This Idaho city just got $23 million to fix its roads. How will it spend it?

Nampa just received its biggest transportation grant ever, and officials have big plans for the money.

In a match-free grant, Nampa was awarded $23 million by the U.S. Department of Transportation as part of its “Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development,” or BUILD Grant Program.

Since it’s match-free, the city has carte blanche to make any improvements it sees fit, so long as those improvements meet the program’s mandate to use the funds “for surface transportation infrastructure projects with significant local or regional impact.”

Focusing on the historic North Nampa neighborhood, the city is taking aim at intersections with high numbers of vehicle collisions. The plan would also update aging features like drainage, sidewalks and essential pedestrian safety features at key intersections in the area running south 1.5 miles along Northside Boulevard to the intersection of 12th Avenue South and 7th Street South.

The city says that data it’s compiled shows the corridor saw 350 crashes in the last five years, including a recent fatal collision when a woman was struck by a vehicle at the crosswalk on the north side of 7th Street South.

“This significant investment will not only enhance safety for our motorists but also ensure that vulnerable users benefit from essential (Americans with Disabilities Act) and sidewalk improvements,” Crystal Craig, the city’s director of transportation said in a press release. “Additionally, we are excited to introduce smarter technologies in our historic neighborhoods, furthering our commitment to improving movement in and through Nampa.”

Phase 1 will focus on replacing the Broadmore Bridge, which currently has only one lane and would be expanded to accommodate pedestrian, bicycle and car traffic. This first phase also plans to repave sidewalks and add ADA-compliant ramps surrounding the busy Northside Boulevard and 4th Street North intersection.

“This phase closes a key connectivity gap between the North Nampa neighborhood, the Indian Creek Pathway, nearby schools and Northside Boulevard,” according to the city’s proposed plan.

Later phases would seek to address bottlenecks in traffic along the corridor by adding transit stops and improving sidewalks on Northside Boulevard and Yale Street; adding traffic signals at Northside Boulevard and 4th Street North; and installing a new traffic signal at the 7th Street South and 7th Avenue South intersection.

Phase 1 of the project could begin as early as 2027. The project is divided into several phases and is set to be completed by September 2030, according to the release.

“This grant is a monumental achievement for our city, and it reflects our commitment to creating safer and more efficient roadways for our residents,” Craig said in the release.

In 2022, Nampa received $5 million from the Department of Transportation as part of its RAISE grant program. This project, set to begin later this year, also focuses on North Nampa. This older plan included funding the design of the Broadmore Bridge’s replacement. Its construction will be funded by the BUILD grant.

Construction for the RAISE Grant is expected to begin in late 2026 and will be completed in 2027.