Leaders look to 2024
The Press asked leaders in government, education and other areas to share their priorities and vision for 2024.
City of Coeur d'Alene
Mayor Jim Hammond
For the year 2024, my chief goal will be to work with staff to ensure that we build a sustainable budget to ensure continued service to our citizens and stability to our valued employees. The work will involve reviewing both revenue and expenditures for the next five years to assure ourselves that we are using our limited resources as effectively and efficiently as possible.
We also need to continue to take necessary and appropriate actions to improve available housing for our citizens.
A sufficient workforce will also be important for the economic viability of our economy. Local government has limited options with regard to both the housing market and workforce availability but we need to ensure we are not an obstacle to business development.
Coeur d'Alene City Council member Dan English
While I know we will be spending time in 2024 and beyond dealing with issues such as growth and housing, my main concern for some time has been the deterioration of civic discourse in our community, especially between our faith community and our local government agencies. That's not the way it should be.
My personal action step to help heal and reconcile that divide is to be a local volunteer leader/presenter in a six-week series sponsored by the Redeeming Babel organization called, "The After Party: Towards Better Christian Politics."
I plan to lead this series sometime this spring after the Easter season and will share the specifics as they become available. For those interested in the details about the organization or series you can see their website at Home — Redeeming Babel.
Coeur d'Alene City Council member Dan Gookin
I'm still going to push for height restrictions and adequate parking requirements for downtown. That's a major goal, one that council has asked staff to look into.
We also promised the public that we would look hard at the budget. Christie Wood and I have started that mission. Hopefully, a meeting is coming soon so we can pour over our spending and look for ways to save the taxpayer money.
Statewide, I'd like to work with legislators who are willing to seriously look at cutting property taxes. We had relief this year, but the current scheme designed to "cut" property taxes will end up raising them in the long term. Hopefully, we can find legislators who are willing to focus on the needs of our citizens and not just pander to their specific, extremist base.
Coeur d'Alene City Council member Woody McEvers
Woody McEvers said his "feel good goals" include: develop policy to help with affordable housing; be financially conservative; continue improving traffic and street improvements; create a consistent public relations program that informs residents of city's operations.
McEvers said his "hopes" include: explore water conservation through landscaping and recycling; address issues of vandalism of parks and trails; increase focus on traffic violations.
"The department directors are truly the force that do the day-to-day operations and are guided by our city administration," McEvers wrote.
City of Post Falls
It was a strong year for Post Falls, which continues to be one of the fastest-growing cities in Idaho, although the River City's growth has slowed compared to previous years.
Residential permits were down in 2023, for the third consecutive year.
The city received its permit renewal for its wastewater plant, the Highway 41 improvements are completed, the Interstate 90/State Highway 41 interchange is progressing and improvements to the Pleasantview/Highway 53 interchange are on the radar with construction expected in 2024. The Post Falls Urban Renewal Agency also closed its seventh district, leaving two remaining districts open.
"With growth, infrastructure is critical," Post Falls Mayor Ron Jacobson said.
The year was not without challenges. The city is engaged in a lawsuit with the county treasurer regarding property tax penalties and interest.
"The court ruled in our favor and upon the treasurer's request for reconsideration, confirmed his ruling in our favor," Jacobson said. "The treasurer is now appealing the ruling. The cost of this litigation is borne by the taxpayers."
While housing prices slightly decreased, high prices continue to cause difficulties for potential homeowners and continue to keep property taxes higher for the residential sector.
"The governor approved a property tax credit for homeowners for this year, but it does not correct the underlying formula for the residential sector," Jacobson said.
The continued shortage in available workforce makes it difficult for local businesses to meet employment needs, he said. The city, like many other employers, lost employees to other cities, agencies and businesses with wages being a big factor.
"We have taken steps to reduce employee loss by reviewing and adjusting salary ranges while being cognizant of the impact this has on our budget," Jacobson said.
Growth will continue in 2024, but Jacobson said he hopes it will be sustainable.
Post Falls has many projects on the horizon. Peak Fitness and Super 1 Foods will be built on the east side of Highway 41 and a Grocery Outlet is also expected to come to Post Falls. A new building for the Oval Office is underway on Spokane Street. The Millworx project on the former Idaho Veneer site is active. Kindred & Co. bookstore and bistro will open at the beginning of 2024 and the hotel is expected to start construction in 2024.
"Northwest Specialty is building an ambulatory center, MRI and CT addition, surgical expansion and also remodeling their prep kitchen," Jacobson said. "On the west side of town, the large industrial buildings will open, Nutex Emergency Hospital will open and a number of small retail shops will open. Also, KWI Plaza is working on their third phase."
Post Falls remains committed to meeting its community's needs in a fiscally prudent manner, he said.
"We have not needed to increase our property taxes due in large part to revenue generated by growth," Jacobson said. "That being said, there will come a time when an increase may be necessary and we work toward minimizing the impact that may occur."
While the levy rate has decreased, the increase in assessed home values has caused taxes to increase, he said.
"We have been in contact with our state legislators regarding property tax relief and will continue to do so in the future," he said, adding that while the property tax credit provided in 2023 was a one-time fix that may or may not be approved in future years by the Idaho Legislature.
Coeur d'Alene School District
The incoming year is poised to be a busy one focused on the Coeur d'Alene School District's strategic plan, Superintendent Shon Hocker said.
"We welcome our new trustee, Mr. (Jimmy) McAndrew, as well as extend a thank you to our returning trustees," he said.
Hocker said parents and students will continue to see a focus on individual student achievement and community partnership.
The district’s biggest challenge in 2024 include financial concerns, he said.
"It seems like just yesterday the district passed the much-needed supplemental levy," Hocker said. "Unfortunately, 2024 may see a return of the levy vote. The school board will be determining the best schedule to run the supplemental levy. With the legislature removing the March date as a vote option, our district will need to decide if November 2024 is the best time to renew the supplemental levy that funds 25% of the operations across the school district."
November will also see a presidential vote on the ballot, which makes it even more difficult to emphasize the importance of the school district levy, Hocker said.
"The school district will be working diligently with our state legislature to find avenues to adequately fund our much-needed school facility major maintenance needs," he said.
All of the schools will continue working on professional learning communities, which provide a focus on individual student achievement, Hocker said.
"We are excited to further our close collaboration and partnerships with our parents and community members," he said. "Forward. Together."
Post Falls School District
Incoming school board Trustee Paul Wagner foresees a mild year ahead for the Post Falls School District.
"I don't see any big changes," he said.
The district will continue its four-day school week pilot, which launched at the beginning of the school year.
"Some like it, some don’t," Wagner said. "At the end of the year, the plan is to do a quick review of it, but I doubt there will be any major changes at that time."
He said the district may choose to extend the pilot for another school year.
"You need at least two years before you decide if it’s permanent or if it changes back," he said.
The district is building a food distribution center just south of Prairie View Elementary School to service its 11 school sites. But other than that, Wagner said no big items are imminent at this time.
He said he looks forward to meeting constituents and hearing their concerns. He said his door is always open and people are welcome to contact him to share their thoughts.
"Hopefully, it will be a nice calm and quiet year," Wagner said. "I just want to keep things going, just want to educate the kids. That’s what it's all about."
Lakeland Joint School District
Lakeland Joint School District Superintendent Lisa Arnold believes good things are afoot for her school district in 2024.
"I am optimistic," she said. "We have a lot of new people in our district, parents who are really wanting to be actively involved in their kids' education."
Dedicated parents and dedicated staff bode well for the district, which will be especially focused on its students' academic achievements.
Arnold said it's a good thing the district didn't close following the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent school years. "We’re not seeing as much learning loss as some other districts in other places," she said.
New curriculum will be dialed in and the district will be more intentional about student achievement data in the coming year, she said.
"We're looking forward to increased student outcomes for 2024," she said.
As for changes that impact constituents, Arnold said Lakeland's school board is taking a pretty strong approach to updating district policies and ensuring parental rights are really identified and accessible.
One project the district is undertaking is figuring out the impact of moving from enrollment-based state funding to state funding based on average daily attendance.
"With that change, we’re having to really dig deep and find out financially what changes we need to make," she said. Lakeland will also be updating its strategic plan, which has not undergone work for five years, Arnold said. A postcard with a survey will soon be sent to district residents.
"We’ve had enough change in our demographics with all the people moving in, we really need to understand what they want their school district to look like," she said.
The district successfully passed a two-year, $9.5 million-per-year supplemental levy and a $1.146 million-per-year school plant facilities levy in May, following narrow levy ballot failures in March. Arnold said tough questions must be asked in the coming year if the community does not support school levies.
"Does that mean we need larger schools where we have less staff?" she asked. "Our community has always been really strong in their support of the smaller neighborhood schools. We need to start to ask those hard questions, 'What does that look like?'"
Kootenai County
For Kootenai County Commissioner Bill Brooks, 2024 will be a time of transition.
After vowing not to run for reelection when his term expires next year, he said there’s no chance he’ll change his mind.
“I made a commitment when I ran,” said Brooks, who was first elected in 2018. “I consider this service to my community, not a career. I think if we had more people who are involved in politics who saw this as a service and not as a career, we’d get a much better quality of people in office.”
The ongoing Justice Center expansion was one of the biggest pain points for Brooks this year and he expects that to continue in 2024.
“That is just eating up resources,” said Brooks, who has long criticized the project’s increasing price tag. “I had an idea, but the board as a whole seems to have had no idea what this is going to cost.”
Brooks said he’s also keen to move forward with impact fees to support the county jail and other infrastructure. A public hearing for jail impact fees is expected to be scheduled in January.
“I know it sounds like a cliché, but it’s true,” he said. “Growth should be paying for itself and right now, it’s not.”
Commissioner Leslie Duncan said the Justice Center expansion and the county’s commitment to completing two unfinished dormitory pods at the jail were two of 2023’s standout projects. She said she was proud to see how land use hearings unfolded this year.
“The public was respectful and due process was served,” she said.
Duncan said she’s grateful for the support she receives from Kootenai County residents.
“I am looking forward to serving the public as I always have, protecting rights, being a good steward of public money and listening to constituent concerns,” she said.
North Idaho College
It’s no secret that North Idaho College faced significant challenges in 2023.
But when NIC President Nick Swayne looks back on the past year, he said what stands out to him is what the college has achieved despite those challenges.
“In some ways, the NIC community is stronger than ever,” Swayne said. “I couldn’t be prouder of the way students, staff, faculty and the community at large has come together to overcome obstacles. Ultimately, I believe we’ll be stronger for it.”
Restoring NIC’s accreditation status, which remains under a show-cause sanction, and increasing enrollment numbers are top priorities in 2024.
Swayne said being a pivotal partner in the regional tech-hub grant is a recent addition to the college’s goals.
“It places NIC right at the forefront of regional innovation and job creation,” he said.
NIC also aims to continue to support and expand the college’s health professions programs, as well as support for law enforcement and law enforcement training in the region.
This fall, NIC embarked on a strategic planning process to make sure the college’s program aligns with the needs of students and the community. The first stage of this process is expected to be completed in April.
“We’re currently in the process of information gathering,” Swayne said. “We want to hear from everyone. One of the wonderful byproducts of this process is it should strengthen connections even more between the college and all its stakeholders.”
Swayne indicated he’s optimistic about NIC’s future.
“We’ve got some momentum going right now and our goal is to keep that momentum going,” he said. “We can’t afford to rest on our successes.”
English
Gookin
McEvers
Jacobson
Hocker
Wagner
Lisa Arnold
Brooks
Duncan
NIC President Nick Swayne