Gibbonsville
Gibbonsville, ID · Business
East Idaho News
Eleven-year-old starts eastern Idaho’s first pop-up ‘slime bar’
AMMON – A girl from eastern Idaho has started the region’s first pop-up station dedicated to selling a unique product that she makes herself. Eleven-year-old Peyton Martin, of Ammon, is the owner of Cloud Nine Slime, which she started in May with the help of her mother, Alyssa Martin. After only operating for a summer, the mother-daughter duo have taken the business to multiple farmer’s markets and craft fairs, where they’ve sold their own house-made “slime.” Peyton says there’s no one right way to play with the slime. “You (can) just stretch it and pull it in your own way. … I just sit down s...
Idaho State Journal
Nearly a year into receivership, LA Semiconductor's Pocatello plant sits empty as sale stalls and lenders move toward foreclosure
POCATELLO — Six months after the last of LA Semiconductor’s remaining 342 employees were laid off, the wafer fabrication plant on Buckskin Road sits largely empty. The building’s owners are now moving toward handing it over to a lender to satisfy a defaulted loan while local officials are hoping against hope a facility that once housed some of the best-paying jobs in the Gate City will be sold and repurposed. Visits to the plant this month found the parking lot — once brimming with vehicles — nearly vacant, with fewer than 10 cars present on multiple occasions at any given time of day. Security fencing rings the facility, and signage directs the handful of remaining employees to a single opening on the building’s west side. In a statement provided to the Journal Tuesday, Pocatello Mayor Mark Dahlquist called the plant’s future the city’s top economic development priority. “Getting the former LA Semiconductor plant back up and running is of utmost importance,” Dahlquist said. “It’s by far and away the top economic development priority for the city of Pocatello. Over the past several weeks, we’ve worked closely with the Macquarie Group, Portneuf Valley Development, the Idaho Department of Commerce, Idaho State
Idaho State Journal
New owner shifts OCDRC Hobby Shop into high gear with free crawler course and a push to get kids off screens
POCATELLO — Bryce Shurtliff wasn't looking for a remote control car shop when he started searching for a business to buy. He just knew he wanted one that would make people smile. Shurtliff, a former teacher, took over OCDRC Hobby Shop in June. The Pocatello store specializes in radio-controlled cars and parts and has served Southeast Idaho for about a decade. Keeping things lighthearted was part of what he loved about working with students, and he wanted to carry that same energy into his next chapter. "I wanted to find something fun that wasn't going to be drab," Shurtliff said. When the hobby shop went up for sale, it checked that box. He plans to stick with what the previous owner built, stocking reliable, well-machined brands. The biggest change will be who the shop reaches. The former owner focused mostly on longtime enthusiasts, many of whom have been in the hobby for 20 years or more. Shurtliff wants to open the door wider for beginners and families. He has already watched grandparents and parents work on builds alongside their kids, which he sees as a way to pull young people away from their phones and tablets. "I think a lot
Idaho State Journal
Blackfoot farmer ramps up legal fight against water curtailment, sues groundwater district for defamation
BLACKFOOT — A Blackfoot-area farmer sued by the state in summer 2025 for refusing to stop irrigating his crops has shifted from defense to offense, filing a petition for judicial review of Idaho’s curtailment orders, a new lawsuit arguing the state owes him compensation for taking his water rights, and a defamation lawsuit against the Bingham Ground Water District — all while regulators continue ordering him to shut off his wells. Three active cases. One Blackfoot farmer. And no signs of either side backing down. Jerry Bingham and his wife, Valerie, filed a petition for judicial review in Bingham County District Court on Sept. 15, challenging a string of Idaho Department of Water Resources orders that have kept their roughly 1,000-acre farm largely without irrigation water since July 2025. They simultaneously filed a motion asking the court to stay enforcement of the curtailment while the case plays out — arguing that without immediate relief, the family faces bankruptcy. “Our farm is already facing the difficulty of surviving the harm caused by curtailment during the 2025 irrigation season,” Bingham said in a sworn declaration filed with the court. “A continuing curtailment through this fall and into the spring of 2027 would
Idaho State Journal
Swore Farms kicks off fall with corn maze, pumpkin patch and family fun
POCATELLO — A season of family-friendly events is underway at Swore Farms, kicking off fall with a 3.3-acre corn maze, a 12-acre pumpkin patch and the annual Pup or Treat on Halloween. Swore Farms officially opened for fall Sept. 28, and the family-focused farm continues to emphasize community-oriented fun and a connection to nature. Owners Wendy and Mike Swore bought the farm in the early 2000s while raising their five children. The farm planted about 24,000 pumpkin plants this year, including more than 30 varieties. Visitors can ride a tractor-pulled wagon to any of the farm's three pumpkin patches, choose their own pumpkins and carry them out in pumpkin wagons provided by the farm. Regular pumpkins are 40 cents per pound, mini pumpkins are $2 and small field trip-size pumpkins are $3. Specialty varieties, such as the gnarly-stemmed Wolf pumpkin, are priced individually. One of the farm's primary fall draws is its corn maze, which debuted in 2004. Wendy Swore said she has put about 200 hours into making this year's maze, which features Idaho agriculture trivia that guides visitors along the route. Visitors who answer correctly move on to the next question, and wrong answers send them looking for
KPVI Newschannel 6
Taking on the Swore Farms Corn Maze
With the arrival of fall, Swore Farms in Pocatello has officially opened its corn maze and pumpkin patch. Wendy Swore hand cuts the corn maze herself every year. "I freehand it with a weed whacker with no GPS and no map," she says. "My daughter says I'm a whimsical termite as I get in there and just cut it all out."
East Idaho News
Blackfoot farmers sue Idaho after state shuts off irrigation water
BLACKFOOT – A couple’s lawsuit against the Idaho Department of Water Resources alleges an arbitrary state law is denying them access to irrigation water and preventing them from watering crops. Jerry and Valerie Bingham own a 1,000-acre farm west of Blackfoot where they grow wheat, alfalfa and potatoes. The department shut off their water in May allegedly because they were not part of a state-approved mitigation plan. They filed a petition on Sept. 15 asking the court to review the department’s order. They also filed a motion to stay the order pending a review. The Binghams were not available ...