Top 5 honor for Sun Valley golf course
Sun Valley Resort's Trail Creek Course was voted Idaho's fourth-best golf course, according to Golfweek magazine's state-by-state list of "America's Best Courses," which includes public-access courses.
Originally opened in 1937 and redesigned in 1979, the course was ranked according to overall strength of routing, feature shaping, natural setting, greens, maintenance and variety of holes.
Topping Idaho's list of courses was Osprey Meadows at Tamarack Resort, near Donnelly.
Sun Valley Co. plans to open the first nine holes of its new White Clouds Course this summer, as well as a new golf clubhouse.
Help the Earth, buy a tree
In an effort to get valley residents to plant more trees, the Blaine Soil Conservation District has teamed with the Blaine County Recreation District and the Bellevue Tree Committee to sponsor a countywide conservation tree sale. The purpose of the sale is to get local residents to plant trees in the aftermath of last summer's Castle Rock Fire and the related drought the region is suffering.
Planting trees means improved air and water quality, as well as less runoff and soil erosion, a news release from the soil conservation district states. Proceeds from the tree sale will be used to promote conservation in Blaine County.
As part of the tree sale, three pick-up days will be held. The first will be April 25 at the Blaine Soil Conservation District office in Carey. Another tree pick-up day will be held April 26 at the Community Campus in Hailey. Both events will run from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. A third tree pick-up will be held May 3 at Bellevue City Park from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
A variety of tree species will be available and pre-ordering is recommended. Prices are listed on the order form, which can be downloaded from the Blaine Soil Conservation District Web site at www.blainescd.org.
File soon for property tax reduction
Homeowners who may qualify for up to $1,320 in property tax reductions have until April 15 to apply under Idaho's property tax reduction circuit breaker program. The benefits apply to property taxes on their primary residence, which must be in Idaho.
Eligible applicants must be U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents, a news release from the Idaho Tax Commission states. Applicants can also have no more than $28,000 in income for 2007 after deducting non-reimbursed medical and other allowed expenses.
Eligible applicants must be age 65 or older, a widower of any age, disabled, blind, a fatherless or motherless child under 18 years of age or a former prisoner of war or hostage as of Jan. 1, 2008, to qualify.
Homeowners can get a property tax reduction application from their county assessor. For more information about property tax reduction, call the Idaho State Tax Commission toll free at (800) 334-7756 or the local county assessor's office. The phone number for the Blaine County Assessors office is 788- 5535.
Bring back the glory days
The annual Holding Cup alumni races will be held Friday, March 28, and Saturday, March 29, on Bald Mountain. There will be a party and goodie bag pick-up at Apple's the evening of Thursday, March 27.
Registration is $100 per person and includes two days of lift tickets and two nights of food and drink at Apple's, a softshell jacket, a Holding Cup hat and an embroidered base-layer shirt. Each team must be composed of four skiers at least 21 years of age and have attended the same university.
For team questions or to register your team, contact Ellen Gillespie at ellen@sunvalleyevents.com or (208) 726-2777.
June 7 is free fishing day
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game has set Saturday, June 7, as Free Fishing Day. On that date, the Fish and Game invites resident and nonresident anglers alike to celebrate the day fishing anywhere in Idaho without a license.
Though fishing license requirements will be suspended for this day, all other fishing rules, including bag limits and tackle restrictions, will remain in effect, a press release from the Fish and Game states.
For more information regarding the free fishing day, contact the Fish and Game McCall office at (208) 634-8137, or their Nampa office at (208) 465-8465.
Train as a volunteer for Crisis Hotline
Crisis Hotline will hold its 25th annual free volunteer training Thursday, April 3 through Thursday, May 1: two Mondays and every Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m., at 418 North River St. in Hailey.
This is open to anyone interested in developing listening skills and learning about the dynamics of crises such as family violence, alcoholism, codependency, child abuse and neglect, mental illness, sexual assault, suicide and more.
Call the business office of the Crisis Hotline 788-0735 to sign up for the training.
