‘Close to perfect’: Dozens of Boise apartments, including some affordable, move ahead
State Street is closer to getting about 100 new apartments, including at least a few priced at affordable rates.
The Boise City Council approved a zoning change Tuesday to allow Boise-based Cameron Investments to replace a gas station with a seven-story building. The company is owned by Matthew Cameron Clark, who also founded the Boise Contemporary Theater.
The change helps clear the way for a development that will have space for businesses on the first two floors and dozens of apartments on the remaining floors. At least 5% of the apartments would be workforce housing, priced for people who make between 80% and 100% of the area median income, or $59,850 for a family of four.
Clark did not say what the apartment rents would be, saying there were “evolving,” but estimated them to be between $1,000 and $1,300 monthly. Listings for nearby apartments on Apartments.com range from $975 to nearly $1,600 monthly depending on size.
Located at the corner of 16th and State streets, the proposed development sits where Boise’s downtown meets the North End. City filings note that grocery stores, schools, medical offices, churches, banks, jobs and several other opportunities are all within a 10-minute walk of the property.
Most of the people who testified at a public hearing Tuesday loved what the location would offer residents. Patrick Spoutz, who often testifies in favor of developments that offer housing density, called it the “closest to perfect” that he had seen.
“All of the overlays kind of line up for this development,” he said. “It’s got a lot of units, it’s in a good spot next to transit, and it’s a wonderful thing. As somebody who lives in the North End, I welcome this to be a part of my neighborhood.”
One person noted that a development of that kind in the North End, one of Boise’s most expensive neighborhoods, would make the area more inclusive. Another said that if he lived there, he wouldn’t need a car.
Darby Webb, who said she lives near the project, was the only one to testify against it Tuesday. Webb said she agreed Boise needs more affordable housing but argued that seven stories with 100 units on just over one-third of an acre was “out of proportion” with the area and would change its dynamic.
“In the surrounding several blocks, there are no units of this magnitude,” she said.
The council unanimously supported the project. Council Member T.J. Thomson commended the developers for their “extremely impressive work.”
“While there is some opposition, and there normally is and that’s well-taken, I’m very impressed how many people support it directly surrounding it,” he said. “It certainly is much needed.”
The council unanimously approved the rezoning. The development must go before the city’s Design Review Committee before moving forward.
The rezoning changes the parcel from PC-D (pedestrian commercial with downtown design review overlay) to C-5DD/DA (central business district with downtown design review overlay and a development agreement). That means land that previously was approved to hold about 15 units now has no maximum residential density.
This story was originally published March 2, 2021 at 9:55 PM.
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