Today, the Nampa Development Corporation, the City of Nampa, the Nampa Library, and the Gardner Company broke ground on the Library Square project in downtown Nampa. The Library Square project consists of construction of a new 62,000 sq. ft. library, privately owned and developed retail and office space, and a multi-story parking garage to serve the project and other area downtown businesses. The new library will have a multi-purpose room available for public use with seating for 150 people, as well as another 6 smaller study or meeting rooms. There will be an expanded children’s section, local history room with microfilm capabilities, an expanded Spanish language section, and an outdoor patio on the third floor. White Peterson served as agency counsel for the Nampa Development Corporation, the urban renewal agency for the City of Nampa. The agency obtained tax increment financing for the public portions of the project and negotiated the contracts for the development of the site. For more information about Library Square, check out these links:http://newlibraryfornampa.org/ or http://www.whynampa.com/ndc/ndclibrary.htm

White Peterson attorney William F. Nichols testified before the House Local Government Committee of the Idaho Legislature on Wednesday, March 6, 2013 as the committee considered House Bill 246. This particular legislation regarding development impact fee ordinances and fees would have overturned decades of case law precedent that presumes that legislative enactments by local governing bodies are valid. In his testimony Mr. Nichols explained how development impact fee ordinances and capital improvement plans are adopted and administered and the burden that this bill would create. The Committee voted to hold the bill in committee. Read more about the bill at: http://www.idahocities.org/Blog.aspx?IID=232#item.

Matthew Johnson  has  been elected to serve as  Treasurer  for  the Rotary  Club of Nampa. His term will begin July 1, 2012.  Matt has been a member of Rotary for three years and has served on the Board for the past year. He has also taken an active role in helping with Nampa Rotary’s Paws for a Cause event which raises funds to support community service projects.

More information about Nampa Rotary can be found at www.namparotary.org and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NampaRotary.

White Peterson is pleased to announce Matthew A. Johnson and Davis F. VanderVelde have become shareholders in the firm. Johnson has practiced law at White Peterson for five years and VanderVelde has practiced law at the firm for over four years.

Mr. Johnson earned his law degree and a master’s degree in political science from Washington University in St. Louis in 2007. His practice focuses on government, property, environmental and business law. Matt is a member of the Nampa Rotary Club and will be a 2013 graduate of the Leadership Nampa program.

Mr. VanderVelde earned his degree from California Western School of Law graduating magna cum laude in 2000. His practice is primarily focused on civil litigation, including personal injury litigation, estate litigation, employment matters and family law. Davis is a member of the Caldwell Exchange Club and a 2011 graduate of the Leadership Nampa program.

On December 20, 2012, Matt Johnson and Terry White successfully obtained judicial confirmation for the City of Nampa to proceed on a loan application for an Idaho Department of Environmental Quality State Revolving Fund.  This was a critical hurdle for the City to overcome in order to pursue final IDEQ approval of the loan.  Nampa ratepayers will save approximately $7.5 million that would otherwise be paid in additional interest. The judicial confirmation process was also done in a very short time period, made possible by the hard work of the City of Nampa wastewater team and the expertise of White Peterson in local government and judicial confirmation law.

On November 8th and 9th, 2012, tax and estate planning attorney Phil Peterson participated in the 54th Conference of the Idaho State Tax Institute, an annual continuing education seminar which he has been attending for over 30 years. This year’s topics included Estate Planning Under Expiring Transfer Tax Provisions (part of the “fiscal cliff”), Compensation and Self-Employment Issues in a Partnership, Ethics – Representing the Potentially Incompetent Client, Social Security, Conservation Easements, Recent Developments in Federal Income Taxation, and Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduits (REMICs). The conference is sponsored by the Accounting Department of the College of Business, Idaho State University, and is attended by tax and estate planning attorneys and CPAs from around the state.

White Peterson partners, Terrence R. White and William F. Nichols, have been reappointed to the Legal Technical Analysis Team of the AIC Legislative Committee for the 2012-2013 year. They will play an important role in reviewing and analyzing bills during the 2013 legislative session.

Firm estate planning attorneys Phil Peterson and Todd Rossman attended the Idaho State Bar’s Annual Advanced Estate Planning Seminar on September 7 and 8, 2012. Topics covered at the seminar included:

• Estate and Trust Planning with IRAs and Other Retirement Accounts
• Ethics for Estate Planning and Business Lawyers
• Trustee Fiduciary Risks and Litigation
• Planning for the $2 million to $10 million Estate
• How to Get Business Succession Planning Started
• 2012 Legislative and Judicial Update

Also included in the conference was the annual meeting of the Idaho State Bar Taxation, Probate and Trust Law Section, of which Mr. Peterson and Mr. Rossman are members.

Associate Matthew Johnson was recently elected as a Board Member for the Rotary Club of Nampa. His term will begin July 1, 2012.

Matt has been a member of Nampa Rotary for two years. Through Rotary Club he has worked on the Nampa Rotary Paws for a Cause dog walk which raises funds to support Rotary’s service projects in the community. For information on the 2012 Paws for a Cause visit http://www.paws4acause.us/.

Matt recently helped with the annual Nampa Rotary Club Dictionary Project which delivered 120 dictionaries to 3rd graders at Willow Creek Elementary. Overall, the 2012 Dictionary Project will deliver over 1000 dictionaries to area third graders.

On February 3, 2012, White Peterson Office Administrator Carla Behrens was inducted into the Skyview High School Hall of Fame for her distinguished service as a Skyview High School Booster’s Club Founder and President. Carla helped organize the Skyview High School Booster’s Club in 1998, and since that time has served as that organization’s only President.

During her tenure as President, Carla has organized many booster events and programs such as Skyview Booster’s College Scholarship, Skyview High School Apparel Sales, and Battle of the Moms. Additionally, Carla has coordinated numerous district and state tournament hospitality events, and supported all athletic and activity programs at Skyview. Carla has also contributed through her dedication of time and service on several committees, facilitating Booster financial support for teams traveling to state tournaments, championship banners, and improvements to Skyview Hawks Stadium, Powerhawk Gym, and the Skyview Baseball Complex.

Carla’s commitment to Skyview High School athletics reflects the type of community involvement that has been a hallmark of employees of White Peterson. Her dedication is respected and appreciated by all who work here.