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Happening in Pocatello keeps locals informed with a weekly rundown of the city’s biggest news, events, crime reports, sports highlights, school district updates, weather, traffic issues, and restaurant talk. Hosts Mark and Joline bring a raw, critical edge that cuts through the noise and makes staying informed unexpectedly fun.
MARK: Welcome to another soul-crushing Tuesday in the Gate City. You're listening to Happening in Pocatello, the only podcast that tells you exactly how much shit is hitting the fan in our beloved high-desert wind tunnel. I'm Mark, your guide through the sarcasm and general apathy of life in the two-zero-eight.
JOLEEN: And I'm Joleen, the upbeat cynic who's just here for the chaos and the inevitable property tax hikes. It's May twenty-sixth, twenty-twenty-six, and we've got a lot of garbage to wade through today. Before we get into the actual news, if you want to yell at us or tell us how much you hate our voices, email us at pocatello@thehappeningnetwork.com.
MARK: Seriously, send us your complaints. Or don't. I'm indifferent. But if you actually like this show for some godforsaken reason, do the internet thing. Like, subscribe, and leave a comment telling us how wrong we are about everything. It feeds the algorithm, and the algorithm is the only thing that loves us back.
JOLEEN: God, you're a ray of sunshine today, Mark. Did someone piss in your irrigation water? Anyway, let's talk about the big headline from the weekend. The Bannock County PRCA Rodeo wrapped up at the Events Complex, and apparently, people still enjoy watching grown men try not to die while clinging to a thousand pounds of angry beef.
MARK: It's called heritage, Joleen. Or a very expensive way to get a concussion. The results are in, and it turns out New Mexico's Lucas Cruz walked away with the All Around Cowboy prize. The PRCA handed out over forty-two thousand dollars in prize money, which is enough to buy, what, half a house in this current market?
JOLEEN: Maybe a nice shed in Chubbuck. But for real, the local boys represented. Dalton Allred took first in Bull Riding with an eighty-six point score on a bull named 'Crunch Time'. Which, coincidentally, is also the name of my mental state every Monday morning. The announcers were all hyped up saying pro rodeo is finally back in Pocatello after over a decade.
MARK: They're calling it a 'Wild West' revival. I just call it a lot of dirt and expensive hats. But hey, if people are willing to pay twenty-five bucks to watch team roping, who am I to judge? Cru Parry and Jesse Lindsay won that event with a six-second run. Six seconds. That's faster than most people at the Fred Meyer checkout line.
JOLEEN: To be fair, the bullfighters and that rodeo clown, Dustin 'The Jester' Jenkins, are the real heroes. They're the only ones keeping the bull from turning those cowboys into human pretzels. It's a miracle more people don't end up in the Portneuf Medical Center after these things. It's just controlled chaos for the sake of entertainment.
MARK: Speaking of people who should probably be in custody, did you see the report from the Idaho State Police? They had a high-speed chase and a massive narcotics seizure near Pocatello just before midnight last Tuesday. The Domestic Highway Enforcement team was out in full force, and apparently, someone thought they could outrun the law while hauling a mountain of drugs.
JOLEEN: Oh, for fuck's sake. Another 'Fast and Furious' wannabe in a beat-up Honda? The report says they seized a large quantity of narcotics after a pursuit. It's always the same story. Some dickhead thinks the I-fifteen is a private racetrack for their side hustle. At least they caught them before they made it into town to sell that shit to the college kids.
MARK: The cops didn't specify exactly what kind of drugs, but given the 'large quantity' tag, it wasn't just a couple of joints. It's that heavy-duty highway interdiction stuff. It's wild that people still try to run in this day and age. Every cop car has a camera, every person has a phone, and yet, some asshole still thinks, 'Yeah, I can definitely ditch this trooper in my twenty-year-old sedan'.
JOLEEN: It's the meth-head confidence, Mark. It's a hell of a drug. But hey, at least the ISP is earning their keep. While we're on the subject of people leaving their jobs, we've got some movement over at the School District twenty-five offices. Zone three Trustee Jim Facer officially called it quits.
MARK: He's been on the board since twenty-twenty, and before that, from twenty-twelve to twenty-fifteen. That's a long time to spend listening to parents yell about library books and lunch menus. His resignation is effective June eighth, which is just in time for him to miss the summer heat and the inevitable fall budget meltdowns.
JOLEEN: I don't blame the guy. Being on a school board is basically a thankless volunteer gig where everyone hates you no matter what you do. The district is already looking for a replacement. If you live in Zone three and you're masochistic enough to want to manage a multimillion-dollar budget while being scrutinized by every Karen in the county, now's your chance.
MARK: The Board has ninety days to find a replacement. They've set a deadline for June twenty-third for applications. I'm sure the line will be out the door. Not. But seriously, Facer did some good work, helped with the technical education stuff at PV-TEC. It's a shame to see the sane ones leave.
JOLEEN: And let's not forget the union drama. The district and the Pocatello Education Association finally ratified their negotiated agreement for the next school year. It's the usual song and dance about 'flat state funding' and 'rising costs'. Basically, the teachers are getting enough to keep buying coffee, but they're still facing a budget that's tighter than a pair of those rodeo jeans we talked about.
MARK: The district is blaming declining enrollment and inflation. It's the same excuse every year. We're paying more for fuel, insurance, and utilities, so the classroom gets the scraps. Superintendent Howell says they're managing it through attrition, which is a fancy way of saying when someone quits, they just don't hire a new person and make everyone else work twice as hard.
JOLEEN: It's a classic corporate move, just with more glitter and finger painting. But hey, it's graduation week! New Horizon is hitting the wellness complex on June fourth, and the big three--Highland, Century, and Pocatello--are taking over the ICCU Dome on the fifth. I'm sure the traffic will be an absolute nightmare.
MARK: Oh, it'll be a shitshow. Thousands of people descending on the dome to watch teenagers walk across a stage. If you don't have a kid graduating, stay the hell away from North Main and the university area. Trust me. You'll spend forty minutes trying to turn left while grandma in the SUV in front of you decides if she's in the right lane.
JOLEEN: Speaking of being in the right place, I went to Himalayan Flavor on Alameda the other day. If you haven't been there, you're missing out on the only thing that makes this town's food scene interesting. It's got a four-point-eight rating on Yelp, and honestly, that's almost too low for the magic they're doing with those momos.
MARK: Is that the place with the curry that makes you regret your life choices the next morning? Because I've heard the 'Himalayan' heat level isn't for the faint of heart. Most people in Pocatello think black pepper is a spice, so that place must be a shock to the system for the locals.
JOLEEN: Oh, it's incredible. I had the Tikka Masala and the garlic naan, and I'm pretty sure I saw God for a second. It's authentic Indian and Nepali food, which is a nice break from the fifty-seven burger joints we have. The atmosphere is great, too. It's one of those hidden gems where you actually feel like you've left Idaho for an hour.
MARK: I'll stick to my sarcasm and cold sandwiches, but I'll take your word for it. It's definitely better than eating at another chain restaurant where the highlight of the night is the 'unlimited' breadsticks that taste like cardboard. We need more of that variety. I'm sick of 'New American' spots that just serve overpriced mac and cheese.
JOLEEN: Amen to that. Now, let's pivot to sports, because the Idaho State softball team's historic run finally hit a wall. They made it to the NCAA Regionals for the first time ever, which is huge, but they got knocked out in Eugene after losing to Oregon and Saint Mary's. Five-to-one against the Ducks and three-to-one against the Gaels.
MARK: It's bittersweet. They won the Big Sky tournament, which was a first, and they actually led Oregon for three innings. Alyssa Yee and Ava Brown were crushing it. But then the Ducks hit a grand slam in the fourth, and that was pretty much the end of the fairytale. Still, thirty-seven wins on the season is nothing to sneeze at.
JOLEEN: They've officially put Pocatello on the map for something other than wind and potatoes. Those girls are absolute badasses. Ava Brown was the Big Sky MVP, and honestly, watching them run-rule their way through the conference tournament was the highlight of the spring. It sucks they're done, but the bar is set pretty damn high for next year.
MARK: The bar is set high, but the roster turnover is going to be a bitch. They've got a lot of seniors moving on. But hey, that's college sports. You build a winner, and then everyone graduates or transfers to a bigger school for that NIL money. Let's hope they can keep the momentum going.
JOLEEN: Let's hope. Moving on to things you can actually do this weekend instead of mourning a softball season. The Portneuf Valley Farmers Market is back at Lookout Point this Saturday. It's the usual crowd--people selling organic carrots for six dollars and someone's aunt selling knitted cat hats. It's peak Pocatello.
MARK: It's where you go to pretend you're healthy while buying a giant cinnamon roll the size of your head. And don't forget the 'Free Day' at Zoo Idaho on May thirtieth. If you want to see the animals without paying the entry fee, that's the day. Just be prepared to share the space with about five thousand screaming toddlers.
JOLEEN: Ugh, the toddlers. The true apex predators of the zoo. But hey, it's free. And if you're looking for something a bit more active, the 'Poky Paddle' is coming up on June third. It's a big community float down the Portneuf River. I'm assuming half the people will end up in the bushes, but it's a tradition, right?
MARK: A tradition of getting stuck on a rock while looking at the back of a car dealership. The Portneuf isn't exactly the Amazon, Joleen. It's more like a very long, very muddy creek. But people love it. They also have 'Revive at Five' starting up at Lookout Point next Wednesday. Live music, food trucks, and local beer. It's basically the city's way of saying, 'Please don't move to Boise'.
JOLEEN: It works on me. Give me a taco truck and some mediocre indie rock, and I'm set. But you know what isn't set? The weather. It's absolute chaos this week. Today we're hitting eighty-one degrees with thundershowers. Because nothing says 'Spring in Idaho' like getting a heatstroke and then being struck by lightning in the same afternoon.
MARK: It's the bipolar sky. Tomorrow, Wednesday the twenty-seventh, it's dropping down to seventy-three during the day and a freezing thirty-one at night. A forty-degree swing in twelve hours. If you haven't turned off your sprinklers, your lawn is going to be a skating rink by Thursday morning. It's ridiculous.
JOLEEN: Seriously, don't plant your flowers yet unless you want them to commit suicide. Thursday we're back up to eighty-one, and by Friday it's eighty-five. It's like the weather god is just rolling dice at this point. We've got more thundershowers predicted for the weekend, too. So if you're planning that 'Free Zoo Day', bring an umbrella and a parka. And maybe a life jacket.
MARK: I'll just stay inside and yell at the clouds. It's safer. But if you have to drive, be careful with the construction. Highland Boulevard is going to be closed between Hillcrest and Mountain Drive tomorrow, Wednesday, for a sewer line replacement. Because of course it is. Why wouldn't we close a major road right in the middle of the week?
JOLEEN: And East Putnam Street is getting a water mainline upgrade starting today. They're saying it'll take four weeks. Four weeks of 'Road Closed' signs and men in orange vests standing around looking at a hole. It's the official state pastime. Oh, and South Fifth is still reduced to one lane for water line work near Piedmont Road. It's a goddamn obstacle course out there.
MARK: Don't even get me started on the Pole Line Road water main break. They're still patching that up. Between the road work and the potholes, your suspension is going to be crying for mercy. It's almost like the city waits until everyone is finally outside to start digging up every square inch of asphalt.
JOLEEN: They definitely do. They have a secret meeting every April to decide which routes will cause the most frustration. And while you're sitting in traffic, you can think about the real estate market. The median list price is sitting around three hundred and fifty-five thousand dollars right now. A bit lower than last month, but still high enough to make you weep.
MARK: They're calling it a 'reset'. I call it 'people finally realizing they shouldn't pay four hundred grand for a house built in nineteen-fifty-two with original plumbing'. The market is shifting to a seller's market again, though, because inventory is still low. There are only about a hundred and sixty active listings. That's not a lot for a city this size.
JOLEEN: It's competitive, too. Homes are selling in about fifty days, which is pretty fast. If you're a buyer, you're still looking at paying almost full list price. It's a tough time to be looking for a starter home unless your idea of a 'starter' includes a trust fund or a very successful career in narcotics trafficking like those guys the ISP caught.
MARK: Allegedly, Joleen. Allegedly. But yeah, the 'reset' is mostly just prices growing more slowly instead of skyrocketing. It's not like homes are suddenly going back to twenty-nineteen prices. That dream is dead and buried under the Benton Street Bridge. We're in the era of the 'slightly-less-expensive-but-still-overpriced' bungalow.
JOLEEN: God, I hate it here. Well, I mean, I love the city, but I hate the prices. But hey, if we wanted affordable housing and perfect weather, we'd... actually, I don't know where we'd go. Everywhere is a disaster right now. At least here we have Himalayan Flavor and a rodeo once a year to keep us from losing our minds.
MARK: And this podcast. Don't forget this high-quality, professional production. We're basically the glue holding Pocatello together. Or maybe we're the cracks. It's hard to tell. Either way, that's all the misery we have for you today. Remember, we're here every week to remind you that things could always be worse.
JOLEEN: You're so inspiring, Mark. Truly. Listeners, don't forget to check out the farmers market this weekend, and keep an eye on that Zone three school board vacancy if you want to be the hero nobody asked for. We'll be back next Tuesday with more news, more sarcasm, and probably more road closures.
MARK: Email us at pocatello@thehappeningnetwork.com. Like, subscribe, and tell your friends to listen so we can feel slightly more important. Stay safe out there, Pocatello. Watch out for the lightning and the potholes. Mostly the potholes.
JOLEEN: And the rodeo cowboys. They're unpredictable. Bye, losers!