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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in January 2019

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Information provided in this article 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

  • Thomas Tedder, founder and CEO of Post Falls holster manufacturer Tedder Industries, has sold a majority share in the manufacturer to a Texas-based investment group. Tedder said he would phase out of the CEO role over the following months and focus on his real estate concerns at his other company, Tedder Properties. Source: Spokane-Kootenai Journal of Business
  • Two new urban renewal districts have been proposed in the city of Rathdrum. Amid record growth, Rathdrum’s urban renewal agency has conducted eligibility studies to create two new renewal districts aimed at improving a total of 155 acres worth of lots. Currently, construction on the lots in question is blocked by gas and power lines that create “hurdles” to development, which would be remediated by the proposed renewal projects. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • Kootenai County’s commissioners are preparing to revisit the controversial new building permit opt-out provisions. The provision, adopted last year, allows builders on unincorporated lots in Kootenai County to opt out of county building codes. The new board of commissioners – two of the three commissioners are newly elected – plans to revisit the opt-out provision, starting with a series of public hearings. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press
  • North Idaho College was awarded a three-year federal grant worth $675,607. It will use the funds to launch a new NIC Venture Center, which will support the college’s entrepreneurial programs. The Venture Center will feature new educational programming for entrepreneurship, as well as a rapid prototype lab for manufacturing. In 2017, NIC was named Entrepreneurial College of the Year by the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

Openings in Coeur d’Alene

  • Terre Coffee and Bakery
  • Great Expectations Painting
  • Schwartz Law

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

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in November 2018

Information provided in this article 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

  • Kootenai County has started construction on a new transit center in the Riverstone development in Coeur d’Alene. The transit center will be located on a four-acre parcel, which is owned jointly by the county and the Coeur d’Alene Tribe. The center is expected to open in the summer of 2019. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Construction has started on a new medical building in Hayden. The $2 million facility will house a new office of the North Idaho Eye Institute, which also has offices in Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • The Coeur d’Alene Casino Resort Hotel has begun a $15 million renovation project, which involves an update and improvement of both the gaming and entertainment facilities at the casino. A spokesperson for the casino said the improvements would be completed by March of 2019. Source: Spokane Journal of Business

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in October 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Benewah County

  • The Coeur d’Alene tribe has approved plans for a $16 million youth and family recreation center to be built on tribal land near Worley. The facility is intended to support the tribe’s mission of protecting the health and safety of their youth. Source: Spokesman Review

Kootenai County

  • Keller-Williams Coeur d’Alene is building a new $3.3 million building. With Kootenai County’s housing market enjoying phenomenal expansion in recent years, Keller Williams noted that its pool of agents has grown by 22 percent so far in 2018 alone. The agency now has 255 agents in Coeur d’Alene and has outgrown its existing office space. Source: Spokane Journal of Business

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in September 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Boundary County

  • Seven Seeds Coffee Roasters opened in Bonners Ferry. The company specifically sources its coffee beans from impoverished regions of southeastern Asia, where the coffee can become a cash crop for impoverished farmers. Source: Bonners Ferry Herald

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in August 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Boundary County

  • The State of Idaho auctioned 51 state-owned lakefront lots on Priest Lake for a total of $25.6 million. Forty-six of the 51 lots were purchased by the current leaseholders. Source: Spokesman Review

Kootenai County

  • A new transit center is in the works in the Riverstone development in Coeur d’Alene. Kootenai County Public Transportation announced that work on the facility is expected to begin in September, on track for completion no later than June 2019. Ridership on public transportation in Kootenai County has exploded in recent years as the county’s population has grown, and new developments have added to suburban sprawl in the region. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Coeur d’Alene-based fiber optic provider Fatbeam has acquired a division of Post Falls-based Ednetics Inc, which provides IT and technology solutions for schools. Fatbeam intimated that it is planning additional acquisitions, but declined to specify further. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Faced with increasingly tight inventories, Windermere Realty of Coeur d’Alene is building three new housing developments in Kootenai County. The three developments, located in different corners of the county, will provide a total of 273 new homes. Windermere ownership noted that inventory in Kootenai County is extremely low, creating aggressive inflationary pressure on home prices. Source: Coeur d’Alene Press

Openings:

  • Global Kitchen Tapas & Wine (Coeur d’Alene)
  • A&B Market (Coeur d’Alene)

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

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in July 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Benewah County

  • Jack Buell Trucking purchased a wood chip mill in Texas and announced that the mill would be disassembled wholesale and relocated to the company’s Milltown facility. In addition to trucking, the company operates log yards and heavy hauling concerns. The company anticipates that the reconstruction of the wood chip mill will take two to three months, but once operational the facility will double the company’s current capacity. Source: St. Maries Gazette-Record

Kootenai County

  • Seltice Mini Storage in Post Falls has begun a $1 million expansion to add an additional 150 storage units. In addition to expanding storage capacity, the company plans to upgrade the facility’s security systems. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Crews broke ground on a new 50,000 square-foot industrial building in the Riverbend Commercial Park in Post Falls. The project is expected to be completed in August and is anticipated to accommodate up to five tenants. Kootenai County currently has low inventories of available industrial and warehousing space. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Construction has begun on a new 294-unit apartment complex in Coeur d’Alene. The complex, which will be called The Northern at Coeur d’Alene Place, will be built through 2020 by CDA developer Anderl Development LLC. Source: Spokane Journal of Business

 

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

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in June 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Bonner County

  • Bonner Homeless Transitions and the Bonner Community Housing Agency have announced a partnership to expand the local rental pool for low income families and offer transitional housing in Sandpoint. The partnership will explore avenues to purchase single-family homes and convert them to rental houses available to those earning less than 80 percent of the area’s median income. Source: Bonner County Daily Bee

Kootenai County

  • Construction has begun on a new 294-unit apartment complex in Coeur d’Alene. The complex, which will be called The Northern at Coeur d’Alene Place, will be built through 2020 by Coeur d’Alene developer Anderl Development LLC. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Crews broke ground on a new 50,000-square-foot industrial building in the Riverbend Commercial Park in Post Falls. The project is expected to be completed in August and is anticipated to accommodate up to five tenants. Kootenai County currently has low inventories of available industrial and warehousing space. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • A new medical office building is under construction in the Riverstone Development in Coeur d’Alene. The new building will house Ellenbrecker Eye Clinic. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Openings
  • Once Upon a Shoe – a new retail establishment in Hayden
  • Ten/6 – a Cajun style restaurant in Coeur d’Alene
  • NYC Piano Bar in Coeur d’Alene

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

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in May 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Bonner County

  • In response to substantial flooding in Lake Pend Oreille and the Pend Oreille River, strict no-wake zones are being enforced to mitigate property damage. The new rules impose a no-wake zone up to 500 feet from the shore. Source: Bonner County Daily Bee

Kootenai County

  • Idaho Central Credit Union is constructing a new office in Coeur d’Alene. The $8.6 million building will house a full service credit union branch and business and mortgage lenders along with administrative staff. The new Coeur d’Alene office will be ICCU’s fourth Kootenai County branch. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Hayden-based Blackstone Properties is constructing a new 65,000-square-foot storage facility in Hayden. The complex will offer ministorage, along with boat and RV storage. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Silverwood Theme Park had its full-time opening May 28 followed by Boulder Beach, which opened June 9. The theme park is hiring roughly 1,500 people for its summertime operations and noted that preseason ticket sales have surpassed projections. Park management believes this portends potentially record attendance. Source: Spokane Journal of Business

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

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An Alternative Measure of Idaho’s Labor Supply

In the nine years of growth following the recession of 2008-09, Idaho’s economy has created roughly 118,000 jobs. This amounts to a total growth of 17 percent over the low point of the recession, when Idaho’s total employment fell to 686,600 in March 2008. In comparison, total employment across the United States has grown by roughly 13 percent above its recession low point. Comparing growth rates – whether between states, regions or counties – only tells part of the story, however. Idaho’s job creation performance can be better evaluated in context of the state’s demographics.

The premise of this analysis is relatively straightforward. The notion of a healthy labor market – usually termed “full employment” – infers that jobs are abundant enough to employ everyone who wants to be employed. This implies job creation should be measured against the number of potential workers.

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Around Idaho: Economic Activity in April 2018

Information provided in this article 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

Benewah County

  • Marimm Health – the Coeur d’Alene Tribe’s health agency – has revealed plans to build a $15.8 million youth center in Worley. Marimm said the goal of the project is to reduce high crime and substance abuse rates among the youth in Worley and its outlying areas. Source: St. Maries Gazette Record

Kootenai County

  • Rocky Mountain Liquidation – a Hayden-based overstock retailer – has opened a second retail outlet in the Riverbend Commerce Park in Post Falls. The store sells consumer goods like clothing and housewares that are acquired as overstock from major retailers. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • The Coeur d’Alene Resort announced a timeline to complete an extensive round of renovations in May. The resort is improving all 338 of its guest rooms. These improvements include new carpeting, furnishings, and renovations to the pool and fitness center. Source: Spokane Journal of Business
  • Hayden-based Empire Airlines has announced a collaboration with FedEx to train pilots. The program – called the FedEx Express Pathways Purple Runway Program – aims to recruit pilots from universities and aviation colleges and train them for advancement in the FedEx fleet. Empire Airlines provides air cargo services for FedEx. Source: Spokane Journal of Business

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

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