Urban Renewal Study Begins

A legislative interim committee on urban renewal has kicked off an all-day meeting today, with Sen. Dan Johnson, R-Lewiston, the co-chair, saying it will look at past changes to Idaho’s urban renewal laws, other possible changes, or perhaps no changes. The panel’s other co-chair, Rep. Rick Youngblood, R-Nampa, submitted a letter to the panel today as he’s not here; he and Rep. Robert Anderst, R-Nampa, met weekly with a working group during this year’s legislative session to examine issues surrounding urban renewal. “There was good discussion, but it was determined that we needed to have a deeper dive,” Anderst said, leading to the interim committee. The concurrent resolution establishing the committee calls for it to “study and address the issues and subject of urban renewal to modernize the process and to provide local units of government with economic development tools”/ Betsy Russell , Eye on Boise. More here.

DFO: It’ll be interesting to see how much damage Sen. Mary Souza and Rep. Kathy Sims can do to the state’s urban renewal law, from their perches on this committee. Sims has been thwarted to date with her attacks on urban renewal during recent legislative sessions. She’ll have a better chance to damage this municipal economic tool if she can get the committee to embrace her views of urban renewal. Thoughts?