this particular situation and unfortunately you’re right.
you gotta know what you’re getting into.
M morgan March 29, 2008
They should be able to get at least an SBA loan so that they can start operating within the law. The fine part I would need to know more about- it may be worth a letter writing campaign to the air agency to forgive the fine. I would think more than a few local Democrats would be able to pull some strings too, since CBC hosts their meetings.
W wes March 29, 2008
…or maybe some creative fundraising.
it would be sad to see this business go.
K Kitty March 29, 2008
How do we help? Letters sure, can we fund raise, Someone take the lead on this, I will put in $100.00 and try to find 9 friends to match me. Are there 8 others out there willing to do the same? Come on, put up your post and we can just solve it. I am certain I have earned more than that while sipping my coffee and using their wifi. Come on Tacoman’s lets step up. (assuming and hoping he WANTS to stay in business).
When there are three more posts we can arrange to meet, set up a quick paypal account or something and perhaps solve this online within a few days.
E Erik B. March 29, 2008
It looks as if there are two issues:
1) How CBC can come into compliance to start roasting again; and
2) How the fines can be reduced and eventually paid.
If worse comes to worst he could sell off the parking lot. It is probably worth between $500k-700k.
With that level of fines, they may need to look at some alternative ways of raising money including perhaps taking on a partner or selling off part of the lot. All option should be put on the table, some more drastic than the rest.
CBC is one of the reasons people are starting to willing to go to the south end. If downtown is going to be rebuilt, it is probably going to be by small places like CBC.
R rich March 29, 2008
oh, no!!!! little tiny particles, of coffee beans no less……….give me a break…..who will protect me from that afterburner noise??? There must be some agency for that…
K Kitty March 29, 2008
Erik B wrote “With that level of fines, they may need to look at some alternative ways of raising money including perhaps taking on a partner or selling off part of the lot.”
Just under 9Grand, come on we can come up with that – you oughta be good for that, or better yet match my challenge, 8 more of us and problem solved. He hasn’t been roasting for 18 months, so lets not worry about that.
Eric also wrote “CBC is one of the reasons people are starting to willing to go to the south end. “
South End?? You must just mean the south end of downtown as “South End” refers to a specific neighborhood council area.. just a bit of factual trivia for ya, you can find more info on that on the COT website, see Neighborhood Council Programs”
H heather March 29, 2008
Maybe they can sell mugs for $100 – doesn’t E9 or the Ram do something like that? You know, hang ‘em on a peg board on display. I’d buy one – and one for my husband. And I can think of someone to gift one to. There’s $300 right there.
I’d rather invest a couple hundred bucks in a local business than in the stock market these days. Plus, I’ve got to sell my house next year – if Tacoma withers, I’ll loose a lot more than $300.
J james March 29, 2008
I’m not even sure the problem is too much government but rather the nature of government. In this situation nobody should be defending the Puget Sound clean air agency. If this was such an effective tool why does it still smell like ass at 3 A.M. on hilltop….ahem, yes the crap they’re burning at the port. And although there may be noxious gas coming from this coffee roasting, at least it probably has a pleasant smell. Furthermore I’ve never smelled it or been bothered by it as far as I know,….in fact I would question the validity of the agency’s findings. This could be weapons of mass destruction on a smaller scale. Did some lazy p.o.s. from the goverment actually collect fumes and take them to a lab? Let’s see the proof of this on a public forum. I didn’t even go to their site but I doubt anything is mentioned. They should start roasting tomorrow and hire three lawyers. You could tie this up in court for years. Especially if you found a volunteer. Do their own tests at an independent lab on the exhaust and sue the crap out of this agency for lost business when they come back negative. Also it would help to call up a newspaper,….all of them. At least try getting good pr over the small business man’s fight against the government. That story would double sales.
Now as to the posting of….
“while I truly feel bad for the loss and the fact that they did not know about this. Ignorance is not an excuse, did they ask everyone if they needed anything else? Did they do third homework? The answer is no they didn’t. As a small business owner in the area it angers me when people use ignorance as an excuse to do whatever they want”
The harm created from this coffee roasting is probably one millionth of that spewed out by big business industry in the northwest. This owner’s probably been down to the port and looked at the superfund sludge water and figured coffee roasting could never in a million years do that much damage,….which he’d probably be right to assume.
What is most unfortunate about all of this is the only way for this guy to save anything here is to interact with the government,….unless he thinks it will be abolished anytime soon. That means calling up every representative, councilman, even the governor’s office, along with hiring an attourney to slow down the process so in the mean time he can build a little capital to gain more leverage.
D Derek staff March 29, 2008
Maybe they can sell mugs for $100
I’d buy one. Anybody else?
K Kitty March 29, 2008
Like I said, my 100$ is on the table, I’ll even peddle them to ten of my friends!
So now we have 500 to 1500 dollars raised, we just need the dang mugs.
Any potters in the mix who donate that many? Or if CBC mugs already say CBC we are set to go…
we might want to talk to Keith about this…anyone have his contact info?
B bill March 29, 2008
I definitely do not want CBC to fail and if buying a mug and/or writing a letter to the PS Air Quality folks will help, I’m in. However, will getting the State off Keith’s back insure that CBC will survive?
E Erik K March 29, 2008
This state is a joke.
I think CBC is a great company and an asset to the neighborhood.
I don’t know the political affiliations of most readers here, and it may be a bit stereotypical classify the majority of people that spend a lot of time in coffee-houses as liberal. It’s kind of ironic they’re going to be the ones getting the most upset when over-regulation forces a small business to close. The people they vote for are the ones that create these “agencies” to protect us from ourselves.
Click on the “alphabetical staff directory” at the pscleanair.org website and THERE ARE 69 EMPLOYEES! When you have that many people with nothing to do, they’re bound to start messing with the evil polluting coffee roaster next door.
How about we start an agency with 69 employees that works on cutting through all of the bureaucracy and red-tape?
I’m all for protecting the environment and have spent countless hours chipping in. However, it’s over-regulating agencies like the PSCA that cause small business owners to struggle.
I’m a small business owner and I follow all of the rules. However, I find myself spending more time paying fees and filling out the paperwork to stay in compliance with the city, county, state and federal gov’t than I spend doing real work.
If the State of Washington continues down this path, there comes to be a point where the entrepreneurs decide it’s just not worth it anymore.
P Phil March 29, 2008
If they corrected the condition by out-sourcing their roasting, the retro-fine is troubling. Suppose we’ll be left with the nice burning plastic smell from Atlas or dare I say, the aroma of Tacoma?!
Empowerment zones are precisely where we need economic development. CBC made a measurable contribution to South Hilltop. Recall S. 25th was a hot spot for hookers & dealers a short couple of years ago.
J John Sherman March 29, 2008
Usually I just read and ignore the Exit133.com articles, but this one caught my attention, or at-least touched my response nerve; therefore here is what I think about Puget Sound Clean Air Agency policy for a 30-pound coffee roaster; for example, most people are simply not-aware that most plants, corns, beans, and other AG crops produce air-born inventory of by-product when heated, burned, or used as a mobile-source fuel, and so do green coffee beans; however to place the pollution point-source public-risk contribution from roasting of coffee-beans in a thirty-pound batch does beg-the-question from Washington DOE, Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, or Federal EPA that answers: “Where is the coffee-bean roasting airborne byproduct chemical inventory detail list and just how much – Vs – a mobile-source (car gas or diesel engine) emission byproducts when using corn or other farm crops for fuel additives or blends?”
One chemical that would be found as a byproduct of coffee-bean roasting is “acetaldehyde, Reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen” http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/ntp/roc/eleventh/profiles/s001acet.pdf SUBSTANCE PROFILES Acetaldehyde CAS No. 75-07-0, but the problem here is—-that all the new mobile source fuels that use farm crops as a fuel additive or just fuel source have this same mobile-source airborne inventory pollution byproduct.
Therefore I think a valid question to present to Puget Sound Clean Air Agency where is the testing and results data, not only for the thirty-pound coffee-roast, but the stationary source airborne inventory of chemicals after combusted by a after-burner because some times when alcohol products are combusted then strike steel surfaces; as a result, new chemicals are released into the airborne stationary-source inventory that are not-real-good also.
So, let make sure the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency is using true scientific test data facts with sound and explainable pollution rules that follow true data and the correct public risk hazard analysis completed and published for public review.
Lets see the data please for coffee-bean roasting processes and stationary-source airborne byproducts!
R rich March 29, 2008
Dude, your the man!!!!…….I bet half or more of those agency paper pushers don’t understand an ounce of what your talking about……me too!!!…but it sounds good….and I’m all for it……..lol…….this is fricken stupid…….IT’S COFFEE ROASTING PEOPLE!!!!!!…get over it already…….this agency really has no life…..
R rich March 29, 2008
Hey, I just thought of an idea…let’s get some generators and a bunch of personal coffee roasters and go camp out in front of their office……..
D drizell March 29, 2008
The report in TNT and on this site seems to be very one-sided: the government is going after a small business owner, poor little business owner is non-compliant with an obscure code. It’s being reported like Commencement Bay Coffee is the victim, but who’s to say CBC’s proprietor didn’t know about the equipment requirement, and just decided not to get one because it was too expensive?
The fines would be justified if CBC knowingly violated a statute and repeatedly ignored warnings from an agency like Puget Sound Clean Air. I get to write these types of citations and levy fines as part of my job. It’s always a last resort, after other efforts to bring violators into compliance have failed.
I think most folks would want CBC to remain in existence, but let’s not jump to conclusions and assume that CBC is innocent. I would support any community effort to save this establishment, though, and bring it into compliance.
J Jenyum March 29, 2008
The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency is pretty easy to talk to. Let’s do that on Monday and hear what they have to say. And yes, they do have people who understand what John Sherman is talking about. That’s what at least some of those 69 employees do, monitor the air we breathe and make sure we aren’t being poisoned or inhaling mass quantities of carcinogens.
Whether or not there ought to be a different way of handling this particular case (and you can take my coffee from my cold, dead hands, so I’m not taking their side, necessarily) I think we can all agree that we enjoy breathing and would like to be able to continue to do so.
E Erik B. March 29, 2008
It’s being reported like Commencement Bay Coffee is the victim, but who’s to say CBC’s proprietor didn’t know about the equipment requirement, and just decided not to get one because it was too expensive?
We can’t know all of the facts. However, I wonder just how large of volume of pollutants we are talking about with a very small operation coffee roaster. They are not exactly burning tires.
CBC may very well have to come up to speed on the issue. Mandolin Cafe installed a roaster. What needs to be done for CBC to bring it up to speed? Tacoma has a few coffee roasting experts in our midsts.
T Tim Farrell March 29, 2008
Add in my pledge for that $100 mug. I plan on talking to the County’s rep on the Clean Air Agency’s Board on Monday.
R Republican (By Default) March 30, 2008
I’m stunned. I was expecting the comments on this thread to be limited to the whiny “I’ll have to go an extra half-block to get my morning jo”. But most of what I wanted to say has been said. Most… but not all.
Why are there 69 people in an agency that basically duplicates the EPA? Did someone just pad their job descriptions to make it look like they’re actually needed? But even if the agency is responsible for things the EPA doesn’t cover, do they really need 69 employees?
Also, why don’t they work with the other permit-issuing agencies in town? Shouldn’t this business have been denied required permits BEFORE the owner spent the money on equipment, space, employees, etc? How many more of these obscure agencies will pop up to surprise business owners (and homeowners)?
But honestly, I can’t wait until they go after the wood burning stoves on the south side. Guess who’s going to end up footing the bill to solve that problem. I’m guessing that a significant portion of the people using wood stoves for heat are below the poverty line. I’ll take it a step further and guess that they’re burning some things that are cheap or free that are releasing significant toxins into the air. And here’s another one, I’ll bet their home’s are old enough that retrofitting for cleaner heat will be expensive. Ok, one more. I’ll bet they’re in rentals so it’s their landlords that will be responsible for it, and when they raise the rent to cover it they’ll be labeled slumlords. I can see the marquee: “Clean air meets affordable housing”, or “Smog monster vs. Slumlord”.
Pardon my cynicism, but when the government tries to solve a problem they end up hurting people, usually the taxpayer.
But I digress…
A Ann March 30, 2008
I’m in for a mug. If I’m not mistaken we’d have about 2K if everyone who posted a comment bought one. Rich should have to buy at least two mugs…perhaps a penalty for all those elipses???
I infinityoreilly March 30, 2008
Maybe if he were allowed to roast during rainy days or stormy weather the partical emissions would cease to be an issue. From what I understand this is exactly what the the big mill downtown is allowed to do, go full bore on those type of days, and chill out on clear sunny days.
Just my 2 cents
J Jenyum March 30, 2008
Republican:
There’s a program to replace those old wood stoves and replace them with cleaner-burning models, and the agency will give you $2500 to do it.
I would hate for anyone to be loathe to talk to the clean air agency about replacing their woodstove. Participation is voluntary, and right now is the time to do it, the offer expires April 30th, 20008.
R rich March 30, 2008
why isn’t there a streamline process, where until all the reglatory crap is taken care of, the business licence isn’t issued??? Just a thought….oh, but you know, this is what happens when there are too many governement agencies…they dont’ talk to each other, and though the business owner attempts to have all the proper boxes checked, sometimes it’s impossible to know what all the boxes are..(I know, I’m assuming that he didn’t know about this)…anyways…..2 mugs?? Elispses?? Did I miss something…??
H heather March 30, 2008
OMG! John #20 got me thinking. My husband got a coffee roaster last year for xmas and has roasted a 1/4 cup of coffee every day for the past 15 months. NOONE TELL THE PS CLEAN AIR AGENCY!
Thank goodness our roaster’s “airborne byproduct” is hidden by all the fumes belched out of container ships and the diesel semis that swarm around the port. If it weren’t for all the big business polluters that the EPA does so little to control, we might get caught.
R Republican (By Default) March 30, 2008
Jenyum – $2500 would barely cover the cost of materials and a little bit of the labor. Some of these houses were built long before central heating came around, so a retrofit is a major change, either in ducting or in electrical wiring for baseboards (which often requires other changes to the homes electric service). And don’t forget to throw in the cost of permits and inspections.
But the big cost to the resident (often a renter) comes after the changes are made. Wood stoves burn almost anything. It’s likely that people living below the poverty level are burning whatever they can find. I’m guessing, but I think it’s a safe bet that not all know that burning wood products that contain formaldehyde glue releases toxic fumes into the air. Plastics burn well so some of those will undoubtedly get burned.
The amount of toxins put into the air by this one roaster is a drop in the bucket compared to what wood stoves are doing. I wonder what would happen if they slapped a commensurate fine on a widow or a single mother in South Tacoma. This agency doesn’t seem to be solving the problem, they seem to be dancing around it.
The point is that it’s a highly complex, politically charged issue. I’m not surprised that this obscure agency doesn’t want to tackle it. Attacking businesses is politically correct, so I get that they would go after the easy target instead of actually attacking the problem head on.
And for the record I’m not advocating going after widows and single mothers. I only expect that the burden of solving this problem not be shifted to the unsuspecting and vulnerable business owner.
D Dmitri March 30, 2008
Particulates are waste matter and are bad for you to breathe. This is true, no matter how sweet-smelling the original product. Yelling “It’s coffee! Get over it!” won’t change the fact that it’s true. Trees are pretty and smell real good, but if you breathe in quantities of sawdust, you’re going to wreck your lungs. Multiple exclamation points, question marks, dots, and capital letters don’t make it any less true. Shouting may equal truth on some radio stations, but most people prefer facts. It’s not “just coffee.” It’s coffee processing crap.
If you genuinely think “this state is a joke,” there are, of course, 49 others to choose from. If you wonder why we need a State clean air agency when there’s an EPA, I suggest you compare the air in, say, Houston, to ours. That most-polluted city is a shining example of an apathetic national agency and non-existent local control.
But boy, it sure is comforting to see that the old “let’s blame everything on the liberals” canard hasn’t completely disappeared. Liberal coffee drinkers, no less! You left out the Birkenstocks and tree-hugging, homosexuality, and abortion.
The way I understand it, “by default” means a position taken without having to think. You could look it up. Or, to paraphrase Rich, I don’t know what you said, but I’m sure your (?) right.
J John Sherman March 30, 2008
Just for some additional subject matter reading; for example, can be found at the EPA’s website http://www.epa.gov/r10earth/psgb/media/pdf/airshed_characterization.pdf
“Georgia Basin / Puget Sound Airshed” United States Environmental Protection Agency (ISBN 0-662-37167-4 Cat. no. En84-3/2004E-PDF) (2004); as a result, we breath a lot of things contained within our breathing space besides just the coffee bean roasting and what is next; it just follows, neighborhood bakery ovens and restaurants that have grill exhaust hoods?
R rich March 30, 2008
Sorry, I’m not buying it……show me data that proves that the specific particles from a coffee roaster are going to kill me and I might give you a break….Not data put together with alot of assumptions, because that doesn’t work. Show me an actual example of where the little tiny particles from a coffee roaster has actually effected someone…..don’t do a bunch of mathmatical computations taking the amount of tiny particles dispensed from a coffee roaster of that size and multiply it by a bunch of assumed numbers to get an equation that dooms society……show me….I bet you can’t because the percieved effect on society is determined exactly from a bunch of assumed variables and not an actual example where the particles of an actual coffee roasting machine has effected society as an whole……like perhaps the paper mill will………..once again, to assume that given X amount of coffee particles in the air per a square feet, given a certain wind direction and temperature, and the given local population within 10.7564345 feet, ages 5.453 – 14.657 with an average weight of 123.12 whom all exercise 3.21 times a week with blond hair and no family history of dying from coffee roasting particles in the last 200 years……..you get me drift…this is stupid…..what will actually kill me first, these particles or the exhaust from all the semi’s and cars along Pacific ave while walking to get my coffee at CBC (the fresh roasted kind, of course)……..I can see it now…….“An Inconvenient Truth: Part Deux Coffee Roasting Kills” Let me guess, we’ll have to spend Trillions now on riding the world of these dreaded Coffee roasting particles that are assumed to be the end of the earth…..will Leo get on board with this one also? Will we now have a worldwide Anti-Roasting hour, too? Where everyone stops roasting coffee for 1hr to save this planet which is close extinction…………..sorry, I had too much FRESH ROASTED coffee this morning…..
R rich March 30, 2008
anyways…..though I have been taking the side of the business owner here… I would probably figure that if I was ejecting something into the atmosphere that some sort of agency out there would have some issues and would have researched it more……..but, it sure is fun stiring the pot about coffee……lol..especially in the NW..home of Starbucks…..
G grubedoo March 30, 2008
How does replacing wood stoves with electric ones solve any problems? The electricity has to come from somewhere — either a coal burning plant or hydro plant. Doesn’t burning coal emit far more damaging particles than wood? Does backing up a river help the environment? Isn’t this an “out of sight out of mind” solution?
It seems to me that the particle issue stems more from the millions of vehicles on the roads each day not wood burning stoves and small shop coffee roasters. It’s just easier to levy fines on small businesses and strong-arm the private citizen than to address larger issues like adequate and effective mass transit or alternative fuels.
I feel bad for CBC whether or not their oversight was intentional. The cost of the burner is ridiculous and the effectiveness of it seems questionable. The fines are a tad inflated as well. But at least they didn’t get caught dubbing a movie. That’s a federal offense punishable by up to 5 years and $250,000.
Count me in on a $100 mug.
D Daniel Blue March 30, 2008
someone get me al gore on the global warming hotline!
It makes so much more sense to get some trucks to drive you your coffee from the great big packaging plant after some other trucks drive it there from the great big roasting plant after they paid some inconsequential south American person to harvest those beans in mass with some trucks and some rain forest destroyers and some human sacrifice. I’ll bet you those bean picker machines don’t have any regulations to deal with when they are strip cropping the homeland for folgers crystals.
washington really needs to crack down on these do it yourselfer polutant pigs! i mean, that guy isnt even doing his part to pay clearchannel to advertise (to the drivers on the HIGHWAY) his new plastic christmas lids that come with every purchase. PURCHASE PURCHASE PURCHASE! im glad we have this agency with its strangely sexual number of employees to keep this bastard in line.
besides if he goes under then there is more room for the trucks and the bomber planes we need to keep the port away from the casino.
seriously tho…
it makes me smile to see you people putting your money where your mouths are. however instead of rolling over and paying the damn fine, i say use the cash to hire a lawyer, cause you are getting ripped the eff’ off my friend.
it is the nature of large things to steamroll small things until the small things stand up and fight for the right to be small. i dont have a hundred dollars to give you, but i will chain myself to a roaster naked in a heartbeat.
S Sassy McButterpants March 30, 2008
i dont have a hundred dollars to give you, but i will chain myself to a roaster naked in a heartbeat.
I’m sure Derek will front you the cash Mr. Blue. No need to destroy your modesty and virtue.
M Mofo from the Hood March 31, 2008
Rich @37:
This is my official nomination for you to receive a Golden Megaphone Award.
M Marty March 31, 2008
$9000.00
How much would the city of tacoma spend to recruit a business to Tacoma to replace them?
How many community groups use the faclity free of charge?
CBC is a HUGE benefit to Tacoma and Downtown.
I hope that reason prevails, but….
Count me in for helping organize a fundraiser if that is needed.
Just thinking…..
Would the fundraiser be to benefit CBC or PSCAA?
U UPSpatrick March 31, 2008
I’m bummed about this. If the Clean Air Agency wants to give me $2500 towards my old smoky wood stove, I wish I could tear the thing out and let that 2.5k go toward CBC. I know that these numbers aren’t the same/fungible/you get the drift, but I’d give up my fireplace and its resulting particulates if it meant I’d be giving a small business a break. I wish we had pollution permits that could be traded/sold/donated in a market within the city.
A altered chords April 1, 2008
Mr. Blue:
Please consider the very real health risk of chaining yourself to a burning hot coffee roaster whithout wearing protective gear.
That particulate matter could cause serious breathing problems.
Or….are we on to a secret they don’t want to get out? That you can get a better coffee buzz by INHALING coffee roasting particulate mattter than drinking it????!!!!
M megan April 1, 2008
Whether or not Keith should have known about the equipment requirements for roasting when he opened the business seems far less important to me than the fact that he has created an indispensible business in a neglected part of downtown. Commencement Bay Coffee is more than great coffee and food— it has become a hub of community activity. It serves as meeting space for dozens of groups, as well as occasional music venue, theater and art space. It’s one of the few gems within a short walk of my home in the still-sketchy south end of Hilltop.
However CBC got into this mess, its value to Tacoma at this point trumps any mistakes that have been made. I’m behind any plan that can help keep the doors open.
R Rita April 1, 2008
Roasting coffee smells do not equal brewing coffee smells! I love coffee. I do not love the smell of coffee roasting. I lived on 7th and Sprague from 1992-1998, and the stench from Pinch’s Deli on coffee roasting days was horrid. It does not smell like coffee, it is a burnt, cloying, heavy smell that curtailed the neighborhood kids from getting out and about, killed any BBQ plans I made, yuck. I now live a block from CBC, I hope they stay, I go there for coffee and a place to meet friends. I hope they can start roasting again, as long as that smell I remember from my old nieghborhood doesn’t follow.
D Derek staff April 1, 2008
Roasting coffee smells do not equal brewing coffee smells!
I used to roast coffee at home. I like to describe it as the faint (or not so faint) smell of burning toast.
D DavidS April 2, 2008
Tribune weighs in
Interesting take in that article from PSCAA. It seems they believe they tried to bring Commencement Bay into compliance without a fine.
From my reading of the article, it also sounds like PSCAA probably sent a nasty-gram and waiting for a response. Meanwhile CBC received the nasty-gram and waited for a follow-up (while continuing to roast?). I don’t think CBC realized the follow-up was going to be a fine.
It’s particularly unfortunate that nobody was more pro-active. If an appeal had been filed, the fine might have gone away. That was the time to take this issue to court.
K Kitty April 2, 2008
About wood stoves and South End of Tacoma.
1. It’s unlikely that the wood stoves are in rentals, imagine the liability.
2. ALOT of folks in Washington prefer wood stoves, and we have an older population in the South End who simply like them. It feels good and it’s relativly inexpensive.
3. I saw a presentation on the wood stove replacement program and what I came away with was that there was essentially a coupon with money off if you bought an insert of some sort for your existing stove or one of the clean burning things. During this discussion someone noted that this time of year everything to do with wood stoves costs three times as much (go figure it’s cheaper to buy a heating device in the summer) resulting in a higher cost to the homeowner this time of year than it would be in the summer even with the discount or coupon or whatever it is.
4. I asked the presenter if they had done a search on property records at the auditors for homes listed with wood burning stoves so that they could actually target these individuals. I got a deer in the headlights response, followed by a request to the group to walk our neighborhoods and put door hangers on doors about the program.
If they wanted to tax us for those dang stoves they would find the individuals and owners and levy the fine…. I am just saying, I am all for clean air, but I don’t think it’s poverty or ignorance that causes people to enjoy them, and I don’t think the program has done a logical outreach to targeted households.
That being said, has anyone talked to Keith about selling mugs?
B BankerLC April 2, 2008
After hearing the details from Keith Prichard it is clear that it is simply a witch hunt situation. So that agency is going to go after a ma and pa coffee roaster months down the road. Why was nothing brought up as Keith was complying with all of the required regulations. He is one of the nicest and approachable business owners I have met. Yeah I know being a nice guy doesn’t hold much value these days but after speaking in-depth with Keith it’s obvious he did not intentionally break any regulations. It is an agency that has quotas to meet each fiscal quarter. To the people who say oh too bad he’s the owner he should have known you should consider stopping by and asking all the questions you want. I guarantee he will answer each question. I would be happy to lead any fundraising effort.
P precast April 2, 2008
Geez. If they are successful then that will be one less source of pollution that the Port of Tacoma can hide behind
J J. Cote April 2, 2008
I’ve read about this same thing on the TNT Blog. According to the guy at PSCAA, they are willing to look at reducing, if not eliminating the fine. RULE 1, If opening a business, make sure that you are following ALL the rules. Ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law. Travel at 40mph some night on South 19th Street on the Fircrest (South) side of the road and see what I mean. “I didn’t know” won’t even get you a fine reduction in that little courthouse. CBC will be fine. Pun not intended.
B BankerLC April 2, 2008
J. Coate,
I suggest you read the article in today’s business section of the TNT. Clearly they (PSCAA) are NOT going to let it go. As you said, “According to the guy at PSCAA, they are willing to look at reducing, if not eliminating the fine.” You should take the time to review what the representatives are saying. In reality J. Coate how much are they or have they done to address the issue during the permit phase? Shouldn’t they have addressed the issue when they “changed” the roasting limits? If Mr. Pritchard obtained all of the required permits why would he think otherwise? Ultimately Mr. Pritchard and CBC has had a positive effect on the community. The employees of the City of Tacoma would agree being that they use his back room for meetings regularly. Guess how much he charges the agency that is supposed to promote local businesses? NOTHING. I’m sure if you took the time to ask him a few questions he would be happy to answer them. Perhaps this would prove that Mr. Pritchard has NOTHING TO RUN FROM. Thank you for your time.
B bill April 3, 2008
How strong a hand is PSCAA playing? They have achieved their objective 100%. CBC no longer roasts coffee beans. So what does this fine represent now that CBC has come into compliance and will be bankrupted by it? It’s nothing less than a good old shake down for our “mug money.” PSCAA needs to drop the idea of a fine and withdraw. This is officious and arrogant and way too unfair. If CBC were one size larger it would have engaged an attorney and this fine “opportunity” would never have arisen.
J John Sherman April 4, 2008
Other states might be more business friendly; for example, Colorado and it air quality; as a result, it air quality people spend the time, effort, and information publication so everybody has information up front.
See Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Air Pollution Control Division. An Overview of Air Quality Regulations. The roasting of coffee beans … at http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/ap/sbap/SBAPcoffeefacts.pdf
This is an example of what could be done within Washington State if the Washington State air quality people had the initiative to just-do-it and get this type of information into public view and on file with every Washington State city(s) business permits issue agency(s).
Just my opinion.
C Christy April 4, 2008
#52 Kitty, I’ll agree with you that some people just like the heat of a true fire, but low-income plays a huge significance especially in my neighborhood, South Tacoma. Senior citizens around me would rather chop down a 30 year old fir in their yard than pay 10 grand for a new furnace. And landlords, please! Are they going to pay $10,000 to upgrade the heating in a house that is worth $150,000 to $195,000 or are they going to let the renter find wood for heat on their own dime? Liability? Come on!
Overall, as a business owner, I know from experience that no guidelines exist for us. If I open a coffee shop that roasts it’s own beans, no one in any government agency is going to step forward and tell me all of the hoops I’m going to have to jump through. No binder instruction booklet will come in the mail to tell me everything I need to know about opening a coffee shop in Tacoma or Pierce County. Even a simple search on google tells me zero about afterburners or incinerators. Unfortunately for the small business owner, it’s a “cross your fingers and hope you found everything” type of situation. I would never hide behind ignorance, but geez people, these little details are so buried and hard to find. Give the guy a freakin’ break.
On a personal note, I’ve been to CBC about a dozen times. The location is perfect for my business meetings and I’ve really tried to make it work. When I opened this post, I thought the crappy attitude barista’s were finally getting their comeupins for being such nasty little monsters. 10 out of 12 times I’ve asked for a latte to the back of someones head because they couldn’t give me the time for eye contact or even a simple “can I take your order.” So, I am sorry to the owner for getting burned by the bureaucracy in this town, but I’m not sorry this place is closing down. I always get great service at Tully’s.
B bill April 5, 2008
So, “the place is closing down.” I’ve been waiting to hear. Thanks for the update, Christy. I guess Julie Anderson and Tim Farrell were unable to get Jake Fey’s attention. I emailed him. He’s my councilman, but got no acknowledgement whatsoever. Good bye, CBC. I’ll miss you.
C Christy April 5, 2008
I don’t know if it’s closing down for sure, that just seemed to be the way this post was leaning.
M megan April 5, 2008
Great points re: small businesses, Christy. But I’m sorry to hear that you had bad experiences at CBC. The service is slow, for sure, but in my experience, always friendly. Not just that, but there are baristas there who remember my name— as just one of countless customers!— even though I don’t yet know all of their names. Give Commencement Bay another try in the future— who knows, the service might improve in response to your posting.
M Marty April 5, 2008
From the TNT:
“The state fined Atlas Castings & Technology $19,200 Friday for safety violations related to a propane explosion last fall that killed a truck driver and caused millions of dollars in damages to the Nalley Valley steel foundry and surrounding businesses.”
From CBC:
$13,878 fine for a 30 pound coffee roaster in an industrial area.
I believe there needs to a rethinking of things.
B bill April 6, 2008
Maybe the Port’s holding contracts for air pollution credit purchased on the Chicago Board of Exchange. Can you believe it, we’ve turned air pollution into a form of money. Is this a great country or what?
[4 errors in one game – 4!]