McCall 2021

Boise State Public Radio and Idaho Matters are visiting Valley County, specifically McCall. It's our first big reporting trip after COVID-19 sent us all indoors to do interviews remotely, and we want to know how the lake town is recovering from the pandemic.

The pandemic brought more people to the lake town of McCall, exacerbating an already existing shortage of affordable places for workers to live.

Besides being a place boaters enjoy in the summer, Payette Lake is also the source of water for everyone who lives in and visits McCall. With increased boat use and exponential growth, city officials and scientists are closely monitoring 300-foot deep lake for changes.

We’re spending Idaho Matters in McCall, hearing from people about housing, work force shortages, affordability, transportation, lake water quality and much more.

The U.S. Forest Service wants the company hoping to re-open the Stibnite Mine for more information on possible environmental impacts of its latest plan. That means Perpetua Resources will have to wait until at least 2023 for a decision on its permit. We look back at the site's complex history and uncertain future here in Idaho.

McCall's iconic restaurant My Father’s Place relied on a loyal customer base, personal sacrifice and ingenuity to pull them out of the pandemic — but they may not have fully recovered just yet.

The McCall Music Society continues to fill the mountains and valleys of Valley County year-round. But the mission stretches through the winter and spring and, most importantly, through the school year.