I.F. Visitor Information Center, Chamber offices, relocating to Memorial Drive

The scene Tuesday inside the Eastern Idaho Visitor Information Center, at 420 Memorial Drive. 

After nearly 10 years on West Broadway, the Eastern Idaho Visitor Information Center is moving across the river, sharing office space not only with the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce but with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, the Better Business Bureau of Eastern Idaho and Western Wyoming and the Idaho Falls Downtown Development Corp.
Starting Wednesday, the offices will all be under one roof at 420 Memorial Drive, in the space formerly occupied by the Moffatt Thomas law firm.

While this moves the Visitor Information Center farther from Interstate 15, it will also expose visitors to the renovations taking place on the downtown side of the Idaho Falls Greenbelt. Idaho Falls Mayor Jared Fuhriman said Tuesday that he is hopeful the first phase of the Memorial Drive project will be finished by early November, before the onset of harsh weather.

Officials said the transition has been in the works for the last year or so, and that the idea has been for people to park, visit and find an all-encompassing variety of information in one spot.

Kerry McCullough. Holly Romrell and Jerda Judy of the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce pause to flex Monday during the move from West Broadway to Memorial Drive.

 

Idaho Falls offers grant money to arts organziations

The city of Idaho Falls Grants for the Arts Committee is once again inviting local non-profit art organizations to submit their requests for grant money the City makes available every year. This year, the City Council has budgeted $10,000 for the program.

Requests for funding of performances, exhibits, or similar functions will receive special consideration. Funding requests of capital expenditures or equipment purchases are preferred over proposals that solicit funds for operating expenses.

The committee will evaluate all applicants on several criteria, two of which include the number of city residents expected to benefit from the request and availability of matching funds.

Grant proposal requests forms are available by logging onto the City’s website, at www.idahofallsidaho.gov. Print the grant proposal request form and mail it to the address shown. Forms can also be picked up at the mayor’s office at City Hall, 308 Constitution Way. Completed forms must be submitted by the end of the business day on Monday, Oct. 15.

Since 1988, the city of Idaho Falls has made funds available to showcase the artistic skills exhibited by many of its citizens.

Rexburg publisher, lawyer tops list of all-time influential Idahoans

Browsing the Web this morning, I found this story in the Idaho Statesman about a new book by Randy Stapilus and Marty Peterson ranking the 100 most influential people in Idaho history.

The names one would expect are there: U.S. Sens. William Borah and Frank Church; potato magnate J.R. Simplot; LDS Church President Ezra Taft Benson.

But occupying the No. 1 spot was someone who's name I've never heard in the 30 years I've lived here, and someone from the Upper Snake River Valley: W. Lloyd Adams, a newspaper publisher, lawyer and lobbyist from Rexburg. The book devotes five pages to him and his influence on Idaho government, beginning with his role in electing a Republican governor in 1912 and ending only with his death in 1969

Here is a link to the Statesman story: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/10/01/2295270/idahos-influential-100-new-book.html#storylink=omni_popular#wgt=pop

W. Lloyd Adams's headstone, in the Rexburg Cemetery. Interesting that he outlived his wife, Belva, by a little more than four months.

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/10/01/2295270/idahos-influential-100-new-book.html#storylink=omni_popular#wgt=pop#storylink=cpy

Gold's Gym plan to remodel TSR still on hold

The plans at the city of Ammon building department office for Gold's Gym in the old TSR building.

We stopped by the city of Ammon building department office this morning to see what sort of action might be happening (not much) and to ask if there were any new developments with Gold's Gym.

Bob Roberts, who operates the Gold's Gym in Twin Falls as well as here, filed plans with Ammon in March 2011 to remodel the TSR building at 2363 Eagle Drive. Since then, there has been little action.

Our efforts to reach Roberts today were unsuccessful, but here are the specs on the project, according to the plans:

Gym and locker area: 30,760 square feet, main floor; 2,995 square feet, mezzanaine
Business area: 4,000 square feet
Day care: 1,500 square feet
Storage: 22,560 square feet
Occupancy: 773

Rural broadband summit set for Oct. 16 in Idaho Falls

The Idaho Rural Partnership and the state of Idaho will host the first LinkIdaho Broadband Summit on Oct. 16 in Idaho Falls. The event will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Center for Advanced Energy Studies at the Idaho National Laboratory's Idaho Falls campus, 995 University Boulevard. The keynote speaker will be Syringa CEO Greg Lowe.

Organizers say the summit is a chance to learn what Idaho is doing to assess and advance the availability and use of high-speed Internet in rural areas

The event will include representatives from sectors such as education, health care, economic development, public safety and libraries.

LinkIdaho is funded by the state Department of Commerce's state broadband initiative grant program. The summit will be at the Center for Advanced Energy Studies at the Idaho National Laboratory's Idaho Falls campus.

To register, visit http://www.idahodashboard.org/2012_summit. Direct questions about registration to Mike Field, LinkIDAHO State Broadband Coordinator, (208) 332‐8699 or e-mail mike.field@irp.idaho.gov.

Lunch is $10, payable by mail or at the event.
    
   

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/09/27/2290601/rural-broadband-summit-planned.html#storylink=cpy