The Courier
NEWS A Piece of History Found
Hidden away for over a century, a piece of history was unveiled to the public last Saturday, April 20th, in front of the Veteran's Memorial in Shoshone, Idaho. The piece of history was unearthed during the restoration and remodeling of the Lincoln County Courthouse. Built in 1904, the Courthouse is a beloved icon of the community, with unique architecture that the renovation team preserved during the yearlong makeover. During the overhaul, an antique journeyman’s bag was found in the basement of the Courthouse. Originally discarded as debris by the crews as they removed the old jail cells and dirt floors, the bag was later opened and found to contain a treasure trove of tools and objects from what is believed to be a time capsule from the original construction of the Courthouse, 120 years ago. John Bergman, President of The Bergman Companies, has been repairing historic buildings for close to four decades. Contracted by Big-D Construction to restore the Courthouse masonry and stabilize the foundational stone work, Mr. Bergman said “finding the aged journeyman’s bag filled with antique tools and working implements provided an exceptional look into the historical construction of the Lincoln County Courthouse.” “Realizing the importance of this extraordinary find, we were delighted to return it to the Lincoln County Commissioners”, Bergman continued. Lincoln County Commissioner Rebecca Wood said, “We are exited to share this historical find with our community. It adds to the importance and uniqueness of this project.” The journeyman's bag was not the only discovery made during the renovation. John Bergman said over a thousand original bricks from the time of the courthouse construction were found in the basement. One of the big challenges of restoration work is matching antique brick - nearly impossible on a building this old. Finding original bricks will help make the Lincoln County Courthouse one the few historical buildings in Idaho with all original brick.
News from the Heart of Idaho Camas • Lincoln • Gooding
April 24, 2024
Vol 48 Num 17
Funding Our Public Schools
On May 21st, the Camas County School District will be asking the residents of Camas County to approve a $9 million bond to cover the cost of building a new Ag/Tech Shop with additional classrooms, and to address problems at the current building associated with a section of flat roof. This coming Monday, April 29th, the Camas School District will hold a fourth community meeting to discuss general design ideas regarding the building projects, and what the costs will be. Everyone is welcome to attend the meeting which begins at 6:30 p.m. in the school cafeteria. Most school districts are used to passing supplemental levies which only require 50% of the votes plus one to pass (some levies may require a higher threshold depending on the amount requested). However, passing a bond requires a 2/3 supermajority (66.67%) which can be a difficult barrier to approval. In 2023, 5 out of 7 school bond requests failed in Idaho. The issue is increased taxes. At a time when people are struggling with rising food costs, paying the rent/house payment, and putting fuel in the car, no one is interested in paying more taxes. Fortunately, the Camas School district is in a unique situation. In 2023, they finished paying an existing bond which was costing tax payers about $3.20 per $1000 of property valuation. The new bond (if approved) will result in a tax levy roughly equal to or slightly less than what tax payers are currently paying. It should be noted that the cost per $1000 of property valuation is only an estimate. Tax levies are based on the total valuation of property within a county. For example: if total valuation is $100 million and the combined budgets of all taxing districts add up to $1 million, the levy rate would be 1%. The question many people ask is, "What happens if my property value goes up?" Over time (every 5 years or so) homes and land are evaluated to bring their assessed value close to market value. As many of us know, property values can change a lot in 5 years. However, the effect on actual taxes is usually minimal. Example #2: if total valuation of property in a county increases to $200 million but the combined budgets of all taxing districts are still only $1 million, the new levy rate would be .5%, or half of the old rate. Higher taxes are mostly the result of higher budgets, not higher The Bergman Companies owns and operates John Bergman, LLC in Idaho, as well as JB Masonry in Utah. assessed values on property, but as the old saying goes... Nothing is certain except death and taxes. They specialize in historic masonry restoration, seismic upgrades and brick and stone cleaning.