New loan fund for small businesses established

The Montana & Idaho Community Development Corp. and Capital Matrix have established a new loan fund to provide financing to “nearly bankable” small businesses in Idaho. The fund will allow Montana & Idaho CDC to further increase its lending to startups and existing businesses that cannot access all or part of the financing they need from a bank.

Capital Matrix, a private, non-profit corporation licensed and regulated by the U.S. Small Business Administration to administer the SBA 504 loan program, has partnered with Montana & Idaho CDC since it began lending in Idaho five years ago. The establishment of the new loan fund furthers Montana & Idaho CDC’s support of small business and economic development in the state. As loans originated from the fund are repaid, those proceeds will be recycled and go back into the fund to be loaned out to new eligible borrowers.

Montana & Idaho CDC specializes in providing loans for business startups, business purchases and existing businesses that are light on collateral or cash flow. In 2016, 52 percent of its small-business loans, amounting to $5.1 million, went to entrepreneurs and small-business owners in Idaho. Loans range from $1,000 to $2 million and can be used for purposes such as purchase of real estate, equipment, inventory or an existing business, or for remodeling or working capital. Loan clients also receive one-on-one technical assistance in financial management, marketing, sales management and other area of business management.

For more information about the new loan fund or to apply for a loan, contact Mike Trueba at 844-728-9234 ext. 240 or miket@mtcdc.org.

EIRMC recognized for lactation care resources

The International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners and International Lactation Consultant Association have recognized Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center for excellence in lactation care.

EIRMC has received the IBCLC Care Award in recognition for staffing professionals who hold International Board Certified Lactation Consultant certification and providing a lactation program for breastfeeding families. In addition, the facility demonstrated that it has recently completed activities that help protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.

IBCLC consultants focus on preventive care, so they are available during pregnancy to assess and provide information on how to successfully initiate breastfeeding. They continue that assistance after the baby is born by helping families overcome breastfeeding challenges, providing accurate information, and continuing to support them as their baby grows. They assist families returning to work or school, help families in more unusual situations such as breastfeeding more than one baby or nursing a sick or premature infant, and help train nursing staff to manage basic breastfeeding care.

There are currently more than 28,000 such consultants in 105 countries. The program is independently accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.

In addition to finding IBCLC professionals at EIRMC, families can also find an IBCLC near them by visiting www.ilca.org. Follow the “Find a Lactation Consultant” link and search for an IBCLC by postal code, city and state, or country.  

For more information about the IBCLC Care Award program, contact IBLCE at award@iblce.org.

Deadline nearing for parade registration

The Idaho Falls Fourth of July Parade has been going strong since the mid-'70s. 

Here’s a reminder that if you’re planning to be part of the Idaho Falls Fourth of July parade, you’ve got until June 1 to register.

Organized and executed by the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce, the parade kicks off at 9 a.m. For as long as anyone can remember, more than 100 floats have participated in the parade.

The Fourth falls this year on a Tuesday. The theme for this year’s parade is “Guardians of Freedom.” It starts on Fourth Street and John Adams Parkway and ends at Tautphaus Park.

Volunteers are still needed to help guide and direct floats the morning of the parade. If you are interested in helping with the parade, please email: programs@idahofallschamber.com, or call (208) 523-1010 ext. 1004.

There is a $50 parade entry fee and an additional $50 if you want to distribute candy or flyers.
To download the entry form, follow this link: https://idahofallschamber.com/4th-of-july-parade-registration-form/

Pachanga's moving to A Street, across from Colonial Theater

It looks like Pachangas' move to 439 A Street is on, according to Randy Waters, managing director of SVN High Desert Commercial, who helped handle the real estate transaction.

Pachanga's owner Antonio Meza of Pachangas applied to the Idaho Falls Building Department on March 8 for a building permit to remodel the property, and a peek inside this week show extensive remodeling is indeed going on.

Originally on Capital Avenue across from the Bonneville County Courthouse, Pachangas has been at the corner of Park Avenue and B Street for several years. A great location, to be sure -- consider that Alive After 5 is right across the street from May to September -- but Meza said things were set in motion early this year when his landlord, Thomas Development, the owner of the Earl Building, told him they had a new tenant interested in their space.

He then learned that Jerry and Jeannie Frazzell were looking for a buyer for their property, which had been remodeled as Black Rock Fine Wines and Craft Beer in 2015. Black Rock's lease was up at the end of March, which put owner Chuck Chute in a scramble pattern, but by the end of March he had moved his operation to343 Park Avenue, next door to the Samoa Club.

As for the Park Avenue property, there is a Thonton Oliver Keller sign in the window. We'll be keeping an eye on what happens there as well as at Pachanga's new digs.

Deseret Book building new store on Pioneer Road

We got a question about the edifice going up just south of the Utah Avenue Wal-Mart, the type of question we’re always happy to oblige.

The building, at 750 Pioneer Road, will be the new home of Deseret Book, and it is going up in a hurry. The permit was applied for March 9 and issued April 11. Plans filed with the city of Idaho show a total square-footage of 105,443 and a valuation (based on that square footage) of $404,365.

Deseret Book has been located for years, at 950 Memorial Drive, near the newly-reopened Idaho Falls LDS Temple. There is also a store in the Ammon Town Center.

The Deseret Book company dates back to 1919, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corp., the holding company for business firms owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In addition to running a chain of stores in the western United States, Deseret Book publishes under four imprints with media ranging from works explaining LDS theology and doctrine, LDS-related fiction, electronic resources, and sound recordings such as Mormon Tabernacle Choir albums.

Downtown Development board names new executive director

Catherine Smith

Catherine Smith has been selected as executive director of the Idaho Falls Downtown Development Corporation.

A fourth-generation Idahoan, Smith was previously eastern region director for the Idaho Community Foundation, where she helped families, businesses and community-minded establish charitable funds, and directed grants managed by the foundation. She has worked for Idaho Falls Arts Council and the Idaho Commission on the Arts as a regional public art advisor. She is an active member of the non-profit community, serves on a handful of local non-profit boards, and volunteers regularly for the Idaho Falls Zoo. She was named Distinguished Under 40 in 2013 and is a graduate of the Chamber Leadership Idaho Falls program.

Smith is coming to IFDDC just as two keystone projects downtown are about to get under way: the Oppenheimer Groups’ development of the Kelsch property at Memorial Drive and Broadway, where Savings Center used to be, and the rehabilitation of the Bonneville Hotel. Other downtown projects are in various stages of planning.

Smith is a graduate of the Art Institute of Portland, where she earned her bachelor’s degree. “I’m proud to be a part of this organization and am quite excited to work with the IFDDC board and downtown folks to continue to build for the future of downtown Idaho Falls,” she said.

Downtown Fire Station #1 opens doors

The crowd Monday at the dedication of Idaho Falls' new downtown fire station.

Monday was a big day for the Idaho Falls Fire Department and the city itself, as the new $4.3 million Downtown Fire Station #1 opened its doors at 343 E Street.

“The address, 343, has a significant meaning to us as it signifies the number of firefighters who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. We are here today to dedicate this station in their honor,” said Fire Chief Dave Hanneman, in remarks that preceded the department’s Color Guard and Pipes and Drums.

The building is the long-overdue replacement for Station #1, which had been on the Shoup Avenue side of City Hall since 1930, when Herbert Hoover was president. Insufficient room for modern equipment, claustrophobic conditions, and a crack in the floor were identified for decades as problems that could not be fixed, yet it wasn’t until 2014 that the City Council voted to proceed with a new station.

Planning for the new station began in April 2015, and ground was broken on Jan. 8, 2016. The General Contractor for the new 24,000 square foot facility was Morgan Construction, with design provided by CRSA Architecture. The total cost of the building was $4.1 million, which came in under the $4.3 million guaranteed price given by Morgan Construction.

For the first time in 35 years, the Fire Prevention Bureau and ladder truck are at the same location as the administrative staff.  At full capacity, the new station will also be living quarters for 11 firefighters.  The new station is a fully ADA compliant building with elevators. The administrative staff occupy the first floor, along with a training room that also functions as a City Coordination Center (CCC). The CCC seats 50 people and can be reserved by other city departments and community members.

There are two sets of double bays. The Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) turnout room, located near the bays, is a state-of-the-art area with a ventilation system allowing fumes and contaminants to vent outside of the building, protecting firefighters and the facility.  
Upstairs is the living quarters for firefighters, captains and battalion chiefs. Firefighters are on shift 48 hours at a time, with up to 11 crew members, so the living quarters function similar to a house.  There are dorm rooms, showers, a dining room, kitchen, day room, training room with computers, and an exercise room. Firefighters are required to exercise for at least one hour per day to stay conditioned.

The brains of the building is an alert system with interconnectivity to dispatch. “During an emergency, the alert system will progressively wake pertinent personnel by turning on lights, followed by sound and voice, thereby reducing their heart rates upon notification,” Hanneman said. When the alert system goes off, EMS crews have less than 1 minute to get out on the call from anywhere in the building. Fire calls are less than 1 minute 20 seconds.

The central response area with monitors and radios is located near the pole leading down to the bays, giving crews up-to-date information before they get in the trucks and go on the call.

Monitors throughout the building also feed live call data to the firefighters, constantly keeping them informed of emergencies. The monitors in the fire prevention offices on the first floor display building plans, allowing staff to coordinate and discuss planning documents.