Boise Development Thread

[Bodo_business]

Originally Posted by City Of Trees

The WinCo is such a love/hate thing with me. I'm with you guys that it is totally out of place with the type of downtown that we should have (and it looks like the Whole Foods/Walgreens area is no better in that regard). However, I really like having a good grocery store in downtown that's convenient for me, as well....

I think just about everyone, including myself, like having it downtown for the convenience factor....but it so interrupts the design of that part of the connector. Over the years a very nice corridor of mid-rises has evolved on Front. The WinCo just seems so out of place from a design, zoning, and character standpoint.

[Evo5Boise]

Ya definitely they should add some apartments above one or both of the grocery stores. I remember seeing a few stores like that in San Jose. I thought it was a great idea!

[Sawtooth]

I drove by Whole Foods today and the building seems to have a strong street presence and the brick facade looks classy and not tacky thankfully. The actual building along with the other corner building seems to occupy a lot of the land on that corner. I thought the parking area looked like it will be a lot smaller than Winco's.

I am looking forward to Whole Foods in downtown although for me the Boise Co-op and Albertsons are much more convenient. I bet Whole Foods draws a lot of suburbanites into downtown who normally do not go downtown.

[Hawk]

ooooo I can't wait to share the pictures with you guys!!!!! I I did the downtown boise associations tour of a couple condos in the 5th floor, and 15th floor of the Aspen, The 4th floor of Jefferson, and the 8th and 9th floor of the Chase building

[trekkerguy]

Originally Posted by Sawtooth

I am looking forward to Whole Foods in downtown although for me the Boise Co-op and Albertsons are much more convenient. I bet Whole Foods draws a lot of suburbanites into downtown who normally do not go downtown.

Whole Foods is going to be great and it will actually be nice to have a convenient Walgreen's there. It looks pretty good to me. Yes there's a surface lot, but at least the Whole Foods has a strong presence and putting the Walgreen's on the forward part of the lot helps to close it in which is nice.
Just another big empty, ugly lot being filled downtown with something that's going to be useful to the community

As for Winco... I avoid shopping at Walmart at all costs and Winco is such a great cheap, 24hr alternative that is also regionally owned and operated. It's good for our area. And I NEVER shop at Albertson's. Almost everything is about 3 to 4x the price of Winco, even with the preferred card it's ridiculous.

[BoiseAirport]

Originally Posted by trekkerguy

Whole Foods is going to be great and it will actually be nice to have a convenient Walgreen's there. It looks pretty good to me. Yes there's a surface lot, but at least the Whole Foods has a strong presence and putting the Walgreen's on the forward part of the lot helps to close it in which is nice.
Just another big empty, ugly lot being filled downtown with something that's going to be useful to the community

As for Winco... I avoid shopping at Walmart at all costs and Winco is such a great cheap, 24hr alternative that is also regionally owned and operated. It's good for our area. And I NEVER shop at Albertson's. Almost everything is about 3 to 4x the price of Winco, even with the preferred card it's ridiculous.

I do agree about the convenience of WinCo. I get all of my shopping done between WinCo and the farmer's market, and it's really nice.

I guess I'm just glum cause the project seems like a shadow of what it originally was. Out of curiosity, I went onto the PDS online and dug up the original plans for Whole Foods:

http://pdsonline.cityofboise.org/pds...07301452073900

http://pdsonline.cityofboise.org/pds...id=DRH07-00287



This is what I do for fun.

[Boisebro]

don't forget the original plan for whole foods.

it's been revised about 4 times. i still like the style of the original condo highrise, though would've preferred it to be not so thin.

[isangpogi]

Originally Posted by BoiseAirport

I do agree about the convenience of WinCo. I get all of my shopping done between WinCo and the farmer's market, and it's really nice.

I guess I'm just glum cause the project seems like a shadow of what it originally was. Out of curiosity, I went onto the PDS online and dug up the original plans for Whole Foods:

http://pdsonline.cityofboise.org/pds...07301452073900

http://pdsonline.cityofboise.org/pds...id=DRH07-00287



This is what I do for fun.

Because the condo was planned to be off to the side and not on top of Whole Foods, it's certainly not out of the question that this could be done in the future, as long as there is room. Judging by the aspen it doesn't take much land space at all to fit an impressive building in. I would imagine it will take some time though, as high density housing will be built as close to the downtown core as possible...

[Evo5Boise]

Man, that would have been a beauty and really complimented that mid-rise area.

[trekkerguy]

It may still happen. With retail and office space in downtown being snapped up... I wouldn't be surprised if they at least went ahead with a few floors of office space.

We're only moving forward. Gotta take these steps before the others

[Cottonwood]

LOL. I bet the Whole Foods has ample parking for cyclists. ACHD should take away one of the car lanes on Front and Myrtle from at least 8th to Broadway...the lanes on the inside, and devote them to bike lanes.

[Boisebro]

Originally Posted by Cottonwood

LOL. I bet the Whole Foods has ample parking for cyclists. ACHD should take away one of the car lanes on Front and Myrtle from at least 8th to Broadway...the lanes on the inside, and devote them to bike lanes.

as someone who commutes on front and myrtle every day, i hope they DON'T remove any lanes.

especially if harris ranch continues its build-out... the traffic on parkcenter into downtown will only get worse.

[Cottonwood]

Originally Posted by Boisebro

as someone who commutes on front and myrtle every day, i hope they DON'T remove any lanes.

especially if harris ranch continues its build-out... the traffic on parkcenter into downtown will only get worse.

I hear you. Hopefully a lot of people who decide to live in Harris Ranch and who happen to work downtown decide to use the greenbelt and commute via bike, weather permissible, and do their part to reduce traffic on the downtown arteries.

[City Of Trees]

Originally Posted by Cottonwood

I hear you. Hopefully a lot of people who decide to live in Harris Ranch and who happen to work downtown decide to use the greenbelt and commute via bike, weather permissible, and do their part to reduce traffic on the downtown arteries.

:waves:

Back when I lived near Barber Park the ride to downtown was very doable all the way down the Greenbelt, and I'd have a straight shot into the heart of downtown by taking the Municipal Park spur that crosses Walnut and then follows Front Street for a little while. However, once you hit Broadway....ugh. I'd have to deal with merging with Front Street traffic for several blocks before I could find a way to get off.

It's probably too late to build it now, given how tight the buildings are in this corridor, but I really wished they extended this spur to follow the power line right of way so that this path could go all the way to the 3rd & Grove intersection. Something like this:

[isangpogi]

Originally Posted by Hawk

ooooo I can't wait to share the pictures with you guys!!!!! I I did the downtown boise associations tour of a couple condos in the 5th floor, and 15th floor of the Aspen, The 4th floor of Jefferson, and the 8th and 9th floor of the Chase building

PLEASE do! I really wanted to go but it was only for a short time on mother's day, and I already had obligations... :/ Hope they do this again sometime!

[ianjt]

Originally Posted by City Of Trees

:waves:

Back when I lived near Barber Park the ride to downtown was very doable all the way down the Greenbelt, and I'd have a straight shot into the heart of downtown by taking the Municipal Park spur that crosses Walnut and then follows Front Street for a little while. However, once you hit Broadway....ugh. I'd have to deal with merging with Front Street traffic for several blocks before I could find a way to get off.

It's probably too late to build it now, given how tight the buildings are in this corridor, but I really wished they extended this spur to follow the power line right of way so that this path could go all the way to the 3rd & Grove intersection. Something like this:

That would be awesome. I live right on the east side of Broadway, and even though I live technically a 20 minute walk from downtown, it turns into a 30+ minute walk with Broadway. The only problem with that route is the jamming up of traffic near the Front intersection. Wouldn't a pedestrian bridge be nice?

[andyroo]

Originally Posted by ianjt

That would be awesome. I live right on the east side of Broadway, and even though I live technically a 20 minute walk from downtown, it turns into a 30+ minute walk with Broadway. The only problem with that route is the jamming up of traffic near the Front intersection. Wouldn't a pedestrian bridge be nice?

I'm a big fan of pedestrian bridges. I wish they would put one on the capital and university intersection. Waiting to cross there takes AGES

[BoiseAirport]

Originally Posted by andyroo

I'm a big fan of pedestrian bridges. I wish they would put one on the capital and university intersection. Waiting to cross there takes AGES

Ugh, I HATE that intersection. I hate everything about it, and I couldn't agree more that a pedestrian bridge is needed. It's current format is so anti-pedestrian.

[Boisebro]

Originally Posted by BoiseAirport

Ugh, I HATE that intersection. I hate everything about it, and I couldn't agree more that a pedestrian bridge is needed. It's current format is so anti-pedestrian.

i'm sure the city thinks that people can just cross safely at the greenbelt.

but until someone gets hurt or killed at that intersection, i doubt they'll do squat.

i used to take capital every morning coming to work, and i can't tell you how many close calls there were with pedestrians running across the street between university and the river. someone will get seriously hurt someday if the city isn't proactive about it.

[Boisebro]

btw: has anyone heard anything about the city resurfacing the broadway bridge?

i know they're busy resurfacing other roads and bridges this summer, but both the broadway bridge and capital bridge are in bad shape.

there's nothing listed for broadway or capital on the ACHD site on their resurfacing project page.