Pocatello?!?! Anyone?

[Mtn. States Resident]

Originally Posted by pw72

This thread is well over two years old. But, regardless, there isn't a real issue between Pocatello and Idaho Falls. In fact, they essentially operate as an "extended" metro area, sharing media, and frankly, a lot of sensibility. Of course, there are some differences. Pocatello is a college town, skews somewhat younger because of that, and perhaps a tad more liberal. But both cities generally share conservative viewpoints, a strong LDS influence (more-so in IF), and similar weather. Both areas are growing, both are affordable, and both are generally family-friendly areas.

As for San Diego to Pocatello, (not sure that matters two years later), it would be jarring, but not necessarily a bad thing, depending on your expectations and likes.

pw72,

Per my previous post, I did research a couple of sites. Probably just for clarity's sake the info here from CD is as good as any other, despite being two years old.

You are correct and I was not about one aspect of my earlier post (per CD, which doesn't claim to by 100% correct). The average age in Pocatello is younger than Idaho Falls. However, I can tell you they aren't far apart and in 2008 stats.

From 2008 CD shows the following:


Idaho Falls population: "Median resident age: 32.3 years

Pocatello population: "Median resident age: 28.8 years "

"Idaho median age: 33.2 years"

The median difference shows 3.5 years younger in Pocatello vs. Idaho Falls. In some ways, I wonder how much that does say about ISU and college being 4.0 years for most people?

So Idaho Falls is one year younger than all of Idaho's median for population while Poky is about 4.5 years youner than the median for the rest of Idaho.

Now where I was correct about the income portion of what I wrote.

"Estimated median household income in Idaho Falls 2007: $49,486 (it was $40,512 in 2000)"

"Estimated median household income in Pocatello 2007: $41,523 (it was $34,326 in 2000)

The 2007 "Estimated median household income in Idaho: $46,253"


"Estimated per capita income in 2007 for Idaho Falls: $25,219"
"Estimated per capita income in 2007 for Pocatello: $21,539"
"Estimated per cpita income in 2007 for Idaho: $23,105"

It probably all does make sense when sorted out. Median of age in Idaho Falls is 3.5 years older and makes a household median of about $8,000 more.

I do realize stats can be very misleading, but these are the ones CD uses.

Thanks,

MSR

[pw72]

Thanks for doing all the research. Those numbers are interesting.

However, I didn't mention anything about income/wealth...

But, thanks!

[Western gal]

Maybe "weather" was misread for "wealth"? Either way, having lived in both cities, our personal opinion is there is more wealth and spending here regardless. No proof, just years of observing and doing business in both cities. Much happier living in Idaho Falls!

[Bannock County Wanderer]

Originally Posted by Mtn. States Resident

It probably all does make sense when sorted out. Median of age in Idaho Falls is 3.5 years older and makes a household median of about $8,000 more.

I do realize stats can be very misleading, but these are the ones CD uses.

You might to revisit those city stats screens and do a search for "School Enrollment by Level of School"

Pocatello has roughly 2.4 times the state average for enrolled Undergrad students and almost twice the state average for enrolled Grad students.

Compared to Idaho Falls roughly having 80% of the state average for enrolled undergrads and roughly the state average for enrolled Grad Students.

So basically Pocatello has about 3 times as many undergrad students, and almost twice as many grad students living in it as Idaho Falls does. Hardly shocking, given that Pocatello is a University Town.

The other side of that coin is that undergrad and grad students aren't particularly known for the large amounts of money they earn while going to school.

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The economies and business environments are different in Pocatello compared to Idaho Falls.

Pocatello's still centers primarily around three things: A) ISU, B) Freight Transportation(Trucking and Railroad), and C) Manufacturing/Industrial Activity (The old Naval Ordnance Plant -- still being used industrially, extensive railyard, and other industrial entities in/around Pocatello certainly don't help dispell the "it's dirty" claim to shame Poky gets.)

While Idaho Falls centers around: A) INEEL, and B) Consumer Services to/for surrounding (primarily agricultural) communities from the Fort Hall Indian reservation to the south, Wyoming to the East, Montana in the North, and the INEEL to the West. (Which is why the only truly comparable places to go shopping are over in Boise or in the SLC urban sprawl. Between better population demographics, and a much larger population in its geographically huge MSA, Idaho Falls is simply a very good place to put a consumer oriented business if you're going to open only one in East Idaho as it has the largest pool of potential customers.)

Still is fun to watch Pocatello transition to the greener end of the spectrum. The Consumer side of things still has a long ways to go, in a number of areas. That being said, as long as your interests aren't too specialized, Pocatello's consumer sector is diverse enough on its own that you can find most things you want/need without needing to leave the immediate metro area. It just happens to be a more insular market than most people are accustomed to.

[Mtn. States Resident]

Originally Posted by Bannock County Wanderer

You might to revisit those city stats screens and do a search for "School Enrollment by Level of School"

Pocatello has roughly 2.4 times the state average for enrolled Undergrad students and almost twice the state average for enrolled Grad students.

Compared to Idaho Falls roughly having 80% of the state average for enrolled undergrads and roughly the state average for enrolled Grad Students.

So basically Pocatello has about 3 times as many undergrad students, and almost twice as many grad students living in it as Idaho Falls does. Hardly shocking, given that Pocatello is a University Town.

The other side of that coin is that undergrad and grad students aren't particularly known for the large amounts of money they earn while going to school.

---------------------

The economies and business environments are different in Pocatello compared to Idaho Falls.

Pocatello's still centers primarily around three things: A) ISU, B) Freight Transportation(Trucking and Railroad), and C) Manufacturing/Industrial Activity (The old Naval Ordnance Plant -- still being used industrially, extensive railyard, and other industrial entities in/around Pocatello certainly don't help dispell the "it's dirty" claim to shame Poky gets.)

While Idaho Falls centers around: A) INEEL, and B) Consumer Services to/for surrounding (primarily agricultural) communities from the Fort Hall Indian reservation to the south, Wyoming to the East, Montana in the North, and the INEEL to the West. (Which is why the only truly comparable places to go shopping are over in Boise or in the SLC urban sprawl. Between better population demographics, and a much larger population in its geographically huge MSA, Idaho Falls is simply a very good place to put a consumer oriented business if you're going to open only one in East Idaho as it has the largest pool of potential customers.)

Still is fun to watch Pocatello transition to the greener end of the spectrum. The Consumer side of things still has a long ways to go, in a number of areas. That being said, as long as your interests aren't too specialized, Pocatello's consumer sector is diverse enough on its own that you can find most things you want/need without needing to leave the immediate metro area. It just happens to be a more insular market than most people are accustomed to.

Bannock Co. Wanderer,

What are you using as your sources of the Idaho Falls Metro area bases of economy?

Also, I am sure it was a typo on your part. For how many years now has INL been the correct abbreviation of the Idaho National Lab?

Looking forward to reviewing your information for my self, as Idaho publications and other differ with what your wrote. I'm guessing you have new information and I'd sure like to look at it when I have time.

MSR

[Bannock County Wanderer]

Originally Posted by Mtn. States Resident

What are you using as your sources of the Idaho Falls Metro area bases of economy?

Non-scientific in part, but not completely(The US Census Dept includes Blackfoot in the Idaho Falls MSA for example). When most people in those outlined areas go shopping for things other than basic daily needs, find out where they tend to go. For most of that area outlined, Idaho Falls is going to be their destination of choice. Pocatello only edging Idaho Falls out in some circumstances because Pocatello is closer. Heck, Idaho Falls is, to some extent, a "destination of choice" for people in the Pocatello Metro area when it comes to shopping... Because Idaho Falls has stores that Pocatello does not, and IF is a shorter trip for them than Boise or Salt Lake City.

Also, I am sure it was a typo on your part. For how many years now has INL been the correct abbreviation of the Idaho National Lab?

Well, that's where the "wanderer" part comes in. I was in San Diego and Southern Maryland for a number of years until returning a couple years ago. I had already given up on the "name of the year" game for the INL before I left the area.

Looking forward to reviewing your information for my self, as Idaho publications and other differ with what your wrote. I'm guessing you have new information and I'd sure like to look at it when I have time.

Well, I'll evidently have to back off slightly on the Manufacturing claim as those number match up almost exactly.

To do an apples/apples comparison, I'll pull from Idaho's Department of labor, that last updated in 2006(with 2005 numbers) BMPO and BPO have numbers that generally agree with this, but their stuff doesn't provide a straight apple/apple comparison basis.

http://commerce.idaho.gov/assets/con...IdahoFalls.pdf

Idaho Falls:
Total Nonfarm Employment: 44,463
Manufacturing: 2,347
Construction: 3,219
Information: 1,015
Trade, Utilities & Trnsp.: 11,093
--Retail & Wholesale Trade: 9,735
--Transportation: 1,324
Financial Activities: 1,670
Professional & Business Services: 7,689
Educational & Health Services: 5,845
Leisure & Hospitality: 4,328
Other Services: 1,908
Government: 5,308

Number of lodging rooms available: 1,277

Top Reported Area Employers in 2005 (Bechtel operated the INL at this point in time)
Bechtel BWXT Idaho - Research and Management Services - 2,500
Idaho Falls School District - Education - 1,700
Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center - Health Care Services - 1,311
Melaleuca, Inc. - Cosmetics, Vitamins, Soap - 1,300
Bonneville Joint School District #93 - Education - 850
City of Idaho Falls Government - Services - 750
Center Partners - Call Center - 600
Bonneville County - Government Services - 450
Wal-Mart - Department Store - 450
Albertsons, Inc. - Retail Food Sales - 350

http://commerce.idaho.gov/assets/con.../Pocatello.pdf

Pocatello:
Total Nonfarm Employment: 34,854
Manufacturing: 2,467
Construction: 1,908
Information: 688
Trade, Utilities & Trnsp.: 6,659
--Retail & Wholesale Trade: 5,477
--Transportation: 1,141
Financial Activities: 1,679
Professional & Business Services: 4,625
Educational & Health Services: 2,959
Leisure & Hospitality: 3,382
Other Services: 1,201
Government: 9,272

Number of lodging rooms available: 2,578

Top Reported Area Employers in 2005
Idaho State University - Education - 1,515
AMI Semiconductors - Semiconductor Manufacturer - 1,100
Bannock Regional Medical Center - Health Care Services - 730
Convergys - Call Center - 600
Union Pacific Railroad - Freight Transportation Services - 600
J.R. Simplot Co. - Phosphate Fertilizers - 500
Heinz Corporation - Food Processing - 400
Ballard-Kimberly Clark - Medical Devices - 380

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Evidently the City of Pocatello, Bannock County, and School District 25 either didn't report employment numbers, or didn't make the cutoff for being listed. BRMC has since merged and renamed itself among other things.

Of note: Pocatello's "Retail and Wholesale Trade" sector employed 56% as many people as Idaho Falls had employed in 2005(compared to Pocatello having 78% the total number of non-farm jobs available as Idaho Falls had). This would suggest either Idaho Falls has a lot of very wealthy residents compared to Pocatello, or its Retail Market has a much larger number of customers coming from outside of the metro area.

Transportation sector had comparable employment numbers, which slightly surprised me.

Idaho Falls had roughly 4 people employed in "Hospitality and Leisure" for every 3 people likewise employed in Pocatello. Which didn't surprise me(and generally keeps with the 4:3 employment ratio in general), but some people might be surprised to learn that Pocatello had nearly twice as many hotel rooms available as Idaho Falls. Which suggests to me that the larger employer for Idaho Falls is in the "Leisure" side of the equation, as it would appear most guests to Idaho Falls have somewhere nearby to call home, either inside or (well) outside of city limits.

Idaho Falls also has significantly more people employed in "Professional and Business Services"(Pocatello employs 60.1% of the count in Idaho Falls), while Pocatello came close to nearly doubling the government employee count of Idaho Falls. I doubt Idaho Falls itself is in appreciably more need of those services than Pocatello is, which suggests this market is servicing a larger clientele outside of city limits.

Pocatello employs 50.6% of the Idaho Falls count for "Educational and Health Services" even though ISU is in Pocatello. Granted, some of the Educational Employment count can possibly be attributed to Idaho Falls getting employment credit for both the city and county school districts while Pocatello only gets credit for its city school district. I suspect further drilling on the "Educational and Health Services" count would find there are significantly more Health Services being offered in Idaho Falls.

Given the comparable city populations, I have my doubts on the metro residents of Idaho Falls being so unhealthy(or so rich) that they need/use significantly more medical services as the residents of Pocatello do. Which again points to a significantly larger number of people coming from outside of the city metro area to seek treatment.

Not sure what to make of the significantly larger Construction employment numbers in Idaho Falls, though that can probably be attributed to the INL and a larger population base within "easy service distance" for a construction company based in Idaho Falls. That or Idaho Falls is simply growing that much faster than Pocatello.

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So basically: Comparable city population on almost every metric, but disproportionately larger retail market = likely to be servicing a larger non-city based population.

Proportional Hospitality and Leisure employment numbers, but disproportionate accommodation capacity(in Pocatello's favor) suggests a much larger leisure sector, which very likely requires Idaho Falls to be servicing more than just its city population.

Disproportionate Professional and Business Service sector employment numbers suggests Idaho Falls is servicing a larger population base than just its city population.

Disproportionate Educational and Health Services sector employment numbers suggest that Idaho Falls is servicing a larger population base than just its city population.

[Western gal]

Doing a quick browse of the biggest employers, I'd sure like to see 2009 information, or at least 2008, considering Ballard and AMI had huge layoffs. In fact, isn't Ballard now defunct and their building empty? No matter how one slices it, Pocatello works for some and Idaho Falls for others. I have friends who would never settle here, and others who never dream of living in Pocatello. To each his own...

[Bannock County Wanderer]

Looking for employer numbers now, found BLS numbers for the Pocatello and Idaho Falls MSA's(Metropolitan Statistical Area) where total employment is concerned. Though they cover a broader area.

Pocatello's MSA includes all of Bannock and Power County.

I need to slightly correct myself, the Census Defined MSA for Idaho Falls contains only Bonneville and Jefferson counties, though the Office of Management and Budget does include Bingham County (Blackfoot) into a CSA(Combined Statistical Area) with Idaho Falls. Only 124 CSA's exist across the US, and Idaho Falls is the only city in Idaho that has one.

Idaho Falls, ID Economy at a Glance

and

Pocatello, ID Economy at a Glance

Respectively.

If you want to drill down on that data, knock yourself out. I'm not going to, as it isn't an easy side by side comparison to make (at least vs 2005).