Boise opens Greenbelt, tunnels south of river

Last week, contractor’s crews finished painting a series of new tunnels where the Boise River Greenbelt passes under roads between Joe’s Crab Shack and the northwest corner of Ann Morrison Park, Boise Parks and Recreation spokeswoman Sarah Collings said.

The pathway was actually open to bikes and pedestrians in early August, Collings said, but now it’s officially complete. The new section of path is just under a mile and cost $2.3 million, most of which was a federal grant. The work forced traffic detours on Fairview Avenue and Main Street last fall and winter.

As soon as Esther Simplot Park is complete, reopening the section of Greenbelt on the north side of the river between the 36th Street pedestrian bridge and Veterans Park, paved pathways will run on both sides of the river from one end of Boise to the other.

After first planning to finish Esther Simplot Park this summer, Parks and Recreation is now leaning toward a spring 2017 opening, project coordinator Wendy Larimore said Wednesday.

The department hopes to keep that stretch of Greenbelt open as work begins on the next phase of the city’s whitewater park just west of Simplot Park, Larimore said.

This story was originally published August 24, 2016 at 11:52 AM with the headline "Boise opens Greenbelt, tunnels south of river."