Registration deadline for July 4 parade, Liberty Festival is June 1

A scene from last year's Fourth of July parade in Idaho Falls. (Photo courtesy Idaho Falls Magazine)

Registration is open for the annual Independence Day Parade and the Fourth of July Liberty Festival on the Falls, but if you're interested you'd better hurry. The deadline is June 1.

Applications are being handled online this year, with registration information to be found on the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce's home page here. Look on the homepage for the 4th of July links.

All applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. The June 1 deadline is final.
For the Liberty Festival, due to limited space and logistics there can only be  23 food vendors and 65 business/craft vendors.

Applications will only be accepted if they are 100 percent complete and turned in with proper permits and payment. And remember, neatness counts.

If you have any questions, call Dana Briggs, the chamber's programs, events and communications director, at 523-1010.

Idaho Falls not excluded from Family Dollar store closings

We've had a few inquiries about the closing of the Family Dollar store on South Holmes (the one on Woodruff, next to WinCo is still open), so here is what we've found out.

In mid-April, in the wake of a disappointing second-quarter financial performance, the chain announced it was closing nearly 400 stores, reducing the size of its work force and looking for other ways to save.

Family Dollar reported $2.7 billion in second quarter fiscal 2014 revenue, a figure that fell roughly in line with what Wall Street was expecting but a 6 percent decline over the same period the prior year. Same store sales for the quarter fell 3.8 percent, which the company said was the result of customers spending less. Analysts have said some consumers may be feeling more flush and trading up to stores like Wal-Mart and Target, while others are pulling in spending even more.

“The 2013 holiday season was challenged by a more promotional competitive environment and a more financially constrained consumer," said Howard Levine, Family Dollar chairman and CEO. In addition to closing 370 stores and cutting staff, Levine said the company planned to lower prices on 1,000 items.

The company has not released a list of stores it is closing.

Demolition begins at new Walgreen's site

Demolition work has started at the corner of West Broadway and Skyline Drive, where a new Walgreen's Drug Store is planned. This will be the fourth store of its type in the Idaho Falls-Ammon area, and will replace the operation the company set up in the old Westgate Drug building. Wells Fargo Bank, which has been near the corner of Broadway and Skyline, will move to north of the new Walgreen's store. 

Think Beyond the Thursday Potluck for Employee Recognition

As a proud mother of two, I think Mother’s Day rocks? Why wouldn’t I? Gifts, dinners and a few get-out-of-doing-chores-free passes. Still, it got me thinking. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a day (or a few days) focused solely on employee appreciation and recognition at work?

Bear with me on this, business owners and management team members. I want to help you see the value of employee appreciation efforts that are well thought out and executed, going way above and beyond the Thursday Lunch potlucks.

Throughout my HR career I have stood by the principle that your greatest assets within your company are your employees. From maintaining your facilities to maintaining your general ledgers, your employees are the nuts and bolts that hold your business together. Without employees you have no driving force to keep your business or organization running. The majority of those individuals gainfully employed spend more time at the workplace than they do with their families at home.

I don’t think all employees should be recognized just for showing up to work every day on time. I am against the whole “everyone gets a trophy for participating” mindset that is common in many parts of our culture today. From children’s athletic leagues to corporate Christmas parties, routine recognition is expected just for meeting minimum requirements and putting in time for a team or project. But if our employees expect routine, social praise, and workplace “trophies or tokens,” how can we recognize truly outstanding efforts or achievement?

Employee recognition efforts are directly tied to employee retention. Employee retention is directly tied to turnover. Turnover is directly tied to company performance and efficiency. So you see, employee recognition has a pretty critical role in every business. Trust me when I tell you if your employees do not feel valued they will not stay.

Too often I have seen companies misunderstand the concept of employee recognition to mean additional compensation. We all like a few extra dollars in our wallets and pocketbooks, but let’s be realistic. When management places a dollar value on employee efforts, do the employees in turn view the additional compensation the same? In all reality the answer is probably no. The employee will always value their efforts, time, sacrifices, etc., at a higher level than the dollar amount you have decided to throw into their paycheck or annual bonus.

Unless you are ready to start paying out a few thousand dollars or more, let’s try to expand our view of what employees may really want. So get rid of the “everyone gets a trophy” mindset and check out next week’s feature, as we explore how to make over your employee recognition efforts and start making an impact on the nuts and bolts of your business.

Monica Bitrick is a human resources consultant who lives and works in Idaho Falls.

Camping World eyes development on Idaho Falls' west side

Camping World, a company that started in Bowling Green, Ky., in 1966, is proposing to develop 12 acres on Idaho Falls' west side that is presently designated for high-density residential development.

The city of Idaho Falls Planning and Zoning Commission is recommending a change in the comprehensive plan to allow commercial development south of Pancheri Drive on the west side of Interstate 15.

A representative from Zoke LLC, an Boise area company, appeared before the commission at its hearing Tuesday, seeking a change to the comprehensive plan, rezoning, annexation and platting. The matter goes before the Idaho Falls City Council in June. Several residents of the area appeared before the commission as well to voice their support, saying the west side needs more business development, City Planner Brad Cramer said.

Camping World began with a small store in Beech Bend Park, an amusement park outside Bowling Green that billed its campground as the world's largest. Campers at the park were requesting a store where they could buy supplies, so David Garvin, son of the park's owner, took out a loan and opened the store. Garvin amassed a large customer list as the years went by. In 1997, he sold the company to the current owners, Good Sam Enterprises of Ventura, Calif.

The company now has more than 100 retail and service locations throughout the United States, and also sells goods through mail order and online.