5 New Year’s resolutions to benefit the brain
Resolutions made at the start of a new year often focus on personal improvement.
December 2023
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McCall’s Activity Barn To Open for Snow Tubing
Snow lovers headed to the McCall area will get a shot at some fresh gravity-fed thrills, as the Activity Barn Snow Tubing facility is set to open Friday, December 29.The Snow Tubing hill, located two miles south of McCall, will open with one 800-foot tubing lane in action.
Bear cubs in rehab
Two yearling bear cubs are safe and sound at the Snowdon Wildlife Sanctuary in McCall after they were found by the Idaho department of Fish and Game.One cub was found on Dec.
Brundage forms community fund
The last five chairlifts remaining from Brundage Mountain Resort’s former Centennial Chairlift will be sold at auction to raise money for the resort’s new charitable foundation.The auction is open through Jan.
Holy smokes McCall church touts ‘Christmas miracle’ after fire
A Christmas Eve service at the St. Andrew's
Return of the Moto Dragons
Annette Rooney was a shy fourth-grader when a robotics team at Donnelly Elementary School helped her find herself and a career path in the process.The team, known as the Moto Dragons, disbanded in 2016, but has returned to competition this year under the tutelage of Rooney, now a high school senior at McCall-Donnelly High School and Melissa Maini, who formerly coached the team.“Melissa and I were talking about how sad we were that Lego League stopped, so we decided to get it running again,” said Rooney.The Moto Dragons compete in Lego League, an international science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) organization that hosts competitions which teach students programming and robotics, among other things.The team consists of 10 Donnelly fourth-graders and fifth-graders who build and program robots made of Legos to complete a series of tasks as quickly as possible.Missions usually consist of several tasks that require moving the robot to specific locations and using the robot’s extensions to solve various steps, like lifting a lever or turning a wheel.The team is set to compete in a regional qualifier for the First Idaho Robotics Lego League on Jan.
Streets tax narrowly misses budget
A tax used by the City of McCall to pay for city street projects fell short of budget projections in 2023 for the first time in its eight-year history, according to city reports.The city’s streets local-option tax collected just over $3 million in 2023, but fell about $50,000 short of earning the $3.1 million projected.The streets tax, which is funded by a 1% general sales tax and a 3% tax on motels and short-term rentals, had previously exceeded annual budget projections by an average of 17% since collections began in 2016.In 2023, more than $6 million in streets tax funding was spent on city street improvement projects, including $2.2 million to rebuild Deinhard Lane from Idaho 55 to South Samson Trail.Another $2.2 million was spent rebuilding Davis Avenue from Thompson Avenue to Reedy Lane.In 2024, the tax is expected to fund a rebuild of First Street from West Lake Street to Park Street, as well as a rebuild of Davis Avenue from Reedy Lane to Lick Creek Road.The tax is projected to earn $3.2 million next year.Nearly a third of the $17.6 million earned by the streets tax has been used to rebuild streets and sidewalks in downtown McCall, including Second, Lenora, and Park streets.Before the streets tax was passed by McCall voters in November 2015, city street projects were funded using grant money or property taxes paid by city residents.From 2011 to 2015, the city had about $510,000 per year for city street projects, equipment replacement and facilities improvements, according to city budget documents.Since 2020, the streets tax has earned an average of $2.8 million per year for city street improvement projects and maintenance.The tax is set to expire in December 2025, but could be renewed if approved by McCall voters.Here is a list of major city street projects funded entirely or in part by the city’s streets local-option tax:2016•Downtown core feasibility study2017•Commerce Street rebuild•2018 Idaho Street rebuild•Second and Lenora streets Phase One2019•Second and Lenora streets Phase Two•Park Street and Veteran’s Alley Phase One•Forest Street rebuild as part of St.
Tourism tax falls $150K short of budget
The City of McCall’s tourism local-option taxes failed to meet budget projections in 2023 for the first time since 2020, according to the city’s tax receipts for the year.The 3% tax on motels and short-term rentals earned more than $1 million in 2021, but fell about $150,000 short of earning the $1.2 million budgeted.The shortfall means that 10 community grants approved for funding by the McCall City Council will not be funded.Those grants include a $14,000 grant to Valley County for snowplowing in the Francis Wallace parking area, a popular snowmobile trailhead on Warren Wagon Road north of McCall.“We will be pulling funds from grooming to keep the lots open and safe,” Valley County Parks and Recreation Director Larry Laxson said.“The bad part is that cutting back on grooming could mean less visitation and lower LOT funds for the city next year,” Laxson said.A grant for about $12,000 to the Roots Forest School in McCall also was not funded.