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It's 2015! Amazing how the years  keep coming around, one right after the other! But that's a good thing. I hope you had fun and perhaps even relaxing holidays.
Today Insight Weekly provides a progress report on some topics addressed in 2014. Each topic has a link to the e-letter in which it was first discussed.
1. The County and Subdivision ROWs. This article speaks to the County's promise in late 2013 to update how it manages its Rights-of-Way (ROWs) in subdivisions. This arose from Road and Bridge's attempt in August 2013 to have Hulen Meadows' 155 homeowners remove roughly $1 million of ROW encroachments that several County departments and officials had both permitted and accepted for decades. Protest by residents led the County to propose a comprehensive valley-wide study of the issue.
After a year's delay, progress has been made. The County's Administrator recently presented Commissioners with a framework for ROW Management. This will be further developed in-house based on the County's analysis of its legal rights/responsibilities. A draft plan is due in April. If the Commissioners fulfill their 2013 promise to Hulen Meadows residents, the plan will go before the public for input and discussion.
All subdivisions with County-owned roads will be affected. Since public input will not be sought before the draft plan is released, it will be important for those of us with County roads to start thinking now about our neighborhoods with regard to road icing, snow removal, encroachments, culvert presence/absence and what may be common-sense solutions to recurring problems.
2. A Flood of Water Studies. This article pointed out a plethora of Big Wood River studies whose managers were not aware of each others' work. Clarity has improved since then. The major initiatives below will cumulatively anticipate the Wood River Valley's waters, lands, and biotic resources in the face of global warming, looking at different factors. Here are the major initiatives:
> The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is creating a Groundwater Flow Model for Resource Management of the Wood River aquifer. This will guide Idaho's Department of Water Resources in the conjunctive management of ground and surface water that will begin in 2016. (Due December 2015).
> An assessment of the Big Wood River's geomorphology from the SNRA to Magic Reservoir. has been funded by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Trout Unlimited and Wood River Land Trust. The Times-News says the assessment will look at sediment, hydrology and riparian data for river health, ways to balance ecological and social values in the area, and actions to support the river's health and functioning.
Note: This fall the BLM tabled a "River Park at Sun Peak" proposal by Ketchum and WRLT pending this study of a heavily manipulated river reach. The study will map every portion of the river for close evaluation. (Due October 2015).
> The USGS is conducting an Aquatic Biology and Habitat Assessment of the Wood River Valley, i.e. a look at the potential effects of population growth and increased demand for water on the quantity and quality of ground and surface waters. (Due December 2015).
> The Sawtooth National Forest has begun to identify and encourage local practices to protect our water, land, and economy in light of global warming. (Ongoing).
> Oregon State University is studying the 3,200 square mile Big Wood Basin from Galena Summit to Gooding to identify how natural and human drivers of change might affect water resources over the next 30-40 years.
If deadlines are met, 2016 will be a critical time of future planning for our region's water resources, land and wildlife management, and economic goals in a warming climate.
3. Sidewalks in Ketchum. Sidewalk construction has had a rocky history. This article reported we will soon hear that Ketchum's Planning and Zoning Commission has begun to update city sidewalk code, including building owner requirements for construction, updated fee schedules, location of new sidewalks and their installation time frame, and the intersection of City-built sidewalks with Urban Renewal Agency-built sidewalks.
Note: In response to Insight's sidewalk article, a reader forwarded a website link that compares dollar values at different points in time. For example, a $20,000 building renovation in 1970 would equal $120,000 today.
4. Ketchum's Urban Renewal Agency (URA) and Visitor's Center. The URA's next meeting is January 20 at 3:00 p.m. in Ketchum City Hall. The agenda hasn't yet been posted but will likely look again at plans for the Visitor's Center. Perhaps details know to the URA Board will at last be available for public comment before a final decision is made to invest $31,000 (plus fees) on video screens for realtor and restaurant advertising.
Until next week.....Jima Rice
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