Stories in this Regional News Roundup are excerpted from weekly newspapers from around the region. This is part one, with part two scheduled to appear in Sunday’s Tribune.
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OROFINO — The historic Rex Theater on Johnson Avenue is embarking on a new chapter under the new ownership of CC Horton and Barbara-Lee Jordan. Originally opening in 1914 and enjoying a heyday through the 1920s with silent movies, prohibition, and welcoming the post WWI crowd for some needed peace, we can only imagine the days when Orofino residents proved resilient, and creative, after a devastating era.
In the Wagner family since 1955, the Rex celebrated and remained open and thriving through several major era’s spanning seven decades in total. Excitement, relief, and peace washed over Chris Wagner as he turned the keys, and the legacy, over to Horton and Jordan Monday.
The new owners bring a vibrant vision and a lot of positive energy that honors both the theater’s rich history while introducing fresh opportunities for artistic and cultural enrichment. “We want to bring more than just movies, and have some fun. Our community deserves so much more! My passion for the arts goes back to my dad as a musician and author, and my mother making the most decadent cinnamon rolls on the planet,” Horton explains.
“They taught me that art comes in many forms, and bringing people together with joy (and maybe with food) is the most important thing. I’m thrilled to help the theater shimmer again in our community and am so excited to discover the history and bring our community’s heritage to life through every movie, performance, and event.”
Barbara-Lee Jordan echoed sentiment, sharing, “I’ve been wanting to buy the theater for the last 10 years in hopes of giving the arts a home in Orofino, but it never did come to fruition. Amazingly, a few short months back, I was visiting with CC at Augie’s one afternoon and we discovered a common vision for the Rex. It will take a lot of sweat equity, but my goal is to make the Rex Theater the “go to” place for the community to experience new and old movies, live plays and concerts, and provide a venue for conferences and private events. It will take time, but with the community as partners, we’ll make it happen.”
The Rex Theater will continue to showcase movies and will also introduce live performances, such as theater and music. Additionally, it will partner with public and private entities to provide workshop and conference spaces for rentals for workshops, screenings, parties, private concerts and more. “What we imagine, we can achieve,” Horton adds.
— Clearwater Tribune (Orofino), Wednesday
Idaho County Commissioners: Property vacated near Dewey Saddle Road
GRANGEVILLE — Mike Cook, airport manager, opened the meeting of the Idaho County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 25 by submitting a rough draft of a written snow removal plan for the county airport. The plan will minimize the impact of adverse weather on airport operations. The commissioners agreed with the plan and asked that it be put on the Idaho County website when it is finalized.
Michael Brown, information technology (IT) coordinator, updated the commissioners on several IT activities. He advised switching to the Starlink system at Elk City, saving approximately $3,000 per year with better connectivity. He also advised staying with the Cisco network subscription, which is up for renewal, as it is somewhat less expensive than last year. The board approved Brown’s recommendations. Two new requests from the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office for computer upgrades were discussed, and Brown will get the pricing and report at the next meeting.
Commissioner Ted Lindsley requested a letter from the county to Elk City Water & Sewer stating that the county will cover any damage, should it occur, while the National Guard conducts excavation work at York Pond. Deputy county attorney Matt Jessup drafted the letter later during the meeting, and it was approved by the board.
Other approvals granted were for Commissioner Brad Higgins to attend additional public health meetings, and an amended order for annexation by the Cottonwood Rural Fire District.
Commissioner Skip Brandt opened a public hearing on the petition filed by Brock Salisbury to vacate a long unused wagon road crossing his property below Highway 13 near Dewey Saddle Road. A hearing was held Dec. 10, 2024, that Mark McCain and Phil Wimer, two neighboring property owners, attended and requested that the vacating of the wagon road be done for their properties, too. They were advised the commission could only consider Salisbury’s petition on that day, and they would need to first follow the legal procedures that Salisbury had completed for his petition to vacate. The hearing was granted a continuance until Feb. 25, giving McCain and Wimer the time needed to do so. Since both petitions dealt with the same road, there were no access issues, and all parties were in agreement, it was approved Feb. 25 to vacate the entire route. The motion carried with all three commissioners in favor.
Due to County Clerk Kathy Ackerman and Brandt attending the National Association of Counties (NACo) Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., from March 1-4, the regular board meeting March 4 was canceled. The next meeting was March 11.
— Lyn Krzeminski, Idaho County Free Press (Grangeville), Wednesday
