Stories in this Regional News Roundup are excerpted from weekly newspapers from around the region. This is part two, with part one having appeared in Saturday’s Tribune.
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GRANGEVILLE — James Zehner has decided it’s time for him to step down.
Having served as Idaho County assessor since his election in 2006, Zehner announced his intention to retire at the end of the year, Dec. 31, with two years left on his remaining four-year term. Last Tuesday, Oct. 20, Zehner told his decision to the Idaho County Commission, and — as he is a Republican — later that evening at the meeting of the Idaho County Republican Central Committee.
What happens next: The ICRCC is charged with recommending three people to the Idaho County Commission, which from those candidates will make the appointment, and that person will fill the remaining two years of the term. The last time this happened in Idaho County was in 2012 with the early retirement of Treasurer Sharon Cox.
“I’ve been here 34 years; it’s time,” Zehner said on his decision, which he had been pondering on during the summer. “I’ll be 60 in January, and that’s the age I’ve wanted to retire at.”
Of his 34 years, 14 of those have been as county assessor, the 13th since Idaho County was incorporated. He was hired as an appraiser in 1986, worked 14 years here, and then put in seven years in the GIS (geographic information system) department with rural addressing and parcel mapping. His public service as assessor briefly overlapped with a second elected position; he served on the Grangeville City Council from 2004 to 08.
“There is interest in the office to replace me,” Zehner said, though any names won’t be public until they go through the formal ICRCC interviewing process.
— David Rauzi, Idaho County Free Press (Grangeville), Wednesday
COVID-19 cases rise in Valley, Adams counties
MCCALL — The number of new COVID-19 cases in Valley and Adams counties surged in the last week, health officials said.
The total number of positive COVID-19 cases in Valley County reached 166 cases Tuesday, up 18 cases from 148 a week ago, health officials said.
St. Luke’s McCall on Tuesday reported 129 total positive cases from testing done at the hospital, up 14 cases from 115 a week ago.
Cascade Medical Center reported 34 positive cases, or four more than the 30 cases reported last week.
In addition, the private testing cooperative Crush the Curve has found three confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Valley County with no change in the past week.
Nearly all of the positive cases reported by the hospitals were found following the start of the summer visitor season in mid-June.
Central District Health reported 108 of the positive cases were confirmed to be Valley County residents as of Tuesday, which is nine more than the 99 cases reported a week ago.
The difference between the hospital figures and the health department figures are those who tested positive but did not declare Valley County as their residence.
One death from COVID-19 has been reported in Valley County since the pandemic reached Idaho in March. An 85-year-old McCall man died July 15 at St. Luke’s Boise hospital because of complications of COVID-19 infection.
Adams County had 51 total confirmed cases among county residents as of Tuesday, 21 more than the 30 cases reported last week, according to Southwest District Health.
The new cases were detected among staff and students at Council School District, health district spokesperson Katrina Williams said.
“I show 10 students and staff in isolation and 11 in quarantine in Adams County,” Williams said.
Four cases were confirmed in the New Meadows area between Oct. 4 and Oct. 17, the health district said.
A resolution urging “personal responsibility” was passed by the New Meadows City Council on Monday night in response to the outbreak in the Council School District.
Residents are encouraged to wear masks, wash their hands frequently and practice social distancing, but the resolution notes that residents have the “right and freedom to decide” how to protect themselves from the virus.
The resolution also asks citizens to respect precautions taken by other people, businesses and schools to combat not only the COVID-19 virus, but other contagious illnesses like the flu.
Two deaths in Adams County related to COVID-19 have been reported. The first death was a man in his 70s who had been hospitalized with underlying health complications.
The second death was a woman in her 70s with preexisting conditions who was hospitalized.
— Tom Grote, The Star-News (McCall), Thursday
