Eye On Boise archive for Aug. 2014
FRIDAY, AUG. 29, 2014
New 80 mph speed limit brings more tickets
Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho State Police say troopers have handed out more speeding tickets on interstates where speed limits have increased to 80 mph compared to the same time period last year. The agency tells the…
Comparing state endowment's take from yesterday's auction to cabin-site rents...
At yesterday’s auction of state-owned Priest Lake cabin sites at the Coeur d’Alene Resort, many in the crowd were wondering if the state really was getting a better deal for the state’s schoolchildren – the beneficiaries of the Priest Lake state endowment lands – by…
THURSDAY, AUG. 28, 2014
Auction wraps up; 59 of 60 cabin sites sold
The first auction of state-owned cabin sites at Priest Lake has wrapped up, with 59 of the 60 lots sold, no current lessees being involuntarily outbid for their cabins, and the state’s public school endowment fund earning $26,903,812. The crowd here at the Coeur d’Alene…
More Priest Lake cabin sites selling at appraised values, with no competing bids
The auction's back on, and so far, all lots in the final batch at the Priest Lake cabin site auction have been selling for the appraised value to the current lessees. As before, applause and cheers from the crowd are greeting every "Sold" announcement from…
All but one in third batch sell for appraised value; schools' take up to $20M
All but one of the 15 Priest Lake cabin sites in the third batch have sold for their appraised value; the one exception was the one where competitive bidding pushed the price up $9,000 above the appraisal, but the current lessee ended up the high…
More competitive bidding, but current lessee outbids competitor
The third batch of Priest Lake cabin sites is up now, and the third one, appraised at $630,000 for the lot and $177,600 for the cabin, drew competitive bidding. It went back and forth, finally selling for $639,000 – to the cabin owners, the current…
School endowment up to $13.7 million take so far from Priest Lake auction
By my calculations, the state's public school endowment has made $13,736,604 so far today from the auction of Priest Lake cabin sites. That's including the 14 lots that just came up for auction - all but one of which sold, while the one that attracted…
First competitive bidding makes an extra $123K for endowment over appraised value
The first competitive bidding of today’s Priest Lake cabin site auction just happened, with a lot appraised at $361,604 the subject of hotly contested bidding between two determined bidders, finally selling for $485,000. There was no applause after this one; just some murmuring. That cabin…
Auction's back on; more lots sell for appraised value
And the auction is back on, as sixty state cabin sites on Priest Lake are put on the auction block today at the Coeur d’Alene Resort. The first one in the second batch, a $650,000 lot with a cabin on it valued at $582,800, has,…
Legislative panel launches look at how Idaho's endowment is invested
An interim legislative committee kicked off a series of meetings today to look at how Idaho’s $1.7 billion state endowment is invested; it now generates more than $31 million a year for public schools from earnings both on state lands and investments of the cash…
School endowment has made $7.5M so far
By my calculations, the state's public school endowment has made $7,555,000 so far today at the auction of Priest Lake cabin sites. That's the amount that's been bid just for the land; the successful bidders were all the current lessees, so they already own the…
'The process has been confusing and frustrating'
Denny Christenson, president of the Priest Lake State Lessees Association, has been watching today’s public auction of 60 state-owned lakefront cabin sites with interest. “We’re in the 5 o’clock session,” he said. “I’m encouraged.” When the first batch all went for appraised value, he said,…
Relief, 'tears of joy' among Priest Lake cabin-site lessees...
Sixteen of the sixty Priest Lake cabin sites on the auction block today have now sold for their appraised value to the existing lessees, with no one bidding against them. There’s a lot of relief in the big ballroom, where, during the break before the…
First dozen-plus Priest Lake sites all sell at appraised prices
The first dozen-plus Priest Lake cabin sites to be auctioned today all have sold for the appraised value to the existing lessee, with no one else bidding. Each time, when the auctioneer, Kent Corbett, declared, “Sold!,” the crowd, which now includes lots of people standing…
First two cabin sites sell to lessees at appraised value; cheers, applause follow
The first cabin site to come up for auction, on Cavanaugh Bay Road in Coolin, was appraised at $430,000. A bid was entered for that amount – and though the auctioneer repeatedly asked for a bid of $435,000, and then for $431,000, no one else…
Number of cabin sites back up to 60
There are close to 250 people gathered in a ballroom at the Coeur d'Alene Resort now for the Priest Lake cabin-site auction, and state Lands Department deputy director Patrick Hodges says the number of sites on the auction block has jumped back up to 60,…
People filtering in at CdA Resort for Priest Lake cabin-site auction...
People are filtering in to the Coeur d’Alene Resort ballroom where today’s auction of 59 cabin sites at Priest Lake is set to kick off at 1 p.m. Pacific time. Steven Hubbs, 68, who’s here to bid for the ground under the lakefront cabin he’s…
Panel: No more ed-tech pilot grants, move focus statewide
Two years in, it’s time to scrap the state’s $3 million-a-year technology pilot project program in schools, a subcommittee of the State Board of Education has decided. “They felt like the pilot phase had been useful,” state board spokeswoman Marilyn Whitney said, “but it was…
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 27, 2014
Federal lands interim committee adds seventh public hearing next month
The Federal Lands Interim Committee, a joint legislative interim committee co-chaired by Rep. Lawerence Denney, R-Midvale, and Sen. Chuck Winder, R-Boise, has scheduled a seventh public hearing, this one in Sandpoint on Sept. 12. That’s in addition to the six already scheduled over the next…
Bond issue falls short in Idaho's largest school district
Voters in Idaho’s largest school district – West Ada, formerly known as the Meridian district – have narrowly failed to pass a $105 million bond issue, which fell short in yesterday’s election though 63 percent supported it with just 37 percent opposed. Bond issues require…
Military equipment in demand among Idaho police agencies
Idaho law enforcement agencies have received at least 2,905 pieces of donated military equipment worth more than $9.3 million, mostly during the past three years, the Idaho Statesman reports today, according to data from the Idaho State Police. They range from $1 pliers to MRAPs…
TUESDAY, AUG. 26, 2014
Commerce chief apologizes, says firm getting tax incentive will be named when deal finalized
Idaho state Commerce Director Jeff Sayer apologized today for promising last week that the first recipient of Idaho’s generous new tax reimbursement incentive would be named at an Economic Development Council meeting today at which the council approved a 25 percent tax break for the…
Otter touts ed results, new tax incentive in address to business community
Gov. Butch Otter defended the state’s direction on education — and its funding commitment — in a speech to some 600 Treasure Valley business leaders today, reports Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News. The occasion was Otter’s annual address to the business community, and Otter…
Thursday will see 59 Priest Lake cabin sites on auction block at CdA Resort
With a complex auction coming up Thursday for 59 state-owned lakefront cabin sites on Priest Lake, the state Department of Lands has released a fact sheet about how the whole thing will work; you can see it here. Among the highlights: The 59 lots –…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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