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More 'sunbirds' roosting in Pocatello

by John O'Connell
| August 15, 2010 9:00 PM

POCATELLO - Most people have heard of snowbirds, seniors who flock to Arizona and other warm climates for the winter to escape freezing temperatures. Local officials are now seeking to entice a bird of a different feather to take roost in Pocatello.

Lee and Judy Ayers, of Phoenix, are among about 20 couples now residing in Pocatello student housing who identify themselves as "sunbirds."

Sunbirds seek college towns where recreational opportunities abound, days aren't too hot and nights are cool. They spend their summers in student apartments and return home when classes resume.

And they spend a lot of money in their seasonal communities, which is why the head of the Greater Pocatello Chamber of Commerce is so interested in building Pocatello's reputation as a sunbird-friendly community.

"Seniors tend to have expendable money. One of our group did buy a car last weekend from Lithia," Judy said.

For another couple weeks, Lee and Judy will reside at the expansive Hillside Village Apartments, 2001 Birdie Thompson Drive. Each unit in the complex has four bedrooms and two bathrooms - plenty of room for guests. Their unit has a view of Chinese Peak from its balcony. Better yet, the apartments are all completely furnished, and the owner allows the seniors to leave many of their belongings in storage on the premises year round, eliminating the hassle of transporting belongings between Phoenix and Pocatello.

Lee and Judy have been sunbirds since 2002 and started coming to Pocatello in 2005.

"Pocatello is a beautiful area. There's a lot in this area to do," Lee said. "We golf and fish and attend performing arts presentations ."

As for the weather, Lee and Judy shared a good laugh when they heard news of a recent 96-degree record high temperature.

"In Phoenix it cools off to 96. This to us is just perfect," Judy said. "We go golfing in the morning and it's 70 degrees."

To make Pocatello more attractive to sunbirds, the couple has suggested that the Chamber of Commerce and city leaders work with area landlords to create an inventory of furnished apartments available for summer leases. They also recommend that the officials make promotional videos to show potential sunbirds and that they offer bus trips, tours and social events for the seniors upon their arrival to town.

"If (landlords) could maybe turn some of their stuff into finished units, seniors would start coming here," Judy said.

Matt Hunter, executive director of the Greater Pocatello Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber intends to take a lead role in developing a suitable list of housing options, organizing events for the seniors and spreading the word about the local program. The challenge, he said, will be finding funding for the effort.

"We'd like to take advantage of these folks that have money to spend. Why not come here? They really like being here," Hunter said. "Our role would be to compile a list of available furnished housing these folks would use and come up with a way to market it to the seniors in Arizona to get them to come here in the summer."

Regionally, the sunbird trend started in Rexburg in 1976 utilizing housing at the former Ricks College, now Brigham Young University-Idaho. In fact, Rexburg coined the term "sunbird," according to Donna Benfield, executive director of the Rexburg Area Chamber of Commerce.

In 2004, at the height of the Rexburg sunbird boom, about 2,300 seniors made the small college community their summer home. Benfield said the economic impact of the sunbirds on the region was estimated between $3 million and $5 million. The seniors were also intimately involved in the community. Lee and Judy were among the Rexburg sunbirds, and Lee was a member of the Rexburg chamber's board of directors.

"It's a huge asset," Benfield said. "They're wonderful as far as being community supporters. They attended all of our events. They just love to support the community they're in."

Benfield said the Rexburg chamber used to invest between $10,000 and $12,000 in its sunbird program. For a week in January, Benfield, the city's mayor, Rexburg apartment complex owners and several others with a stake in bringing in sunbirds would travel throughout Arizona and Nevada touting their community to seniors. To thank them for coming, they organized ice cream socials, an end-of-the-summer Dutch oven dinner, bus tours of the sites near Rexburg and a host of other events.

"They were so well organized and everybody was on board," Lee recalled.

Judy added, "They made you feel so welcome."

Logan, Utah, jumped on the chance to welcome in sunbirds, offering many of the same perks they enjoyed in Rexburg.

"They all just poured into Logan," Judy said. "Logan just loves those seniors. We have friends in Logan, and they've just had a great time."

Logan, for example, hosts bus trips for sunbirds. But Lee and Judy are adamant that the fishing is better in Pocatello, and they're content to stay put. Here, they're regulars at the Stephens Performing Arts Center, and they spend each Sunday evening socializing with the other local sunbird couples in the clubhouse of the apartment complex.

For her part, Benfield is eager to lend her considerable expertise to help Pocatello become a major draw for sunbirds, convinced what's good for one part of eastern Idaho is good for the whole region. She notes Rexburg is in the throws of its annual Idaho International Dance and Music Festival, an event that was extremely popular among the sunbirds. Perhaps Rexburg may once again be in store for a large crowd of sunbirds at future festivals.

"I can't see them driving from Logan, but I can see them driving from Pocatello," Benfield said.

"It was a regional boon to the economy. It's a huge plus for the local community and there's not a negative."