The city's Planning and Zoning commissioners didn't even discuss the latest plans for Jack's Urban Meeting Place on Monday. They simply lumped the proposal for its approval with several other routine items, all of which they passed with a single vote.

It was an anticlimactic moment in the years-long and turbulent history of the project, which the Simplot family plans as a memorial to Idaho legend and agricultural giant J.R. Simplot. The plans call for a multi-use facility that includes an event venue, park and educational space for the public to learn arts, crafts and skills.

The permitting process alone has been trying for the family, with several rounds of denials and conditional approvals delaying the project.

"What a long — and sometimes strange — trip it's been," family spokesman David Cuoio said.

The Simplots are now authorized to obtain a permit to build JUMP. Cuoio said concrete work should begin on the building in about a month. The project is scheduled to be complete in the summer of 2014.