Business
Can’t Find Local Officials? Try Valley County’s Tamarack Resort
September 15, 2011 
If you can’t find your local mayor, city councilor, or county commish, try looking at Tamarack Resort in Valley County.
These members of the “Treasure Valley Partnership”–comprised of local elected officials–are spending YOUR tax money for hotel rooms, travel, and rental houses to meet and discuss a topic near and dear to Treasure Valley residents: How to promote Treasure Valley as a tourist destination, attract conventions and visitors to the area. Local venues apparently were not adequate for the two day “retreat.”
They need to take a lesson from the bankrupt Tamarack and the economically depressed Valley County!
To insure more advertising-free Boise Guardian news, please consider financial support.
Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
© 2011 Boise Guardian. 
Sep 16, 2011, 9:40 am
So what else is new? Now that the Supremes endorsed the citizens united case, pols and corporations can spend bucks on political whatever like they were all millionaires.
Oh wait–that’s what most of them are. Why do you think that some Dems in Congress also veto tax rises for the top 2% of incomes???
This state needs revenue, but that doesn’t stop these pols!
Sep 16, 2011, 4:41 pm
Our elected officials at the local, state, and national level, represent, work for, and care about, only a tiny minority of the citizens of the USA. If you aren’t fed up with being “trickled down on” you aren’t paying attention.
Sep 16, 2011, 9:18 pm
Most citizens are content to complain about things but few are willing to step up and try to seek a legislative or judicial solution to a given problem. Add to this most legislators will give you a sympathetic ear but are lukewarm to doing much.
Elected officials junketing around on the taxpayer dime, even trips to Tamarack, are bad form. We have a Mayor in Caldwell who is constantly on the road to some distant place for who knows what. This week and last week he has been in Washington D.C. if you can believe it. It is a farce that he has any business in Washington D.C. that could not be handled via a phone call, email, letter or fax. He loves to travel on the taxpayer dime. Hell he even charges his traffic tickets to Caldwell taxpayers.
Sep 16, 2011, 10:57 pm
More likely they are renting from friends??
Sep 17, 2011, 1:32 pm
I can confirm that Ada County elected officials were in the office on Friday because we attended the swearing in ceremony of Lynn Norton, as the new District judge! That included all 3 Commissioners, Assessor, Clerk, and Treasurer.
Sep 17, 2011, 10:54 pm
This is ridiculous. It really does not cost much to rent these homes at Tamarack. I own several of them and rent them out to vacationers. The nightly rental is so cheap that I loose money on them every month. It would cost as much or more to stay at a three star hotel in Boise as the nightly rental at Tamarack.
I am just hoping they can promote the region and attract more visitors so I can finally charge some reasonable rental rates.
These are elected officials who are interested in bringing the unemployment rate down. The only resource for valley county is tourism. They should try to promote it. Where else will people work at? The resort is close to complete and should boost the regional economy if more construction jobs are available. I understand that the locals are upset about the bankruptcy, but they really should be more supportive. I am upset also. I lost a good deal of money, but I welcome the completion of bankruptcy and a new purchaser.
Sep 18, 2011, 11:52 am
Why do they need to travel at all if they are all local? And if they are all local why would they need any accommodations if they were to hold this event in Boise or Ada County? I would like to see more information on which officials were in attendance.
Sep 18, 2011, 1:02 pm
I do not understand the need for elected officials to go outside of their elected municipality for a meeting of people from the same jurisdiction. Why not use local facilities and skip the expense of travel, lodging, meals etc. at taxpayer expense. It is extremely bad form on their part to do this even in the best of economic times.
Sep 18, 2011, 7:36 pm
Dave, the only employment these elected officials care about is their own! if you were crazy enough to buy “several” of these properties, I am sorry, but your situation is of your own making.
Sep 20, 2011, 9:12 am
Cyclops, I agree. It was not a good idea to buy properties at this resort, but I guess you can say the same of any real estate purchase in the past several years. I thought it would be a nice place to retire. I dont want tax payer money to fund or support any part of this resort. It should be from private sources.
My point is that the essence of this article suggests that elected officials are spending substantial funds to take essentially a vacation. I am not sure why they have to travel at all, but it is cheaper to stay at this resort than most three star hotels. The bankruptcy has been so tough on this resort, many accomodations are renting for 1/5th what they did several years ago.
EDITOR NOTE–Dave, the issue was the irony (hypocrisy?) of officials leaving the Treasure Valley to have a meeting about BRINGING business and tourism to the Treasure Valley. Also, if you are sincere about not using government money at Tamarack, that would apply to the planned addition of 18 square MILES of public land to the resort under the state land board.
Sep 20, 2011, 10:56 pm
Still want to know if they rented from family and friends?