New blogs for Idaho Falls development junkies (Rexburg, Ammon: retiring, reviews)

[IFGuy]

Browsing through the building permits this morning and came about a few tidbits.

-Dominoes Pizza will be occupying space in the strip center just west of Hertz Car Sales on Lincoln Road. I can honestly say that it wouldn't surprise me that the north east side of town starts to redevelop in a sense by seeing more retail type options as the enormous amount of residential growth out toward Iona really has nothing besides a few gas stations. Also, with the expansion of Lincoln Road, we may see some renewed interest in the vacant/farm fields up for sale. Something to keep an eye on as we move deeper into the year.

-Buffalo Wild Wings has a permit for a remodel...kind of interesting as that store hasn't been open for too long but it does seem to be quite busy.

-Dutch Bros. coffee has officially been granted their building permit to build a store on 17th street in front of Shopko.

Also as a bit of a recap of things I do know, the Bonneville Hotel project hit a snag with their tax exemptions they were hoping to receive, however the new federal tax plan made it harder to receive the one they needed most. With that said the developer and the IFRA are trying to decide if it would be worth going halves on the remaining funding or to try to reapply for the tax credit. The only huge hang up for the IFRA is that it may end up hindering future projects that they may need the extra cash for such as the redevelopment of Capitol, the Idahoan Foods project and potentially a future parking structure downtown. On a side note, if you haven't taken time to watch the live stream from the IFRA, it's worth a look as it gives a bit of insight on how much the agency has done and what future plans may be. They don't however give up too much info about future tenants as developers tend to be quite hush hush.

I haven't seen much lately about the two INL buildings for a bit however the last bit of info I saw was that the buildings are in the design phase right now and should go out to bid shortly after approval.

Not sure if anyone else saw the tidbit on Localnews8 about the data center coming to Idaho Falls but here is the link...Idaho Falls agrees to power new data center - KIFI. The news story is fairly vague about how many will be employed or how big or where but I'm sure that info will come out in due time.

Not really too much more to add right now but the sheer amount that we have seen for the first month of the year is pretty decent.

[cleosmom]

As I was heading home from running errands on Tuesday, I noticed they wasted no time in removing the signage from Kmart!! Just wondering if there are already plans for the existing building?

[Theotherdude]

Originally Posted by IFGuy

Browsing through the building permits this morning and came about a few tidbits.

-Dominoes Pizza will be occupying space in the strip center just west of Hertz Car Sales on Lincoln Road. I can honestly say that it wouldn't surprise me that the north east side of town starts to redevelop in a sense by seeing more retail type options as the enormous amount of residential growth out toward Iona really has nothing besides a few gas stations. Also, with the expansion of Lincoln Road, we may see some renewed interest in the vacant/farm fields up for sale. Something to keep an eye on as we move deeper into the year.

-Buffalo Wild Wings has a permit for a remodel...kind of interesting as that store hasn't been open for too long but it does seem to be quite busy.

-Dutch Bros. coffee has officially been granted their building permit to build a store on 17th street in front of Shopko.

Also as a bit of a recap of things I do know, the Bonneville Hotel project hit a snag with their tax exemptions they were hoping to receive, however the new federal tax plan made it harder to receive the one they needed most. With that said the developer and the IFRA are trying to decide if it would be worth going halves on the remaining funding or to try to reapply for the tax credit. The only huge hang up for the IFRA is that it may end up hindering future projects that they may need the extra cash for such as the redevelopment of Capitol, the Idahoan Foods project and potentially a future parking structure downtown. On a side note, if you haven't taken time to watch the live stream from the IFRA, it's worth a look as it gives a bit of insight on how much the agency has done and what future plans may be. They don't however give up too much info about future tenants as developers tend to be quite hush hush.

I haven't seen much lately about the two INL buildings for a bit however the last bit of info I saw was that the buildings are in the design phase right now and should go out to bid shortly after approval.

Not sure if anyone else saw the tidbit on Localnews8 about the data center coming to Idaho Falls but here is the link...Idaho Falls agrees to power new data center - KIFI. The news story is fairly vague about how many will be employed or how big or where but I'm sure that info will come out in due time.

Not really too much more to add right now but the sheer amount that we have seen for the first month of the year is pretty decent.

I almost find that information conflicting in that news story. At first he says they are planning to build... Then they say the center would make electrical connections is April or May. A new facility couldn't be built that fast, indicating they could be using an existing building. Even so, you would think something so energy demanding would require better infrastructure than what IFP can offer so immediately.

I know little about data centers, capacity vs space needed, or what staffing one would require.

[IFGuy]

Pretty cool news today that Fluor is donating $10K to CEI to create a program for a nuclear technician certificate. That's exactly why the college was created! To actually see a place here that can train for the jobs that exist here and pay a good wage.

I wonder how long until CEI needs a brand new building...5 years. Hell, it has me thinking of going back to school.

[chris1834]

The INL buildings are out of the design phase and are going for a quick bid date by week's end. They are trying to make up some of the time they have lost.

[Theotherdude]

Two nearby community colleges in SLC and Boise have experienced explosive growth recently. I wonder how fast enrollment at CEI climbs to the projected 4k with this degree program.

An IF business that has been expanding rapidly will be building some new facilities this year. I shouldn't name the business just yet. The plans are still fresh but so far they are talking about 4 new buildings. I hope to see this one come together this year

[Theotherdude]

Plans related to the attempt to keep Idahoan Foods downtown were partially revealed at the latest RDA meeting. The owner of the property wants to build a seven story structure on the lot next door that will connect with the current building. The plan calls for 3 levels of parking, ground floor retail then offices on the upper floors. Reconstruction of "C" street is something the city has wanted too.

Idahoan needs the space but they haven't decided yet whether to relocate altogether or stay put. I believe they are to make a decision by next week.

[IFGuy]

Originally Posted by Theotherdude

Plans related to the attempt to keep Idahoan Foods downtown were partially revealed at the latest RDA meeting. The owner of the property wants to build a seven story structure on the lot next door that will connect with the current building. The plan calls for 3 levels of parking, ground floor retail then offices on the upper floors. Reconstruction of "C" street is something the city has wanted too.

Idahoan needs the space but they haven't decided yet whether to relocate altogether or stay put. I believe they are to make a decision by next week.

That sounds awesome. I hope the city ponies up and does what they need to do. Downtown needs some height, something new, a reason for other businesses to look at expansion downtown.

Our redevelopment association is great though, I can't see them letting this slip by.

[Theotherdude]

Does anyone here know how much of that block Thomas Development owns? Or if a different developer owns other parts? According to Brad Cramer and Kathryn Smith there are really exciting things to come not just on that block but all of downtown.

[Ret.InAmmon]

I heard that Porters is closing its Idaho Falls and Rexburg stores.

Hobby Lobby strikes again.