The Idaho Statesman
How a Boise e-bike crash inspired a new Idaho bill
Are e-bikes human powered? The answer to that question matters for drivers navigating other users on Idaho roads. The question came to a head in March 2024, when a driver turned into an e-bike rider in a bike lane in downtown Boise, according to court...
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Boise convention center faces record breaking problem
The Boise Centre hosted 278 events and more than 170,812 people in 2025. That’s a new record for conventions — and one it may not be able to break at its existing home in downtown Boise. The convention center’s banner year came as the Greater Boise...
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Little vows to preserve public ed, warning of cuts elsewhere
Gov. Brad Little called for the preservation of state funds for public education and vocational training in his annual State of the State address at the Idaho Capitol, even as he warned of spending cuts in a year of “budget pressures.” Little’s speech...
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Ex-head of Idaho American Legion accused of fraud
An Idaho military veteran charged with multiple counts of fraud in connection with the disappearance of more than $1.45 million pleaded not guilty to all charges during his arraignment in Idaho federal court Wednesday. Charles “Abe” Abrahamson, 56, a...
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Boise to expand affordable housing, shelter space in ’26
After five years of legal wrangling, the Interfaith Sanctuary plans to move guests into its new State Street shelter at the end of January. That’s one reason 2026 is on track to be a big year for housing more of Boise’s homeless and low-income...
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Nearly 6 years after launching news show, TV anchor steps away
A few years ago, Brian Holmes helped launch what he hoped would be a departure from anything else on local news in Boise. Now he’s departed the show he created with a bittersweet farewell, a promise to return and no solid plans for what’s...
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Boise Airport hangar collapse case yields settlements
The families of two construction workers killed when an unfinished private plane hangar collapsed at the Boise Airport nearly two years ago settled a wrongful death lawsuit against two Idaho companies involved in the project. The terms of the...
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Idaho doctor donates year’s salary to cure blindness
One Treasure Valley doctor is putting off his retirement and doing something “profound” with his last year in the emergency room. Stuart Clive, who was a longtime St. Luke’s Medical Center emergency room physician, is donating an entire year’s salary...
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Developer revives plans for apartments in Boise’s West End
A California developer is looking to revive long-stalled plans for a seven-story apartment complex in the city’s West End after years of backand-forth with local officials over the site design. Urban Capital Partners of Murrieta, California, filed an...
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Par for the course? Errant golf balls hit Meridian windows
Golf is a game of etiquette: Show up on time, follow the dress code and don’t walk across someone’s putting line. But faux pas can happen. At the city-owned Lakeview Golf Course in Meridian, errant balls have been shattering windows, breaking screens...
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Idaho veteran accused of defrauding American Legion of $1.45 million
A former commander of the Idaho American Legion has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Boise on charges of years of tax fraud, and wire fraud totaling at least $1.45 million, Idaho U.S. Attorney Bart Davis announced Monday. Charles “Abe”...
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Eagle, senior center lawsuit heads to Idaho Supreme Court
Stan Ridgeway stood outside a brick building on a chilly fall morning in Eagle, a stack of papers in his hand. For 35 years, the nonprofit that Ridgeway, the former Eagle mayor, now helms operated a senior center in the small city building on Old...
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New home inventory could help balance housing market
New inventory is finally gaining on demand for homes in the Boise area — a trend that could help rebalance the Treasure Valley’s housing market in 2026. That’s according to a new forecast by economists for industry website Realtor.com, which projects...
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ACHD approves developer-fee hike as Boise area traffic grows
Soon, developers will have to pay more to build new homes, shopping centers and office buildings in Ada County. That is, to the Ada County Highway District. The ACHD Commission voted Wednesday to raise the fees it collects from developers to fund...
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‘Rat lady’ works to track, fight urban nuisance
First she saw the eyes, then the ears, then the tail. Jane Rohling had lived in Eagle for 20 years before she saw her first rat. She’d lived there 20 years and 10 seconds before she saw her second, third, fourth and fifth. Drawn to the window by the...
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Foreclosures are ticking up in Idaho
Year-over-year foreclosure filings across Idaho nearly doubled in October as homeowners grapple with the mounting costs of unaffordable homes. Lenders filed to foreclose on 206 properties statewide last month, according to the real estate data firm...
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Idaho GOP head calls nonpartisan elections a ‘farce’
After the November elections, Idaho Republican Party Chairwoman Dorothy Moon celebrated the “strong conservative campaigns” she witnessed in Caldwell, Post Falls and Pocatello. Those were all nonpartisan races, she acknowledged — but that label is a...
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Murder victim’s family to sue university Kohberger attended
At least one of the families of the four victims in the Moscow college student murders plans to sue the nearby university where the man who admitted to the killings attended graduate school. Steve and Kristi Goncalves, the parents of victim Kaylee...
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Boise’s Veterans Home set for long-awaited update
Rick Holloway is on the road at 5:15 a.m. most mornings. For nearly 10 years, the 67-year-old has driven the 40 miles from his home near Sand Hollow and clocked in to work at 6 a.m for a 12-hour day, knowing that the men and women in his care are...
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What role do school board trustees have in shaping policy?
Some changes are coming to school boards across the Treasure Valley. School boards have governing authority over school districts and control over everything from school policy to curriculum and budgets. When voters go to the polls to cast their...
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Activists want to take state vaccine legislation nationwide
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up for Dispatches, a newsletter that spotlights wrongdoing around the country, to receive our stories in your inbox every week. Three women become choked up as they deliver...
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New details revealed from FBI case, ICE raid at horse track
documents filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the past week shed more light on the five suspects of an alleged illegal gambling operation in Wilder, the FBI investigation and the Immigration and Cusorandum toms Enforcement raid that followed. Law...
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SNAP to halt: State says Idahoans should seek food banks
In the wake of news that food stamps would be cut next month, Dawn Pierce, a Boise resident who works for a hunger prevention nonprofit, has heard it all: confusion about the change, fear of speaking out and risking the loss of other benefits, and...
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ICE detained legal residents in Wilder raid, attorney says
A local immigration lawyer said three of her clients who were legal residents of the U.S. were taken in Wilder on Sunday. Hundreds of law enforcement agents over the weekend swarmed La Catedral Arena as part of what the FBI said was an investigation...
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Child separation, zip ties: inside racetrack raid
At La Catedral Arena in Wilder, a local horse racetrack popular among the SpanishSmith speaking community west of Boise, families enjoy the free raffles, vendors and food. It’s common to see hundreds of children there on a race day, said Nikki...
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Quagga mussels endanger Idaho rivers, pose 'massive puzzle'
At lunch on Friday, two Idaho officials, a project engineer and an invasive species expert, walked along the shore of the Snake River, eating hard-won slices of pizza. They’d been at the bottom of the canyon near the Twin Falls Dam for two weeks, often...
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Design parks? Playlists? How local governments embrace AI
Employees of Idaho’s thirdlargest city have access to “NampaGPT,” as they call it, a play on “ChatGPT,” the popular artificial intelligence chatbot. In Garden City, employees have asked AI for everything from creating an anime image to designing...
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Officials race to replace canal pipe ‘catastrophic failure’
Ada County Highway District commissioners declared an emergency over a “catastrophic failure of a critical canal segment” that serves thousands of Boise residents. The agency is now in a race against time to repair a long-forgotten water pipe before...
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Idahoans fear spike in insurance costs
At 59, Susan Wood, a longtime Boise resident, was too young to qualify for Medicare when she retired in July. So she signed up for a marketplace plan under the Affordable Care Act, often called Obamacare. But in the months since, the federal...
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Could high-speed beltways encircle the Boise area one day?
Treasure Valley drivers: Consider how long your daily commute takes on Interstate 84. Now, imagine adding half that time to it. That’s the grim reality that state and regional transportation planners foresee by the time the Valley has surpassed 1...
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What will happen to offices identified for closure by DOGE?
Two federal offices in Boise were identified earlier this year as priorities for closure under President Donald Trump’s administration, but only one now plans to shutter, officials told the Idaho Statesman. A Curtis Road office for the Bureau of...
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La Esperanza Market blends tamales with TikTok trends
The family behind La Esperanza Market is always reinventing the business. When the store first opened in 2006 in a 1,200-square-foot space in Caldwell, now-Manager Janet Gurrola was just 9 years old. Her job was to make tamales, which the store is...
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Planned In-N-Out near Boise rejected over traffic concerns
In-N-Out got a second chance to build its fourth Treasure Valley fast-food joint — then lost it. The California burger chain appears to have reached the end of its quest for a proposed drive-thru restaurant on busy Ten Mile Road, after the Meridian...
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Thousands turn out to support Boise Pride Parade
The streets of Boise exploded in a burst of color and music on Sunday as the Boise Pride Parade swept down River Street. Those involved in the parade rolled by in a colorful blur on roller skates, performed flag dances and wielded bubble makers. Boise...
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Medicaid cuts threaten ‘devastating blow’ to nursing homes
Gary Connell’s senior assisted living center in Nampa will soon have a choice to consider: Should it stop accepting residents on Medicaid? At Table Rock Senior Living at Park Place, the finances were already on thin ice. Most of its residents rely on...
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New ropes course in Meridian towers 50 feet above I-84
It was a semi-normal Friday afternoon, as commuters trudged through rush-hour traffic on Interstate 84. Only I, an Idaho Statesman suburbs reporter, was nearly 50 feet above, clinging to a wooden beam. The beam swayed and tipped my head toward the...
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Idaho once protected public lands with wilderness area
Ten years ago, with the stroke of a pen, then-President Barack Obama enshrined nearly 300,000 acres of Central Idaho backcountry as protected wilderness. It was a quiet conclusion to a hard-won victory spearheaded by conservationists and championed by...
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Business will take your dog on adventure hike in Foothills
Luna was the first one off the bus on a warm Thursday morning. Not a school bus but a “Bark Bus” — a bright blue custom van outfitted with “zen den” kennels, a shower and other safety and comfort features for up to 12 pups — belonging to Hike Doggie, a...
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Riviera Estates residents priced out with new owners
James Demarest planned on dying in his Eagle home. But the mobile home park he lives in, formerly Riviera Estates, was bought by new owners this summer. His monthly rent for his site, lawn care and utilities went from $700 to almost $1,000, said...
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Snake River invertebrates killed in invasive mussel fight
The invasive quagga mussels found in an Idaho river in 2023 were microscopic. But to state officials, their presence was enormous. Though the mussels couldn’t grow much larger than a nickel, state officials said an infestation would devastate Idaho’s...
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Buckle up: Traffic pain on I-84 keeps growing
Cpl. Jeff McConnell spends most mornings on the westbound side of Interstate 84, watching the oncoming traffic. While inbound commuters slog toward Boise, McConnell waits on the opposite side of “the slab,” what he calls the stretch of I-84 between...
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‘Bench bunnies’: Boise neighborhood has a longtime rabbit problem
In the heart of the Boise Bench, Ryan O’Leary’s yard boasts a dense, thriving bed of sunset-colored coneflowers. If you compliment him on the garden, he’ll credit his fiance and the new knee-high fence surrounding the flowerbed — which stands just tall...
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New Caldwell homes plagued by mold, defects, safety issues
Mold. Dust. Houses sinking into the ground. Hazardous Homes is a 2025 occasional series by the Idaho Statesman on problems in new Treasure Valley homes that may affect human health and safety. David Wardell was dumbstruck as he sank into the...
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‘Worst day of my life’: Roommates detail fear, sadness
Bethany Funke said she woke up around 7 a.m. on Nov. 13, 2022, with a terrible toothache. She called her dad, a dentist, and asked what she should do, she told the courtroom Wednesday. After taking Advil, she went back to bed. “I was still out of it...
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Idaho firm matches investments with Christian values
Under the guidance of one Idaho firm, Apple is one of the last companies you’d want to invest in. The adult content it offers, as well as its stances on abortion access and LGBTQ+ advocacy, earned it the investment firm’s lowest possible score. Amazon...
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Quadruple homicide victims in Southern Idaho identified
have identified the four people killed in a quadruple homicide east of Twin Falls — including a couple who were remembered by their only daughter as “exceptional parents” and “devoted grandparents.” Susan Ryan, a private spokesperson hired by the...
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To save feral cats, Boise’s soccer club helping family
Tracy Brodt was teaching her teenage daughter to drive in the parking lot at the Western Idaho Fairgrounds in 2014 when she spotted a woman feeding stray cats near Les Bois Park. After more than a decade of diligence and care, Brodt has helped bring...
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Dragonflies help teach high schoolers about Boise ecosystems
On a pond shore at a wildlife refuge in southeast Boise, beside the Idaho Shakespeare Festival grounds, recent Timberline High School graduate Ben Gallafent snagged the catch of the day. Researchers gathered around Gallafent as he reached carefully...
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Idaho troops return from Middle East mission
Just before 1 a.m. Tuesday, more than 300 airmen from the Idaho Air National Guard touched down at Gowen Field after a three-month deployment in the Middle East. The airmen from the 124th Fighter Wing were led off the plane by Technical Sgt. Blake...
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Eagle officials weigh future of Orville Jackson House
out what to do with the iconic Orville Jackson House in downtown Eagle is becoming a history of its own. The landmark English Tutorstyle cottage off bustling Eagle Road, designed by the architects behind the Idaho Statehouse, has been a focus for...
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Landfill transforms methane into truck, bus fuel
Facing rapid population growth, Ada County officials have been trying to find creative ways to extend the life of the county landfill. Now, they’re cookin’ with gas. Biogas Development, a renewable-energy company, has built a new refinement plant...
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Archaeology students help uncover Boise’s buried history
On an idyllic green block of downtown Boise, archaeology students were hard at work. The students from the University of Idaho, Boise State University and College of Western Idaho wielded their tools alongside volunteers in front of the State Historic...
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Trans woman from Idaho gets male passport after Trump order
When Cassidy Robertson got her renewed U.S. passport in the mail, she said she was more disappointed than surprised. “The scoundrels,” she told the Idaho Statesman with a twinge of sarcasm, recalling the moment she flipped open the passport at the...
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New Nampa plant makes special product for data centers
A little-known company in the Treasure Valley is riding the coattails of the data-center boom. In an industrial park in North Nampa, about two miles off of Interstate 84, the company is putting the finishing touches on a 172,000-square-foot plant that...
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Eagle tees up density restrictions with little public input
As Boise squeezes more people into its limited city boundaries, other nearby cities want another approach to tackle the region’s growth. None maybe more so than Eagle, which could soon whack density standards down to spread out home construction on...
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Idaho family reunited after wrongful detention in Cameroon
A woman from Idaho and her husband are reunited after he was released from a jail in Cameroon. It’s an incredible international story that involves a soured rental agreement with a Cameemailed roonian ambassador to France and accusations of “cyber...
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30 years ago, wolves returned to Idaho’s backcountry
Editor’s note: This is the first installment of Howl, a five-part written series and podcast season produced in partnership between the Idaho Capital Sun, States Newsroom and Boise State Public Radio. The helicopter was flying low above a remote...
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Could a new Meridian ‘mini city’ be like Boise’s Hyde Park?
Hundreds of acres of farmland in the northwest reaches of Meridian are on the path to development. That corner of the fast-growing city has been an anticipated development hot spot for the past few years. In recent months, developers have zeroed in,...
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GOP bill threatens Planned Parenthood Medicaid access
A prominent reproductive health care provider warned that Idaho residents may be forced to go without care after federal lawmakers voted in favor of a spending bill that bars Medicaid recipients from using its facilities. Planned Parenthood, which...
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Boise youth-led mural advocates for community solar in Idaho
BOISE East Parkcenter Boulevard near downtown Boise has gotten a new splash of color in the form of a mural that will shine brightly in the sun. Which is very fitting, given the piece of art’s topic. Painted on a wall near the Courtyard Boise...
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Caldwell deals with growth as developer plans 1,000 homes
If you want to see how the Treasure Valley keeps changing, a field trip through Caldwell does the trick. Driving along U.S. 20 through the city’s northeastern corner, or down Montana Avenue in the southwest, the pictures are the same — of rows of...
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Neighbors wary as luxury builder plans 700 homes in Meridian
After hitting the brakes in 2022, a luxury-home builder is moving forward on a proposal to build hundreds of homes in fast-growing northwest Meridian despite neighbors’ trepidation. Toll Southwest LLC, a subsidiary of Toll Brothers, has applied to...
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West Ada revisits its controversial policy on classroom displays
West Ada School District on Tuesday unveiled its proposed revised policy governing what teachers can display in their classrooms or wear at school. The proposal comes after months of scrutiny over the district’s decision to require a teacher in...
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Trump cuts threaten special education oversight in state
This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with the Idaho Statesman. Sign up for Dispatches to get our stories in your inbox every week. Time and again, the U.S. Department of Education has been the last resort...
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This Boise neighborhood was caught off guard by a 2016 fire. It won’t be again
On a June night in 2016, a teenager setting off firecrackers in the Boise Foothills started a wildfire that burned 2,500 acres near Table Rock. Residents of Boise’s nearby Mesa neighborhood were unprepared as the fire crept toward their homes late...
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Accomplished Boise woman celebrates 108th birthday
Boise resident Margaret Mortensen received an unconventional birthday gift this month: U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, RIdaho, recognized her big day in Congress. Mortensen turned 108 last week, making her one of the oldest people in Gem State history. (The...
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New law cuts public swimming pool inspections
A new Idaho law has removed a requirement that the state enforce “minimum standards” of health, safety and sanitation for public swimming pools. In practice, that means that there will be no state inspections of public pools after July 1, when the law...
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Expect change with area’s first new freeway in 40-plus years
Afternoon commuters heading west on Interstate 84 near Meridian’s western border can crane their heads right and see dirt moving. Looking north, they’ll see bulldozers jutting up from mounds of earth and concrete piled high at even intervals over...
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Clearwater Analytics lays off workers after acquisition
A Boise company appears to have laid off workers immediately after spending $1.5 billion to buy a similar company. Clearwater Analytics declined to say directly that it had let some workers go or to say how many or where. Asked Wednesday to confirm...
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Area’s most expensive homes are getting even pricier
Perhaps you’ve noticed more and more McMansions in Eagle, wedged behind golf courses or perched in the Boise Foothills. Much of that is thanks to a frenzy of luxury home building that accompanied the COVID-19 pandemic. The market later slowed, though...
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$120 million youth sports complex could be game-changer
When David McMenomey traveled to Austin, Texas, for a three-day Christian business convention, he had no idea he’d be walking away with a “divine calling.” The Meridian resident and internet marketing executive said he was asked at the convention to...
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Bernie Sanders, AOC draw 12,000-plus to Idaho rally
NAMPA The Bernie supporters were outside the rally hours before it began. They flocked to Nampa’s Ford Idaho Center on Monday afternoon wearing gear from U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ past presidential campaigns, along with T-shirts that read “resist,”...
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Owner of Boise business says tariffs may force layoffs
The founder of a small business in Boise says the Trump administration’s tariffs would make a large portion of its sales unprofitable. Casey Ames, the owner of Harkla, a company that sells products and educational content for children with special...
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