Area's economic recovery mixed

SANDPOINT — As summer approaches, the local job market is experiencing an upswing, but that does not mean the economy is on the verge of recovery, Idaho Department of Labor officials said.

Continuing troubles in the timber industry, steep drops in construction and layoffs in manufacturing have put the brakes on economic growth in the Panhandle, but northern counties continue to lay the foundation for a brighter future, labor department officials said.

It is something the area has achieved before.

As the once-stable timber industry became a less-reliable employer, both Bonner and Boundary counties began to successfully diversify their economies over the past 20 years.

 Jobs in manufacturing and agriculture, as well as in the education, service and recreation industries were added, offering an economic buffer for downturns in local industry, according to IDL reports.

The diverse economy added a cushion from the economic downturn, and will help the area’s revitalization efforts, Alivia Body, regional economist for the Idaho Department of Labor, said.

“It will help Bonner County recover,” Body said.

In the meantime, though, the larger area, including Boundary County, is struggling to find a formula for recovery.

That could take a while, IDL officials said.

Bonner County manufacturing jobs numbered 1,977 and were increasing systematically until last year when waves from the floundering economy crashed into the Panhandle, resulting in the loss of more than 230 jobs in Bonner County, Body said.

The job losses came on the heels of a trend in outlying areas such as Priest River, where 650 sawmill and logging jobs were lost since 2006, according to the department.

Last winter, closure of the Welco mill in Naples — for almost 20 years the mill produced cedar fence boards for the residential housing market — resulted in the loss of 45 jobs.

In addition, Bonner County manufacturers reduced their workforce and the local construction industry hit the brakes.

But the news is not all bad, Body said. Some of the area’s largest manufacturers have adopted forward-looking plans.

Sandpoint-based Litehouse Foods Inc. has a plan to increase sales by more than 75 percent within five years, and a local plastic parts maker is increasing production.

“We’re seeing some job openings in manufacturing,” Body said.

Manufacturers are adding jobs, not just hours, she said.

“That is a good sign,” she said.

Some mills, part of a larger conglomerate, are testing new, international markets.

“Reaching into other markets, such as Asian markets, those mills are going to survive,” she said.

So far this spring, after a lack of new job openings, the number of job listings jumped at the Idaho Department of Labor’s Sandpoint office, said office manager Bridgette Bradshaw-Fleer.

“We’ve seen an increase in job listings this spring, so it’s starting to pick back up again,” she said.

The number is still 50 percent lower than at the same time in 2007 before the economy hit the skids, she said, but the increase in listings at least points in the right direction.

This week, the office posted 80 listings compared to 32 in Boundary County. In the spring of 2007, the office had 175 listings.

“We peaked at over 200 at one point,” she said.

The new listings show an uptick in service and retail jobs, but also spreads to health care and education, she said.

In addition, a new report indicates gasoline prices will remain stable this summer, Bradshaw-Fleer said. That could result in more tourism in both Boundary and Bonner counties.

“We expect to see more travelers,” Bradshaw-Fleer said. “We expect them to come here.”

A short-term economic surge is predictable, but a more stable, long-term recovery will take longer.

“Things are looking better than they were before, but don’t expect to see any big changes for another year or so,” she said.