Archive for August, 2013

There’s GOLD In The Boise River

There’s gold in the Boise River! Well, maybe not gold, but plenty of cash. Folks paid about $450,000 dollars to float in a raft or inner tube from Barber Park To Julia Davis this summer–not bad for about 90 days. The season ends at the end of the Labor Day Weekend. The river float gets […]

Coppers Opt To Not Expand Shooting Range

In what can only be described as a “surprise move,” Boise coppers have decided to not appeal the city planning and zoning board’s recent denial of a permit to expand the shooting range in the foothills off Reserve Street. A police commander had previously declared the department exempt from the zoning and vowed to appeal […]

ACHD To Boise: “Paybacks Are A Bitch”

Boise’s Team Dave has a history of bad relations with various cities as well as Ada County and the recent “Parking War” is just another example of not playing nice. The Wednesday vote by the Ada County Highway District to deny the city permission to embed “hocky puck” sensors into streets to track vehicle use […]

Eagle Council Approves Snow Park

Eagle’s City Council approved a deal Tuesday that could put a commercial snowboard concession on land the city leases from Ada County off Horseshoe Bend Road. It relies on snowmaking technology. According to Idaho Statesman coverage, the city’s 15-year contract with Ryan Neptune is a concession agreement comparable to the agreement the city of Boise […]

Bieter At Boehner $50 Fund Raiser For Simpson

OK, we admit it. The GUARDIAN enjoys raising questions with regard to politico fund raising. When we heard Boise Mayor Dave Bieter, an avowed Dem, was introduced at a $50 a plate fund raiser for Repub Rep. Mike Simpson Monday, we wondered who paid. Did Bieter have to pay to get in to hear U.S. […]

Eagle Offers Ada Land To Theme Park Promoter

In yet another “cart before the horse” project of a local city, Eagle is set to consider an offer Tuesday from a developer to approve a commercial summer/winter theme park on land owned by Ada County–before getting permission from the Ada Commishes. Ryan Neptune, an officer of Gateway Parks has told the Eagle City Council […]

TJ Thomson First To File For Council Seat

Incumbent Boise Councilor TJ Thomson announced today he has filed for reelection. Along with an invitation to a kick-off party at Chandi Lighting Studio 1110 Jefferson from 5:30-7:30 p.m., he included an endorsement from the Boise firefighter’s union. So far there has been no hint of opposition to Thomson, Ben Quintana, or Maryanne Jordan–all incumbents […]

Growthophobes Beware Can-Ada Population Of 1,000,000 Predicted By 2040

Massive population growth may sound great to politicos and others eager to solve problems like transportation, sewer, water, education, and air quality, but to growthophobes it signals a call to action. The Sunday Idaho Press Tribune published a story predicting the population of Canyon and Ada Counties would hit one million by 2040. They even […]

Wanna Be A Politico? Here Are Boise Rules

The GUARDIAN has obtained the candidate filing rules for the Boise City Council election set for Nov. 5 on the off chance anyone cares enough to run against the three incumbents. We find it ironic that 53 people applied for an appointment to Vern Bisterfeldt’s vacant seat, but no one will run for election. –When […]

Boise Continues “Cart-Before the Horse” Management

Boise has been creating urban sprawl for years, annexing hundreds of acres into the city–often despite protests by residents–and then bening forced to provide services. Fire stations have been built out of the annual budget and park land purchased with no money left to maintain or “green up” the space. Now, they are claiming the […]

Tradition Of Apathy In Boise Council Races

Boise’s City Council election is barely two months away and to our knowledge no one has announced a challenge to the incumbents and anyone shy of Cecil Andrus would have a difficult time mounting a credible challenge at this late hour. Councilors TJ Thomson, Ben Quintana and Maryanne Jordan are all facing reelection–and presumably they […]

Bronco Boozer Club Gets Tailgate OK

Boise’s City councilors passed an ordinance for one year that will allow tailgating in specified areas during the upcoming season. The new ordinance was brought forth by the coppers who say they are trying to “decriminalize” open cantainer violations associated with tailgating parties at football games. The GUARDIAN agrees with the concept, but questions the […]

Cop Shooting Range Has Sordid History

POST UPDATED 3 p.m. No doubt about it, Boise coppers need a shooting range to maintain a safe standard of proficiency with their weapons to protect themselves and the public. That’s a given. However, when the biggest county sheriff’s department, state coppers and others are able to use an existing facility in the desert, it […]

Elmore Fires= A One Mile Wide Strip From Chicago To Detroit

Size and distance take on totally different perspectives from Idaho to the Midwest. Consider this: The Elk Complex and Pony Complex fires burning in the Boise National Forest east of Boise have charred more than 300 square miles (200,000 acres). With 640 acres per square mile, that means the area burned just in Elmore county […]

Wild Fires Rage East Of Boise

The following is an unedited press release from the U.S. Forest Service Extreme Fire Behavior Is Predicted for Area Fires Sunday Boise, ID – Firefighters endured another long night on the firelines working to keep both the Elk and Pony Complexes at bay. The plume-dominated Elk Complex is now estimated at 80,365 and 0% contained. […]

Cascade Shooting and Rescue Conducted In Near Secrecy With Media Blackout

With dozens of reporters from local and national media converging “on scene” at Cascade it was ironic that news of Hannah Anderson’s rescue and James DiMaggio’s death on Saturday came from the sheriff of San Diego County 1,000 away. Reporters massed outside the Cascade emergency center–just like the television viewers across the USA–got the news […]

Daily Paper Wins Dope Reporter Award

No doubt about it, the English language has taken a beating at the thumbs of today’s electronic media folks. The web reporter/editor at the Saturday IDAHO STATESMAN has just earned a coveted GUARDIAN “dope reporter award” with this gem: Man killed in US 20 wreck “A 53-year-old man died Friday night after being rearended on […]

Valley County Is Ground Zero For California Kidnap Manhunt

BREAKING NEWS: A massive manhunt is unfolding in the forest of Valley County Friday afternoon for a California kidnapper and at least one of his victims after police confirmed a car being sought was found abandoned east of Cascade near the Frank Church Wilderness. Although the license plates were removed, the VIN number matched DiMaggio’s […]

Boise Lives Beyond Its Means, Bieter To Ask For $34M Bond Debt

Two days after the city annexed an additional 1.5 square miles–increasing the need to provide services–and only a week or so after announcing a joint agreement with emergency service providers, plans are afoot to go into debt to buy $34,000,000 worth of “infrastructure” improvements and expansions for police, fire, and parks. The good news is […]

What Happened To Honesty And Common Sense?

Gotta admit it has been difficult to write much in the way of “constructive” criticism lately with all the crooked businessmen and business deals coming to light and politicos trying to match the business folks. We have a plethora (for non-library types that’s a whole bunch) of scams that have come to light and not […]

Get the Guardian by email

Enter your email address:

Categories