Growth
City Of Caldwell Agrees To Secret Deal With Developer
A confidential agreement stemming from a lawsuit filed against the City of Caldwell by the developers of Cirrus Pointe subdivision paints a picture of secrecy and ineptitude on the part of the City. The CALDWELL GUARDIAN obtained the settlement dated July 6 in an effort to reveal why no traffic signal was constructed at the […]
Wildfire Shows Why NOT to Allow Foothills Homes
The terms are all too familiar…”structures are threatened…trying to get a handle on the fire…lightning caused…man caused…” tallies on the number of engines, tankers, retardant aircraft, helicopters, and hotshot crews from other locations. The reason for the massive response is all too familiar as well–lives and property are endangered because people move into areas subject […]
Did Flawed Intel Lead To Council Support Of F-35?
A group calling itself SaveOurValleyNow is claiming the endorsement of Boise City Councilors in support of the F-35 fighter at Gowen Field is based on flawed information. Citing what they claim are conflicting statements from Deputy Airport Director Matt Petja regarding noise levels, the group is actually offering the Council a face-saving way to back […]
Bieter Seeks To Abolish Citizen’s Right To Vote
Using an appearance before the Chamber of Commerce as a “bully pulpit,” Boise Mayor Dave Bieter urged citizens to approve a proposed constitutional amendment that would serve only to abolish rights citizens currently enjoy to approve bonds to pay for airport facilities. We find it ironic the good Mayor seeks to abolish the right of […]
BSU Finance and Land Use Planning 101
This post was originally sent to the GUARDIAN as a comment from a reader. We felt it worthy of a full blown post. By DEAN GUNDERSON BSU has held an A1 Bond rating by Moody’s for its last few issuances. This puts it on a relative investment risk on par with the countries of South […]
Agency Leery of BSU Private Building Scheme
As financial shenanigans on the part of public agencies have come to light on projects ranging from university housing to urban renewal projects, it becomes increasingly clear they depend on “flying under the radar” of public scrutiny. A report in the Saturday Daily Paper quotes BSU Prez Bob Kustra saying, Moody Investor Services, “Came along […]
Could F-35s Limit Wind Power Production?
A story comes to us from TEXAS about the potential problems associated with wind power generation conflicting with radar used for both military purposes and weather predictions. Short version is spinning blades of giant windmills can create false radar readings or “shadows.” We are all used to seeing one of the many “chief meteorologists” explain […]
No Government Paid Ads For Anti F-35
A group opposed to having 73 F-35 fighter jets stationed in Boise has set up a WEBSITE they call “Save Our Valley Now. They have some interesting maps and make claims you won’t see in any of those posters at the Airport or on the Idaho lottery ticket website. In what is just another battle […]
GUARDIAN Predicts “Rain Out” On Boise Ball Park
The GUARDIAN and reader Dean Gunderson have teamed up to call the Hawks game between Boise and Meridian. Our preseason conclusion is while there may be just barely enough square feet for a park at the 2900 Fairview location on land owned by the city, it will take a ton of money to make it […]
Caldwell To Buy Furniture For Oregon School
Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse, the Caldwell Urban Renewal folks came up with a plan to bail out Oregon’s Treasure Valley Community College with money to furnish a Caldwell rental property. CALDWELL GUARDIAN Paul Alldredge chased this one down in what has become a long line of spending that raises red […]
Boise vs Meridian In “Screw Thy Neighbor”
We can’t help but chuckle at all the so-called “partnerships” and “regional planning” schemes put forth by local governments when their real goal is to screw their neighbor. Latest battle in what the GUARDIAN has dubbed ECONOMIC CIVIL WAR is Meridian’s quest to lure the Hawks baseball franchise away from Boise–even attempting to get the […]
Economy Is Elephant In The Room
Spring is here, the legislature has mercifully left town, there is extra snow at the ski resorts, the Pope has the lowest approval rating in the history of the Catholic Church, Obama has signed a health care law, but the BIG ELEPHANT in the room remains the economy. A one-tenth percent decline in unemployment rates […]
BOI Airport Admits Parking Not Needed
Nice little Q&A by Tim Woodward in the DAILY PAPER Sunday. Seems the Boise Airport didn’t really need the $29 million five story parking garage stopped by the GUARDIAN editor five years ago. In fact, there isn’t even demand for a surface lot that cost just $2 million or so to build. With interest the […]
Avimor Faces Dismal Future
The Avimor planned community along Highway 55 north of Eagle has been full of hype, but little else and today things took a turn for the worse. A GUARDIAN contributor with good sources offers this: It is true that Avimor’s parent company SunCor Development is up for sale but has not yet changed hands. In […]
Boise Joins Growthophobe Movement, GUARDIAN Offers “Back Story”
In a brilliant act to cut development in the Foothills, Team Dave has apparently seen the light and joined the GUARDIAN GROWTHOPHOBE movement. Boise City Council Tuesday made public the purchase of Hammer Flat – a 701-acre wintering range for mule deer, elk and antelope in east Boise – using funds generated by the 2001 […]
Boise Fire Beyond The Limits
THIS IS A REVISED STORY WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING I-84 RESPONSES. SOME COMMENTS BELOW MAY NO LONGER APPLY. We have to side up with Boise FD Chief Dennis Doan and the City Attorney when it comes to collecting $15,000 from the owner of a $500,000 house outside the city which caught fire in 2007. Boise […]
Amendment Seeks To Deny Voter Rights
The Idaho legislature will soon be considering HJR 005 which looks pretty tame at first glance, but it is designed to deny citizens the right to approve long term debt at airports and allow airports to go into the real estate speculation and rental business. Here is the GUARDIAN’s take on the bill. The net […]
Attorney General Asked To Investigate Caldwell Urban Renewal
Canyon County Prosecutor John Bujak announced Today he will petition the office of Idaho Attorney General to investigate information revealed yesterday by the Boise and Caldwell GUARDIAN news blogs. “Based on the information presented and the check register of the agency, the case certainly merits further investigation,” said Bujak. He explained the case will start […]
Audit Of Caldwell Urban Renewal Imperative
Caldwell GUARDIAN editor Paul Alldredge has been working tirelessly to shed light on the excesses and deceptive activities of urban renewal agencies in Canyon County. In his latest effort he obtained the check register of the Caldwell Urban Renewal Agency which reveals a pattern of abuse and deception. This report will draw attention of law […]
Update On Desire Named Street Car
The DAILY PAPER has joined the long list of opponents to Team Dave’s “Desire Named Street Car” with a HUGE EDITORIAL in Sunday’s edition. They didn’t go soa as advocating a massive increase in the bus system, but it is clear (to us) the Statesman has come over to the GUARDIAN side. Reporter Cynthia Sewell […]
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