County
Taxpayers Fund COMPASS Legislative Party
The GUARDIAN has obtained more information about the taxpayer funded party set for Thursday evening to curry favor with legislators to advance their “agenda” in the Idaho Legislature. While the invitation sent to COMPASS members said “We will have heavy hors d’oeuvres and a hosted bar,” we have learned from COMPASS executive director Matt Stoll […]
COMPASS To Provide “Hosted Bar” to Legislators
COMPASS, the Community Planning Association funded by local city and county governments throughout Ada and Canyon Counties has scheduled a 2009 Legislative Reception Thursday to include free booze. Each city and county pays dues to COMPASS which supposedly acts as a regional planning agency for things like Transit. Just in case anyone in the unwashed […]
Daily Paper Sells Feature Space To ACHD
DISCLAIMER–At the risk of sounding like a pitchman for female politicos who have recycled themselves back into office, the GUARDIAN was fascinated by an item posted on a new blog by Sara Baker, the newest Commish on the ACHD board and a former Boise City Councilor. Like Ada County Commish Sharon Ullman, Baker runs a […]
Missing Buses Located With BPD and BFD
The buses are all present and accounted for, but the manner in which possession of the government property has been transferred between agencies has caused concern for managers. The coppers have a couple of the exploding buses at a desert location where they will be used for–EXPLOSIVE training–and some SWAT team exercises. Boise Police command […]
Where Have All The Busses Gone?
The tipster called the GUARDIAN asking slyly, “do you know about the bus Valley Transit gave away to the mechanic?” That prompted a series of phone calls that got more incredible as the day wore on. A Valley Regional Transit spokesman confirmed that a maintenance manager and a deputy director of the government funded organization […]
Bungling Bureaucrats Botch Boise Buses
In a refreshing bit of local journalism, Cynthia Sewell of the Daily Paper detailed a pattern of BUNGLING BUREAUCRATS either unwilling or unable to put together a plan to spend federal funds for a downtown transit center. The fed money was earmarked for Boise in 2005, but Boise City, the Urban Renewal Agency (CCDC), Ada […]
CCDC Short On Funds For Courthouse Debt
The new blog by Ada Commish Sharon Ullman yielded a little gem about the Capitol City Development Corp and the controversial funding scheme for the courthouse. According to Ullman’s POST, CCDC officials met with the three Commishes looking for some bucks to make bond payments on the Courthouse which just happens to be owned by […]
Trash Talking Commish Sharon
Newly re-elected Ada Commish Sharon Ullman has started her COMMISH BLOG and vows to turn over a new leaf when it comes to dealing with the media. She has hit the ground running just like Team Obama who also know a thing or two about public opinion via the internet. Her first entry is interesting as it […]
Trickle Down Economy Costs County Jobs
You know things are bad when GOVERNMENT is laying off workers. Ada County Assessor Bob McQuade has axed four part time and two full time positions in the DMV (auto licensing and registration) division due to lagging auto sales–and fewer cars being registered. He has also declined to fill two part time and two full […]
Avimor Sales May Total 6 Units
Avimor has been beaten up in recent comments–especially on the Dry Creek “Planned Community” story. We got the following from an obvious insider and frankly what they apparently see as a positive sign is pretty weak. “Avimor has had residents since October. There are three homes closed, two with families living therein. One home is […]
Ada Commishes Show Growthopbobe Traits
One bright spot on the New Year horizon came Wednesday night at the Ada County Commish meeting when all three members demonstrated at least a small dose of GROWTHOPHOBIA. They seem to think 8.6 dwelling units per acre is about double the appropriate number of homes for the proposed Dry Creek “Planned Community.” The group […]
ACHD Commish “On The (political) Road Again”
Sara Baker, the new ACHD Commish took the oath of office today and set the tone for her agenda during her remarks. She offered an olive branch to local governments saying, “No longer can we have jurisdictional squabbles. We all live and drive in this county.” She has long been a critic of the ACHD […]
New Voice Sounding Like A GROWTHOPHOBE
Here is a nicely written piece BY JEAN McNEIL, a Boise Freelancer, which also appeared in the Daily Paper. It is published with her permission. When I moved to Boise 30 years ago, I called it a 10-minute town – you could get from almost anywhere to almost anywhere else in 10 minutes or less. […]
Ada County Housing Values Part II
After posting the factoid regarding how Ada County arrives at appraised value, it was no surprise to get another view from a private appraiser. “I do not know where the Assessor obtained the apparent low (-4.0%) median value decline for Ada County single family residences. The data from Multiple Listing Service indicates the median value […]
ACHD Has Butts In Their Sand
Seems like business is “picking up” for the folks at the Ada County Highway District. With a breather between snow storms, crews are out gathering all that sand they dumped at intersections and on hills for traction. Judging from the close up photo they sent along with the press release there are a ton of […]
Economics, Real Estate, Tax Lesson
In an effort to predict what’s up for property taxes in the new year, we had a chat about home values with the guy everyone loves to hate, Ada County Assessor Bob McQuade. Tuesday he offered some caution about predicting home values for 2009. The valuations which we all get in the mail around Memorial […]
Time To Clear The Roads Now
Anyone who shovels the snow from their driveway knows it is a lot easier to do BEFORE several inches have accumulated and packed down. We go through this every time it snows or there is any kind of emergency. Before we go any further, SOLDIERS, NURSES, FIREMEN, COPPERS, TEACHERS, SNOWPLOW DRIVERS, and the TRASH GUYS […]
Ferdinand Plea Bargains Out Of Gun Charge
Canyon Commish who got caught at the Boise Airport packing heat in the security area copped a plea this week in what both sides describe as a “Negotiated Resolution.” The GUARDIAN is headed to watch the Poinsetia Bowl, so here is the entire text of the 2008-12-23-joint-media-statement_final2. This is the same Boise City attorney that […]
City Job In Future For Ada Commish?
A couple of cynical GUARDIAN readers sent us a message today noting the City of Boise is advertising in the Sunday Daily Paper for an Environmental Director at the Public Works Department with a salary starting at $72,000 on the low range. They predict TEAM DAVE has created the position to take care of Ada […]
Detox Deal Done, Despite Dollar Drain
There is no doubt about the need for a detox center in Boise so the coppers can take people someplace besides the Emergency Room or the slammer to sober up. There was a lot of fanfare about an agreement and possible 2010 opening for a joint city, county, state facility known as “Substance Abuse and […]
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