Russell Lee, "On Main Street of Cascade," July 1941. Lee, a photographer for the Farm Security Administration, documented rural progress through federal highway and irrigation programs. (Library of Congress).

Cascade on the shores of its manmade lake in the seat of Valley County once thrived as a lumber mill town, producing 30 million board feet each year. When the Boise Cascade sawmill closed in 2001, townspeople divided over a plan to develop the eastside lakefront into a world-class ski resort. Would tourism overpopulate the valley? Would newcomers pay for sewers and highways? Would condos and golf courses pollute creeks feeding into the lake? In the summer of 2005, as Tamarack Resort prepared for its opening season, more than $250 million in real estate changed hands near the former mill town. President Bush visited the resort in August, praising its natural beauty. Cascade has been discovered. Its Main Street braces for change.

 

Photos by Katey Harris.