SHELTON — After nearly a century of operations, Simpson Lumber is closing its mills in Shelton, on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, cutting most of its 270 jobs in the area.
KMAS-AM radio in Shelton reports that the mills are being sold to Sierra Pacific Industries, based in Anderson, California. Sierra Pacific said in a statement it doesn’t intend to operate them but instead plans to build one state-of-the-art mill, to open in 2017.
Simpson Lumber sent its workers 60-day termination letters. In addition to severance pay, the company said it’s trying to secure government economic aid or job retraining for them.
Mason County has already been struggling to emerge from the recession and has higher unemployment than the statewide average.
Simpson says it will continue to operate Simpson Door Co., which employs 188 people in nearby McCleary.
