What about a multi-use sports and entertainment complex? Or should it change into a town center with housing, shops and office space? Once the committee finalizes the recommendations, they will go before the Ada County Commissioners and the public for feedback for a decision. Ada County has had its eye on redeveloping the property for over a year. It is home to the now-defunct Les Bois horse racing track, the aging stadium where the Boise Hawks play, Lady Bird Park, a section of the Greenbelt and, most notably, the venue for the annual, 10 day Western Idaho Fair.
The draft recommendation report laid out three possible scenarios with different focuses. The scenarios could mix and match depending on the preferences of the county and the public. No matter what they select, the advisory committee said any final proposal will include natural spaces, room for Expo Idaho Events, the Greenbelt, Ladybird Park, roads and parking lots for visitors.
Redevelopment could also include room for county administrative offices, an RV Park and a venue for the Western Idaho Fair if the county decides to continue holding the event at the site. The three possible focuses for redevelopment the committee is suggesting to the county are: outdoor education and agricultural heritage, sports and events or a mixed-use town center.
Now that draft recommendations have been developed, the county will begin a community engagement process to get feedback from the public on what they hope for the site.
Ada County will also conduct a cost analysis to determine the feasibility of the project and develop a detailed site plan. At the same time, the county will also assess whether the Western Idaho Fair should continue to be held on-site or if there is another suitable location elsewhere.
Enhancing the site for hosting the Western Idaho Fair is the biggest priority in the first scenario. It would include farm-to-table restaurants, tasting rooms for local breweries and vineyards and local retailers selling other local products. Year-round, agriculture-related activities could be held there in an equestrian center, livestock barns and exhibition space. It would provide a location for 4H and FFA events. It would include resources like a community kitchen, archer range, teaching gardens and other horticultural areas connected to the existing University of Idaho Extension campus.
The natural environment is the focus of the area along the Greenbelt where the old stables for the race horses and part of the race track are now. This concept includes a river walk, a wetlands recharge area, outdoor classrooms, a casting pond for fisherman and other spaces for visitors to experience river ecology. This proposal includes a multi-use stadium in the far southwest corner of the property, which could house the Boise Hawks, tournaments and other sporting events.
The stadium could also be located closer to the river, depending on the preferences of the county. This scenario includes minor upgrades to the Expo Idaho site to compliment the new stadium.
The parking lot along the Greenbelt and some of the stables would convert to natural trails and walking paths. The other half of the stables and the race track would convert to a recreation area with amenities like sports fields, a casting pond, archery range, a dog park, disc golf course or a driving range. This would include single-family homes, apartments, office space, a new stadium, room for the fairgrounds, a park and sports fields.
In September, the Greater Boise Auditorium District, the organization funded by hotel taxes that runs the Boise Centre, decided the district would not put any resources toward the proposal for the stadium redevelopment. The proposal includes replacing the current location of the Boise Hawks stadium with a mixed-use shopping center, like The Village in Meridian. Because it was funded from a National Park Service grant, federal approval and collaboration are needed to move it, and it will be required to maintain some of the same specs and amenities in its new location due to the grant that funded its initial construction.
This process could take anywhere from one to three years and ULI recommended hiring a project manager to work on this objective and any of the floodplain development questions that come up on the project due to its location next to the Boise River. Next, the new playing fields should be constructed, followed by improvements to the Expo Idaho site, including more marketing to draw more events to the area. Once that is completed, the county should complete its final master planning for the site and go out for a request for proposals to find a developer for the stadium, build the parking decks and the mixed-use town center.
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