Back
in 2001 our junior college, Ricks College, transitioned to a
four-year university and was renamed Brigham Young University-Idaho.
We
have been under a constant state of construction ever since. Housing has been a major part of the development
with campus buildings and infrastructure following at a rapid pace.
In
fact our little town is still suffering a bad case of growing pains over a decade
later.
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This
morning I walked around the corner and saw another demolition site. I think this will become a much needed campus parking lot. This is
looking southeast on Center Street with the post office to my back and the
campus on the right.
This
is a view behind the post office. Huge
five story apartments have replaced a lot of private homes just north of campus. You can see a parking garage and the lights
for the football stadium in the center of this picture.
A
few yards farther on the corner of First South and First West, apartments tower
on both sides of the street.
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It was shock to see the building where I worked for several years, on the corner
of Main and Second East, reduced to rubble.
This is looking northeast with Walgreens behind me and the court house
on the left. I haven’t learned what will replace this brick office building.
The
building where I spend so many hours and its chestnut and pine trees are just—gone!
I
could hear the roar of a chainsaw and looked east toward the hospital to see workers taking down more trees. One
dropped while I took these photos and I suspect they will all be gone by
noon.
Up
on the hill south of campus, concrete is being poured this morning for the new
Science and Technology Building. The
original building where DH taught computer technology for over thirty years is out
of the picture to the right and the Benson Building is behind me.
That’s
a LOT of concrete and it’s going down on the deep lava bedrock of the hill
known as the Rexburg Bench.
As
surprising as it is to see landmarks disappear, it is also amazing to see how
quickly the new construction can go up.
Here’s
another vacant lot looking northeast across from Kennedy Elementary School. It used to be the location for
Squires Brick and Stone.
For
all the new stuff in this town, we still don’t have much of a selection
of places to eat. However, there is a
new Maverick gas station just off the center exit where we can get donuts and
warmed-over hot dogs.
