Information provided in these news updates is from professional sources, news releases, weekly and daily newspapers, television and other media.

Northern Idaho
North Central Idaho
Southwestern Idaho
South Central Idaho
Southeastern
Eastern Idaho

 

NORTHERN IDAHO – Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai & Shoshone counties

Kootenai County

• Riverstone Holdings is developing a mixed-use building in the Riverstone district. The new building will include office space for rent on the ground floor, three floors of condos above and underground parking. The project is slated for completion in summer 2022. Source: Journal of Business
• The Coeur d’Alene Ironman race was successfully completed, after COVID-19 forced a cancellation in 2021. The triathlon – which features a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run – was the first full-distance ironman race held in Coeur d’Alene since 2017 and drew about 2,100 competitors to the area. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
• The city of Hayden’s Planning and Zoning Commission approved a plan to turn the Hayden Meadows soccer complex into a housing subdivision. The 10-acre field was acquired, along with two adjacent properties, by Kulka Land LLC, which plans to turn the parcel into a 53-unit single family subdivision. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

Openings:

• Iron Pizza Co. & Taphouse, Athol
• Geico Insurance, Coeur d’Alene
• Esthenique LLC, Coeur d’Alene
• Cuppa Columbian Coffee, Coeur d’Alene
• Backwoods Whiskey, Coeur d’Alene
• Link Properties, Coeur d’Alene
• Safe Splash, Coeur d’Alene
• The Fixture Gallery, Dalton
• Tubbs Coffee Roasters, Hayden
• Brats & Brews, Spirit Lake

Sam.Wolkenhauer@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
(208) 457-8789 ext. 4451

NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO – Clearwater, Idaho, Latah, Lewis and Nez Perce counties

Agriculture

• Area farmers are dealing with bad weather for growing crops at a time when grain prices have soared. After a very dry spring, June brought high temperatures and virtually no rain. Crop yields are expected to be lower than average this fall, but higher prices for wheat and other crops, if they increase as expected, will offset some of that effect when it comes to total sales. This year looks like it will be the reverse of 2020, when exceptional yields helped make up for relatively low prices. According to the Pacific Northwest Farmers Cooperative daily price report, bids for soft white wheat in May and June were $8.10 a bushel — nearly $2 more a bushel than a year ago. Source: Lewiston Tribune; Capital Press
• Tim McGreevy, who first became the chief executive officer of the Pea and Lentil Commission 30 years ago, helped promote the growth of pulse crops — peas, lentils and chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans — from his office straddling the Idaho-Washington state line near Moscow. Then, almost all U.S. pulses were grown on about 400,000 acres in those two states — mostly on the Palouse. Today, pulse production has spread eastward to nearly 2 million acres in Montana, North and South Dakota and Nebraska. McGreevy says pulse production will continue to grow quickly in the next 10 years, because producers like the fact the pulses add nitrogen back to fields where other crops have depleted it and because consumers are increasingly aware of their health benefits. “Plant-based foods are really gaining in popularity here in the United States and around the world. We’re on the cutting edge of that,” McGreevy said. Today, the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council has six international offices around the world. U.S. pulse growers’ sales totaled roughly $56 million in 1994. At the industry’s peak, in 2017 and 2018, sales nearly reached $1 billion. As a result of trade tariffs in 2020, sales dropped to $500 million, but prices are beginning to pick up again, McGreevy said. Source: Capital Press

 Clearwater County

• Pierce, a city with 585 residents, made improvements at its community pool this spring, eliminating problems that would have caused it to close permanently. In addition to the construction project, cadets from the Idaho Youth ChalleNGe Academy in Pierce helped clean the pool and surrounding area. The cadets spend a lot of time helping with community projects throughout the area. The academy accepts students from all over Idaho for a 22-week boot camp to help them develop academic skills, discipline, readiness for careers and community service. After their time at the academy, the program’s graduates are assigned mentors in their home communities while receiving encouragement and guidance from counselors in Pierce. Source: Clearwater Tribune

Idaho and Lewis Counties

• Voters approved two school district levies and rejected another on May 18. Cottonwood Joint School District got the thumbs up for its $275,000 override levy. Riggins area voters approved the Salmon River Joint School District’s $515,000 levy, while Mountain View School District’s $3.1 maintenance and operation levy was voted down. The geographically large district — extending from Kooskia to Grangeville to White Bird — has struggled financially in recent years. The district plans to run a $2.2 million levy in August. Source: Idaho County Free Press
• Clearwater Valley Hospital and Clinics in Orofino and Cottonwood have introduced new names, brands and vision as part of their integration into the Coeur d’Alene-based Kootenai Health regional health care system. The Orofino hospital now is called Clearwater Valley Health and the Cottonwood hospital now is called St. Mary’s Health. New signage for each organization features Kootenai Health’s signature “spark.” Source: Idaho County Free Press

Latah County

• Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories broke ground for its 140,000-square-foot printed circuit board factory in Moscow in early June. The expansion will allow Schweitzer Engineering to make its own printed circuit boards instead of obtaining them from suppliers. This should help provide better quality boards, reduce supply chain problems and allow quicker turnaround when changes are necessary. The Moscow facility will supply Schweitzer operations in Pullman and Lewiston that together have a staff of more than 3,000. In its first years, the Moscow plant will employ about 60 people. Source: Lewiston Tribune
•  Emsi, the Moscow company that sells its online economic and labor force modeling systems to companies and colleges throughout the U.S., is merging with Boston-based Burning Glass Technologies. The merger will make Emsi part of a leading labor analytics firm. The combined company will be called Emsi Burning Glass.
• Strada Education Network, Emsi’s current owner, will be exiting its investment, according to a news release. “This is definitely a new era and chapter for the organization, and I think there’s a lot of opportunity here and still a lot of promise for growth and jobs in Moscow,” said Josh Wright, Emsi Burning Glass executive vice president of community insights. Emsi Burning Glass has told public officials of its commitment to grow in Moscow. Emsi, founded in 2001, now employs more than 200 people in Moscow and recently moved into a new building that will allow it to expand to 500. Source: Moscow-Pullman Daily News
• For the first time in 10 years, direct flights to Boise will take off from the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport this summer. Alaska Airlines will start offering five weekly nonstop flights between Boise and the Pullman-Moscow airport on Aug. 17. These will be the only flights to Boise from north central Idaho since the Horizon Air ended its service to Lewiston in 2018. To entice the airline to provide service, the University of Idaho will guarantee payments of up to $500,000 a year for three years if the flights do not make at least a 10% profit. The  Pullman airport currently offers three daily round-trip Seattle flights and is getting closer to expanding service to Denver. The airport is completing the final phases of runway reconstruction and realignment – costing more than $150 million – and plans to spend $55 million to build a new terminal that can better accommodate growth. Airport traffic is returning pre-pandemic levels. A total of 30,811 inbound and outbound passengers traveled through the Pullman airport between Jan. 1 and May 31 this year, compared with 37,502 for the same period last year, which began with high passenger numbers, then plummeted in March through May — and a record 61,142 for the same months in 2019. Source: Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Lewiston Tribune
• Moscow Planning and Zoning Commission approved two more residential developments in late May. Together, they will add 28 lots for single-family residences in the east and west sides of town. They join several other developments that are under construction or planned, expected to add more than 240 houses during this period of high demand for single-family houses. Source: Moscow-Pullman Daily News

Nez Perce and Asotin Counties

•  St. Joseph Regional Medical Center in Lewiston recently reached an agreement with the union representing 237 registered nurses, when the nurses represented by Teamsters Local 690 voted to ratify a new three-year contract. The hospital is the largest medical center in north central Idaho and southwest Washington, employing around 800 people. The hospital’s CEO Tim Trottier said the largest opportunities for the hospital’s expansion are in the cardiac, oncology and behavioral health service lines. St. Joseph’s is the only hospital in the region between Boise and Spokane that offers a high level of services in these areas. Source: Lewiston Tribune
• The tourism industry is beginning to return to normal. In May, cruise boats docked at the Port of Clarkston for the first time since fall. The cruise boats regularly travel between May and October up the Columbia River from Portland, then onto the Snake River to Clarkston. In 2019, four cruise line companies brought 19,000 tourists into the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley. The total economic impact of the cruise boat industry — generated by the spending of passengers, crew and the cruise lines — was estimated by a University of Idaho economist to be $4 million dollars in 2019. The economic beneficiaries of cruise boat tourism include motels, restaurants, stores, museums, the casino, jet boat tours, companies providing fuel for the boats, the Port of Clarkston and local wineries, who not only make immediate sales but often create long-time customer bonds. Valley Vision, the valley’s economic development organizations, says these impacts are expected to grow even larger over the next few years. The Port of Lewiston may eventually also start hosting cruise boats as their numbers grow. Source: Valley Vision; Lewiston Tribune
• Improving internet availability and speed is a major economic development goal for north central Idaho. Internet service-provider Sparklight invested more than $6 million in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley in the past three years to help bridge the digital divide. The company plans to continue increasing speeds for residential and business customers to accommodate the growing number of devices connected to the internet and technologies like augmented reality, according to the news release. Source: Lewiston Tribune
• Lewis-Clark State College’s budget saw a huge turnaround during the 2021 Idaho Legislative Session. Additional state spending includes $400,000 in support of its nursing program and $409,000 as a tuition offset from the state. In the previous two years, the college had to cut some programs, impose furloughs and offer early retirement to handle budgetary shortfalls. Much of this year’s additional funding will go toward improving employee compensation, after a year when faculty and staff received no raises. LCSC continues to be Idaho’s most affordable four-year state school. In-state tuition and fees will total $6,982 for the next academic year. About 80 percent of the college’s students are first-generation and low-income, Pell Grant-eligible students. The college also is the region’s prime provider of career-tech programs for students wanting to learn occupational skills. LCSC expects its enrollment to return to its pre-pandemic level, around 3,750, this fall. Source: Lewiston Tribune
• Lewis-Clark State College will begin offering a new graduate certificate in sport coaching this fall. This is just the second postgraduate offering in the school’s 128-year history. The first came earlier this year, when it was authorized to offer a graduate certificate in nursing management and leadership. The 12-credit sport coaching certificate, offered entirely online, is structured so students can transfer seamlessly into master’s degree programs at other state institutions or earn credentials that benefit them in their current jobs. Source: Lewiston Tribune
• A $1.27 million construction project to build a Circle K is underway at Fifth Street and Bryden Avenue in Lewiston. The convenience store will include an eight-pump gas station and a car wash. The intersection also features A Neighborhood Market and LC Smiles Family Dentistry. On the fourth corner, the city of Lewiston plans to open a new fire station in the spring of 2023. Source: Lewiston Tribune
• Taco John’s fast-food restaurant at the convenience store on Lewiston’s Southway Avenue closed July 5. Krispy Krunchy Chicken will open soon in the same space. Source: Lewiston Tribune

Kathryn.Tacke@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
(208) 799-5000 ext. 3984

SOUTHWESTERN IDAHO – Ada, Adams, Boise, Canyon, Elmore, Gem, Owyhee, Payette, Valley & Washington Counties

Ada County

• Albertsons, Micron and Boise Cascade made the Fortune 500 list for 2021. Forbes bases its rankings on total revenues from both private and public companies. The contiguous states of Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and Montana did not have any firms on this year’s top 500 ranking. Albertsons is the oldest company of the trio enduring changes in ownership and structure since Joe Albertson started the grocery store in 1939. It is ranked 52^nd with $62.5 billion in revenue and profits at $.47 billion. It moved up three spots from No. 55 the previous year. Albertsons experienced growth during the pandemic as restaurants closed or reduced services and its delivery service and pick-up parking spaces served those practicing social distancing. Its revenues grew by 3% while its profits exploded with 256% growth. It employs 270,000 workers nationally. Micron Technology ranked 135th with revenues of $21.4 billion and profits of $2.69 billion. Its rank fell by one spot from the previous release with revenues down 8% and profits down 57%. Boise Cascade made the list at #493 with $5.5 billion in revenues and profit of $.18 billion. The company employs just over 6,000 and its revenues crept up 17% from the previous year while profits rose 116%. Boise Cascade was not on the top 500 list in 2020. Source: Idaho Business Review and Fortune media (fortune.com).
• Petite 4 reopened its restaurant after temporarily closing through the COVID-19 pandemic. Its French-themed restaurant will automatically add 20% gratuity to each check to aid in recruitment and retention of workforce. Petite 4 has implemented a time limit for meals and has a seating threshold of eight to ensure turnover of tables. It currently is hiring for both its restaurant and Act 3, its Shakespeare Theatre café. The 2020 Shakespeare season was to be its first as concessionaire, but the season was canceled due to the pandemic. The restaurant has changed, offering popups on Friday afternoons on the patio and Saturday morning walk-up window service. Source: Boise Weekly and eatatpetite4.com
• Realtor.com released a report on the nation’s 300 largest Metropolitan Statistical Area and the rising costs of homes sold associated with each MSA. The nation’s average growth over the past four years was 57% while Boise led the pack at 71.9% growth, mostly driven by out-of-state buyers. Source: Idaho Statesman
• The resident doctors at Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine in Meridian have garnered donations from two local companies, ESI and Franklin Building Supply, to create a mobile medical unit in a shipping container. The new clinic will serve the impoverished community of Lomas de San Isidro in Mexico, seeing 1,000 patients and 300 families annually. It took two years to create the unit, and its transport to Mexico will be provided by two nonprofit organizations. Source: Idaho Press
• Ground was broken and construction started on the Boardwalk in Garden City. Vida Properties of Boise is developing the riverfront luxury apartment and retail high-rise. Amenities include fire pits and grills in the courtyard, pickle ball courts, Jacuzzis and an outdoor kitchen on another floor, a pub on the fourth floor and a plaza on the fifth floor. There is 21,000 square feet of retail and sports bar that tie in with the beach and boardwalk along the river. When all construction phases are complete, there will be 230 residential units of varying configurations with Phase 1 completion scheduled for the summer of 2022. Source: Idaho Business Review
• Adler Industrial LLC reported construction started June 1 on the new Amazon Last-Mile Delivery Station. It will be 140,000 square feet located near the Ten-Mile Interchange in Meridian anticipated to create hundreds of jobs starting at $15 an hour. The parking lot will have a section dedicated to charging stations for its state-of-the-art electric delivery vans. Amazon opened its ‘middle mile’ sort center earlier this year in Boise. Source: Idaho Business Review
• Apartment List, an online rental marketplace, ranked Boise first in rent increases month-over-month in April, growing 6.5% among the nation’s 100 largest cities. The nation’s rents on average grew by 5.3% over the year. Some cities experienced drops in rental rates during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that trend is disappearing as markets reopen. Apartment List went on to report that Boise’s rents had risen each of the last six months and a total of 30.8% since last May, also the nation’s highest growth. Source: Idaho Statesman
• The Boise School District will integrate an online school option for those families with students not wanting to return to classroom learning. Enrollment declined during the pandemic with 1,600 students fewer than the prior year. Other school districts are also routing teachers to online status or the hybrid model with a ratio of classroom time and online. The pandemic has created change at a faster pace than likely would have occurred naturally. Source: Idaho Education News

Canyon County

• Desert Sage Credit Union of Nampa, with one branch, merged with Pioneer Federal Credit Union effective April 1. The emergency measure was approved by the National Credit Union. The small credit union was struggling to provide services and technology with such a limited membership. Pioneer Federal Credit Union is headquartered in Mountain Home and now has 15 branches, including the former Desert Sage location. Source: Idaho Statesman

Valley County

• The McCall-Donnelly School District graduated 83 seniors at an outdoor ceremony. Source: The Star News
• Valley County’s property tax base jumped $1.3 billion from 2020 to 2021 in preliminary tallies to a record $6.3 billion. Its lakefront assessments based on linear foot were at $14,900 in 2020, still short of the record in 2008 at $23,000 per linear foot. Parcel sales of bare ground jumped from 272 in 2019 to 729 in 2020. Source: The Star News
• Intermountain Multiple Listing Service reported Valley County’s residential listings dropped from 73 in May 2020 to 37 in May 2021. The median sales price for May increased from the prior year by 31% to $888,111. May total sales volume was $16 million versus $4.1 million the previous May. There were 18 single family homes sold in May 2021 versus 6 in May 2020. Most of the activity is existing homes with new homes a scarce commodity. Source: Intermountain MLS
• The Association of Idaho Cities awarded McCall’s TutorMobile with the 2021 City Achievement Award for Community Engagement. The mobile tutoring service traveled to neighborhoods to help with homework, provide internet access, coordinate science experiments, introduce new concepts and keep students practicing reading and math to retain grade live skills. Approximately 20 students weekly were impacted by the two-hour, two-day sessions. The TutorMobile continues during the summer. The Shepherd’s Home created the concept eventually partnering with McCall Parks and Recreation, the McCall Public Library and the Payette Lakes Community Association.

Openings

• Caffe Luciano’s located in Boise on the Green Belt is reopening after closing at the end of 2020 due to the pandemic. It will offer a shorter menu for now. Its mother restaurant, the original Luciano’s, has suffered from a critical shortage of jobseekers returning to work in restaurants, causing it to encounter unplanned closures. Café Luciano’s, on the banks of the Boise River, announced on social media that it has a new crew and asked its customers to be patient as they learn the ropes. Source: Idaho Statesman
• Huck House Brunchette hosted a grand opening after closing its Boise Sunrise Café, revamping the menu and changing up the atmosphere. Craft juices and cocktails, signature-roasted coffee and a less traditional brunch and lunch menu are part of the change. Source: Idaho Statesman
• Caravel Autism Health opened a clinic in Nampa to assist children with autism and provide support and therapy for their families. Source: Idaho Statesman
• Neighbor Tim’s BBQ opened a restaurant in Boise after initially gauging interest with its food truck. Source: Idaho Statesman and Facebook
• The International Gallery of Fine Arts opened in Boise with its first exhibit titled Fearless. Source: Idaho Statesman
• Buddha Bowl is a new addition to the Crave Delivery co-op of restaurants filling out the 16-kitchen suite. It is operated by existing Crave chef Michael Mina and offers stir-fry dishes that do not use refined oils, sugar or soy sauce and are cooked over Japanese charcoal. Crave Delivery is delivery and take-out-only serving the major Treasure Valley communities. Source: Idaho Statesman
• The Meridian Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting at the new Saltzer Surgery Center, a joint venture between Intermountain Healthcare and community physicians. There are five operating rooms and a procedure room offering state-of-the-art technology. Source: Idaho Press
• Electronic Cash Systems opened its only branch in Idaho at a downtown location after delaying a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Source: Idaho Business Review

Closures

• Union Block Bar & Eatery in downtown Boise closed its doors after opening in December 2020. The proprietor cited business challenges including hiring as a reason for its closure. It is listed for sale. Source: Idaho Statesman
• The Golden Wheel Drive Inn of Boise closed after 50+ years of operation. Source: Idaho Statesman

Jan.Roeser@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
(208) 735-2500 ext. 3639

SOUTH CENTRAL IDAHO – Blaine, Camas, Cassia, Gooding, Jerome, Lincoln, Minidoka and Twin Falls counties

Blaine County

• The Wood River Farmers Market kicked off its 2021 season on June 8 in Ketchum and June 12 in Hailey. In addition to providing shopping at the live market with some COVID-19 safety modifications still in place, the Ketchum Farmers Market will continue to offer customers the option to pre-order and pay online, then pick up at the River Run market location. Source: Idaho Mountain Express
• Sun Valley announced its summer operation plans. After a long year, events are back at the resort. The Roundhouse, the restaurant perched atop Bald Mountain, will open on June 26 operating Thursdays through Monday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Indoor and outdoor dining are available. Source: Idaho Mountain Express
• Bellevue City Council passed new regulations allowing mobile food vendors to operate in the city. The new code allows food trucks only on private property under a renewable six-month $100 business permit after acquiring a Health District permit and fulfilling several other application criteria. Site plans, noise and fume mitigation and a written agreement with collaborating private property owners are required.

Jerome County

• Hempitecture announced its plans on June 1 to build a 20,000-square-foot facility to make its trademarked HempWool product, which can replace fiberglass insulation and other conventional building materials. The new facility in Jerome will use a proprietary textile technology to manufacture the HempWool product. Hempitecture got its start selling hempcrete services for building construction.   Source: Idaho Business Review
• Scoular is hiring at its Jerome processing plant. The plant will be making Emerge, a barley-based protein source for aquaculture and pet food. The company is looking for a laboratory technician and plant operators. The plant will employ 13 people and provide a new market for local barley growers. The plant will be operational 24-7. Source: Times News

Twin Falls County

• A new winery is opening in Buhl this summer. Chateau DNA will be open Wednesday through Saturday from 3 to 7 p.m. for wine service. Source: Times News
• The city of Twin Falls hosted the Idaho Business Summit, which focused on leadership, motivation and inspiration. The summit featured six speakers and two panels with local business owners. – Times News
• Two new eateries have broken ground near the Twin Falls Visitor Center. One is called Mo’ Bettahs and the second has been described as resembling Sips N Sweet Treats. Both new locations are owned by the same company. – KLIX Newsradio
• Commissioners from Twin Falls and Jerome counties and Filer and Jerome highway signed a joint powers agreement to build a potential third river crossing. Through this agreement, the commissioners created a new entity that will allow them to better advocate and push for the project. The Idaho Transportation Department Board last month allocated $4 million for a planning and environmental linkage study that will examine potential sites for the new crossing. Source: Times News
• The Twin Falls City Council approved a request to annex a 12-acre lot at the intersection of Harrison Street and Clinton Drive into the city for a multifamily housing development to consist of duplexes, triplexes and possibly fourplexes.

Openings

•   Hunger Coalition – Bellevue

Bonang.Seoel@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
(208) 332-3570 ext. 3820

SOUTHEASTERN IDAHO – Bannock, Bear Lake, Bingham, Caribou, Franklin, Oneida & Power counties

Region

• Idaho State University officials have implemented a hiring slowdown and will dip into institutional reserves to absorb a $500,000 state-imposed funding cut during the current fiscal year. The reduction is ISU’s share of a $2.5 million funding cut to state higher education budgets, which lawmakers imposed by the 2021 legislature. Source: Idaho State Journal
• The Idaho State Board of Education unanimously approved proposals from Idaho State University to increase construction costs and begin building the Idaho Central Credit Union Bengal Alumni Center on the Pocatello campus. The cost to build the alumni center recently increased by $2.5 million due to inflated labor and construction costs. The ISU Foundation agreed to serve as guarantor of the additional funds. The $11.7 million facility will be paid for with $9.7 million in donated funds and $2 million in university reserve funds. Construction should be complete in about two years. Source: Idaho State Journal
• The Idaho Out-Of-School Network and University of Idaho Extension 4-H Youth Development are deploying the Think Make Create Labs that will be placed throughout the state with the help of the Idaho STEM Action Center, Idaho State Department of Education, Idaho Division of Career & Technical Education, Gizmo-CDA and private partners. Locally, the Bannock County Extension 4-H program will host the lab in Pocatello. Sparklight is serving as the lead partner. The Fort Hall lab is in the final build-out stage by middle and secondary school students with the American Indian Services PREP program in Fort Hall. Battelle Energy Alliance is the lead partner for this lab. Officials say four makerspace trailers will also be placed in both northern and southwestern Idaho and two will go to southern Idaho. Source: Idaho State Journal
• More than two years since The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints broke ground on the Pocatello Temple, church officials are preparing for its completion. In a news release, the church says the 67,000-square-foot temple will be dedicated on November 7. The Pocatello Temple is one of 37 temples under construction across the globe and when dedicated, will be one of more than 200 temples in operation. It is expected to serve more than 64,000 church members in eastern Idaho from Blackfoot to Malad. Source: East Idaho News

Bannock County

• A new business is coming to Historic Downtown Pocatello. EMI Health will be located at the former Wells Fargo Building on Main Street. The boutique medical insurance company will employ 25 to 50 people with the possibility to expand in the future. This location will be one of their Customer Solution Centers and was scheduled to be up and running by the end of June. Source: KPVI
• Portneuf Medical Center (PMC) announced the reopening of a renovated wing which adds an 11-bed special care unit (SCU) to its facilities. With renovation costs just under $3 million, the SCU will help PMC meet the increased need for specialized inpatient care in southeastern Idaho. The SCU is a new care offering for the Pocatello hospital. It provides a level of care between a medical/surgical unit and the intensive care unit. Source: Idaho Business Review
• Industrial Realty Group, LLC (IRG), one of the country’s largest owners of commercial and industrial properties, has acquired a former Navy Ordnance Plant in Pocatello. The massive, 23-building campus includes 1.4 million square feet of warehouse, industrial and office space. Future plans include investing into the aging facility by completing deferred maintenance, improving the exterior landscaping, painting and other roadway improvements. IRG is also considering offering new retail opportunities on site. These efforts will likely attract a mix of tenants, including industrial distribution, manufacturing, office and retail. The site has been rebranded “Titan Center.” Source: East Idaho News
• An Idaho Falls-based urgent care center has announced plans to expand in the Gate City. Just 4 Kids Urgent Care will open a pediatric center in the former Black Bear Diner in Chubbuck. The 5,200-square-foot former Black Bear Diner location was purchased in late April. Renovation work to convert the former restaurant into an urgent care is already underway. The new urgent care will add about 25 to 30 jobs to the Gate City area. Source: Idaho State Journal

Bear Lake County

• As part of the Montpelier Community Foundation’s effort to revitalize the downtown business district, it recently announced the acquisition of the Center Theatre building. The foundation also announced a three-year operating agreement with C & S Theatre management LLC to open and operate the Center Theatre. The theater opened to the public in May after a yearlong shutdown due to COVID-19. Source: The News Examiner 

Caribou County

• Three environmental groups – the Center for Biological Diversity, Western Watersheds Project and WildEarth Guardians – filed a suit against the Bureau of Land Management in federal court challenging BLM’s decision to allow phosphate ore mining at Bayer’s Caldwell Canyon Mine northeast of Soda Springs. The mine is an open pit phosphate mine that was approved by the BLM in 2019 to allow P4 Production LLC, a subsidiary of Bayar AG, to develop and mine approximately 1,559 acres of land for 40 years. Source: Caribou County Sun

Opening

• The Hive Venue in Chubbuck
• Canyon View Cares Veterinary clinic in Malad
• EMI Health in Pocatello
• ABC Seamless in Preston

Closures

• Shelley Community United Methodist Church 

Esther.Eke@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
(208) 236-6710 ext. 4331

EASTERN IDAHO – Bonneville, Butte, Clark, Custer, Fremont, Jefferson, Lemhi, Madison & Teton counties

Region

• Citing strikingly improved rates of coronavirus infection and hospitalization, eastern Idaho health officials have retired a plan that guided their coronavirus response for the eight-county region that once became home to two national hotspots. Local public health data on COVID-19 will remain public on Eastern Idaho Public Health’s website. Source: Teton Valley News
• Idaho National Laboratory signed a memorandum of understanding with Shoshone-Bannock School District #537 to create educational and career technical job opportunities for tribal students. As the district develops its STEM curriculum, INL will create work-based learning opportunities for students, including six-week apprenticeships and on-site internships for 11th and 12^th grade students at the junior and senior high school. INL will also share technology and equipment with the district. Source: Bingham News Chronicle
• The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded a new $6.4 billion contract to clean up nuclear waste at its sprawling site in Idaho, which includes the Idaho National Laboratory. The Energy Department announced Friday that the 10-year Idaho Cleanup Project contract went to the Tullahoma, Tennessee-based Idaho Environmental Coalition, replacing Fluor Idaho. A 1995 settlement agreement between the Energy Department and the state requires nuclear waste to be cleaned up at the site that sits above a giant aquifer supplying water to farms and cities in the region. Source: Associated Press
• The U.S. Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program has completed putting into dry storage all the spent fuel that was in water pool storage before Jan. 1, 2017. The project was finished 18 months ahead of a required schedule in a 2008 agreement with Idaho. The agreement was an addendum to a much broader 1995 pact that Idaho reached with the U.S. Department of Energy following a series of lawsuits. The 1995 agreement is widely seen as preventing Idaho from becoming a nuclear waste dump. Source: The Post Register
• College of Eastern Idaho has released the latest design concepts for its new Future Tech building. The college is aggressively fundraising for the state-of-the-art facility and hopes to complete the project in late 2023 or early 2024. The projected cost of the building is $40 million dollars. CEI secured $2.4 million dollars for planning and design from a combination of an Economic Development Administration grant and a match from the state of Idaho. The CEI Board of Trustees has put aside $2 million dollars for construction. In March, an additional $3 million dollars was approved by the Idaho Legislature through the “Building Idaho’s Future” initiative. Further support from the legislature will provide an additional $7 million dollars. CEI is pursuing other funding resources as a match to the state funds to complete the project. Source: East Idaho News
• A new National Park Service report shows that 3.8 million visitors to Yellowstone National Park in 2020 spent more than $444 million in communities near the park. That spending supported 6,110 jobs in the local area and had a cumulative benefit to the local economy of $560 million. Source: East Idaho News

Bonneville County

• Jackson Hole Junction in Idaho Falls announced Ron Sayer Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, and Ram will be relocating its dealership to the development, located at Sunnyside Road and Interstate 15. Pioneer Crossing Apartments will also build 224 residential units at the site. The news comes as Showbiz Cinemas announced they will no longer be building an entertainment center there. The company suffered heavy financial losses due to COVID-19 and will not be expanding its business in the foreseeable future. Jackson Hole Junction’s first hotel, a Holiday Inn & Suites, opened last June and enjoyed a successful first season. The commercial center is looking to add a second hotel in 2022. Source: East Idaho News
• Construction on the Idaho Canal Trail project started June 1, near 25th Street and South Holmes Avenue, progressing along the Idaho Canal north toward Garfield Street. This project is part of the Connecting our Community comprehensive bicycle, pedestrian and trails facility plan. The vision is to create a comprehensive and interconnected pedestrian, trail and on-street bicycle network that fosters a culture of active living in Idaho Falls. Source: East Idaho News
• Seattle-based Alaska Airlines launched four new routes in June including a daily flight from Seattle to Idaho Falls. All routes will be operated by Horizon Air, which is a wholly owned regional subsidiary of Alaska Airlines parent Alaska Air Group. Source: Post Register

Lemhi County

• First Cobalt expanded its holdings in the Iron Creek cobalt project for a second time in a matter of weeks. The Canadian company acquired 553 more acres from Phoenix Copper, expanding First Cobalt’s land position to just short of 4,500 acres in Lemhi County. The new property — Redcastle — is east of First Cobalt’s Iron Creek property. It consists of 31 claims. Source: Challis Messenger

Teton County

• The Victor City Council has approved a request from Broulim’s to rezone the former Victor Elementary school property from civic to commercial mixed-use. This will enable the company to take the next step in the process of designing and building a grocery store with second-story apartments on the 2.5-acre lot on Center Street. Source: Teton Valley News

Opening

• Eagle Rock Gallery in Idaho Falls
• Teton Dam Evacuation Escape room inside the Museum of Rexburg
• Modern MindBody Massage in Ammon
• Wing Stop in Idaho Falls
• Pick Me Up soda shop in Rexburg
• South Fork Restaurant in Ririe

Esther.Eke@labor.idaho.gov, regional economist
Idaho Department of Labor
(208) 236-6710 ext. 4331