Northwest Briefs May 9, 2010
Luxury real estate firm deal signed
JACKSON, Wyo. - A Utah family has signed a deal to operate a luxury real estate business in Jackson and Sun Valley, Idaho.
Under the deal announced Friday, a company owned by the Jon M. Huntsman family will hold a 20-year franchise to operate Sotheby's International Realty offices in the region.
Profits will go toward the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.
David Huntsman, who oversees the family's real estate holdings in Idaho and Wyoming, will direct regional operations.
Huntsman is the founder of Huntsman Corp., a global chemical manufacturer with more than 11,000 employees. His family has considerable land holdings in the Teton Valley and has developed a golf course, homes and commercial lots in Driggs.
Clayton Andrews, who served as Sotheby's executive vice president before the deal, will serve as managing broker in the Teton Valley and Jackson.
"This is the best of both worlds, Sotheby's joining forces with the Huntsman name, which is also highly recognizable on regional and national levels," Andrews said.
Sotheby's said that regional employees, including 160 sales associates, are expected to keep their jobs.
Bison deaths spark federal review
BILLINGS, Mont. - A disease study involving Yellowstone bison will be reviewed after two of the animals handled by researchers were later shot and killed.
The animals had been used in a study to see if bull bison can spread the disease brucellosis.
Ryan Clarke, a U.S. Department of Agriculture veterinarian, said Friday the tranquilizer drug used on the bison was considered safe and not likely to have caused the animals' reportedly aggressive behavior.
Nevertheless, Clarke said the study protocols would be reviewed for safety reasons.
The bison were shot Tuesday by a Department of Livestock agent after wandering about 10 miles north of the park, into an area where bison are not allowed because of fears they could transmit brucellosis to cattle.
Spraying begins on resort's ski area
KETCHUM - The U.S. Forest Service has started aerial spraying of Sun Valley Resort's famous ski area on Bald Mountain in central Idaho with a pheromone intended to turn aside an attack of Douglas-fir bark beetles.
Spraying of the pheromone called methylcyclohexenone started Thursday. The pheromone is produced naturally by the beetles and lets other beetles know a tree is already full of beetles.
The Forest Service is hoping spraying healthy trees will trick beetles into staying away.
Officials said the beetles naturally occur following fires, in this case the nearly 75-square-mile Castle Rock Fire that burned in the region in 2007.
Officials said protecting trees on Bald Mountain is important due to the economic importance of the ski area, which draws tourists from across the country.
3 Nampa schools locked down
NAMPA- A high school and two elementary schools in southwestern Idaho took emergency precautions following reports of a man with a weapon sighted nearby.
Officers with the Nampa Police Department who responded quickly on Friday found a loaded rifle in a wood chip pile near where the man was sighted at about 2 p.m.
KTVB-TV reported that Skyview High School in Nampa was put temporarily on lockdown.
Two nearby grade schools also were locked down for about 40 minutes.
The precautions caused school buses to be about 15 minutes late picking up kids from school, but Lt. Brad Daniels said no students were ever in danger.
- The Associated Press