Idaho Cattle Association Annual Convention
Director Miller and staff from IDL attended ICA's annual convention in Sun Valley this week. The meeting featured a panel discussion let by Gretchen Hyde, executive director of the Idaho Rangeland Resources Commission, covering the increasing recreational impacts on rangeland that accompany growth. Panelists included eastern Idaho rancher Mark Pratt, outdoor writer Steve Stuebner and Magic Valley ATV Riders club president Kent Oliver. The panel delved into many of the concerns raised by IDL lessees about recreation on endowment rangeland during the recent grazing rate review.
At the convention outgoing ICA president Jay Smith handed the organization's reigns over to their new president, Mark Pratt.
A resolution passed by the organization expressed opposition to the acquisition of endowment grazing leases by any organization or government entity for any use other than grazing.
Survey Says, Printed Annual Report Here to Stay
Earlier this month IDL's communications team launched a survey about our annual report to evaluate if this publication meets the agency's needs. The survey was completed by 105 respondents and found 90% relied upon the annual report for information, with 59% using it "occasionally" or "often". Respondents were also twice as likely to use the print version of the document over the electronic PDF version. Those charged with providing information to the public reported sourcing their information equally from the annual report and IDL's website (27% and 26%, respectively).
The survey also identified an opportunity to increase public interest in obtaining copies of the report from supervisory area offices. Only 6% of those working in area offices reported that the public requests copies of the annual report.
Respondents gave the quality of our annual report 4.18 stars out of five, and provided valuable feedback with suggestions for making it even better, including:
- Using QR codes in the report to link to related content and programs on the IDL website.
- Producing handouts from key pages that can be distributed at public events.
- Including more fire related information and comparative statistics.
- Focusing more on the work of IDL's foresters.
ICL Questions State's Commitment to No Boundaries Forestry, IDL Responds
In correspondence from the Idaho Conservation League dated Nov. 11 and distributed widely, ICL alleged IDL violated the spirit of Shared Stewardship collaboration when it "decided to go it alone on the Clear Creek parcel," a 100 acres parcel of endowment land bordering the Bald Mountain Stewardship Project in Blaine County.
This couldn't be further from the truth.
In his response, Director Miller explained that landscape-level efforts must be approached in a way that respects the individual agency’s mandates and regulations. The Clear Creek parcel is state endowment trust land and must be managed to produce the maximum amount of income to the beneficiary to which it belongs. Additionally, all harvest activities on this parcel must meet the standards set forth in the Idaho Forest Practices Act.
Moreover, IDL staff members led and participated in a herculean amount of collaboration in planning treatment for the Clear Creek parcel, which Director Miller documented in his response.
Redux: Caldwell Agricultural College Parcels Sell at Auction for $23,250,000
Two adjacent Agriculture College endowment parcels totaling 282 acres adjacent to Caldwell’s Vallivue High School and Middle School were sold at a public auction on Nov. 10 for $23,250,000, which does not include the 4% buyer’s premium.
This is the second time this year the parcels have been auctioned.
These parcels were auctioned last June, but the winner defaulted on the contract and the $35.2 million auction price. As part of the default, the first auction winner paid $600,000 in damages.
At last week's sale five bidders registered for the auction, with two engaged in bidding. The Pennsylvania headquartered home builder Toll Brothers, Inc., placed the winning bid.
The auction occurred at the Marriott Courtyard on Eagle Road in Meridian.
READ THE NEWS RELEASE
IDL Welcomes Dr. Joel Wilson to Land Board Staff, Ybarra's New Representative
Joel Wilson joined the Superintendent's team in June. Joel moved up the education system from teacher to vice principal to principal to superintendent and has advanced degrees from ISU and NNU. He spent the last 14 years as a superintendent in eastern Idaho, most recently in Arco. His wife works for the City of Boise and they have three children at home. He is an avid skier and former rugby player. He says he is happy to join the Land Board team.
Legislature's Interim Committee on Federalism
On Thursday, Nov. 18 Director Miller testified before the Legislature's Interim Committee on Federalism regarding the impacts of recent federal climate change related executive orders. To summarize his testimony:
- Recent federal executive orders related to climate change are short on details and the impacts on Idaho are uncertain, but inextricably tied to how federal agencies may implement the orders.
- No recent federal action addresses the underlying impediment to federal forest health and restoration, the unbridled litigation of forest treatment projects.
- There are grave concerns that adding more acres of conservation (which is a term not defined in the orders) without a management component on federal lands may exacerbate forest health issues.
Also testifying at the hearing were Ben Davenport (Idaho Mining Association), Trent Wright (Idaho Bankers Association), Shawn Keough (Associated Logging Contractors) and Russ Hendricks (Idaho Farm Bureau). Both Keough and Davenport complemented IDL as partners, and Keogh advocated for the department's fire-related budget requests.
Proposed IDFG Priest Lake Siphon Project Raises Community Concerns
A project proposed by IDFG to lower river temperatures downstream from Priest Lake to improve fish habitat is generating concerns among those living in the area. The project's opponents have listed email addresses for Director Miller's and Dan Brown, the Priest Lake Supervisory Area's manager on their website and Facebook page.
Local area residents have begun airing their concerns with the department.
If the project moves forwards, IDL's direct involvement is limited to its role as a regulator over the beds of navigable waterways, which includes potentially issuing easement or leases for the use of public trust lands (e.g. river and lake beds, not to be confused with endowment trust land).
It's also possible that IDL may be contacted regarding either leasing or selling an endowment parcel adjacent to the dam on the south end of Priest Lake to accommodate the siphon, but no such outreach has occurred to date.
Supt. Ybarra to Visit CDA Staff Office Next Week
Superintendent Ybarra will visit the IDL Coeur d'Alene staff office on Tuesday, Nov. 23. During the visit she will meet with Craig Foss, Jim Elbin and local Bureau Chiefs to discuss priority issues.
Community Group Interested in Leasing in Blaine County "Buttercup" Endowment Parcel
Director Miller met with a Blaine County group that may be interested in a commercial lease for the 106 acre Buttercup parcel near Hailey as a site for affordable housing. The citizen-led group has not made application to the department, but does understand the board's constitutional mandate to maximize returns for the beneficiaries over the long term. The Buttercup acreage is part of the University of Idaho's endowment and was the subject of a 2019 proposal by Kiki Tidwell for a development with community gardens and all-electric modular homes powered by on-site solar panels.
New Internal Newsletter for Staff Launched Last Week
Last week Director Miller rolled out a new biweekly email newsletter for IDL staff designed to keep them informed about the agency's operations. It highlights key achievements and shares news about important issues. The newsletter, distributed in weeks opposite to the Director's Update for the Land Board, is aptly titled Director's Update for IDL Staff.
READ LAST WEEK'S DIRECTOR'S UPDATE FOR IDL STAFF
Controller Woolf to join IDL Team at Fall Leadership Meeting on Nov. 30
On Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 IDL's managers, bureau chiefs and above, will convene in Moscow for the annual Fall Leadership Team Meeting. This year a special guest speaker will join them, State Controller Brandon Woolf. The meeting includes presentations by participants in the agency's Leadership Development Program covering Endowment Education, and Fire Retention and Recruitment. The team will also discuss IDL's budget, future proofing the department, real estate acquisitions and right of way, plus a variety of policy-related topics.
Fresh New Look Coming to IDL Website
Work is underway with Access Idaho, the state's web services provider, to update the template that drives the look and feel of IDL's website. While the upgrade will not impact the site's underlying functionality, the cosmetic change will highlight the individuality of the different services IDL provides and improve site visitors' experiences.
When the change goes live, there should be no disruption in service. Updates on leasing, contracting, etc. will be as normal. However, some pages on the website may require adjustment to fit into the new template.
Expect this change to be rolled out later today or over the weekend, as we are going into a holiday week and fewer people will be using the website as we are adjusting things.
Here's a preview of the new website template.
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