What’s happening to Boise’s old Safari Inn? Here’s what a Seattle developer is up to
Since 2019, a Seattle development company has been converting motel rooms into upscale apartments at the former Safari Inn in downtown Boise. Now it is nearly finished.
“We hope to be done in either March or April,” said John Schack, founder of Revolve Development, by phone. That’s a few months later than originally planned, because of delays getting materials amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The hotel rooms were on the second and third floors of a building at the southeast corner of 11th and Main streets, across 11th from The Owyhee, a former hotel that now houses upscale apartments.
In June 2019, Revolve Development bought the building and the adjacent, two-story 1905 Smith Block building at 1015 W. Main St. for an undisclosed price from 11th & Main LLC, based in Ketchum. The ground-floor businesses in both buildings will remain.
Before the Safari Inn closed in November 2019, it had an additional 60 hotel rooms located in a separate building across the alley at 1070 W. Grove St. that is linked to the Smith Block by a second-floor skybridge. That building was not part of the sale to Revolve and it has sat empty since it closed.
“We did the exterior of the building, which is pretty kind of an eclectic mix of architectural styles, different tiles, different paint colors with different siding,” Schack said.
The Smith Block, made of steel, brick and stone, is not part of the renovation, although an alley-accessed staircase from the first to the second floor is being built. It was built in 1905 for Roscoe W. Smith, the first druggist licensed in Idaho. He operated drugstores in Boise, Mountain Home and Weiser. Smith also built the Grand Hotel, in 1914.
When it’s finished, 11th and Main will have 41 studio apartments and four one-bedroom units. The studios will have 400 to 570 square feet, with the one-bedroom apartments slightly larger, at about 600 square feet, he said.
Rent prices have not yet been announced. Schack said he and his team are working to finalize those figures.
A studio with up to 615 square feet at The Fowler Apartments at 505 W. Broad St. in downtown Boise is listed starting at $1,287 a month. A studio with up to 494 square feet at The Watercooler, at 1401 W. Idaho St., starts at $1,251 per month.
Revolve has spent more than $3 million on the project.
The renovated building, now known as 11th & Main, has new, larger windows. The exterior has been painted black, and a brown screening with wood slats separates the floors and extends to the roof on Main and 11th streets.
“The wood screen hearkens back to the original window pattern of the building and brings some warmth,” Schack said.
A conference room and gym were converted into a lounge for residents and a laundry room.
The unsold building across the alley is still owned by the Lori Barnes Girdner Trust. Lori Barnes Girdner is the daughter of the late Larry Barnes, who operated Larry Barnes Chevrolet in Boise for 28 years. The trust looked to lease the property and was open to redevelopment or renovations but could not find any takers.
The 11th and Main portion of the Safari Inn was accessed from that building through a skybridge and a door in the alley. The alley entrance will remain, though Revolve has built a new entrance and lobby on Main Street.
Schack, whose mother’s family lives in Boise, is interested in finding other local projects.
“We’ve had a really positive experience working in Boise,” he said. “And we’d love to do more.”
This story was originally published March 3, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
