Two things are still being sorted out this week. Bellevue's sewer plant is running again for the first time since 2023, but the restart hasn't gone smoothly, and Ketchum's council backed the denial of Sawtooth Serenade, the nearly 24,000-square-foot house proposed downtown. Neither story is finished yet.

The weather, at least, has an exit plan. Rain and cooler temperatures stick around through Friday before the weekend clears for Oktoberfest, Hike for Hope, a 4th Street block party, and whatever else you can fit in before fall gets serious. Here's what's happening.

Top of Mind

Bellevue's sewer plant restarts, problems already surfacing

Bellevue's wastewater treatment plant is running again for the first time since a March 2023 failure flooded the pump room to a depth of 20 feet. The $9.5 million membrane bioreactor facility restarted in early September after new bioreactor filters ($700,000) and two replacement pumps went in. It isn't running full-time yet: the plant operates eight hours a day, treating 20,000 to 65,000 gallons a week, while backup lagoons still carry most of the load.

The restart surfaced its own problems, laid out at Tuesday's council meeting. A primary circulation motor failed after startup, the mixer suspension system needs replacing, and the SCADA monitoring system still needs configuring. The city is also short-staffed: two employees have left, the plant needs round-the-clock dual-operator coverage, and there's no qualified driver with a tanker endorsement to haul sludge. Public Works Director Chris Johnson put it plainly: "I can't do this by myself." Councilwoman Tammy Davis agreed something has to give: "Something needs to change for sure. I'm scared and I'm concerned."

The city is looking for contract operators, meeting with Veolia, the filter installer, and reviewing its compliance agreement with Idaho DEQ. Councilwoman Suzanne Wrede has requested a full operational and financial audit, and a special public meeting with engineers is planned. A five-year, roughly $14 million upgrade plan presented in December is separate from this round of emergency repairs.

Source: the Idaho Mountain Express

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Town Hall

KetchumNew houses may top out lower. P&Z is recommending the residential height limit come down from 35 feet (44 with the roof bonus) to 30 feet (35 with a bonus), after softening a stricter staff proposal under pushback. Architect Marty Kaplan called it "a significant taking." The commission continues Oct. 1, 4:30, at City Hall. [IME]

CountyA 200-acre project between Hailey and Bellevue drew a warning about Silver Creek. At Tuesday's open house on Oppenheimer's mixed-use plan for the Flying Hat Ranch land, Commissioner Lindsay Mollineaux said it could push local farms and the creek "past the point of no return." Oppenheimer's Jeremy Malone: "The idea of 'killing Silver Creek' is simply out of line." A water study is due by late October. [IME]

KetchumFirst Avenue is still torn up, and there's no firmer reopening date than the "early October, weather permitting" the city gave two weeks ago. Parking stays gone the length of the closure. [IME]

Blaine CountyTeacher contract talks remain unresolved. The teachers' union rejected the district's latest offer, a $1,195 one-time payment against a base salary range of $59,000 to $103,000, in a vote that closed Sept. 6. The district cites a $1.2 million shortfall in its $77 million budget; teachers point to the valley's cost of living. Trustees have met twice since without an announced resolution. [IME]

MeetingsKetchum P&Z meets Thursday, 4:30, at City Hall. [City of Ketchum]

Out & About

This week

Thu Sep 17  Business After Hours, Valley Chamber, at La Cabanita in Bellevue, 5 to 7. [info]

Thu Sep 17  SVMoA Educator Evening, 4 p.m. Free for K-12 Blaine County educators. [info]

Thu Sep 17  Henry Diltz, "Legends Through the Lens," 5:30, Sun Valley Opera House, ticketed. Woodstock's official photographer in '69, '94, and '99. [info]

Thu Sep 17  "Trailblazers," a screening at the Community Library, 5:30 to 7, free. [IME]

Thu Sep 17  Chairlift Co's launch party, Ketchum. Free 30-minute breathwork class 5:30, spots limited; food, drinks, and the party itself at 6, open to anyone. [info]

Fri Sep 18  Graham Fuze at Birdies Snack Shack, 115 Thunder Trail, 5 to 8. [info]

Fri Sep 18, Sat Sep 19  Ketchum Oktoberfest, Champions Meadow. Fri 4 to 8, Sat 11 to 8. [info]

Sat Sep 19  Hike for Hope, Hop Porter Park, Hailey. Check-in 8, hike 9. Step Up for Suicide Prevention; give or register at 5BHikeForHope.org. [info]

Sat Sep 19  Meet the Fleet and the Chili Cook Off, Friedman Memorial Airport, 11 to 2, free. Get up close and personal with fire engines, police cars, snowplows, bulldozers, airplanes, and more, plus the Hailey Fire Department's chili cookoff. [info]

Sat Sep 19  Cedric Burnside at the Argyros, 7:30, ticketed. [tickets]

Through Sat Sep 19  FitWorks is free this week, classes and equipment both, at BCRD's Community Campus, 1050 Fox Acres Rd, Hailey. [info]

Sun Sep 20  The Board Bin's 4th Street Block Party, 3 to 7. Dual slalom down 4th, live music, a silent auction of painted decks for the SVSEF snowboard team.

Tue Sep 22  Kick the Cold coat drive, Black Owl Coffee, Hailey, 5:30 to 7:30. Bring a coat, hat, scarf, or gloves to donate; get a hot dog and a drink.

Tue Sep 22  Maternal wellbeing and infant development group, final session, Wood River Wellness Institute, 160 W 7th St, Ketchum, 5 to 6:15. Walk-ins welcome, (208) 428-8444.

Tue Sep 22  SVMoA: Buzz Spector's artist talk, "Language, Print and Circa 1971," 5:30; Open Studio: Printmaking, 6. Both at the museum, registration required. [info]

Wed Sep 23  Intro to Perspective Drawing, the museum, Ketchum, 5:30. Registration required. [info]

Wed Sep 23 to Sun Sep 27  "School of Rock," St. Thomas Playhouse, 201 Sun Valley Rd. Wed to Fri 7, Sat 2 and 7, Sun 2. Tickets on sale. [IME]

Wed Sep 23 to Mon Sep 28  Sawtooth Writing Retreat, 17 miles from Ketchum. Space is limited and it requires an application. [info]

Every Monday

5:30 to 7  Volunteer for Veggies at the Hope Garden in Hailey. Work a shift, take home a share of the produce.

6 p.m.  Mindful Mondays, the Advocates' women's support group. Childcare provided. Call (208) 788-4191 for the location.

Every Tuesday

1 to 2  Lunchtime Language Spanish at the Community Library, free.

5 to 7  Cooking Club / Club de Cocina at Bloom Community Kitchen, free. Register at (208) 788-0121.

5:30  Volleyball in the Park at Atkinson Park, free.

5:30  Ketchum Run Club, free, all paces, up to four miles. Start point posted on Strava. [info]

Every Wednesday

10:15  Baby and toddler story time at the Hailey library, free. [info]

Noon to 1  Yoga and meditation with Ryan Redman at the Flourish Foundation, free.

Noon to 4  Wood River Farmers Market at Forest Service Park in Ketchum, through Oct 7. [info]

2 to 5  Stitch group at Knit + Needle, free, all levels, drop in. [info]

3 to 4  Paws to Read at the Community Library, free.

3 to 5  Valley Traditional Music Jams at the Community Library, free.

5 and 6:30  Beginner Spanish at Town Center West through the Hailey library, level one then level two. [info]

6 and 9  At Whiskey's on Main: ballroom dance at 6, beginners included, then karaoke at 9. Both free.

Every Thursday

11:30 to 12:30  Pop-In Poetry at the Community Library, free.

4 p.m.  Teens Art Collective at the Hailey library, free. [info]

5 to 7  Stitch group at Knit + Needle again, the evening one. [info]

6:30  Trivia at the TNT Taproom, 271 E Sun Valley Rd, Ketchum. Free, 21 and over.

Every Friday

11 a.m.  Story time at the Hailey library, free. [info]

7 to 9  G-Man's Mountain Eats live music, Bellevue.

Every Saturday

10 a.m.  Dungeons and Dragons club for youth at the Hailey library, free. [info]

10 to 2  Wood River Farmers Market at Roberta McKercher Park in Hailey, through Oct 3. [info]

3:30  Story time again at the Hailey library, free. [info]

Every Sunday

Noon, while supplies last  Tacos and Touchdowns at Whiskey's on Main: $20 all-you-can-eat taco bar.

Most nights

Thu to Mon, 5:30 to 8:30  Live music in the Limelight lounge, 151 Main St S, Ketchum. Free, no cover. [info]

Coming up

Thu Sep 24  SVMoA: Watercolor: Painting in Community, 4, and an Evening Exhibition Tour, 5:30. One entry, both at the museum. [info]

Thu Sep 24  Gimlets in the Garden, Sawtooth Botanical Garden, 5 to 7:30, ticketed. [info]

Thu Sep 24  Plant Bingo at the Sun Valley Garden Center, 771 N Main in Bellevue, 5:30 to 7:30, $30. Register at (208) 788-3533.

Thu Sep 24  Tech Made Simple, Hailey library, Town Center West, 5:30 to 7. Computers, the cloud, and staying safe online. [info]

Thu Sep 24  Lautaro Tissera Favaloro plays the Argyros, 7, ticketed. [tickets]

Fri Sep 25  Wild Flora Farm's flower arranging workshop, the Wylde Beet, 6 to 7:30, $65. Owner Madie Deffé teaches with blooms cut that week, and you take the arrangement home. [info]

Sat Sep 26  The Baldy Hill Climb, 48th running, from Warm Springs, plus a new Community Cup for local-business teams. Register at svsef.org. [info]

Sun Sep 27  Big Wood River Clean Up, 9th annual, 9 to noon. Check in at Howard Preserve in Bellevue, Draper Wood River Preserve in Hailey, or Warm Springs Preserve in Ketchum. Presented by the Wood River Land Trust and the Alpine Collective. [info]

Sun Sep 27  Sunday Evening Ritual at CoreFocus in Hailey, 4 to 5:30. Julia Sarewitz, a shamanic practitioner and Reiki master teacher, leads a guided meditation and shamanic journey. Seated practice, bring a journal. [info]

Wed Sep 30  Chapter One's September Book Club: author Tracy Sierra joins live over Zoom to discuss "Warning Signs." Doors 5:30, Q&A 6.

Sat Oct 10  Wild Flora Farm's season-ending workshop, on the farm near Bellevue, 2 to 4:30, $65. A farm tour plus the year's last fresh-flower class; bring your own food and drink.

Over Galena

Thu Sep 17  Community Craft Night, Stanley Library, 5. Bring a project or use theirs.

Thu  Family movie night at Velvet Falls, free. Kids' film at 6, the older crowd around 8. [info]

Sat Sep 19  Volunteer Trail Work Day, Sawtooth Society, Hell Roaring Trailhead. No start time published.

Sat Sep 19  The 49th Fireman's Ball at Velvet Falls, $10, all ages. Silent auction 6 to 9, Tylor and the Train Robbers 7 to 9, and it pays for Sawtooth Valley fire and the Stanley ambulance. [info]

Sat Sep 19 to Sun Sep 27  Sawtooth NRA end-of-season cleanup. Do a self-guided cleanup on your own schedule, or join the group event Sept. 26 at the Smiley Creek Dump Station for National Public Lands Day, with kits and cleanup info provided. [info]

Wed 7:30  Trivia at the Kasino Club, 620 Ace of Diamonds.

The Dirt

River and fish. The Big Wood is 119 cfs at Hailey, down from 123 a week ago. Silver Creek near Picabo is 77.9 cfs and about 53 degrees at midday, cooler and lower than last week's reading, which came off a different gauge on the same creek, so we're not comparing the two numbers directly this week. Both are still fishable; the incoming rain should color things up some by the weekend. [USGS]

Wet, then it clears. Rain moves in Wednesday night and doesn't fully let up until Friday, the coolest, wettest stretch since summer. Thursday's highs: 74 in Ketchum, 72 in Hailey, 76 in Bellevue, with thunderstorms likely and an 80% chance of rain. Friday eases into the upper 60s, still a good chance of rain. It clears for the weekend: Saturday's sunny and back into the low 70s everywhere, and Sunday looks the same. [National Weather Service]

Over Galena. Valley Creek at Stanley is 91 cfs, and the Salmon below the Yankee Fork is 460, both down from last week but still running well above what the Big Wood carries for its size. Floating and swimming closures for spawning salmon, reach by reach, hold through Tuesday, Sept. 22, under forest order #0414-04-164; call the Stanley Ranger Station, (208) 774-3000, before you put in. [Sawtooth NF]

Open House

We said we'd tell you whether Ketchum made its $500,000 payment to the Wood River Community Housing Trust, due last Wednesday, the first installment toward first-call rights on ten deed-restricted apartments at River Bend. As of this week, nothing has been published confirming it either way. We'll keep checking and tell you when we know.

Also worth knowing if you build or buy downtown: Ketchum's council upheld Planning and Zoning's denial of Sawtooth Serenade, the 23,906-square-foot house proposed for 260 N. First, on a 3-0 vote. It's a live signal on how much bulk and mass the city will actually approve on a small downtown lot, with a written opinion due Sept. 24.

Table Talk

Two kitchens are hiring for openings still unannounced. The Harriman, the Viceroy-branded resort under construction in downtown Ketchum, is staffing up its restaurant and banquet dining [jobs], and a Vietnamese-inspired, seafood-focused restaurant is hiring for a September debut in Sun Valley [jobs].

Nothing opened or closed down here this week that we could find.

Know a new spot or a shuttered one? Hit reply. Tips beat press releases every time.

If you do one thing this weekend, walk over to Hop Porter Park Saturday morning for Hike for Hope. Check-in's at 8, the hike goes at 9, and it costs nothing to show up for a cause worth showing up for.

See you next Thursday.

The Bigwood Brief

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