I first got word about the property transactions happening in Battle Ground in early 2026 from community members. They told me that notable, main street businesses kept being sold without much explanation of why, despite the growing curiosity of residents.

My editors and I decided this was an important story to focus on because it involved a powerful person and company in town that appeared to be reshaping the community.

We wanted to know, as best we could, what was behind these property sales. These questions felt more important given that they were connected to prominent community members — a church pastor who had described wanting to “govern unbelievers” in a talk about some of the properties, the CEO of the fastest growing company in town, and newly elected officials who work for, or are connected to, that company, Maddox Industrial Transformer.

The reporting in this story took place over the course of several months. That was partly because it took time to track down property records and find residents who were willing to talk about their concerns.

I called local business owners and introduced myself to others in person.

I tried to contact Maddox CEO Camden Spiller, Pastor C.R. Wiley, Maddox vice president Max Booth, Battle Ground Mayor Eric Overholser and Deputy Mayor Aimee Vaile multiple times to give them a chance to comment on the story. Despite those requests, none agreed to be interviewed, though Booth, Spiller and Overholser provided short statements.

The reactions from Battle Ground residents to the property sales were mixed.

As noted in the story, some people told me they believe Spiller’s investments in Battle Ground are a positive step for the city.

Other residents said they believed there was a lack of transparency about the sales but were not willing to be recorded because they were worried about criticizing a company as large and influential as Maddox in a town of 23,000.

I interviewed Pastor Doug Wilson to help understand what he knew about the changes in Battle Ground. Wilson said he didn’t know whether his efforts to grow the influence of Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, are being used as a model in Battle Ground.

To confirm ownership of properties in Battle Ground, I referenced publicly available property records from Clark County, the Washington Secretary of State’s Office, and the Washington Department of Revenue.

I learned the details of other properties by watching public meetings of the Battle Ground City Council and by requesting records from the city’s planning department. Past election information came from the Clark County Elections Office.

To better understand the motivations of the people mentioned in this story who did not agree to be interviewed, I listened to past podcasts and talks with Wiley, Spiller and Booth, and I read articles they have written. Newspapers like The Reflector and The Columbian have both catalogued the changes taking place in Battle Ground as well.

This article shows what I was able to find out about the changes happening in Battle Ground. If you’d like to share more information, please get in touch. You can reach me at [email protected].

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2026/04/30/how-battle-ground-story-reported-maddox-properties-christian-influence/