Woodstone at the Flats gets the OK to bring new food and live music to Eagle
A scenic food and entertainment venue along Highway 16 in Eagle has changed hands and purposes several times in the last 20 years. Now, the local owners of Goodwood Barbecue think they have the secret sauce to make it a success.
Bobbie and Steve Cooper, owners of the 5-acre property at 3705 N. Highway 16 plan to host restaurants and live music. Eagle City Council members Tuesday unanimously approved a conditional use permit for live music.
“There’s been seven previous failures in that site,” Steve Cooper told council members Tuesday. “It’s a very complicated site and as a small business, this piece, this entertainment piece is critical for the business to simply make it.”
The property has changed hands several times in recent years. It’s been the Flats on 16, The Winery at Eagle Knoll, and several other short-lived establishments. The Coopers said they plan to build a legacy at the site.
“Our campus will be rooted in our culinary passions, but we also want to bring wellness and experts on living life away from technology into our community,” Bobbie Cooper told the council. “We’ve raised our three boys here, and two of them have had their senior proms (at this venue).”
Bobbie Cooper said the couple have had their eyes on purchasing the property for the last decade.
Bobbie Cooper also noted that promoting better mental health and helping residents reconnect socially was a major push behind the move to purchase the land. The couple’s work with Twin Falls-based nonprofit, Jae Foundation, which focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention, is set to continue at their newest venture.
Local artists and chefs will be invited into the space to offer classes for community members, she said, but the core focus of live events and a dedication to Western cuisine will guide the new purpose for the site.
Now called Woodstone at the Flats, the property will host two new restaurants — Woodstone Craft Kitchen and Woodstone 99 Dinner House.
The craft kitchen will serve as an informal breakfast and lunch establishment from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. while the dinner house, named “99” for the year that Goodwood Barbecue first opened in Boise, is meant to be a more upscale affair, seating diners between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m. The Coopers have partnered with architects from CSHQA, the Boise-based firm behind the Hotel Renegade, to bring their vision to life.
Jim Marsh, CEO of CSHQA, told council members that the Coopers have spent the last year beautifying the site by adding water features, such as two ponds and a waterfall, planting mature trees and building additional walking paths. The site includes eight buildings, including six that will be used for restaurants, personal development and pop-up retail shops showcasing local artisans and merchants.
Council president pro tem Craig Kvamme questioned what could happen if the property is eventually sold to someone with a different vision — such as hosting large events or loud concerts.
“We’re conscious — because we’re 2 miles down the street — about being a good neighbor,” Steve Cooper said, noting the couple’s combined 45 years’ experience in the events and restaurant business. “When there’s a patio setting, to speak to the music question ... you have to be able to have conversation. It’s background, not foreground.”
Council member Robert Gillis said the community seems to be excited about live music coming to another venue in Eagle, and the council passed the conditional use permit for live music with one “safeguard”: If the ownership of the property changes hands again, the new owners will have to appear before the council again if they want to keep putting on live events on the property.
The events space will be operational May through October, and live music will be permitted 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
No firm dates for the first events at Woodstone at the Flats were set at the meeting, and the Coopers hope to open the doors to the Woodstone Craft Kitchen early next year.