After ‘devastating’ fire, this Idaho organization is looking to reopen its biggest store
Nearly two years ago, a three-alarm fire ripped through a warehouse that housed the Idaho Youth Ranch’s Boise outlet store, near Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise. Now the Youth Ranch is re-opening the store.
The fire in July 2022 engulfed the warehouse at 5465 W. Irving St. The blaze was so big it could be seen from Bogus Basin, said Whitney Springston, Idaho Youth Ranch’s marketing director.
A shopper came in and told Springston and others they needed to get out because there was a fire, but Springston said nobody realized how bad it was until they’d moved outside and could see the smoke billowing up from the yard.
“It was a scary day,” Springston said.
It took five to six days and about 700,000 gallons of water to put it out, she said.
The Boise Fire Department reported no injuries from the blaze, but the Idaho Youth Ranch suffered a big loss.
The organization had to shut down some of its operations at the distribution center and shift donation hours, and its revenues fell significantly, said Scott Curtis, the CEO.
“(The outlet store) is really a cornerstone of our thrift operations,” Curtis said in an interview. “Having this store closed has been a huge issue for us.”
Fire caused shock waves through Idaho
The Idaho Youth Ranch has 24 stores throughout Idaho and sells clothing and other donated items to help fund services for youth, such as for mental and behavioral support. It offers job readiness programs, adoption services in North Idaho, two clinical therapy offices, and the only shelter for homeless or runaway youths in the Treasure Valley.
The organization also opened the state’s first psychiatric residential treatment center for youths in August, Springston said. It raised about $35 million for the center near Caldwell, which includes 64 beds.
Before the fire, the stores contributed about a third of the revenue needed to pay for the organization’s programs, Springston said.
Most of the stores display clothing on racks, and everything is individually priced. The warehouse outlet sold unsorted items by the pound.
“The outlet store is really meant for those shoppers that want to come in, dig through, find their finds,” Curtis said.
The outlet store was the organization’s highest producing and most popular store, selling about $3,000 worth of goods per day, Curtis said.
The fire destroyed nearly all thrift store and e-commerce inventory stored at the center — including thousands of books — which affected inventory in other Idaho Youth Ranch thrift stores throughout the state, according to a Feb. 6 email to donors. It also displaced about 125 Idaho Youth Ranch employees who worked at the distribution center and the adjacent offices.
Youth Ranch sues insurer
The Youth Ranch has sued its insurer, Alliance Member Services, alleging that Alliance has not provided the compensation required by the insurance policy.
“The losses we have incurred are substantial, and as a result, the claims in our court filing are in excess of $10 million,” according to the donor email. “In addition, we will seek reimbursement for all of our legal expenses in fighting for the compensation fairly due to Idaho Youth Ranch and ultimately to the youth and families who rely on our financial ability to provide critical mental health care.”
But the Youth Ranch is nonetheless preparing to reopen on Thursday. On Friday, blue buckets filled with goods were back, and the sound of workers and sorting machines filled the warehouse.
“We’re really thrilled to be able to … bring the community back in here,” Curtis said. “It’s a huge impact to providing quality goods for people at low costs.”
The re-opening event was scheduled to include local radio stations and food trucks, Curtis said. It was set to start at 8:15 a.m. with a ribbon-cutting set for 8:30.
The store will be open from 8:30 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and closed from 11:30 to 1 p.m. for restocking. One way to get there: Take the I-184 Connector to Curtis Road. Go south on Curtis and take the first left onto Irving Street. The store is down the street on the right.
This story was originally published April 2, 2024 at 4:00 AM.
