West Ada weighs closing McMillan Elementary, a bus route through Meridian, and a sunny Wednesday

Welcome to issue one hundred four. Today is sunny, somewhere between 56 and 61 depending on which forecast you believe, which is the weather's way of telling you to wear the jacket and carry it later.

Today: a West Ada school that's only about a third full, a new bus route that stops in Meridian, Idaho's second flu death of the season, five Meridian events from Thursday's trades night to Sunday's holiday market, the forecast (Halloween looks chilly), and a trivia question about the dairy that once ran on Meridian milk. Know someone who should be reading this? Forward them the sign-up link →

Let's get into it.

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🧠 Trivia: Meridian's farms once shipped their milk to a co-operative creamery. According to Wikipedia, the Ada County Dairymen's creamery started operating in Meridian in which year: 1909, 1929 or 1949?

(Answer at the bottom.)

Five picks, every one with a Meridian address (or, in one case, a Meridian ZIP code and a phone number). Nothing new turned up for tonight that we could verify, so the week starts Thursday: a lunchtime business luncheon, a free trades night at an indoor golf shop, and a Dungeons & Dragons night. Saturday is Halloween after dark, and Sunday is a holiday market on Linder. A few listings skip the price or the format, so check the event page before you go. Clocks fall back an hour at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, so Sunday's market comes with a free extra hour of sleep.

The National Weather Service forecast for Meridian was last refreshed Sunday at 12:30 p.m., about two and a half days ago, and listed no watches, warnings or advisories at that time. Idaho News's live Boise strip shows 56 for Wednesday (showers ending this morning) and 60 for Thursday. That's five degrees cooler than NWS's 61 for today, so this time plan for the lower end.

Wednesday, October 28 — Meridian

NWS high, with the Boise strip at 56. Low tonight: 34°. Sunrise is around 8:14 a.m., sunset around 6:43 p.m. (both calculated, not from NWS).

Sunny, then mostly clear and cold tonight, which is the setup for a frosty windshield Thursday morning.

The week ahead (NWS): Thursday is mostly sunny and near 60, and Friday is partly sunny and 58, with a slight chance of rain or snow showers Friday night. Saturday (Halloween) is partly sunny and near 56 with a 20% chance of rain or snow showers and patchy fog, low around 32, so put the coat over the costume. Sunday is near 56 with a 40% chance of showers, and Idaho News says a weekend system raises rain chances around southwest Idaho. Clocks fall back at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 1. NWS Boise →

The West Ada School District is considering closing McMillan Elementary, a West Boise school that has served its neighborhood since 1972. McMillan isn't in Meridian proper, but it belongs to the same district as most of your kids' schools, so a decision here sets a pattern. According to Idaho News 6/KBOI, the school operates at 36% of capacity, enrollment has fallen sharply since 2015, and the aging building faces millions of dollars in maintenance needs within a decade. District Director of Education David Reinhart said the eastern part of the district has to shift because of a shrinking population and clustered schools. If McMillan closes, its students would be split among six nearby schools.

Families filled the public comment period, and students, teachers and parents mostly asked the board to keep the school open. The board's final decision is scheduled for Nov. 9. (The article says the board heard the presentation "Tuesday night" but was posted Monday evening, so we can't pin down the meeting date.) The class-size numbers the district presented, and what the families told trustees, are in the article →

🗳️ Your call: a school that's a third full, with a repair bill on the way. Where do you land?

Source: Idaho News 6/KBOI, published Oct. 26.

Micron announced another $67 million in Treasure Valley investments, and one slice has Meridian's name on it. About $11.5 million goes to public transit through a five-year partnership with Valley Regional Transit that will fund a new regional bus route connecting Caldwell, Nampa, Meridian and Boise, and expand VRT On-Demand near Micron's Boise campus. The article does not say when the route starts, where it stops in Meridian or what it will cost to ride.

The rest: $10.5 million for housing, including $2.5 million toward about 300 affordable units in Boise's Lusk District and $8 million for LEAP Housing's 30 rentals in Mountain Home plus down-payment help for up to 200 first-time buyers. Another $45 million funds "Trump Accounts" (530A accounts) for roughly 181,000 eligible children in Ada, Boise, Canyon, Elmore and Gem counties. It's on top of nearly $75 million Micron announced in 2023. Read more →

Source: Idaho News 6/KBOI, published Oct. 27.

An Elmore County resident in their 80s has died of flu, Central District Health reported, making it Idaho's second flu-related death of the 2026-27 season. We told you Sunday about the first, an Owyhee County man over 65. Idaho recorded 69 flu deaths last season, 65 of them in adults 50 and older, and CDH says activity is "increasing earlier this year," with the western U.S. seeing some of the highest early-season levels. Influenza A (H1N1) accounts for most reported cases nationally, and CDH is seeing activity rise at health care facilities across its district, a sign flu is already circulating locally.

The health district's advice is the usual and still the right one: get your annual flu shot, stay home when you're sick, wash your hands, cover coughs and sneezes, and ask a provider about antivirals if you do get sick. Read more →

Source: Idaho News 6/KBOI, published Oct. 27.

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🧠 Trivia answer: 1929.

Wikipedia says the Ada County Dairymen's co-operative creamery began operating in Meridian in 1929 and ended local operations in 1970, a run of about 41 years. It was one chapter of a farm economy that started with the Settlers' Irrigation Ditch in 1892, which turned the dry plain into productive farmland, and included fruit packers and prune dryers that closed in the mid-1940s. Read more →

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