Ketchum lost one of its pivotal influences Sunday morning when former City Councilman and hotel builder Joe Koenig died at age 71.
Koenig, an Austrian native and owner of Knob Hill Inn, moved to Ketchum at 27 years old in 1966 and built the Tyrolean Lodge with partner Elmar Grabher. And they didn't just hire someone to build the hotel.
"They were out there pounding nails themselves," said Martha Page, former resident and council member during part of Koenig's term from 1976 to 1982.
Page said that such personal involvement with his endeavor set Koenig apart from the typical developer.
"He brought with him an Old World sensibility," she said. "He wasn't a developer but an innkeeper. He carried that devotion to Ketchum with him through most of his decisions."
Koenig sold the Tyrolean in 1976 when he stepped into the city's political realm. During his council career, Koenig worked to build the city's water system, expand the sewage treatment plant, pass an avalanche ordinance restricting development in danger zones and adopt the state's first design-review process.
The city still uses this design-review process to approve projects such as the proposed Bald Mountain Lodge and Warm Springs Ranch Resort to assure that growth fits Ketchum.
"These are all the things that we still use here, that make Ketchum Ketchum," said Jerry Seiffert, Ketchum mayor from 1975 to 1988 and currently an advertising representative at the Idaho Mountain Express.
Seiffert said Koenig wasn't against growth but believed in "managing" it.
He said Koenig was instrumental in gaining financial support for a chamber of commerce. Up to that point, Seiffert said, he would include chamber support in the city budget but the council would always take it out. And the council has the final say.
"Joe said, 'We've got to do this,'" Seiffert said.
Jack Corrock served on the council during Koenig's term and said he doesn't remember the issues Koenig favored, but does recall his honesty and openness.
"He brought something to this town," Corrock said. "He didn't just build and leave. That's what our town is losing."
Trevon Milliard: tmilliard@mtexpress.com
Joe Koenig in 1976.
