Alley cleanup to be held in the spring due to cold night time temps

Last week, Cathy and I went to Phoenix so that I, as a trustee of our hospital, could attend the American Hospital Association Rural Hospital Conference along with three leaders from Weiser Memorial Hospital. 

 Cathy and one other spouse enjoyed themselves, while the rest of us spent most of our time listening to speakers and finding out about a variety of issues and possible solutions facing rural hospitals across the country. The conference, as always, was valuable, provided good information, and was worth the time.  

 This week, there is a lot of City news, so I’ll get right to it.

 The City Fire Department, Rural Fire Department, City of Weiser Police Department, Washington County Sheriff Department, and Ambulance Department, along with the State of Idaho and the 101st Civil Support Unit of the U.S Army will be conducting a hazardous materials exercise on Thursday, Feb. 17 in the area of the Vendome Events Center. The Vendome parking lot will be pretty much taken over by the HazMat units. Traffic may be slower in the area for short periods of time due to the exercise.  This type of training is critical to familiarize our emergency services on how to react to a live situation.  

 In other happenings, the City Recreation Department is taking registrations for spring soccer for first through sixth grade children. The registration deadline is March 2. The fee is $35 for city residents and $40 for county. After March 2 there will be a late fee of $10. Players must wear shin guards and a reversible red and blue jersey. For those parents who do not have these items, they are available at the Recreation Department for $25.  

 The Recreation Department is also taking registrations for youth baseball and softball – ages 4 through 15 years.  The deadline is April 13 with a late fee of $10 thereafter. The fee is $30 for city residents and $40 for county for ages 4 through 9 years, and $47 for city residents and $52 for county for players ages 10 through 15.  

 Registration forms and details for the soccer, baseball, and softball programs can be found online at cityofweiser.net/recreation/ or picked up at the Recreation Department at City Hall. If you have any questions, you can call the Recreation Department at 208-414-0301.

 A couple of weeks ago I had stated that the alley cleanup would resume as soon as the cold weather broke and the piles of debris had thawed. However, the night time temperatures have remained in the mid-twenties and the forecast is predicting it may be some time before there is a change. So, the City crews will be holding off and making a spring cleanup after you have had a chance to trim your trees and shrubs. We will then be around again, as usual, in the fall to pick up your summer accumulation of yard waste.  

 Speaking of picking things up, the garbage department has been experimenting with different routes to efficiently pick up garbage twice a week on a year-round basis. They have now figured out a routine to effectively provide this service to you. This next week, starting on Feb. 22, garbage will be picked up twice a week on a regular basis. 

 There is not enough space in this article to provide you with details of what days your trash will be picked up.  Just know that you should be noticing fewer overloaded containers when you empty your trash.  

 Well, that’s it for this week. Have a good week! Weiser really is a great place to live!