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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 back to *Happening in Pocatello*. I’m Mark.
JOLEEN: And I’m Joleen.
MARK: It is Monday, December 8th, 2025. And let me tell you, if you haven’t had your coffee yet, you might want to brew a second pot. We have a hell of a lot to get through today.
JOLEEN: Yeah, no shit. It’s been a weird week. The wind is howling like a banshee out there, the political landscape just got hit with an earthquake, and I’m pretty sure half the town is still stuck in traffic on I-15.
MARK: We’ll get to the parking lot formerly known as the Interstate in a minute. But first, we have to address the elephant in the room. Or rather, the new Mayor in the chambers. The runoff election is over. The results are in. And frankly, it wasn’t even close.
JOLEEN: Not even a little bit. Mark Dahlquist absolutely crushed it. We’re talking sixty-two percent of the vote. Greg Cates didn’t just lose; he got buried.
MARK: It’s a bloodbath. You look at the numbers—over seven thousand votes for Dahlquist against four thousand for Cates. This isn’t a 'margin of error' victory. This is a 'pack your shit and go home' victory.
JOLEEN: Savage. But true. Brian Blad is out after fifteen years. That’s a long time to hold the reins, Mark. Fifteen years of the same face, the same policies. And now, suddenly, we’ve got Dahlquist talking about a 'bright new day.' It sounds nice, but I’m always skeptical when politicians start using weather metaphors.
MARK: Especially in Pocatello, where the weather is usually trying to kill you. But Dahlquist isn’t just winning on vibes. He’s been pushing this idea of a 'full ladder of housing.' He wants zoning reform, he wants to fast-track projects. He’s looking at those empty lots and seeing duplexes and townhomes.
JOLEEN: Which, let’s be real, we desperately need. Rent is out of control. I was talking to a student from ISU the other day—poor kid is paying more for a basement studio than I paid for my first house. If Dahlquist can actually get some affordable units built, I might actually forgive him for the 'new day' cliché.
MARK: Don't hold your breath, Joleen. Politicians love ribbon cuttings, but they hate zoning meetings. But hey, he celebrated at Portneuf Valley Brewing, so at least he has good taste in beer. We’ll see if that translates to policy.
JOLEEN: Speaking of policy, can we talk about the School District? Because District 25 is on a warpath against cell phones, and I have thoughts.
MARK: Oh, I knew this would trigger you. The 'turn it off and put it away' rule.
JOLEEN: It’s draconian, Mark! They’re treating these high schoolers like inmates. 'Turn it off, keep it out of sight.' They can only check them at lunch? What if there’s an emergency? What if their mom needs to tell them to pick up their little brother?
MARK: Then they can call the office like we did in the nineties. Look, the pilot program at Highland was a massive success. The principals are reporting a 'huge increase in engagement.' Turns out, when you aren't scrolling through TikTok watching someone dance in a kitchen, you might actually learn algebra. Who knew?
JOLEEN: Okay, boomer. I get the distraction thing. I do. But it’s the control aspect that rubs me the wrong way. It feels like we’re just training them to be compliant little drones. 'Put your device in the caddy, citizen.' It’s creepy.
MARK: It’s school, Joleen. You’re there to learn, not to build your brand. And let’s be honest, half the fights and drama in these schools start on social media anyway. If locking the phones up for six hours stops one bathroom brawl, I’d say it’s worth it.
JOLEEN: Maybe. I still think they should trust the kids a little more. But hey, I’m not the one dealing with thirty teenagers staring at their crotches all day.
MARK: Exactly. Moving on to something we can both agree sucks—traffic. Did you hear about the mess on I-15 last week?
JOLEEN: Hear about it? I have friends who are probably still emotionally recovering from it. Friday morning, exit 73. A Freightliner decided it wanted to be a roadblock.
MARK: Seven hours, Joleen. The exit was blocked for seven hours.
JOLEEN: Apparently, the driver drifted out of his lane, hit the concrete barrier, and the truck just laid down for a nap across the off-ramp.
MARK: And this guy was from Coalville, Utah. I don’t want to cast aspersions on our neighbors to the south, but come on. Stay in your lane, buddy.
JOLEEN: Hey, at least no one was hurt. That’s the miracle here. You see 'semi-truck vs. concrete barrier' in the headlines and you expect the worst. But still, imagine being stuck in that backup. Seven hours. What do you even do?
MARK: You contemplate your life choices. You listen to every podcast in your queue. You probably curse the day the internal combustion engine was invented.
JOLEEN: I’d be losing my mind. I’d be that person walking up and down the highway asking people for snacks. 'Got any chips? I've been here since breakfast.'
MARK: And the icing on the cake? It’s not just the crash. The weather has been making the roads a nightmare anyway. We’ve got this wind—which we’ll get to—but the freezing fog and the black ice have been sneaky lately.
JOLEEN: Oh, totally. I was driving down Yellowstone yesterday and my traction control light was flashing like a disco ball. It’s that time of year, folks. If you have four-wheel drive, that doesn't mean you have four-wheel stop. Don't be a dick. Slow down.
MARK: Sage advice. Speaking of animals—or at least, Animal Services—we have a new sheriff in town for the stray dogs of Pocatello.
JOLEEN: Yeah, Liam Hughes. He’s the new Animal Services Manager. And this guy’s resume is… intense. He’s coming from Cheyenne, but before that, he was doing disaster response and cruelty investigations.
MARK: Disaster response. That feels appropriate for managing a shelter sometimes. It’s chaotic work.
JOLEEN: It is. But I like that he has that background. It means he’s not going to get rattled when things go sideways. And he’s big on the 'bond between pets and people' philosophy. It’s not just about catching stray cats; it’s about education.
MARK: He also relocated his whole family here back in October, so he’s committed. I think it’s a good hire. The shelter is a tough gig. It’s thankless. You deal with sad situations every day. If this guy can bring some of that disaster-response efficiency to the table, good for him.
JOLEEN: Agreed. Hopefully, he can do something about the feral cat situation near the creek, because that is getting out of hand. I saw a cat the size of a bobcat the other night. I think it hissed at me.
MARK: That probably *was* a bobcat, Joleen.
JOLEEN: No, it was a tabby! A giant, angry tabby.
MARK: Alright, let’s pivot to sports before you start fighting the local wildlife. Idaho State Men’s Basketball. It’s been a rollercoaster week.
JOLEEN: A total split. They went to the Holiday Hoops Classic. First game against Sam Houston? Heartbreaker.
MARK: Eighty-four to eighty-one. Close game. They fought hard, but Sam Houston just edged them out in the final minutes. It’s frustrating because the Bengals played well enough to win.
JOLEEN: But then they turned around and absolutely dismantled Cal State Northridge. Eighty-two to fifty. That is a beatdown.
MARK: That’s the kind of game that gives you hope for the season. To lose a close one and then come back with that kind of fire? It shows resilience. They didn’t pout. They just got angry and took it out on the next team.
JOLEEN: Which is the healthy way to deal with your emotions. Take it out on Cal State Northridge.
MARK: Exactly. We’ve got a lot of basketball left to play, but if they can play like they did in that second game consistently, we might actually have a fun winter at Reed Gym.
JOLEEN: And for the love of god, go support them. It’s warm inside the gym. The wind can’t hurt you there.
MARK: Let’s talk about food. We need to eat. And since the new Mayor was partying there, I felt compelled to stop by Portneuf Valley Brewing this weekend to see if the victory vibes made the pizza taste better.
JOLEEN: Oh, nice. I haven’t been to the brewery in a minute. Was it packed?
MARK: It was busy. And honestly, the atmosphere was buzzing. I don’t know if it was just the election hangover or what, but people were in a good mood.
JOLEEN: Did you get the Penny’s Porter? Because if you didn’t, you did it wrong.
MARK: Of course I got the Porter. I’m a professional, Joleen. It’s dark, it’s smooth, it’s got that little bit of chocolatey bitterness. It is the perfect beer for December in Idaho. It warms you up from the inside.
JOLEEN: It really is. What about the food?
MARK: I went for the classic pepperoni pizza. Listen, Portneuf Valley isn’t trying to be some high-end Neapolitan bistro. It’s pub pizza. The crust has that nice chew, a little bit of char on the bottom. It’s greasy, but in the best possible way. The cheese pull was legitimate.
JOLEEN: That sounds amazing right now. I love their location too. It’s tucked away, it feels cozy. It’s a great spot to hide from the world for a few hours.
MARK: And the service was solid, despite the crowd. No one was waiting too long for a refill. I give it a solid thumbs up. If it’s good enough for Mayor-Elect Dahlquist to launch his 'new day' from, it’s good enough for me to have a slice and a pint.
JOLEEN: Hell yeah. Support local beer. Always.
MARK: Now, let’s look at what is happening this week. Because despite the cold, people are actually leaving their houses.
JOLEEN: It’s the holiday season, Mark. People feel obligated to go do festive shit. And frankly, there’s some good stuff on the calendar.
MARK: First up, the Stephens Performing Arts Center is running *A Christmas Carol*. It’s going tonight, the 8th, and then again on the 10th, 11th, and 12th.
JOLEEN: You can’t not see *A Christmas Carol*. It’s tradition. And the Stephens Center always puts on a high-quality production. It’s not some rinky-dink school play. These guys have production value.
MARK: If you want something a little different, there’s also *The Curious Savage*. That’s playing tonight, and then again on the 12th and 13th. It’s a comedy, a little quirky. Good alternative if you’re sick of Scrooge.
JOLEEN: And for the music lovers, the Idaho State Civic Symphony is doing their 'Joy to the World' concert on Friday the 12th. That’s always a classy night out. Put on a nice sweater, go listen to some violins, pretend you’re sophisticated.
MARK: And then on Saturday the 13th, if you need to buy gifts and you waited until the last minute—which I know you did—there’s the Crafter’s Market at Station Square.
JOLEEN: Station Square is such a cool venue. And buying from local crafters is way better than ordering some plastic crap from Amazon. You can get handmade soaps, jewelry, knitted hats. Real stuff made by real people in Pocatello.
MARK: Plus, you don’t have to worry about porch pirates stealing it if you buy it in person.
JOLEEN: Exactly. Win-win.
MARK: Alright, Joleen, hit me with the bad news. What is the weather going to do to us this week?
JOLEEN: Okay, so... don’t shoot the messenger. But it’s going to be windy. Like, *really* windy.
MARK: Fantastic.
JOLEEN: Today, Monday, we’re looking at highs around 48, lows in the 40s. Cloudy. But the wind is kicking up. Tomorrow, Tuesday, it gets worse. High of 52, but 'strong winds' is the forecast. We’re talking gusts that will rip the car door out of your hand if you aren’t careful.
MARK: I hate the wind. I can deal with snow. I can deal with cold. But the wind just makes everything miserable. It gets in your bones.
JOLEEN: Well, buckle up, buttercup, because it stays windy through Friday. Wednesday and Thursday are warm-ish—mid-50s—but still very windy. Thursday night drops into the 30s. And then by the weekend, it cools down a bit more.
MARK: So basically, hold onto your hats. Literally.
JOLEEN: And secure your garbage cans, people! I don’t want to be dodging your recycling bin on the connector. If you know it’s going to blow 30 miles per hour, maybe put a brick on the lid.
MARK: Solid advice. Also, rain is in the mix. Tuesday and Wednesday have a decent chance of rain. So it’s going to be wet, windy, and grey. Classic December.
JOLEEN: It’s gross. Just stay inside, drink the porter, watch the basketball game. That’s my plan.
MARK: Before we wrap up, I want to circle back to the real estate thing for a second. We talked about Dahlquist’s plan, but I saw a stat that median home prices are hovering around $334,000.
JOLEEN: Which is up from last year. It’s creeping up. Slow and steady. It’s great if you own a home, sucks if you’re trying to buy one.
MARK: It’s a competitive market. Homes are sitting for about two months on average, but the good ones go fast. If Dahlquist really wants to fix this, he’s got his work cut out for him. Increasing supply is the only way to level those prices out.
JOLEEN: Yeah, well, we’ll see if the 'NIMBY' crowd lets him build those townhomes. Everyone wants affordable housing until it’s proposed for the lot next door to them. Then suddenly it’s all about 'preserving neighborhood character.'
MARK: Ain't that the truth. 'Not In My Backyard,' the official motto of homeowners everywhere.
JOLEEN: Pretty much.
MARK: One last thing—did you hear about the gnomes?
JOLEEN: The gnomes? Like, garden gnomes?
MARK: Yeah. Someone stole hand-painted gnomes from a child’s grave at Mountain View Cemetery.
JOLEEN: Are you kidding me? That is... that is the lowest of the low. Who steals from a kid's grave?
MARK: A complete scumbag, that’s who. The family is pleading for them back. They aren’t worth money, they’re sentimental. Hand-painted. It’s just cruel.
JOLEEN: If you’re listening, and you stole those gnomes, or you know who did... fix it. Just put them back. Don’t be that guy. That’s bad karma, man. That’s the kind of thing that haunts you.
MARK: Seriously. Drop them off at the gate if you have to. Just return them. Pocatello is better than that.
JOLEEN: Sometimes I wonder, Mark. Sometimes I wonder.
MARK: We have to hope. Anyway, that’s the show for today. It’s a windy, political, traffic-jammed Monday.
JOLEEN: Just another day in paradise.
MARK: If you have a tip, a complaint, or you want to tell Joleen she’s wrong about the cell phone policy, email us at pocatello@thehappeningnetwork.com.
JOLEEN: You can email me, but I won’t read it if you’re annoying. Also, like and subscribe. Leave a comment. Validating our existence via algorithm is the only Christmas gift we want.
MARK: Speak for yourself, I want a bottle of bourbon. Thanks for listening, everyone. Drive safe, watch out for the wind, and don’t steal gnomes.
JOLEEN: Don't be an asshole. See ya.
MARK: Goodnight, Pocatello.