‘Desperate for parking’: Prominent Boise church proposes new project
Leaders of a prominent Boise church hope to make a change in their busy North End neighborhood.
The Cathedral of the Rockies filed for a planning permit with the city of Boise, hoping to turn a vacant space into a parking lot. The church’s membership has increased, and that combined with losing parking spots in the area sparked a need, said Senior Pastor Duane Anders.
“We’ve been desperate for parking,” Anders said by phone.
That vacant lot, located across the street at 1110 W. Hays St., is part of an entire block owned by the Methodist church just to its north across Hays Street. In the early 2000s, the church proposed to build apartments on the block just north of the proposed parking parcel, where a small teaching farm and orchard now sit. The 176-unit Cathedral Place would have come with 500 underground parking spots. But it drew neighborhood protests, and two local governing bodies rejected it.
The church in 2018 discussed whether to build affordable housing on the block, but neighbors disliked the idea, and the church set it aside.
Affordable housing could still be a viable option, Anders said, but it would have to be with the right partner. The conversation is “just on hold,” he said, and the parking could be a short-term thing.
But the church also can’t lose any parking if it builds homes, he said. The church has also floated the idea of constructing a mixed-use space or something for its preschool, but Anders said that would take fundraising they’re not interested in doing.
This new parking would be to the east of an existing church parking lot. The spaces would be on the quarter of the property that borders Hays and 11th streets.
The parking lot, once constructed, would offer about 36 spots for church use only. Anders estimates it would be paved by the earliest in late spring 2026.
This story was originally published November 29, 2025 at 4:00 AM.
