Jerome, ID

Good News! Idaho has a Plan to Keep Parks Open

I was glad to read the article  in the Times News written by Ben Botkin that stated  “Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter and Idaho Parks and Recreation Department Director Nancy Merrill announced on Friday plans aimed at shifting the agency’s dependence away from the state’s general fund and making Idaho’s parks more self-sustaining through business plans tailored for each park. . . . “  This welcome plan should have been addressed years ago before they become a drain on our state’s general fund.  According to the article the plan will go before JFAC on February 1.  I have said in several conversations that if they raised the fees slightly, it would help with the cost.   I’m certainly willing to pay $1 more to camp in a state park.  The article didn’t mention any changes to the cost of the annual state parks pass, but a small increase there certainly shouldn’t affect sales.  Until now, I figured very few would even buy the annual pass, not knowing if there were going to be very many state parks still open.  Cudos to those who have worked hard and provided input to come up with a plan.  As a Hagerman resident I am pleased that we will not be looking at closure of the state parks in our area.  Read the entire Times News article.

Learn more about Magic Valley Communities

When considering moving to a community it is helpful to see what is going on in that commmunity at the governing and Chamber of Commerce levels.  We are would like to provide links to the Magic Valley community websites and blogs below:
City of Hagerman
Hagerman Chamber
City of Jerome
City of Kimberly
City of Buhl
City of Twin Falls [...]

Agriculture provides stability amid economic downturn

The Magic Valley economy is strongly influenced by agriculture similar the to Treasure Valley.   Supply and demand has a large effect on prices as does the cost of production.  If it weren’t for this stabilizing force in the area economy we would feel greater effects from the economic downturn.  An Idaho Press Tribune article stated, “the Treasure Valley’s agriculture players have continued churning out wheat, meat, milk and other essentials as other industries stumble through their biggest slump in decades. Profit margins are down because of softened worldwide demand during the recession, but employment numbers remain stable, according to Boise State University economist Don Holley.”  The entire article can be read at  Idaho Press Trubune

Aquatic Therapy with the Gooding’s North Canyon Medical Center

The county hopsital is Gooding has so much to offer the area even before the new hospital is complete.  Check out this article about their aquatic therapy program.