A $5.7 million lodge for retreats and conferences is proposed to be the centerpiece of a renovated Lakeview Village inside Ponderosa State Park.
The retreatand conference center was included in the plans at the behest of Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne and would be located on the shore of Payette Lake at Lakeview Village.
The preliminary plans for Ponderosa park renovations were unveiled last week at the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation Board meeting.
The lodge, styled in rustic log and stone architecture, could house the park's administrative offices as well as provide rooms for 75 to 100 overnight guests, small conference rooms, nearby cabins and RV sites. A dock with several boat slips is also visualized for the lodge area.
Interpretive and educational materials could also be located at the facility.
New lodge changes plans
The addition of the lodge modifies concepts first proposed for Lakeview Village a few years ago.
The portion of Lakeview Village with the store and office building as well as about 30 mobile homes and some cabins was to be converted to RV spaces and camping cabins.
Under the new plans, that area is to become a day-use area with beach access and picnic tables, parking for the lodge, and a new visitors center building.
Camping facilities would be developed on 34 acres of timbered land between the park's main road and Carico Road.
The forest would be developed into 65 group campsites with a restroom and shower building and a camp shelter.
Park traffic entering from Davis Avenue would pass under a tall arch before reaching the visitors center.
The main park road would be realigned and connected with Kokanee Cove campground, the new name for site of the former Church of the Nazarene camp.
The visitors center is to have a lobby and bathrooms and will house all visitor services. Park visitors would stop thereto payfees, make reservations and register for campsites. Public parking would be provided for visitors who want to just stay the day and use the beach and picnic facilities at Lakeview.
The current visitors center and office would be converted into a Nordic ski center and warming station in winter that would include ski rentals and an interpretive area in summer.
Kokanee Cove plans
The preliminary plan for Kokanee Cove show an entry way with a bus drop in front of the site's existing chapel, which would be converted to a retreat center, as well as long-term parking for retreats, short-term parking and an informational kiosk.
Other facilities would include an amphitheater for performances and gatherings, clusters of cabins, a shower building with restrooms, a shelter on the beach, a library cabin and a TV cabin.
Work would begin at Kokanee Cove and Lakeview Village so as not to inconvenience campers right after an award is made.
The lodge proposed by Kempthorne would not be undertaken until 2006 and will be included in the fiscal year 2006 budget.
The governor has proposed using the state's permanent building fund to pay for the lodge area.
The $2.8 million in renovations proposed for Lakeview Village and Kokanee Cove will transform the former RV and trailer park and, former church camp into facilities in step with the needs of a changing population, state parks and recreation Director Robert Meinen said.
"We are diversifying services with the new center as the population changes and as the agency matures," Meinen said.
"The governor is looking at investing in rural areas to promote tourism and with the synergy and energy of the park having a master plan," he said. "The governor wisely stepped forward and put (Ponderosa) at the top of his list."
