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36 Volume 20 Number News from the Heart of Idaho: Camas, Lincoln, and Gooding County
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Camas County Considers Gooding Hillside Development County Ordinance Puts Last Thursday, the Camas County Commissioners held a public hearing on proposed changes to the county’s Zoning Ordinance regarding hillside development. On Monday, May 14th, the Commissioners deliberated on the public comments. As with the hearings at the P&Z level, the comments were predominately negative towards the draft ordinance, with two or three in favor. For the Commissioners there were three main issues: the 5200’ elevation line in the current ordinance, the change from 15% to 20% slope for certain requirements, and the definition of terms such as ridgeline, hilltop, and knoll. At the public hearing, the P&Z Administrator, Dwight Butlin, continued to call 5200’ arbitrary, but offered no proof for his statement. At the deliberation, Commissioner Croner asked her fellow commissioner (who were on the Board in 2001) why the 5200’ restriction was put in place. Commissioner Backstrom responded by saying he did not remember exactly why, but thought it had something to do with the recharge area for the aquifer. Commissioner Croner said the Board should look at the 2001 minutes to see if that question can be answered. While the sky lining restriction in the current ordinance is very easy to understand (if you can see a building’s silhouette against the sky from certain locations, it’s a violation of the ordinance) 5200’ may continued on page 3.....
New Boat on the River
Last month, as part of an emergency services event, the Gooding County Sheriff’s department let kids at Wendell Elementary have a look at the county’s new river boat. photo by Mary Hanson
With Memorial Day Weekend just around the corner, your friendly police officers will be working hard to make sure you have a fun and safe holiday. While some of you will be going to the mountains, many of you will head to the Snake River for fun in the water. The Gooding County Sheriff department has about forty miles of the Snake River to cover, and that requires more than just an average boat. They recently received a grant from the Idaho State Waterway Department in the amount of $56,000 to purchase an aluminum jet boat from Custom Weld
out of Lewiston, Idaho. This new boat will allow the police to get anywhere on the river safely and efficiently. Besides making sure boaters obey speed limits and other boating laws, police officers do safety inspections, hand out life-jackets when needed, and watch for accidents. The boat is on the water mostly on weekends and special event or holidays, but they are always ready to make a quick patrol of the river. No one like to be pulled over by a police officer, but just remember, their job is to make sure everyone get to their destination safely - by land or by water.
Health Fair Saturday, May 19th ~ 7 to 11 a.m. at Gooding Middle School - 1045 7th Avenue West, Gooding, ID
Free Health Information Free Screenings