‘Tailgating’ Boise River floaters annoy Barber Park neighbors. Agencies clash on solutions
Poll: Should Ada County turn on Barber Park air stations for Boise River float season?
The problem started years ago — Boise River floaters facing full parking lots or just hoping to avoid the entry fee at Barber Park began parking in nearby neighborhoods, toting their floaties down to the put-in at the Southeast Boise park.
As housing expanded in the area and the popularity of the river float grew, so did complaints about the traffic spilling into the neighborhoods. Residents say they’ve had floaters trespass on their property to blow up inflatables, found trash in their yards and dealt with floaters drinking alcohol and even urinating on their properties.
“People are basically almost tailgating in their front yards,” said Rob Stark, a member of the Barber Valley Neighborhood Association board of directors.
Boise’s rapid growth has brought the problem to a head. Now neighbors and local government agencies are searching for a solution, one complicated by the trio of entities involved, each with its own priorities, responsibilities and restrictions.
As float season gets busier, Boise officials pursue solutions
For years, the Boise River float has started at Barber Park, a property in Southeast Boise that’s owned by Ada County. It features tube and raft rentals and a shuttle that ferries floaters back to the starting point when they finish their journey at Ann Morrison Park near downtown Boise.
But Barber Park has limited parking — around 500 spaces, according to Ada County Parks and Waterways Director Scott Koberg. More than 300 of those are not designated asphalt spaces but spots on a field that the county uses for parking. Depending on vehicle size and other factors, the parking capacity can fluctuate. Anymore, it’s a guarantee that the parking lots will fill up on summer weekends when hundreds of people come to float the river. This June has been particularly busy thanks to unseasonably warm weather.
“Going back eight or nine years … we would fill the parking field every weekend day,” Koberg said in a phone interview. “Now we’re starting to see that filling sometimes during the week. When it’s nice and hot, it’s full.”
In an effort to alleviate the parking spillover, Stark started reaching out to the three agencies involved: the city of Boise, Ada County Highway District and Ada County. Stark contacted city council member Patrick Bageant last year, and Bageant began spearheading a response.
“This issue is tricky,” Bageant said in a phone interview. “Everybody has a different perspective. It all flows from one basic problem, which is during the peak of the float season, we have more cars going up to the put-in area than we have spaces to put cars.”
Bageant said he’s working on a “multipronged” approach to reduce the number of vehicles in the Barber Park area during float season. City officials began urging floaters to park at Ann Morrison, starting their journey with a shuttle ride to Barber Park where they can begin the float before returning to their vehicles. Ann Morrison has more than 1,000 parking spaces, Boise Parks and Recreation Director Doug Holloway said. The city also reconfigured the parking lot to create several drop-off spots near the shuttle, so floaters don’t have to lug inflatables across the entire park. Connie Zeller, who runs Boise River Raft and Tube, the contracted company that operates the shuttles and rentals for the float, said this year she added a cashier at Ann Morrison so floaters can buy $3 shuttle tickets there, too.
The city also started a pilot program of parking rules in one Barber Valley neighborhood that was seeing the brunt of the bad behavior from floaters. No street parking is allowed between noon and 5 p.m. on weekends on Logger Drive, Rivernest Drive and Single Tree Avenue. Street parking is limited to half an hour on Millbrook Way between Rivernest and Eckert Road.
The Boise Police Department has upped enforcement on weekends, and spokesperson Haley Williams said several citations were issued for parking in no parking zones in the neighborhood and on Eckert Road in recent days. People parking in the areas face fines and their vehicles could be towed, Williams said.
Stark lauded the moves, saying residents have seen a big difference already thanks to the city’s efforts.
“I’m more optimistic than I have been in the last two years,” he said.
But the city’s jurisdiction is entangled with ACHD and the county, and Stark said those agencies have been less responsive. During the Barber Valley Neighborhood Association’s June 10 meeting, the association encouraged residents to reach out to both agencies in an effort to spur them to action.
“Ada County and ACHD are not cooperating with the city of Boise,” read a slide shown during the meeting.
What role should Ada County, highway district play in river float woes?
According to Koberg, the county’s role “really is management of Barber Park as efficiently as possible.”
“When it comes to exterior public streets … it’s unfair that those people choosing to park on exterior public streets is becoming more problematic,” he said. “We’ve had some discussions with Boise city and ACHD and the (homeowner associations) and I think they have some solutions.”
Neighbors have asked the county to increase the amount of shuttles transporting floaters to Barber Park to entice people to park at Ann Morrison. Koberg said the county’s contractor, Zeller, has increased the shuttle capacity each year. In a phone interview, Zeller said there are five shuttles running on weekend days, making trips every 11 minutes or so.
Bageant said he reached out to Koberg’s department to see about having the city “cost-share” for more shuttles, but said he received no response.
In January, the county rolled back plans to build a new parking lot at Barber Park that would’ve added 110 spaces. Koberg told the Statesman that plan “wasn’t actually going to create floater parking.”
“It was to create a year-round lot that would help us to accommodate the year-round traffic that occurs in the event center,” he said.
And neighbors have another bone to pick with the county. Ada County has turned off several air stations near the river put-in, once used by floaters to fill rafts, tubes and other inflatables brought from home. In a statement, the Parks and Waterways Department said the air stations were turned off during the 2020 float season to mitigate COVID-19 risks. Staff noticed float operations went more smoothly despite an increase in visitors.
Koberg said the decision to turn off the air pumps helps move more people through the park by eliminating long lines, crowds in front of the put-in and even altercations between floaters over the air stations. Critics say it encourages floaters to try to inflate items outside the park, potentially trespassing to use power outlets on nearby homes. Floaters riding the shuttle from Ann Morrison Park can bring along their own inflatables, but they must be deflated for transportation on the shuttle — leaving some visitors frustrated when they arrive at Barber Park to find themselves without a way to inflate their rafts.
Despite the complaints, Koberg said he sees no future for the return of the air stations. Other stakeholders continue to urge him to reconsider.
“I remain hopeful that Ada County will reconsider its decision to turn off a taxpayer-funded resource that belongs to the public,” Bageant said.
Stark said the county’s focus on Barber Park is frustrating.
“All we’re asking is for the county to look at what’s happening outside the park instead of just inside the park,” he said.
The Ada County Highway District, which is responsible for maintaining all public roads in the county, has faced similar criticism. The Barber Valley Neighborhood Association alleged in its June meeting that the agency was only allowing the city of Boise to implement a Special Parking District on one street in the Barber Junction neighborhood.
On June 24, ACHD spokesperson Natalie Shaver told the Statesman that the agency has “heard from the city of Boise that they’d like to move forward with a ‘pilot’ parking district.”
“We are awaiting signage from them, at which point we will install as requested,” Shaver said in an email, adding that parking districts are a city responsibility.
Several signs have already been installed.
Are changes coming to Boise River float season?
For now, neighbors will have to endure whatever the float season brings. While the pilot parking district is in place, Bageant said a permanent solution will take time.
“To fully implement (a special parking district) requires regular ordinance procedure,” he said. “We wouldn’t be able to get it in place until float season is mostly over.”
Stark and Bageant said stakeholders have set up a meeting this fall to see what worked this season and what problems remain to address. On Sunday, many cars were illegally parked along Eckert.
“All of us have gone into this knowing … that whatever we’re coming up with this year is not going to be the end solution and be perfect,” Stark said. “But we’re taking steps in the right direction.”
He said it’s encouraging to have plans to move forward, especially as the Treasure Valley’s relentless growth means the problem likely won’t go away anytime soon. Bageant and Koberg also pointed to the burgeoning population and rapid development as a factor in the clash.
“It’s been an issue for years,” Koberg said. “We do have documented photos and evidence that people have chosen to park outside Barber Park long before there were homes around Barber Park. But we’ve entered a totally new era being the fastest-growing county in the country.”
Stark said the neighborhood association doesn’t aim to discourage people from floating the river.
“It’s a big part of the community, it’s the thing you do. You’re not a Boisean until you’ve floated the river,” he said.
This story was originally published June 30, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
