CALDWELL, Idaho — At Monday night's Caldwell City Council meeting, the council approved a letter of intent for a hotel development near the fairgrounds in a 4-2 vote.
The property that developers, KSA Investments LLC, want to build a hotel on is the Caldwell Event Center, which is an empty dirt lot.
The hotel would be a minimum of 100 rooms, according to city documents.
"It's something we need extremely bad," Mayor Jarom Wagoner told KTVB Tuesday about hotel demand in the city. "We have excessive leakage here in Caldwell, the limited number of hotels that we have, many of the people that come to our great events here at Caldwell and visit Caldwell end up staying in Nampa meridian, even out in Boise."
Councilmember Mike Dittenber also told KTVB Tuesday, the city is "going through growing pains."
The hotel project's letter of intent was initially planned to be discussed at a November council meeting. But was pulled from the agenda.
Mayor Jarom Wagoner said at the meeting it was pulled because they wanted to look into "parking and other potential concerns."
An approved letter of intent indicates the city shows interest in moving the project forward. The final stamp of approval would be an approved development contract.
The hotel would be close to The Caldwell Night Rodeo, The Canyon County Fairgrounds, and The College of Idaho. It's also near the train tracks.
"There's a lot of activities that generate around those uses, so it'll be a great place for those people to stay when they come and go to the Caldwell Night Rodeo, or if they're coming to the fair, or the other many events that are taking place," Mayor Wagoner said.
The letter of intent was placed back on the agenda for Monday night. The city received 69 public comments via email for the project. Sixty-six of the emails were against the project and three were for the project.
Councilmember Diana Registered voiced her concerns about the project Monday night, including how it would affect livestock parking for the fair.
"These kids have taken on the responsibility to be the steward of life and land, and to put them on the back burner and say, 'you don't matter' would be absolutely the most irresponsible thing this panel could do," Caldwell resident, Amity Wilson said at the meeting.
The council also heard from a high school contestant part of the Future Farmers of America (FFA).
"In past years it has been hard enough to find parking and be able to bring in resources, as exhibitors who have to stay all week," highschooler, Abigial Johansen said. "Having to bring equipment and livestock from across the road or the railroad or train tracks is not realistic."
KTVB stopped by the property Tuesday, where several horse riders had their trailers parked in the dirt lot for open ride days at the fairgrounds.
Abby Michaelis, who was on the property, said she's used the lot for as long as she could remember. It's right across the fairground, offering convenience.
"I am selfishly disappointed," Michaelis said. "To not have to walk or cross traffic... It's almost the safety... to be able to use this and not be parked farther away or closer to the train."
Despite the pushback from residents, the council still approved the letter of intent.
Many, like longtime community member Eric Phillips, feel the city made a decision too quickly.
"It's just really heartbreaking to know that this is being taken away from all those communities," Phillips said. "KSA development, we welcome a hotel in the city of Caldwell... in the right location."
Phillips said he hoped developers would reconsider and plan a hotel on a different lot.
Councilmember Brad Doty, Councilmember Mike Dittenber, Councilmember Chris Allgood, and Councilmember Geoff Williams all voted for the project.
"It's used a couple times a year for football," Councilmember Dittenber said about the dirt lot. "It's used once a year for rodeo. It's used once a year for the fair. And getting a full-time permanent tenant there to help with the improvements and to pay taxes and a lease on the ground is good for that whole area."
When asked about residents not feeling heard, Dittenber said he heard everyone who spoke about the issue but disagreed with those against the project. He said there were three reasons he supported the project.
"The first reason is that area mobile is highly subsidized by taxpayers having a tax paying entity, there will be some measure of tax release," Councilmember Dittenber told KTVB. "The second reason I voted for it is because we do need a quality hotel in that area, an area that we commonly know as the entertainment district. And the final reason is because we at the government have an obligation to make sure that people with resources are masked with opportunity. And this was a perfect example of where resources match with opportunity, and we should never stand in the way of that."
Councilmember Diana Register and Councilmember Chuck Stadick voted against it.
"This lot has historically served as critical space for participants, patrons, visitors and our youth for the Caldwell Night Rodeo, Canyon County Fair, and other events central to our community," Councilmember Register said in a statement to KTVB. "Caldwell deserves better planning and a true commitment to solutions that honor our heritage and strengthen our community."
Steve Jenkins, the city's economic development director, provided the council various improvement idea that the city could make to the fairgrounds to create additional parking options. He said most of them are inexpensive and can be done quickly.
Jenkins added if the hotel project was approved by the developer, it would provide 198 parking stalls and 23 trailer stalls. It's unclear who and when those spots could be used.
Councilmember Brad Doty also said at the meeting he's been in conversation with the rodeo, who said they'd be open to allow 4-H contestants park on their lot if needed.
Councilmember Register said she would prefer these details be shored up before voting to approve a project.
KSA is hoping to start work on the project in the Spring of 2025, with a grand opening in the Spring of 2026.
The project's development agreement is planned to be heard on Dec. 16. This is the last step the developers need to make the project happen.
Caldwell Night Rodeo released a response regarding the hotel
“As one of the nation’s top professional rodeos, the Caldwell Night Rodeo is kicking off our next 100 years of operation with a new, modern look, thanks to our highly anticipated capital campaign. Our goal is to update and improve the rodeo experience for our athletes and fans alike, while continuing to make Canyon County a desired destination for anyone to visit and enjoy,” Lodge said. “Our team is excited to grow our rodeo right here in Caldwell and remain committed to sharing our Western roots and heritage.”
“Due to our legacy in the area, the Caldwell Night Rodeo plays an active part in the planning and development for the City of Caldwell. After learning more about the plans for the proposed hotel near our arena grounds from our partners in the Caldwell Event Center complex and in joint-work with the City, we believe the planned hotel development could improve the overall experience for our rodeo fans and visitors,” Lodge continued. “But nothing has been approved yet, and we look forward to further discussion with the City and all other stakeholders about the potential development. Together, we believe we can plan and implement new ideas in our shared community that can help create a better experience for Caldwell natives and rodeo visitors alike.”