The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1920-01-15
BUILD COLD
STORAGE PLANT
@~ 49, THIS YEAR
w. II. Adrian and A. +. Griffith
Will Erect Plant With Ca
pacity of 800 Cars.
HALF BLOCK is PURCHASED
Ground Will be Broken by March
First and Building Completed
in Time for Pears.

That Kennewick will not be forced
to go thru another fruit harvest with
out a cold storage plant became as
sured this week when w. r. Adrian
of jefferson, Iowa, and A. #. Grif-
fifth of Omaha purchased a site be-
tween Seventh and Mckinley streets
fronting on the o-W r. & N. right of
way. The purchasers expect to break
ground by March / for a modern and
thoroughly equipped cold storage
and preceding plant with capacity
of 800 cars of fruit. Work will be
carried forward as rapidly as possible
and the plant will be ready for busi-
ness by the beginning of the pear
harvest.
Both Mr.. Adrian and Mr.. Griffith
are successful business men of many
years experience and both are famil-
lar with fruit growing industry in
this valley. They were among the
pioneer land purchasers in the Rich
land project and they. are now the
largest orchard owners in that dis
trict having never lost faith during the
lean years. This new company will
be known as the Columbia Yakima
Cold Storage company. They expect
to put out fruit brand of their own,
known as the C-Y brand but the
storage and preceding plant will not
be limited to the handling of their own
fruits. Fruits will be accepted from
the grower or marketing agencies on
a straight storage basis or the new
company will accept fruit as it comes
from the orchard, pack it under the
owners own label and hold it in
storage until it is ready for shipment.
In addition to the cold storage bust
ness the company will handle spray
materials and other fruit growing and
harvesting necessities.
"Our intention is to give the grow
ers of the Kennewick- -Richland dis
trict just the kind of plant they need"
said Mr.. Adrian. The building we shall
erect this year is only the first unit.
If there is demand for another we
shall build another unit next year. We
have bought a large site and we ex-
pect to expand just as rapidly as the
business will justify. Our plant will
be equipped with the most modern re-
frigeration and preceding systems
and from an efficient standpoint it will
be second to none in the Northwest"
"My experience in growing, har-
vesting and shipping fruit from our
orchards at Richland has thoroughly
convinced me that cold storage and
preceding plant is one of the urgent
needs of this section" said Mr.. Grif-
fifth. "The most logical place in the
whole of the Yakima valley for
plant of this kind is at Kennewick and
some day a large percentage of the
tonnage of the Yakima valley will
find storage here.
"This is on the direct line of ship
ment east and fruit raised anywhere
in the Yakima or Columbia valleys
can be shipped and placed in storage
here on a storage-in-transit rate.
At the present time much of the fruit
of the lower Yakima valley is with
out storage facilities for the reason
that the plants are west instead of
east of the orchards where it is grown.
We have no doubt that we shall be
able to fill our plant to capacity this
year"
The site purchased by Mr.. Adrian
and Mr.. Griffith has track frontage
of 376 feet on the o. w. road.
The building they will erect this year
and of two stories and with full
basement.
Mr.. Adrian left today for Portland
where he will take up with the head
officials of the O-W the proposition
of getting common user trackage Tor
the new plant and Mr.. Grlffith goes
east where he will be joined by Mr..
Adrian and the two will place orders
for the refrigeration and other equip
ment. Both gentlemen expect to
come to Kennewick to make their
homes and to personally direct the
business of the Columbia-Yakima
company.