1
Originally Published November 16, 2017 in: 1000 First St. McCall, ID 83638 • (208) 634-2123 • [email protected] • www.mccallstarnews.com Home Economics 36-unit Northwest Passages Apartments open in Donnelly BY PHILIP A. JANQUART The Star-News A n $8 million, 36-unit apart- ment complex intended to dent the area’s affordable housing shortage opened last week in Donnelly. Northwest Passage Apartments of- fers reduced rents for individuals and families with qualifying incomes up to $36,000 per year. Rents range from $422 to $725 per month for a one-bedroom apartment, $508 to $850 per month for a two-bed- room, and $660 to $950 per month for a three-bedroom. Two units are fully accessible for tenants with disabilities, and another is designed for tenants who are visually and hearing impaired. Apartments include dishwashers and large laundry/utility rooms with washer/dryer hookups. The complex has a Community Building that includes a laundry for gen- eral use, a lounge/flex space, internet access, computer center, kitchenette, fitness room and an on-site manager’s office. There is no shortage of tenants, Northwest Passage Regional Property Manager Teresa Johnson said. “They are filling up fast, but there are still plenty apartments left to rent,” Johnson said. Some of the new tenants include contractors and service industry work- ers, she said. Co-developers Northwest Real Estate Capital Corporation and VCD hosted a ribboncutting last week, marking the opening of the project located on Idaho 55 in downtown Donnelly. The developers used the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program to build the Donnelly project. The program offers federal tax credits equal to a percentage of the costs for development of the low- income units. High Prices The apartments will go a long way in providing needed housing for people who cannot yet afford to buy housing. The median price of homes sold so far in 2017 is $314,013 in McCall, $254,500 in New Meadows, $187,500 in Cascade and $187,250 in Donnelly, according to the Mountain Central Association of Realtors. Donnelly Mayor Brian Koch said he would have welcomed a project like Northwest Passage when he moved to Donnelly 12 years ago. See PASSAGE, Page 2 Progress seen in providing worker housing More projects are under study by developers BY PHILIP A. JANQUART The Star-News The opening of the Northwest Pas- sage Apartments in Donnelly will go a long way to help solve the lack of affordable worker housing the area, Valley County’s economic development director said. The opening last week of the 36 apart- ments in Donnelly will “put a significant dent” in the demand, said Andrew Mentzer, executive director of the West Central Mountains Economic Development Council “These 36 units should take care of roughly 10 percent to 20 percent of the demand for local housing stock in the McCall and Donnelly area based on feedback we’ve heard from industry and government,” Mentzer said, The Donnelly project, designed for qualified households making $36,000 or less per year, is the second apartment complex to open in Valley County that is tailored to working families. See PROGRESS, Page 2 Photo for The Star-News by Melissa Shelby Jess Giuffré with Northwest Real Estate Capital Corporation examines one of the newly opened units at Northwest Passage Apartments in Donnelly. Andrew Mentzer Progress (Continued from Page 1) The Springs apartments, located off Deinhard Lane in McCall, opened 36 units in 2010 and another 36 units last year. The Springs has a 96.3 percent occupancy rate and a waiting list of prospec- tive tenants, said Kathryn Almberg, director of The Housing Company, which manages the complex. Turnover is about 25 percent per year for the apartments, which are occu- pied under one-year leases, Almberg said. Occupations of residents of The Springs include food service workers, clerks, small business owners and retirees, she said. Both The Springs and Northwest Passage were made possible through the federal government’s Low- Income Housing Tax Credit program, which offers de- velopers federal tax credits equal to a percentage of the costs for development of the low-income units. Projects To Come More projects are on their way, Mentzer said “There are several devel- opers doing due diligence right now for additional units,” he said. “Some are condo/apartment type prod- ucts, and some would be smaller single-family prod- ucts.” One of the obstacles developers face is building costs in the current market, Mentzer said. “With costs per square foot hovering in the $200 to $300 realm, it makes price-conscious projects challenging,” he said. “That said, some developers are getting creative to bring costs down while deliver- ing a quality outcome, and some are doing a great job leveraging tax incentives and federal dollars.” More housing could even- tually lead to a healthier work force, Mentzer said. “We see folks moving here and staying in hotels for extended periods of time who have jobs, but can’t find places to live,” he said.” A larger variety of housing is needed to help solve the housing problem, McCall Community Devel- opment Director Michelle Groenevelt said. “Every housing unit helps, but there is still sig- nificant demand for housing for locals and seasonal work- ers,” Groenevelt said. “We need all kinds of housing types at different price points so people can work and live in McCall.” The West Central Moun- tains Housing Trust hopes to meet some of that of demand. The trust, created about a year ago, plans to acquire and demolish three homes in New Meadows to pave the way for the construction of single fam- ily houses, Director Chance Hobbs said. The trust’s approach is to buy or rehab single-family homes that fill the need for families looking to buy instead of rent, Hobbs said. Limited funding sources make building more projects a challenge, said Hobbs, who is a partner in Northwest Passage. He predicts more federal tax credits will not be available in Valley County for several years “The trust is the only ef- fort going forward right now that is getting units on the ground and into the afford- able housing pool,” he said. Passage (Continued from Page 1) Koch and his family were forced to live in a motel for two months before finding a rental house. “My wife and I know first-hand what housing, or a lack of housing, does to an individual or a family that wants to live and work somewhere beautiful like this,” said Koch, who cur- rently is an officer with the McCall Police Department. He notes that Donnelly’s population of 154 would surge once tenants have filled the complex. One Donnelly business owner said the added popula- tion should result in a boost to the local economy. “Locals keep the lights on during mud seasons, fall and spring,” said Jeff Selmer, owner of Cougar Dave’s. “We’re hoping added popula- tion leads to more business and maybe some employees.” The city as a whole has already benefited from the Northwest Passage project. Donnelly has received about $850,000 in infra- structure improvements, including $300,000 in im- provements to Idaho 55 to extend the center turn lane, and add sidewalks and street amenities, Northwest Senior Property Developer Jess Giuffré said. The developers also spent $90,000 for storm drains and $150,000 in water and sewer infrastructure, Giuffré said. Another $180,000 was spent improving and extend- ing Old Street and Hafferty streets adjacent to the proj- ect. MCPAWS launches

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Page 1: McCALL, IDAHO tar-News 52ND YEAR PUBLISHED IN Thursd ay · The Star-News Owners of homes located on gravel streets in McCall were told last week there are no answers to get their

Originally Published November 16, 2017 in:

1000 First St. McCall, ID 83638 • (208) 634-2123 • [email protected] • www.mccallstarnews.com

$1.2512 PAGES

ONE SECTION52ND YEAR

NO. 4

The

tar-NewsThursdayNOVEMBER 16, 2017

PUBLISHED IN McCALL, IDAHO

mccallstarnews.com

Scoreless in SeattleIceCats sweep Totems, stay unbeaten

—Page 6 —

THE NEXT LEVELColleges woo Vandal

FB star DeLuna—The Back Page—

Home Economics36-unit Northwest Passages

Apartments open in DonnellyBY PHILIP A. JANQUARTThe Star-News

An $8 million, 36-unit apart-ment complex intended to dent the area’s affordable

housing shortage opened last week in Donnelly.

Northwest Passage Apartments of-fers reduced rents for individuals and families with qualifying incomes up to $36,000 per year.

Rents range from $422 to $725 per month for a one-bedroom apartment, $508 to $850 per month for a two-bed-room, and $660 to $950 per month for a three-bedroom.

Two units are fully accessible for tenants with disabilities, and another is designed for tenants who are visually and hearing impaired.

Apartments include dishwashers and large laundry/utility rooms with washer/dryer hookups.

The complex has a Community Building that includes a laundry for gen-eral use, a lounge/flex space, internet access, computer center, kitchenette, fitness room and an on-site manager’s office.

There is no shortage of tenants, Northwest Passage Regional Property Manager Teresa Johnson said.

“They are filling up fast, but there

are still plenty apartments left to rent,” Johnson said.

Some of the new tenants include contractors and service industry work-ers, she said.

Co-developers Northwest Real Estate Capital Corporation and VCD hosted a ribboncutting last week, marking the opening of the project located on Idaho 55 in downtown Donnelly.

The developers used the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program to build the Donnelly project. The program offers federal tax credits equal to a percentage of the costs for development of the low-income units.

High PricesThe apartments will go a long way

in providing needed housing for people who cannot yet afford to buy housing.

The median price of homes sold so far in 2017 is $314,013 in McCall, $254,500 in New Meadows, $187,500 in Cascade and $187,250 in Donnelly, according to the Mountain Central Association of Realtors.

Donnelly Mayor Brian Koch said he would have welcomed a project like Northwest Passage when he moved to Donnelly 12 years ago.

See PASSAGE, Page 2

Progress seen in providing

worker housing

More projects are under study by developers

BY PHILIP A. JANQUARTThe Star-News

The opening of the Northwest Pas-sage Apartments in Donnelly will go a long way to help solve the lack of affordable worker housing the area, Valley County’s economic development director said.

The opening last week of the 36 apart-ments in Donnelly will “put a significant dent” in the demand, said Andrew Mentzer, executive director of the West Central Mountains Economic Development Council

“These 36 units should take care of roughly 10 percent to 20 percent of the demand for local housing stock in the McCall and Donnelly area based on feedback we’ve heard from industry and government,” Mentzer said,

The Donnelly project, designed for qualified households making $36,000 or less per year, is the second apartment complex to open in Valley County that is tailored to working families.

See PROGRESS, Page 2

Photo for The Star-News by Melissa ShelbyJess Giuffré with Northwest Real Estate Capital Corporation examines one of the newly opened units at Northwest Passage Apartments in Donnelly.

Making A BreakForest Service project near Lake Cascade

would help separate wildfires, homes BY MAX SILVERSONFor The Star-News

Wendy Green doesn’t mind that the Forest Service is thinking about cutting trees and shrubs near her home. It would be a small price to pay to save her home in a wildfire.

Green was among those who recently toured an area on the west side of Lake Cascade where work is planned to slow down future wildfires.

The French-Hazard Wildland Urban Interface Project would take place on more than 6,000 acres of the Boise National Forest on the eastern slope of West Mountain between Hurd Creek and Moores Creek along West Mountain Road.

The project would also thin stands throughout the area that have become overgrown with brush and fast-growing fir species, Project Leader Jim Bishop of the

Cascade Ranger District said. The project contains 3,661

acres slated for commercial log-ging, 1,369 acres scheduled for thinning, 3,800 acres planned for controlled burns and 950 acres where equipment will chew up dense vegetation that could help a wildfire spread.

Thinning efforts will not only focus on the goal of reducing fire risk, but also will strive to restore ponderosa pine and western larch stands, Bishop said.

The French Creek campground will receive particular attention, where plans to thin overcrowded and unhealthy western larch will allow more sunlight to shine on the campground and reduce the risk of trees falling, he said.

Culverts would be replaced or installed as needed to allow for fish passage and handle water from major floods.

Cascade Rang-er District Hy-drologist Gary Harris, in hard hat, points out examples of parasit-ic mistletoe af-fecting western larch trees on West Mountain Road to, from left, Elizabeth Spaulding of the Boise For-est Coalition, land owner Wendy Green and Cascade Ranger Dis-trict Forester Luke Sawyer.

Left in the DustResidents of McCall gravel streets find

no easy solutions for paving

BY PHILIP A. JANQUARTThe Star-News

Owners of homes located on gravel streets in McCall were told last week there are no answers to get their streets paved that were easy or cheap.

Representatives of prop-erty owners on Flynn, Conifer and Chipmunk lanes appeared before the McCall City Council last Thursday seeking new ideas.

Property owners have been working with city officials for more than a year on the question.

An inordinate amount of dust is kicked up by cars dur-ing the summer, which can become a health problem, Flynn Lane resident Tom Welty said.

Chemicals used by the city to cut down the dust creates a mess, Welty said.

Last fall the city allocated $5,000 to pay for a preliminary engineering estimate that might lead to the formation of a small taxing district com-posed just of property owners on those streets.

In such a district, all prop-erty owners would be assessed a share of the cost according to the value of their properties.

Neighbors at a community meeting held in September, however, expressed vehement disapproval of forming a tax-ing district due to its high cost.

City estimates for pav-ing the streets, which would include drainage and utility work were:

• Flynn Lane (including Balshae Drive): $743,000

• Conifer Lane: $851,000.• Chipmunk Lane: $847,000• Fairway Loop: $284,000.

See PAVING, Page 3

Three-car crash on Idaho 55 injures California manA California man was

injured last Thursday in a three-vehicle accident on Ida-ho 55 near Fairbrother Lane south of McCall, the Idaho State Police reported.

Richard Scott, 69, of Sac-ramento, Calif., was taken by ambulance to St. Luke’s Mc-Call after the accident, which happened about 8:09 p.m. last Thursday, the ISP reported. Scott’s condition was not available.

Scott was driving north when he lost control of his pickup, crossed the center line, and went into a broad slide.

Kathryn Thier, 35, of Mc-Call, was driving her car south and drove off the left shoulder and into a ditch to avoid collid-ing with Scott’s vehicle.

Dean Neptune, 24, of Nam-pa, was driving a commercial box truck behind Thier and struck Scott’s pickup. All oc-cupants were wearing seat belts, the ISP reported.

The section of Idaho 55 where the accident occurred was closed for about two hours until the scene could be cleared. The crash remained under investigation this week.

C O R R E C T I O NA story in The Star-News

last week about a public hear-ing for a propsed cellphone tower in Donnelly incor-rectly spelled the name of Jean Keese, who testified against the tower.

The story also cited the wrong school near the tower site where the children of Keese attend. Her children attend Donnelly Elementary School.

Photo for The Star-News by Max Silverson

More than 100 small fires have been recorded in the project area since records began in 1919. The Hurd Fire of 2010 burned in the northern area of the project, threatening homeowners and Tamarack Resort.

The Forest Service is expect-ing final plans to be completed in

October 2018, with work to start soon after that, Bishop said.

(Note: Subscribers to The Star-News can view a map of the project area by logging on to www.mccallstarnews.com and following the link at the end of this story.)

Andrew Mentzer

FIVE

DAY

LOOK

AHEAD

Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Monday

Snow Snow Cloudy Cloudy Snow 37/26 31/16 33/17 36/26 36/27

Wednesday, November 8, 2017 through Tuesday, Nov 14, 2017: Date ’17 HIGH LOW NORMAL SNOW ’16 HIGH LOW SNOW 11/11 37 30 40/22 1” 62 28 0011/8 36 19 42/22 00 63 30 00 11/12 41 25 39/21 00 56 31 0011/9 37 30 41/22 00 63 30 00 11/13 45 21 39/21 00 49 27 0011/10 36 29 41/22 3” 63 29 00 11/14 38 22 38/21 00 51 39 00

Date ‘17 HIGH LOW NORMAL SNOW ’16 HIGH LOW SNOW

Snow Depth in McCall on Novmber 14, 2017: 2 inches • Snow Depth in McCall on November 14, 2016: 0 inches • 2017-2018 Total Snowfall as of Novmber 14: 22 inches • 2016-2017 Snowfall as of November 14: 0 inches

PAGE 2 - THE STAR-NEWS - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2017

Passage(Continued from Page 1)

Koch and his family were forced to live in a motel for two months before finding a rental house.

“My wife and I know first-hand what housing, or a lack of housing, does to an individual or a family that wants to live and work somewhere beautiful like this,” said Koch, who cur-rently is an officer with the McCall Police Department.

He notes that Donnelly’s population of 154 would surge once tenants have filled the complex.

One Donnelly business owner said the added popula-tion should result in a boost to the local economy.

“Locals keep the lights on during mud seasons, fall and spring,” said Jeff Selmer, owner of Cougar Dave’s. “We’re hoping added popula-tion leads to more business and maybe some employees.”

The city as a whole has already benefited from the Northwest Passage project.

Donnelly has received about $850,000 in infra-structure improvements, including $300,000 in im-provements to Idaho 55 to extend the center turn lane, and add sidewalks and street

amenities, Northwest Senior Property Developer Jess Giuffré said.

The developers also spent $90,000 for storm drains and $150,000 in water and sewer infrastructure, Giuffré said.

Another $180,000 was spent improving and extend-ing Old Street and Hafferty streets adjacent to the proj-ect.

MCPAWS launches endowment fund, legacy society

MCPAWS Regional Ani-mal Shelter has launched two new programs to help raise money for the shelter and honor those who donate.

The MCPAWS Endow-ment Fund, also known as McFund, is an investment fund designed to provide a permanent, consistent source of income to help the shelter obtain long-term financial sustainability.

The $200,000 initial invest-ment for the McFund was provided from the proceeds of a home sale by an anony-mous donor. The growth income from McFund will help support the operations at MCPAWS.

The minimum gift is $5,000. Endowments gifts can be established as an outright

Progress(Continued from Page 1)

The Springs apartments, located off Deinhard Lane in McCall, opened 36 units in 2010 and another 36 units last year.

The Springs has a 96.3 percent occupancy rate and a waiting list of prospec-tive tenants, said Kathryn Almberg, director of The Housing Company, which manages the complex.

Turnover is about 25 percent per year for the apartments, which are occu-pied under one-year leases, Almberg said.

Occupations of residents of The Springs include food service workers, clerks, small business owners and retirees, she said.

Both The Springs and Northwest Passage were made possible through the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, which offers de-velopers federal tax credits equal to a percentage of the costs for development of the low-income units.

Projects To ComeMore projects are on their

way, Mentzer said“There are several devel-

opers doing due diligence right now for additional units,” he said. “Some are condo/apartment type prod-ucts, and some would be smaller single-family prod-ucts.”

One of the obstacles developers face is building costs in the current market, Mentzer said.

“With costs per square foot hovering in the $200 to $300 realm, it makes price-conscious projects challenging,” he said. “That said, some developers are

getting creative to bring costs down while deliver-ing a quality outcome, and some are doing a great job leveraging tax incentives and federal dollars.”

More housing could even-tually lead to a healthier work force, Mentzer said.

“We see folks moving here and staying in hotels for extended periods of time who have jobs, but can’t find places to live,” he said.”

A larger variety of housing is needed to help solve the housing problem, McCall Community Devel-opment Director Michelle Groenevelt said.

“Every housing unit helps, but there is still sig-nificant demand for housing for locals and seasonal work-ers,” Groenevelt said. “We need all kinds of housing types at different price points so people can work and live in McCall.”

The West Central Moun-tains Housing Trust hopes to meet some of that of demand. The trust, created about a year ago, plans to acquire and demolish three homes in New Meadows to pave the way for the construction of single fam-ily houses, Director Chance Hobbs said.

The trust’s approach is to buy or rehab single-family homes that fill the need for families looking to buy instead of rent, Hobbs said.

Limited funding sources make building more projects a challenge, said Hobbs, who is a partner in Northwest Passage. He predicts more federal tax credits will not be available in Valley County for several years

“The trust is the only ef-fort going forward right now that is getting units on the ground and into the afford-able housing pool,” he said.

Photo for The Star-News by Melissa Shelby MORGAN MELODRAMA - Miss Addy (Emily Hansen) and as Sgt. Bill Corey (Ryan Bradford) perform a scene from an Old West melodrama on Monday before students at Barbara R. Morgan Elementary School. Hansen, Bradford and other members of Opera Idaho’s Young Artist Program performed for students the day after they sang music of living composers at Second Sunday Sounds @Six sponsored by the McCall Music Society.

gift or through estate plan-ning products.

The MCPAWS Legacy Society honors those who contribute to the endowment fund with a plaque on the Legacy Society Wall at the animal shelter.

For more information, call 208-634-3647 or email Amber Kostoff at [email protected] or Kattie Kingsley at [email protected].

National forests to start selling Christmas tree permits Saturday

Boise and Payette Na-tional Forest vendors will begin selling Christmas tree permits on Saturday.

This year, fourth-graders can receive a free permit through the “Every Kid in a Park” program.

Fourth-graders will re-ceive a voucher for one free Christmas tree permit when they register for the “Every Kid in a Park” initiative at www.Every-KidinaPark.gov.

The fourth-graders and a parent must redeem the voucher at a Forest Ser-

vice office, as commercial vendors will not accept the vouchers. Free Christmas tree permits cannot be sent electronically or through the mail.

Permits for sale to the general public will be avail-able at the Boise and Payette National Forest offices start-ing Monday. Cost is $10 and valid until Dec. 25.

Each permit allows one tree to be cut, and there is a limit of three per family. The maximum height of a permitted tree is 12 feet. Per-mits are valid for use on both forests and are for personal use only.

Christmas tree permits are available at these loca-tions:

• New Meadows Ranger District Office, 3674 Highway 95, New Meadows. 208-347-0300.

• McCall Ranger District Office, 102 W. Lake St., Mc-Call. 208-634-0400.

• Albertsons, 132 E. Lake St., McCall. 208-634-8166.

• C&M Lumber, 3625 Walk-er Lane, New Meadows. 208-347-3648.

• Cascade Ranger District, 540 N. Main St., Cascade. 208-382-7400.

Payette archaeologist to discuss historical sites tonight

An archaeologist will discuss sites of historical significance in the Payette National Forest tonight at 6:30 p.m. at The Barn Owl Books and Gifts.

Payette archaeologist Morgan Zedalis will focus on how to develop educational interests of visitors while maintaining the wilderness character of the land.

The event, the first in a new series titled “Out-door Conversations,” is co-sponsored by the Selway-Bitterroot Frank Church

Foundation and the McCall Public Library.

The Barn Owl Books and Gifts is located at 626 N. Third St., Suite 110. Refreshments will be served.

Nazarene missionaries to discuss experiences Nov. 30 after potluck

Two Nazarene mission-aries will discuss their mission experiences abroad on Thursday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. at the McCall Church of the Nazarene. The event will be preceded by a potluck dinner at 6 p.m.

Bob and Colleen Skin-ner have served missions in the Philippines (1990-94), Ukraine (1995-2012), Hun-gary and Poland. Bob and Colleen Skinner are both graduates of Nazarene Theo-logical Seminary.

The Church of the Naza-rene is located at 506 Pine St. in McCall.

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Pardon

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Some of you may have noticed that we are expanding our office space at McCall Dental Care! While our new addition can be difficult and noisy at times, we are excited that our larger facility will allow us to better serve our patients with the following:

• Quicker response times to emergency cases• More appointment availability for cleanings or dental work• More privacy in treatment rooms and consultation areas• The very latest technology for dental work and sterilization

Until the project is completed in January 2018, we ask for your understanding as we work through noises and some schedule changes to accommodate the necessary construction.

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PAGE 2 - THE STAR-NEWS - THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2017

Passage(Continued from Page 1)

Koch and his family were forced to live in a motel for two months before finding a rental house.

“My wife and I know first-hand what housing, or a lack of housing, does to an individual or a family that wants to live and work somewhere beautiful like this,” said Koch, who cur-rently is an officer with the McCall Police Department.

He notes that Donnelly’s population of 154 would surge once tenants have filled the complex.

One Donnelly business owner said the added popula-tion should result in a boost to the local economy.

“Locals keep the lights on during mud seasons, fall and spring,” said Jeff Selmer, owner of Cougar Dave’s. “We’re hoping added popula-tion leads to more business and maybe some employees.”

The city as a whole has already benefited from the Northwest Passage project.

Donnelly has received about $850,000 in infra-structure improvements, including $300,000 in im-provements to Idaho 55 to extend the center turn lane, and add sidewalks and street

amenities, Northwest Senior Property Developer Jess Giuffré said.

The developers also spent $90,000 for storm drains and $150,000 in water and sewer infrastructure, Giuffré said.

Another $180,000 was spent improving and extend-ing Old Street and Hafferty streets adjacent to the proj-ect.

MCPAWS launches endowment fund, legacy society

MCPAWS Regional Ani-mal Shelter has launched two new programs to help raise money for the shelter and honor those who donate.

The MCPAWS Endow-ment Fund, also known as McFund, is an investment fund designed to provide a permanent, consistent source of income to help the shelter obtain long-term financial sustainability.

The $200,000 initial invest-ment for the McFund was provided from the proceeds of a home sale by an anony-mous donor. The growth income from McFund will help support the operations at MCPAWS.

The minimum gift is $5,000. Endowments gifts can be established as an outright

Progress(Continued from Page 1)

The Springs apartments, located off Deinhard Lane in McCall, opened 36 units in 2010 and another 36 units last year.

The Springs has a 96.3 percent occupancy rate and a waiting list of prospec-tive tenants, said Kathryn Almberg, director of The Housing Company, which manages the complex.

Turnover is about 25 percent per year for the apartments, which are occu-pied under one-year leases, Almberg said.

Occupations of residents of The Springs include food service workers, clerks, small business owners and retirees, she said.

Both The Springs and Northwest Passage were made possible through the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, which offers de-velopers federal tax credits equal to a percentage of the costs for development of the low-income units.

Projects To ComeMore projects are on their

way, Mentzer said“There are several devel-

opers doing due diligence right now for additional units,” he said. “Some are condo/apartment type prod-ucts, and some would be smaller single-family prod-ucts.”

One of the obstacles developers face is building costs in the current market, Mentzer said.

“With costs per square foot hovering in the $200 to $300 realm, it makes price-conscious projects challenging,” he said. “That said, some developers are

getting creative to bring costs down while deliver-ing a quality outcome, and some are doing a great job leveraging tax incentives and federal dollars.”

More housing could even-tually lead to a healthier work force, Mentzer said.

“We see folks moving here and staying in hotels for extended periods of time who have jobs, but can’t find places to live,” he said.”

A larger variety of housing is needed to help solve the housing problem, McCall Community Devel-opment Director Michelle Groenevelt said.

“Every housing unit helps, but there is still sig-nificant demand for housing for locals and seasonal work-ers,” Groenevelt said. “We need all kinds of housing types at different price points so people can work and live in McCall.”

The West Central Moun-tains Housing Trust hopes to meet some of that of demand. The trust, created about a year ago, plans to acquire and demolish three homes in New Meadows to pave the way for the construction of single fam-ily houses, Director Chance Hobbs said.

The trust’s approach is to buy or rehab single-family homes that fill the need for families looking to buy instead of rent, Hobbs said.

Limited funding sources make building more projects a challenge, said Hobbs, who is a partner in Northwest Passage. He predicts more federal tax credits will not be available in Valley County for several years

“The trust is the only ef-fort going forward right now that is getting units on the ground and into the afford-able housing pool,” he said.

Photo for The Star-News by Melissa Shelby MORGAN MELODRAMA - Miss Addy (Emily Hansen) and as Sgt. Bill Corey (Ryan Bradford) perform a scene from an Old West melodrama on Monday before students at Barbara R. Morgan Elementary School. Hansen, Bradford and other members of Opera Idaho’s Young Artist Program performed for students the day after they sang music of living composers at Second Sunday Sounds @Six sponsored by the McCall Music Society.

gift or through estate plan-ning products.

The MCPAWS Legacy Society honors those who contribute to the endowment fund with a plaque on the Legacy Society Wall at the animal shelter.

For more information, call 208-634-3647 or email Amber Kostoff at [email protected] or Kattie Kingsley at [email protected].

National forests to start selling Christmas tree permits Saturday

Boise and Payette Na-tional Forest vendors will begin selling Christmas tree permits on Saturday.

This year, fourth-graders can receive a free permit through the “Every Kid in a Park” program.

Fourth-graders will re-ceive a voucher for one free Christmas tree permit when they register for the “Every Kid in a Park” initiative at www.Every-KidinaPark.gov.

The fourth-graders and a parent must redeem the voucher at a Forest Ser-

vice office, as commercial vendors will not accept the vouchers. Free Christmas tree permits cannot be sent electronically or through the mail.

Permits for sale to the general public will be avail-able at the Boise and Payette National Forest offices start-ing Monday. Cost is $10 and valid until Dec. 25.

Each permit allows one tree to be cut, and there is a limit of three per family. The maximum height of a permitted tree is 12 feet. Per-mits are valid for use on both forests and are for personal use only.

Christmas tree permits are available at these loca-tions:

• New Meadows Ranger District Office, 3674 Highway 95, New Meadows. 208-347-0300.

• McCall Ranger District Office, 102 W. Lake St., Mc-Call. 208-634-0400.

• Albertsons, 132 E. Lake St., McCall. 208-634-8166.

• C&M Lumber, 3625 Walk-er Lane, New Meadows. 208-347-3648.

• Cascade Ranger District, 540 N. Main St., Cascade. 208-382-7400.

Payette archaeologist to discuss historical sites tonight

An archaeologist will discuss sites of historical significance in the Payette National Forest tonight at 6:30 p.m. at The Barn Owl Books and Gifts.

Payette archaeologist Morgan Zedalis will focus on how to develop educational interests of visitors while maintaining the wilderness character of the land.

The event, the first in a new series titled “Out-door Conversations,” is co-sponsored by the Selway-Bitterroot Frank Church

Foundation and the McCall Public Library.

The Barn Owl Books and Gifts is located at 626 N. Third St., Suite 110. Refreshments will be served.

Nazarene missionaries to discuss experiences Nov. 30 after potluck

Two Nazarene mission-aries will discuss their mission experiences abroad on Thursday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. at the McCall Church of the Nazarene. The event will be preceded by a potluck dinner at 6 p.m.

Bob and Colleen Skin-ner have served missions in the Philippines (1990-94), Ukraine (1995-2012), Hun-gary and Poland. Bob and Colleen Skinner are both graduates of Nazarene Theo-logical Seminary.

The Church of the Naza-rene is located at 506 Pine St. in McCall.

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