Every year at this time Coeur d’Alene City Forester Karen Haskew receives quite a few requests for help identifying particular trees in bloom in Coeur d’Alene. To help people enjoy Coeur d’Alene’s urban forest even more and “Name That Tree”, she has posted photos and narrative information about six trees in bloom this week, May 10-16, on the City’s website. Next Friday she will add trees that will be blooming the week of May 17, and she will continue weekly posts until there is nothing more to report, probably about mid-June.
May 9, 2009
Name That Tree
May 8, 2009
Jesusita Fire – Santa Barbara, CA
The Jesusita Fire is not inching but racing closer and closer to the northern edge of the city of Santa Barbara, California.
It has been very frustrating watching the Spokane television affiliates and television networks refer to the fire area only as “Santa Barbara.” So for anyone who shares my frustration with the imprecision of our eyenitwitless news teams, here is some information about the Jesusita Fire. More graphically, here is the GoogleMap showing the fire area.
Killing us with Kindness
The City’s Pulse Newsletter, by Mary Souza
They lied to us again. Coeur d’Alene’s Finance Director, Troy Tymeson, admitted at last Tuesday’s council meeting that the city has never tried to sell the old library. After they made it a big deal in the bond campaign for the new library, they did not do what they promised and never came to the public to reveal or explain. (more…)
May 7, 2009
Coeur d’Alene Loses Again
Which US city is named “Scam Capital of America” in the May 25, 2009, Forbes Magazine article Fraud: Scam Capital of America ?
You guessed Coeur d’Alene? No, but you’re close — only about 34 miles off.
May 6, 2009
Meeting Notice – Coeur d’Alene
It sounds as if the Coeur d’Alene Mayor and City Council as well as the city’s urban renewal agency, the LCDC, will meet jointly with selected “stakeholders” on Tuesday, May 12. Amy Ferguson, City of Coeur d’Alene’s executive assistant, sent an email inviting several Midtown stakeholders to attend, “…for the purpose of sharing ideas and recommendations for minimizing the impact of the pending 4th Street reconstruction project .” Other members of the public may wish to attend and participate. No invitation is required for admission to a public meeting. (more…)
May 5, 2009
City of Vengeance?
2007 Campaign Ad for change*
An alert reader sent me info from another blog which mistakenly reported that Kathy Sims would be appearing before the CdA city council tonight to offer a letter of apology. She will not. Her attorney will be there to read a letter he sent to the city more than a month ago. The city refused to accept the letter, until now.
Here’s the back story: (more…)
Taxes Up, Up, Up
I have been sorting and filing paperwork today and came across a property tax statement from 2004. I compared it to the 2008 statement, and in just 4 years, here’s the increase:
County tax went up 35%
City of CdA tax up 77%
NIC tax went up 111%
Ouch!
School Protests and Meetings
Today’s Press shows a front page photo of a CHS student standing on top of a car, leading a protest. Are we back in the 60’s again? Nope. They are upset about the new cuts in the activities budget, particularly after everyone was lead to believe that the passage of the levy two weeks ago would safeguard those programs and more.
The school district held a meeting last night to listen to public feedback. Good for them for having a meeting, but how did it go? I was unable to attend but I know Bill was there. Does anyone have a report about the meeing? Were folks upset? Were students there? How did the Board and Hazel handle it?
Domestic Extremism Lexicon
Before the Department of Homeland Security disseminated its Rightwing Extremism report on April 7, 2009, it sent out its Domestic Extremism Lexicon to state and local law enforcement officials. The 12-page Lexicon was a dictionary that law enforcement could use to conveniently characterize political leanings and behaviors. Unlike the April 7 Rightwing Extremism report, the March 26, 2009, Lexicon was quickly recalled. The story behind it is in reporter Audrey Hudson’s May 5, 2009, Washington Times article headlined Homeland agency pulled back extremism dictionary. (more…)
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May 3, 2009
Coeur d’Alene Resident Wins Open Government Award
Gary Ingram of Coeur d’Alene has been named the recipient of the 2009 Max Dalton Open Government Award sponsored by the Idaho Newspaper Foundation. Ingram earned the award and an accompanying cash prize of $2,000 for his decades of work advancing the cause of open government in Idaho, beginning from his time in the Idaho House of Representatives where he authored the first Idaho Open Meeting Law . (more…)