Update: After fire destroys Boise building ‘The Vicky,’ owner plans to demolish and rebuild
Update: A demolition permit was filed by The Vicky owner, Shawn Whittaker, with the City of Boise on Tuesday, April 9. The permit states that an insurance company is in the process of declaring the building a complete loss and that the property requires demolition before rebuilding efforts can begin.
Original story: Boise lost a significant piece of both its past and its future in March when an old Victorian-style house, commonly known as “The Vicky,” was engulfed in flames.
Boise Fire was dispatched to a report of a structure fire In the 9200 block of Ustick Road at 10:15 p.m. Friday, March 22, Boise Fire spokesperson Lynsey Amundson told the Idaho Statesman. Upon arriving at the scene, crews found a three-story Victorian-style home ablaze.
Six fire engines and one ladder truck brought the fire under control within 20 minutes of arriving and prevented its spread to neighboring structures. Boise Fire confirmed that no firefighters or civilians were injured during the fire, but two dogs died. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
A social media post on the “Saving the Vicky” Facebook page confirmed that the fire happened at The Vicky, which has stood in Boise since 1910.
“I’m grateful I wasn’t in the home when it started, my bedroom in the basement is a swimming pool and I’m extremely sad that only one of my three poodles made it,” Shawn Whitaker posted on the “Saving the Vicky” Facebook page. Whitaker had been restoring the Vicky to turn it into a wedding venue.
“The two (dogs) that died went running to the basement thinking I was there while ‘Vicky,’ the white poodle, stayed outside,” Whitaker wrote. “I’m in shock and trying to gather my thoughts on how to move forward.”
Saving the Vicky
The Vicky has stood in Boise since 1910. It was originally built on a 160-acre plot of land that is now 9230 W. Ustick Road.
Over the years, it had fallen into disrepair and found itself on the housing market in 2013 for $485,000. Two years later, a neighboring building known as the “Farmhouse” entered the market for $159,000.
That was when Whitaker pounced. He purchased the Farmhouse, built in 1920, and used it as leverage to eventually agree to an offer of $300,000 for the Vicky.
Whitaker dreamed of turning the Vicky into a wedding venue. He “immediately pictured a newly married couple standing in the Romeo & Juliet Balcony, while the parents and wedding party stood on the second story, and the rest of the family and guests were on the first floor.”
Whitaker would often post updates on his renovation project. The most recent was posted Thursday — a 55-second clip showing Whitaker’s latest progress on an inside staircase.
This story was originally published March 22, 2024 at 10:00 PM.
