Archived Story

Final shift Friday for N. Idaho lumber mill
Posted on Oct. 2
By the Associated Press

PRIEST RIVER, Idaho - Friday marks the final shift at the JD Lumber mill in this northern Idaho timber town, the latest victim of a collapsing home construction industry that's forced prices for wood products lower and pressured even the industry's strongest local competitors to consolidate.

Even so, town officials are hoping Priest River's history of boom, bust, then recovery that dates back to the late 19th century when lumber mills arrived on the heels of the railroad will be repeated for the town of 1,800 just south of the Canadian border.

The last of 216 workers at the Priest River mill will lose their jobs by week's end. That's after the night shift was scrubbed in early August following the mill's sale to Riley Creek Lumber, based in neighboring Laclede.

The drop in the building market and falling wood prices, caused in part by the nation's housing crisis, has forced companies including Portland, Ore.-based Stimson Lumber to shutter mills in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, and Bonner, Mont. Earlier this year, Riley Creek and rival Bennett Forest Industries of Grangeville announced a merger to better compete for business from large customers, including Home Depot Inc.

"I have lived in Priest River for all of my nearly 40 years, long enough to see mills close due to the poor lumber market, buyouts, and others due to fire," Mayor Jim Martin told the Coeur d'Alene Press. "In each case, the town survived with its resilient attitude, hard work and determination."

To help, the Idaho Department of Labor has been to town, helping employees whose jobs are being eliminated with unemployment insurance, employment services and retraining.

Some 20 employees have already found new jobs and Riley Creek announced plans to hire up to 70 additional workers for its mills in Laclede, Moyie Springs and Chilco, which are being combined with Bennett's new Grangeville mill as part of the new merged company.

Even so, the state estimates at least 125 people from the JD Lumber mill will be out of work, starting this weekend.

Some here are counting on efforts started by the Priest River Development Corp. to help soften the blow as part of its goal of recruiting jobs and diversifying the community's timber economy. The PRDC's industrial park, developed since 1980, is almost full and adds about $2.4 million annually to the local economy.

Martin also said representatives of businesses with the potential of employing a total of more than 100 people visited Priest River recently, with at least one scheduling a return visit.

"They don't have the labor force but like the area," Martin said. "We've got the people."
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