Luxury RV park opening in Idaho Falls
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BIZ BUZZ
IDAHO FALLS
Luxury RV park opening on site formerly occupied by drive-in movie theater
IDAHO FALLS — A 10-acre lot off Yellowstone Highway in Idaho Falls has been a popular recreational site for decades. After several years of construction, a new business is opening at this location providing another form of recreation to locals and tourists.
Idaho Falls Luxury RV Park is making its debut at 3000 South Yellowstone Highway this weekend. The space, which was formerly occupied by SKY VU Drive-in, is having its grand opening celebration on Friday for invited guests only. But it officially opened for business in November.
RELATED | Construction on new RV park in Idaho Falls getting underway soon
Amenities at the year-round, gated and landscaped park include 59 RV spaces with picnic tables and full hookups — water, electricity, high-speed Wi-Fi and sewer connections. It also has a lodge, a grassy gathering area with a huge fireplace, full laundry room and showers, and two pickleball courts.
It offers bike rentals for customers to use on the greenbelt and downtown.
Adventure vans, which are outfitted with camping and road trip accessories, are a growing trend. The RV park has accommodations for those as well. There are numerous overhead casitas throughout the property, where guests have access to an outdoor cooking area and fire pit, chairs and a rug. Each casita has heaters in the ceiling and cafe lights. Take a tour of the property in the video above.
Randy Sebastian owns the space with his wife, Julie, and several other family members. They’re excited to officially unveil it to the community after buying the property in 2020.
“We were looking for a spot in Idaho Falls on the Snake River, and this is the only one we could probably ever find again. We took the screen down and all the other things, regraded it and turned it into what people are calling a gem,” Randy says.
The Sebastians are avid RVers. They’ve camped all throughout the U.S. over the years, and in their travels, they noticed there weren’t a lot of “really nice” places with accommodations when they parked their RV at night.
That inspired them to open an RV park with unique amenities so that customers could have the best experience possible.
The drive-in closed in 2015 after 65 years of business, and they decided to buy it after it had been sitting vacant for five years.
RELATED | Here’s what’s happening to the old Sky Vu drive-in in Idaho Falls
“We have a consultant that we hired to help us design it, and he said there’s nothing within 1,000 miles of this (RV park) that has these types of amenities,” says Randy.
Randy and his family are planning to add more features. A kid’s playground is being built on the west side of the lodge with swings, a pup tent climber and other equipment. They’d like to provide outdoor movie nights as a tribute to the site’s history.
A convenience store will be added inside the lodge soon. Next year, there will be an apartment above the store that will be rented out as an Airbnb.
Randy says the park’s close proximity to Snake River Landing makes it a great place to watch the fireworks during the Melaleuca Freedom Celebration on July 4.
The gates are open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days a week. To learn more or book a reservation, click here.
BIZ BITS
Utility lineman earns heroism award for protecting first responders from downed power line
ASHTON – Fall River Electric Cooperative’s Journeyman lineman Derek Hanks has been awarded the 2023 Safety Heroism Award by the Northwest Public Power Association.
The award was presented at NWPPA’s annual Engineering and Operations Conference in Reno, Nevada.
On his way to work last November, Hanks passed a vehicle that hit an animal, left the highway and hit a power pole. The pole fell down, and though police were there, the energized line created a dangerous situation. With the assistance of fellow linemen Braidan Martindale and Trevor Ostberg, Hanks moved everyone away from the energized line and stayed on site until Rocky Mountain Power arrived to de-energize the line.
Hank’s actions prevented emergency personnel from being electrocuted.
Rexburg free clinic celebrating fourth anniversary with carnival
REXBURG – The Rexburg Free Clinic is inviting you to “thrift and thrive” this weekend.
That’s the name of the health clinic’s carnival celebrating its fourth anniversary at 60 West Main Street in Rexburg on Saturday. The event will include carnival games, vendors, a chalk art contest, live music, free popcorn and raffle prizes. The clinic is giving away a wellness package featuring a free massage, haircut, yoga coupons and more.
The Rexburg Free Clinic offers a variety of services to the community. Among them are mental health services and routine treatment of chronic illnesses. And yes, it’s all free.
“Not a single person gets paid for their efforts,” company spokesman Maximillian Gold says. “We are community focused and are all about passing it forward. These principles are what drive us to give our own time and money to help those in need.”
The clinic and the carnival are open to the general public. More information is available here.
The carnival is happening from 4 to 8 p.m.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT…
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Idaho Falls firefighters are asking for your help filling the boot this weekend
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