Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Huffman elected to Sustain Blaine board

Group appoints 3 new members

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By KATHERINE WUTZ
Express Staff Writer

A local economic development group has elected a new slate of candidates to its board of directors, including the former manager of the Sun Valley Resort.

New directors are Wally Huffman, former general manager of Sun Valley Resort and current director of resorts and resort development for Sun Valley and Snowbasin; Dan Olmstead, regional manager of community and public relations for Idaho Power; and Dave Theobald, who played a major fundraising role with the Ketchum Community Development Corp.

Huffman's appointment follows a February study by Sustain Blaine that stated that Blaine County's economy relies more on tourism than it had before the recession.

The study stated that sales connected with tourism made up 60 percent of Blaine County's total taxable sales in 2011. That's an increase from 2006, when tourism-related sales made up only 46 percent of the total.

Sustain Blaine Executive Director Harry Griffith said May 7 that Huffman would add a valuable tourism-based perspective to the board.

"His extensive background in development and planning along with his knowledge of issues related to tourism and our economy will make him a tremendous asset," Griffith said in a news release.

Olmstead is also the chair of the Southern Idaho Economic Development Organization. Theobald is involved in many community organizations and played a major role in raising funds for the Ketchum Town Plaza.

The candidates were selected by a group of several advisory board members—representatives of businesses or other major entities in the valley—who interviewed five candidates and chose three to recommend for the vacant slots.

One vacancy was left when the term of local developer George Kirk expired.

The other vacancies were created when the group decided to expand the board of directors to include more representation from the private sector.

"The slate proposed by the committee brings additional skills and expertise [to the board]," said advisory group chairman Carter Ramsay in a Monday news release. "We are fortunate and grateful to have such exceptional people desiring to serve on the board."

The board now includes nine "private sector" representatives—local business owners or economic consultants—and six ex-officio members from government entities.

The board represents four of the county's five top employers as well as Blaine County, the cities of Ketchum, Sun Valley, Hailey and Bellevue and the Idaho Department of Commerce.

Katherine Wutz: kwutz@mtexpress.com

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