As many of you know, I have openly advocated for turning the old Salvation Army site on State Street into affordable housing instead of a low barrier mega-shelter.
The Salvation Army site is 1.9 acres, and has a prime location next to public transport, access to schools, a park, the greenbelt, and the foothills. A while back, I wondered how many apartments could the site hold, and guessed maybe 80-100.
Well, I might of guessed wrong. Over on 16th and State, there is a proposal to build much needed 100+ apartment units on a .5 acre site. You can see the photo above. It would have a built in parking garage, retail shops below, and more importantly provide housing that meets the intent of the State Street Development plan.
Now the building is 7-stories high, and that might not be appropriate in the Veterans Park section of State Street, considering that it has residential houses right behind it, but I see no reason we couldn’t have something similar with 4 or 5 stories high.
With a design similar to this, the site could easily provide up to 200 apartments, or housing for at least 300 people, plus provide retail for residents in Veterans Park.
For those of use that have serious reservations about a whether that area of State Street is appropriate for a shelter that concentrate poverty in an upcoming neighborhood, but support affordable housing, its time for us to put our money where our mouth is.
Tomorrow, the project, that has already been approved by the Planning Commission, is going before the City Council. This is your chance as residents to participate, and to show the rest of Boise that you truly do support housing.
I urge you to please contact the City Council to tell them that you support the project, and that you want solutions instead of bandaids. Let them know, this is what you want for our part of State Street. Go join the Zoom meeting, and let them know. I have signed up to support it.
Smart development like this on State Street prevent homelessness, help our economy, and truly make Boise, better.