Message From Mayor Randy Hall

The Beaver Creek Fire truly tested our grit as a community. As flames crept into the back yards of Wood River Valley residents, we banded together and I was proud to witness great acts of heroism, kindness, selflessness and camaraderie throughout the event by our incident response team, the fire fighters and neighbors opening their doors to those of us displaced from our homes. While these experiences are trying, they serve as a reminder of the exceptional nature of our community and I am looking forward to resuming our spirited lifestyle here in Ketchum.

As safety remains our first priority, I encourage you to continue to monitor fire updates here. Please also check our Facebook page and website for the most recent pre-evacuation and evacuation notices.

Despite the fire, there are still plenty of things to enjoy in and around Ketchum before the kids go back to school and cool weather is once again upon us. I encourage you to safely enjoy all that Ketchum has to offer – whether it’s the newly opened Farnlun Park, the Shakespeare Festival or Wagon Days, I urge you to take advantage of the last weeks of summer in our extraordinary community. 

-Mayor Randy Hall

Disaster Relief Plan
 
The Idaho Department of Commerce, together with various Blaine County economic development organizations, is working to secure federal disaster assistance for businesses impacted by the Beaver Creek Fire. If successful, the assistance would be in the form of low interest loans through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). 

Interested businesses are urged to contact Jerry Miller of the Idaho Department of Commerce at jerry.miller@commerce.idaho.gov or at 208.287.0780. Businesses expressing an interest in receiving disaster assistance will be placed on a contact list and will receive regular updates as to the status of the SBA disaster declaration.

More information may be obtained from the Idaho Department of Commerce Website here or by contacting Harry Griffith of Sustain Blaine at sustainblaine@gmail.com.

Catch-Up
on ​
Ketchum

August 22
Town Square Tunes
(6:00 PM)


August 24
Sawtooth Century Bike Tour
*CANCELLED*
 
August 26
P&Z Meeting
City Hall
(5:30 PM)
 
August 27
Ketchum Farmers Market
(2:00 – 6:00 PM)
 
August 29
Town Square Tunes
(6:00 PM)
 
September 3
City Council Meeting
City Hall
(5:30 PM)
 
Ketchum Farmers Market
(2:00 PM – 6:00 PM)
 
September 9
P&Z Meeting
City Hall
(5:30 PM)
 
September 10
Ketchum Farmers Market
(2:00 PM – 6:00 PM)
 
September 16
City Council Meeting
City Hall
(5:30 PM)
 
September 17
Ketchum Farmers Market
(2:00 PM – 6:00 PM)


Visit our website for more information.


A firefighting helicopter refills at Reinheimer Ranch. 
2013 Wagon Days
 
Drawing more than 17,000 visitors, Wagon Days is an annual festival celebrating the mining history of Ketchum and the Wood River Valley. Now in its 55th year, Wagon Days features art galleries, pancake breakfasts, a non-motorized parade and more.  
 
For more information, including a full listing of events, go to www.wagondays.org. Below is a snapshot of some of the week’s highlights.

Wagon Days Kick Off
The Wagon Days Kick Off will be on Wednesday, August 28 from 5 pm to 7 pm in the Town Square. Enjoy live music, dancing, a poster artist signing and more.


Pancake Breakfast
The Papoose Club’s annual Wagon Days Pancake Breakfast is Saturday, August 31 and Sunday, September 1. Volunteers will be serving all-you-can-eat flapjacks, scrambled eggs and sausage from 8 am to noon. The breakfast will be held in the Ketchum Town Square. Admission is $8/adults, $7/seniors and teens, $5/children and children under 3 are free. You can find more information here.
 
The Papoose Club is a non-profit volunteer organization that supports youth-oriented groups in the Wood River Valley through fundraising and community events. The club was founded in 1954 by a group of local moms and became incorporated as a non-profit in 1975.


The Big Hitch Parade
The Big Hitch Parade is the largest non-motorized parade in the Northwest. This year’s parade will include nearly one hundred buggies, carriages, carts, stagecoaches and wagons. As always, the grand finale will be the Big Hitch, featuring six enormous Lewis Ore Wagons pulled by an authentic 20-mule jerk-line.
 
The parade begins at 1 pm, but you might want to set up a little early to get the best view. Reserved seating is available at Wagon Days Headquarters.


 
Wagon Days Headquarters
Open every day from 10 am to 5 pm through Labor Day Weekend. The Wagon Days Headquarters is located at 491 Sun Valley Road. In the Visitors Center, you'll find information, history of Wagon Days, souvenirs and sales.

Rebecca’s Private Idaho

Professional endurance mountain biker Rebecca Rusch is launching a 100-mile dirt road race on Sunday, September 1. The race will be held at the end of the Wagon Days weekend and will benefit three great charities: The Wood River Bike Coalition, PeopleForBikes.org and World Bicycle Relief.
 
The race starts and finishes at the town square and riders will depart at 8 am. The event culminates with a party at the finish line on 4th Street. Food, drinks, music and vendors will be serving up good times from 2 pm to 8 pm at the Off the Wagon Days Celebration. The party is open to the public and hosted by Smith Optics.
 
Learn more and register here. Registration closes on August 28 and, as a special nod to the firefighters who serve their communities, any firefighter who wants to participate will get a free entry.

Opinion: Tourism and Jobs On The Ballot In November!

By: Doug Brown, Chair, Ketchum Tourism and Jobs Initiative Committee
 
Local citizens aiming to increase tourism and jobs in the community recently formed a campaign committee to advocate for a ballot measure that will come before Ketchum voters in the November 2013 election. The measure calls for a 1% increase to the Local Option Tax. The group, the “Ketchum Tourism and Jobs Initiative,” formed because of the pivotal role increased air service plays in improving tourism, the backbone of the Wood River Valley’s economy.
 
The Ketchum Tourism and Jobs Initiative will:
 
·  Help keep local jobs in the valley
·  Increase tourism, helping local businesses to grow and create more jobs
·  Make the Wood River Valley a more attractive place to do business, allowing our existing businesses to grow and encouraging new businesses to locate here
 
The measure was on the ballot in November 2012 in Sun Valley, Ketchum and Hailey. It passed in Sun Valley but fell just short in Ketchum and Hailey. Proceeds from a successful ballot measure will be used to market non-stop flights to Friedman Memorial Airport and to help in contracting additional non-stop flights.
 
For more information, go to: www.ketchumtourismandjobs.com or contact Doug Brown at dougbrownsv@gmail.com

Around Town

 
Sun Valley Shakespeare Festival 


The Sun Valley Shakespeare Festival is running from August 22 through August 25. The performances are at the Ski & Heritage Museum at Forest Service Park and go from 6pm to 9:30pm each night. Tickets are $25/person. Due to the recent fires, the performances could possibly be cancelled. Please check the website or call 208.726.4857 for the most updated information about the performances.


Drive Safely 

School starts September 3 – please remember to drive carefully in school and youth activity zones!


Ketchum Parks and Recreation Brochure

The Ketchum Parks and Recreation Fall/Winter/Spring 2013-2014 brochure is now available here. The brochures will also be distributed to all K-5 classrooms when school begins.


End of Summer Campout

Join the Parks & Recreation department on their summer camp trip from August 28-30. For more information, contact the Parks & Recreation department at 208.726.7820. 

Community Highlight: The Wagon Days Committee 

Since its inception in 1958, Wagon Days has been successful largely due to the volunteers, whose experience span the entire 55 years of the event. The committee has several members who have been serving since the first years of Wagon Days, while other members of the committee are fairly new. Their knowledge and collaboration produces an event that continues to evolve and improve each year, ensuring Ketchum residents and visitors continue to celebrate the rich history and heritage of the Wood River Valley.
 
This year’s Wagon Days Community Volunteer Committee members are as follows, with the year they began serving on the committee:


·      Ivan Swaner (1958)
·      Jane Eittreim (1976)
·      Cindy Jesinger (2000)
·      Rick Jesinger (2000)
·      Heather Martin McMahan (2010)
·      SSgt Ulysses Mittelstadt (2011)
·      David Barovetto (2013)
 
Jane Eittreim, a long-time committee member, says that the people and history are her favorite aspects of the event. “The wagons are magnificent and you meet such interesting people from all walks of life!”
 
The committee is managed and overseen by event directors Heather LaMonica Deckard and Ellen Gillespie. Heather says, “We know this event inside and out and, like the committee, we have a lot of love for the event. Each meeting we work together to fine tune and work on elements that will make Wagon Days better than the year before.” She added that they’ve been working together for so many years that it really feels like a family! 
 
Heather has directed Wagon Days since 2000 and Ellen joined her in 2006.
Staff Highlight: Katie Carnduff and Sharon Arms

City Event Coordinator Sharon Arms and Administrative Clerk Katie Carnduff are two Ketchum employees who are serving on the Wagon Days Committee with the volunteers and other members. Planning and coordinating the large event is no small task, but both Sharon and Katie credit the volunteers for all of the success. “There is very little to do because they take care of so much,” says Sharon.
 
Katie mirrors her sentiment.
“The volunteers have so much history and know so much about our community. It’s amazing just talking with them – how everything has changed over the years.”
Like Us on Facebook!

The City of Ketchum has a Facebook Page! We’ll be posting updates, photos and event information regularly. Please like our page and join the conversation here.
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