Ammon convenience store offer post office services

Jarom Christensen at Hitt-the-Road, now a U.S. Postal Service contractor.

When you consider that Swan Valley and Irwin each have their own post offices but Ammon, a city of more than 14,500 doesn’t, it sort of makes you wonder how these decisions are made.

The good news, however, is that the Hitt-the-Road convenience store at the northeast corner of Sunnyside and Hitt roads is now an official U.S. Postal Service station where you can mail all your Christmas cards and holiday parcels. This fills a hole left by the closing of CD World, which had a very busy postal station.

In fact, once Jarom Christensen, who owns the store, learned he would getting the business he hired Rachel Barr and Anthony Chabis, the two people who used to take care of the USPS business at CD World. “They know exactly what they’re doing, so we were able to hit the ground running,” he said.

Christensen, whose company is called Voyager Enterprises, said the Postal Service approached him and other businesses in the area in 2014 after CD World closed. He had to submit his financials and undergo a security check, and the entire process took about nine months.

“We worked really hard to get it,” Christensen said. “I think we’re going to do a lot of volume here. They told us that CD World had the highest volume of any contractor in Utah or Idaho.”

The advantages to having a post office in the store are obvious. Convenience stores’ business depends not on gas sales but the sales of soda and snacks. If people are coming in to mail a letter or package, there’s a pretty good chance they might want a Slim Jim or a Pepsi.

“Everything here is an impulse purchase,” Christensen said.

I.F. attorney to speak to Advertising Federation

Sean Coletti

The guest speaker at this month’s Idaho Falls Advertising Federation “Lunch & Learn” will be Sean J. Coletti, from the Hopkins, Roden, Crockett, Hansen & Hoopes law firm.

"Keeping it legal - Make sure your advertising message doesn't get you in hot water," will focus on issues surrounding advertising and social media.

The event will be at Dixie’s Diner in the meeting room at noon. Cost (which includes lunch) is $12 for Ad Fed members, and $15 for non-members.

Coletti, is a native of Utah and Idaho and graduated from Rigby High School in 1995. He attended Ricks College and Brigham Young University where he received a bachelor’s degree in political science, then earned his law degree in 2005 from the University of Connecticut School of Law. During law school, he served as executive editor of the Connecticut Law Review, where his article, “Taking Account of Partial Exemptors in Vaccination Law, Policy and Practice” was published in 2004.

He is currently serving his second four-year term on the Ammon City Council, a position to which he was first elected in 2009. He also volunteers as an attorney in the Court Appointed Special Advocate program and for the Idaho State Bar, and serves on the Board of Directors for the Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce and the Idaho Health Facilities Authority.

Post Register to be sold to Minneapolis-based company

The Post Co. of Idaho Falls announced Wednesday that it is being bought by Adams Publishing Group, a media chain based in St. Louis Park, Minn., and owned by a billionaire investor with interests in billboards, wine, banks and recreational vehicles.

The sale will include the Post Register as well as three weekly newspapers: the Shelley Pioneer, Jefferson Star and Challis Messenger. It is expected to be finalized Nov. 1. A sale price was not disclosed.

Adams Publishing owns dozens of newspapers, shoppers and magazines in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Maryland and Ohio. The acquisition of the Post Register represents a continuation of an expansion into the West, as the company recently bought four newspapers in Wyoming, in Cheyenne, Laramie, Rawlins and Rock Springs. The Adams family also owns radio stations, an outdoor advertising company and Camping World/Good Sam, which opened a location in Idaho Falls earlier this year.

For more information about the company's chairman, Stephen Adams, follow this link from the Stanford GSB Experience of Feb. 1, 2006: Stephen Adams Honored with 2006 Arbuckle Award.

The sale marks the end of 90-plus years of ownership by the Brady family. Company President Jerry Brady, 79, told employees this summer he felt he had nothing more to add to the company. Although the decision was difficult, he was convinced selling the company was the right thing to do, he said.

Brady and his brother, Jack, own about two-thirds of the company. The remaining is owned by employees (and ex-employees, including me) through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan.

“We think we’ve found the best deal out there,” Brady wrote in a July letter to employees. “It would provide enough money to retire all debts, allowing us to go forward debt-free and to make a distribution to (employee) owners.”

“We’re very excited to have the Post Register Company’s group of newspapers and digital products join our company going forward,” Stephen Adams said in a statement. “The Brady family has a long history of providing strong journalism in the state of Idaho. It’s our goal to continue their tradition of locally focused, community-driven editorial and reporting.”

New sales manager named for Home2Suites in Idaho Falls

Kiersten Landers

Home2Suites by Hilton, owned and operated by B&T Hospitality Management, has named Kiersten Sedlmayr Landers as the Idaho Falls hotel’s new sales manager.

With a degree in business management and entrepreneurship from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, Landers has more than 10 years of corporate sales experience, six of them in Idaho Falls with such companies as Sand Hill Media and Signature Party Rental.

B&T General Manager Megan Dodd cited Landers’ reputation, experience, love of business and desire to build lasting relationships as the reasons why she was put in charge of sales for the extended-stay hotel at Snake River Landing, which opened in September. As sales manager, Landers will be responsible for revenue growth, marketing efforts and community outreach.

The new hotel offers easy access to technology and community spaces, as well as the trademark Home2 Suites amenities, such as a business center with free Internet; indoor saline swimming pool; combined laundry and fitness area; and complimentary continental breakfast. It also features outdoor living areas with grills and a fire pit for guests’ use. All Home2 Suites properties are also pet-friendly.

New gallery open in downtown Idaho Falls

Artist Marko Marino at his new gallery.

Idaho Falls’ downtown district has a new showcase for art, the Marko Marino Studio Gallery, across Park Avenue from the Celt Pub.

Artist Mark Marino, known as Marko to his friends, arrived in Idaho Falls in January 2014 and has been busy ever since. He has already had three one-man shows, the first at the Republic American Grill in November 2014, where he presented a large body of oil and watercolor wildlife and landscape works including a monumental commission piece that saw its only public display. The second was at Black Rock in May, where he unveiled a series of portrait and figurative works. The third was at the Villa Coffee House, where he showcased more than 40 field sketches, in pastel, charcoal, and watercolor, of his most recent Alaskan expedition depicting northern wildlife and landscapes.

The new gallery is located on the northwest corner of Broadway and Park Avenue, where the American Family Insurance office used to be (people who go back to the ‘80s will remember the location as Farmer’s Daughter).

“As soon as I saw this amazing storefront I realized that this is the location for my new business,” he said, adding that the building’s owner, the Downtown Development Association, Bank of Idaho and other downtown businesses have been very supportive.

Since opening in September, the gallery has showcased work by Peggy Judy, an acclaimed contemporary Western horse artist; Robert Moore, a landscape painter who works in thick impasto technique; David Mensing, another landscape painter; Kathy Burgraff, who specializes in oil and mixed media with a contemporary flavor; and Terry Crane, a painter of portraits and figures.

Papa Murphy's files plan for Ammon store

Knowing how hungry people here are for news about new restaurants, we’re always on the lookout for it during our weekly visits to the Idaho Falls and Ammon building department offices. It’s not every week we see names like Popeye’s or Panera on the white board (Ammon) or in the three-ring binder (Idaho Falls), but we do our best.

This week, we can report that Papa Murphy’s Take ’N’ Bake Pizza is moving into Ammon, at 1360 17th Street, roughly across the road from Kmart. The plans call for development of 2,434 square feet. Clayton Myers, the company’s local contact person, said they hope to have it open by December.

This will be the third Papa Murphy’s in the Idaho Falls-Ammon area. The chain also has stores in Rexburg, Blackfoot and Pocatello. Worldwide, with more than 1,425 stores in 38 states, Canada and United Arab Emirates, the 34-year-old company has established itself as the largest Take 'N' Bake pizza company in the world and the fifth-largest pizza company.

Napa Auto Parts building new store

NAPA Auto Parts has broken ground on a new store at 2517 North Holmes Avenue, to replace its longtime location on East Anderson near C-A-L Ranch Store.

The plans call for a 10,584-square foot building on 1.165 acres of land. The store on Anderson is owned by Jake Dyson. Valuation of the project, according to the Idaho Falls Building Department, is $750,000.

NAPA has nearly 6,000 stores and is a subsidiary of Genuine Auto Parts, a company founded in 1928 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange. For a would-be owner, the company requires at least $75,000 to $150,000 in liquid capital available. According to the Web page www.napaautoparts.biz, the average total new store investment is approximately $600,000, with the overall investment varying on the basis of market and store size. There are no franchise fees or royalties, but owners are asked to participate in the company’s national advertising program to maximize the true benefit of the NAPA system and drive traffic to their stores.

After tumultuous year, Double Down closes doors

Double Down's owners announced Monday it was closing.

Double Down, 3078 Outlet Boulevard, has closed its doors, its owners saying they can't stay in business now that an Idaho Supreme Court ruling has made historical racing machines illegal.

Melissa Bernard, who ran the establishment with her husband, Jim, told East Idaho News they’d invested more than $3 million dollars since opening in 2014, the year the Idaho Legislature made historical racing machines legal. “Unfortunately, when historical racing was pulled, it was no longer feasible to remain in operation,” she said.

Historical racing machines came front and center earlier this year in the Idaho Legislature after drawing the ire of anti-gambling forces and Native American tribes, the latter regarding the machines to be competition to what they offer at their reservation casinos.

A historical racing machine works like this: When a player makes a wager, a race is randomly selected from a video library of over 60,000 previous races. Identifying information such as the location and date of the race, and the names of the horses and jockeys, is not shown.

The player is able to view a "Skill Graph" chart from the Daily Racing Form, showing information such as jockeys' and trainers' winning percentages, and based on this handicapping information the player picks the projected top three runners in order of finish. Many players use a "handi helper" feature, which allows the machine to automatically make the selections.

While early versions of the terminals looked like self-serve wagering terminals, over time some began to mimic slot machines, with symbols on spinning reels showing the results of the player's wager and the video of the actual race consigned to a 2-inch square in the corner of the screen.

Once the similarity to slot machines became common knowledge, legislators began pushing for a repeal of 2014's House Bill 220, which had made the machines legal.  Senate Bill 1011 repealed the Legislature's prior approval of the devices, passing the House by a 49-21 vote and the Senate 25-9.

Otter vetoed the bill, and the Senate’s 19-16 subsequent vote to override him fell five votes short. While he then called for a moratorium on any new instant racing machines, Senate leaders took more direct action, entering statements into the official record that they had failed to receive the veto within the five days required by law.

In a unanimous decision Sept. 10, the Supreme Court ruled that Otter had essentially botched the veto. Otter told the Idaho Statesman he was “disappointed” in the ruling and maintained that his actions were legal. “While I disagree with (the) ruling, I will continue working toward a solution that ensures a viable live horse racing industry in Idaho,” he said.

All this will be too late for Double Down and its 70 employees. Any thoughts?

DOE cleanup contractors receive six-month extensions

A scene from inside the Advanced Mixed Waste Treatment Project, where transuranic legacy waste is characterized and readied for disposal.

The two contractors taking care of waste cleanup at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Idaho site got six-month extensions this week, amounting to $179 million in work.

Idaho Treatment Group (ITG), which is running the Advanced Mixed Waste Treatment Project, and CH2M-WG Idaho (CWI), which is running the Idaho Cleanup Project, will both remain on the job while DOE moves toward awarding and transitioning to a new ICP Core contract. Both of their contracts had been scheduled to end today. The extension will allow cleanup to continue without interruption as DOE evaluates bid packages for a new cleanup contract.

The CWI contract extension is valued at approximately $114 million, while the ITG extension is valued at approximately $65 million. CWI was first awarded the ICP contract in March 2005, while ITG received the Mixed Waste contract in October 2011.

Under its contract, CWI is responsible for:

• Treatment and disposal of radioactive waste
• Retrieval, disposal and other remediation related to buried waste
• Safe management of spent nuclear fuel
• Disposition of nuclear materials
• Environmental remediation activities
• Sodium bearing waste processing activities

ITG’s contract dictates that it will safely and compliantly:

• Characterize, certify, package and store transuranic waste offsite disposal
• Disposition mixed low-level waste at an appropriate treatment and/or disposal facility
• Retrieve stored waste from the Transuranic Storage Area-Retrieval Enclosure.
• Complete upgrades to the Waste Treatment Facility

DOE offers help to small businesses developing clean energy products

Small businesses developing clean energy technologies are now able to compete for funding from the U.S. Department of Energy.

DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is offering $20 million in vouchers to help clean-energy entrepreneurs and small businesses get their products to market.

Idaho National Laboratory has partnered with Ames and Oak Ridge national laboratories to assist with outreach, merit reviews and selection of proposals. The INL-Ames-Oak Ridge team was recently selected as one of five pilot teams implementing the Small Business Voucher Pilot Program, which is part of EERE's Lab Impact Initiative. The team has jointly received the largest of the five awards, which together total $20 million.

The vouchers are intended to help U.S.-based and U.S.-owned small businesses that are developing clean-energy technologies in advanced manufacturing, buildings, vehicles, wind, water, bio-energy, fuel cells, geothermal and solar.

EERE released the first call for small business requests for assistance today. More information – including how to submit applications online – is at www.sbv.org.

Vouchers of $50,000 to $300,000 per small business will be awarded to initiate collaborative research projects, provide technical assistance and facilitate third-party validation. INL can provide unique materials, prototyping, technology testing and validation, engineering designs, and scale-up of samples. The selected businesses must provide 20 percent matching funds or in-kind services.

Three cycles of competitions will be offered to small businesses through 2016, and DOE estimates more than 100 businesses will receive funds.

Other labs participating in the pilot program are National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Idaho Falls council names new municipal services director

Pamela Alexander

The Idaho Falls City Council has named a new municipal services director, Pamela Alexander of Mesa, Ariz., who will take the job Nov. 2.

Alexander succeeds Craig Rockwood, who is retiring after working for the city  29 years. The appointment was made at Thursday night’s City Council meeting and follows a search process that involved five finalists.

Alexander’s annual salary in her new position will be $110,000.

Alexander is a certified public manager who received her certificate from Arizona State University in 2006. She currently works as a senior fiscal analyst for the city of Mesa’s Development and Sustainability Department, a position she has held since 2013. Prior to that, she worked as budget coordinator for the city of Mesa Police Dept., where she managed a $150 million budget, coordinated capital improvement programs, managed purchasing functions and developed financial analysis and forecasting of operational funds. From 2007 to 2010, she worked as a budget coordinator for the city of Mesa, and was charged with coordinating the city’s five-year capital
improvement program of over $1 billion.

Idaho Falls’ selection committee consisted of city staff, department directors and council members, as well as a finance executive from a local business and a finance director from a neighboring city.

Salon h.Davis holding annual charity cut-a-thon

Salon h.davis, 2450 E. 25th St., Suite B, is holding its annual charity cut-a-thon Sept. 26 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The fund-raiser will feature $10 haircuts and the opportunity to receive a blow dry and style for an additional $5. All payments for services will be donated directly to the Idaho Falls Soup Kitchen.

“Individuals and families of all backgrounds rely on the hot meal that the Soup Kitchen provides year-round,” salon owner Niki Young said. “I love how the organization treats those they help with dignity, and we want to do our part to make sure that this valuable organization has the food and supplies to help those in need.”

Anyone interest in participating but unable to attend the event can make a donation during regular business hours, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, call 523-1208 or visit www.salonhdavis.com.

DB's getting makeover, new name

Here's the scene at DB's one night in 2014. With the remodel, the wood paneling is gone, the stage is bigger and the drum riser is higher.

A fixture on First Street for more than 30 years, DB's Steakhouse is getting a makeover and a new name.

Shawn Barry, who is leasing the property, said he plans to rename the establishment The Falls and give it more of a nightclub atmosphere. The stage has been expanded and remodeled, with a taller drum riser. The walls have been painted black, and there will be less of a rustic feel overall.

Barry won't be presenting acts himself, but working instead with outfits like Metal Shield Promotions, which is putting on a show Oct. 3. The bill features Doyle, the guitarist from the horror punk band The Misfits, as well as The Family Run, Hatchet and Gutter and the Onslaught. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door, and available in Idaho Falls at Shadow Domain. Online, they can be bought at www.metalshieldpromotions.com.

Old-timers know DB's was originally called Debbie's Brother, and owned by Wes and Roxanne Smith (who now run, respectively, The Blue Wave and the North Hi-Way Cafe). These were the legendary days of "Power Hour." An expansion took place in the '90, with a stage and dance floor added.

Although the grill will remain front-and-center at the bar, Barry said he is unsure what he wants to do about food at the new establishment. To check on events that are coming up, follow this link: DB's events.

Rush's Kitchen Supply has new manager

Ashley Hargrove

Going from a corporate atmosphere to small business has required Ashley Hargrove to make some adjustments, but the new manager of 105-year-old Rush’s Kitchen Supply is coming around — and learning a lot about cooking in the bargain.

A merchandising manager for Old Navy in Seattle for six years, Hargrove moved to Idaho Falls in May to manage the Lindsay Boulevard business. At Old Navy, any observation or comment went up the chain of command. At Rush’s, she answers directly to the owner, Alex Constantino, who is married to her aunt Mary Constantino.

She has had to learn about a whole new line of products, including hand-held juicers in three sizes: orange, lemon and lime. “Anything you might need to do in the kitchen, there’s a gadget for it,” she said. “I never realized there was something you could use to pit a jalapeño instead of using a knife.”

Rush’s carries such well-known brands as Kitchenaid, Le Creuset and All Clad, and in many cases there is a difference between commercial grade cookware and what is found in retail stores. While the store’s customer base has been more tilted toward commercial customers, Hargrove said they hope to see more of a 50-50 split between that and everyday cooks.

Then there are the classes. “Think Like a Chef 1,” focusing on sautéing, knife skills and stovetop sauces, began Sept. 12. Part 2, , which covers making chicken stock (“We will teach you to debone a chicken …”) begins Sept. 26 at 10 a.m. For more information, call 523-4818 or visit the Web page, rushskitchen.com.

A “military brat” before she settled in Seattle, Hargrove said she has been getting used to Idaho Falls. “I’m enjoying the weather, and the people are very nice,” she said.

Distinguished Under 40 luncheon set Sept. 29

Jeanette Bennett of Salt Lake City will be the keynote speaker at the Distinguished Under 40 luncheon Sept. 29 at the Residence Inn.

The Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce’s Young Professionals Network is holding its 2015 Distinguished Under 40 luncheon Sept. 29.

Ten recipients will be presented with awards. The keynote speaker will be Jeanette Bennett, an Idaho Falls native and owner of Bennett Communications of Salt Lake City.

The event will begin at noon at the Residence Inn.

Individual tickets ($20 for chamber members, $25 for non-members) and full table registrations are available for purchase under the events tab at idahofallschamber.com. The registration deadline is Sept. 25.

This year’s honorees include:

Andy Crossman, program director, Royal Journeys LLC
Eric Liester, loan officer, Bank of Idaho
Brandi Newton, executive director, Idaho Falls Arts Council
Brian D. Turville, counselor, Free Spirit Counseling and Consulting, LLC
Jared Duncan, branch manager, Idaho Falls/BMG Rentals
Nick Burrows, senior services director, EICAP and Hospice of Eastern Idaho
Shawn William Allred, mechanical engineer, Idaho National Laboratory
Aaron D. Wilson, research scientist, Idaho National Laboratory
Dakri Bernard-Gilstrap, owner/realtor, Dakri Bernard Realty Group
Travis Snowder, president/CEO, Qal-Tek Associates

The event is sponsored by East Idaho Business, Willowtree Gallery, Residence Inn, and IF Signature Party Rental.

Utah Avenue being extended to Pioneer Road

Here's a map to explain what's going on south of Pancheri Drive.

You may have noticed a lot of road construction south of Pancheri Drive on Utah Avenue. That is because the city of Idaho Falls is building a road connecting Utah Avenue to Pioneer Road and “T” intersection that will connect those two roads to Snake River Parkway.

The intersection will be right where Utah Avenue (formerly Crane Drive, which is no more) jogs left to become Snake River Parkway. City Planner Brad Cramer said they plan to have the asphalt laid before the hot mix plants shut down for the winter. Curb and gutter work will go on during the winter and landscaping will take place in the spring.

All this work is taking place on land in urban renewal districts, which means the money collected from taxes on new building can be put back into the local infrastructure. The city established the 55-acre Eagle Ridge Urban Renewal District last December after the $3.5 million Guns and Gear opened its doors. Owners Dixie and Shane Murphy and their partner, Ryan Later, spent $2.8 million on the two-story, 15,000-square-foot building, which overlooks the Snake River Landing development, and this provided the impetus for the city to establish a district that allows is tax increment financing through the Idaho Falls Redevelopment Agency.

Put simply, while taxes are collected on the land the way they always have been, money collected on improvements to the land goes to the Redevelopment Agency to be spent on roads, water, sewer and power lines in the district. Most of the development we’ve seen along the river since the Shilo Inn was built in 1988 — Snake River Landing, Taylor Crossing on the River, Candlewood Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, etc. — has been made possible by tax increment financing. The land would be too expensive to improve otherwise.

Hart’s Tux and Gown moving to West Broadway

That's me on the left, next to Local News 8's Karole Honas, at the Symphony concert Saturday evening. 

I would like to thank Hart’s Tux and Gown for the use of a white dinner jacket Saturday night, when I was the narrator for the Idaho Falls Symphony’s concert in Freeman Park. This was an IF 150 event and fun for everyone involved — City Councilman Ed Marohn, who played the triangle during the “William Tell Overture” and KIFI’s Karole Honas, who guest-conducted John Phillip Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes Forever.” Maestro Thomas Heuser wrote the narration based on my book, “Legendary Locals of Idaho Falls.” It was both a pleasure and honor to be involved.

I actually own a tuxedo, inherited from my late father, David Menser, and my paisley suspenders came courtesy of my late grandfather Henry Evans. But a white dinner jacket is still something lack, and Hart’s was gracious enough to let me have one for the evening at no charge. How civic-minded is that?

Speaking of Hart’s Tux and Gown, once the September rush of rentals is over, the shop will be moving to 630 W. Broadway, where the Candy Junction store was. Some remodeling needs to be done and this would not have been a good month to move anyway, said store manager Diane Chiles. Skyline and Hillcrest had their homecoming dances this past weekend, Shelley and Firth’s are next weekend and Idaho Falls and Bonneville’s are at the end of the month, so Chiles and her crew have their hands full.

Once October comes, they will be moving to a location with a lot more space and better parking. “We’re very excited about this and want to get the word out,” Chiles said.