PAYETTE LAKES
SUPERVISORY AREA

(McCall)

Learn About Our Staff

Address - 555 Deinhard Lane, McCall ID 83638

Phone - (208) 634-7125 ~ Fax - (208) 634-5117

Available Forms

Cottage/Residence Site Leases

Navigable Waters

About Our Office ...

Location - McCall

Area Includes - All of Adams and Washington counties, most of Valley County and parts of Idaho and Gem counties. The Area encompasses Hells Canyon, the Seven Devils, the bulk of the River of No Return Wilderness, parts of four National Forests and the western most tip of the State, which is Endowment Land. The Payette Lakes Area Office spans two time zones and two National Forest Regions. The Area also has the only known habitat of the threatened species of the Northern Idaho Ground Squirrel.

Statistics -

Our Office History ...

In June of 1961 Peter Preston became the first person assigned to the McCall vicinity. Peter rented a five-room office building on the shore of Payette Lake. The building was a log structure that still exists but has been moved to a different location. This log building served as the Area Office until 1987.

The McCall vicinity was administered as part of the Southwest Area until gaining independence as the Payette Lakes Area Office in 1970. Bob Coats was the first Area Supervisor having previously served as the Areas's District Forester. John Parker started working with Bob that year and the two of them were responsible for an annual cut of 7.1 MM.

Two years prior to that time, in 1968, the first person was hired as a temporary employee to handle cottage sites. His name was Lowell Murdock. Don Aldrich was hired in 1974 as the second Forest Improvement Forester after the first one only lasted one month. The annual timber cut then was 12.6 MM.

As early as 1971, the Area had been recommending that a range manager be assigned but that assignment did not occur until 1977 when Bryce Taylor was hired. The Payette Lakes Area has a fairly even split between range land and commercial timber land. Bill Petzak became the second Area Supervisor that same year and saw the Area through the timber boom years as well as the development of the lands, range and minerals programs. During his tenure, the annual cut went to 17 MM.

The Payette Lakes office moved to a leased building on Highway 55 in 1987 and remained there until 1993 when it moved to its current location on Endowment ground at the edge of town. Tim Duffner took over as the range manager that year and stayed until 1998. The current office complex also houses the local office of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the Southern Idaho Timber Protection Association.

In early 2006, the Area Office moved into an 800-square foot addition on the west end of the building, which provided much needed additional space.