A Prop 1 ad ruling, a Bronco statue, and a sunny 55 Monday

Welcome to issue one hundred nine. Today is sunny and around 55, which is polite weather for the last full day before Election Day. Nobody is asking you to be thrilled about it, but the sun is a decent sign.

Today: a judge's ruling in the Prop 1 ad fight, a bronze Bronco statue, a Garden City taproom that just poured its last beer, six Meridian events (karaoke, car show, toddler crafts), the forecast, and a trivia question about Toys for Tots. Know someone who should be reading this? Forward them the sign-up link →

Let's get into it.

🧠 Saturday's Toys for Tots car show at Fred Meyer is for a cause that Marine reservists started in 1947 in which city: Los Angeles, Chicago, or Boise?

(Answer at the bottom.)

Six picks, all with a Meridian address, one for each day through Saturday. A few listings skip end times or prices, so check the event page before you go.

✅ Alerts: we could not pull a live NWS alert feed, so check weather.gov/boi for watches or warnings. The NWS Meridian point forecast we normally use was last refreshed Oct. 19, so we did not use it. Today's numbers come from Idaho News 6/KBOI's Sunday forecast and its Boise strip, so a later update could shift them.

Monday, November 2 — Meridian

Partly sunny early, then sunny, with northwest winds around 11 to 13 mph and gusts up to 25. No overnight low was published, and with no fresh NWS Meridian number we cannot say whether Meridian runs warmer or cooler than Boise, so plan for a few degrees either way. Sunrise is about 7:22 a.m. and sunset about 5:34 p.m. (both calculated, not from NWS).

The week ahead: Tuesday (Election Day) looks partly cloudy with a high near 58, per the Boise strip. NWS Boise →

A quiet weekend for brand-new Meridian-proper news, so we are saying so: today's stories are the ones that matter to Meridian readers, and we flag where each one actually happened.

A state district court judge on Friday denied a request to order pro-Proposition 1 ads pulled while a lawsuit over them plays out, Idaho News 6/KIVI reports. The plaintiffs, who include Tom Luna and Blaine Conzatti, are tied to the committee opposing Prop 1. They allege the ads were bought at candidate rates through the Idaho Democratic Party, misidentified their funding source and were misreported. The defendants, who include Idahoans United for Women and Families, the Democratic Party and gubernatorial candidate Terri Pickens, dispute the claims.

The judge cited how little time the parties have had, and noted more time could turn up more facts. The lawsuit itself is unresolved, and the Secretary of State has a separate investigation into a complaint. Prop 1 is on tomorrow's ballot, along with HJR 4. As we reported earlier, Idaho allows same-day registration at the polls and Ada County has had a drop box at Meridian City Hall, but confirm your polling place and hours with Ada County Elections before you head out. Read more →

Source: Idaho News 6/KIVI, published Oct. 30.

Quick question while you are here: no taking sides on this one, just logistics.

Former Bronco quarterback Kellen Moore returned to Boise on Saturday for the unveiling of an 11-foot statue of him on Boise State's campus, Idaho News 6/KIVI reports. The statue was unveiled on "The Blue," and its permanent home will be outside Albertsons Stadium, near Entry One Plaza and the Bleymaier Football Center.

This one is our one regional sprinkle: the statue is in Boise, not Meridian, but Bronco Nation does not stop at the city line. The image above is an illustration, not the real statue. Read more →

Source: Idaho News 6/KIVI, published Oct. 31.

Western Collective's taproom at 111 W. 33rd St. in Garden City poured its last beer Saturday, Oct. 31, Idaho News 6/KBOI reports. The lease on the space ends Dec. 31, and the company says it is moving production of its brands to another brewery in town, with a deal expected to close within a few weeks. Its message to fans: "you'll keep finding them around the valley."

The company is also talking with other breweries about the space and hopes it stays a brewery, though it says that is not guaranteed. The taproom was in Garden City, not Meridian, so this is a heads-up for anyone who made the drive. Read more →

Source: Idaho News 6/KBOI, published Oct. 31.

Brought to you by Meridian Local Scoop. What's faster than word of mouth? The Meridian Local Business Spotlight! Keeps you up to speed on what's happening around town — and connects local businesses to our community.

🧠 Trivia answer: Los Angeles.

Toys for Tots began in 1947 when Marine Corps Reserve Maj. Bill Hendricks and fellow reservists in Los Angeles gathered about 5,000 toys, after his wife, Diane, could not find an organization that would take a homemade Raggedy Ann doll for a needy child. Walt Disney's animators later designed the red toy train logo, and Wikipedia says the program had collected more than 512 million toys as of 2016. Saturday's car show is a very Meridian way to add to the count. Read more →

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