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VOLUME 3 IDAHO BUSINESS REVIEW 2016

MIXING INSIDEMixed use news and trendsfrom around the state

it up in IDAHO

CBC ADVISORS The Intermountain West’slargest privately heldCommercial Real Estate firmwww.CBCadvisors.com | #CBCAdvisors


2/24

SANDPOINT

p. 4

MOSCOW

p. 19

COEUR D’ALENE

p. 14

McCALL

p. 10

BOISE

p. 11

TWIN FALLS

p. 13

IDAHO FALLS

p. 5

WOOD RIVER VALLEY

p. 17

EAGLE

p. 16

MERIDIANp. 12

IDAHOBUSINESSREVIEW

Volume 2 Number 1 January 15, 2016

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Mixed use depends on community . . . . . . 18

Mixed use and healthy living . . . . . . . . . . 20

Finding the balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Development brings intensity and diversity . . . 8

Mixed-use creates inclusive communities . . . . 9

Not all urban areas are created equal . . . . . . . 9

A long history of mixed use in Pocatello . . . . . 19

People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Urban renewal agencies and mixed use . . 6

An original design for cities . . . . . . . . . . . 7

ON THE COVER: Boise’s Hyde Park neighborhood.

Photo by Patrick Sweeney.

2 | S Q U A R E F E E T q u a r t e r l y I D A H O B U S I N E S S R E V I E W p u b l i c a t i o n | A p r i l 1 5 , 2 0 1 6 | w w w . i d a h o b u s i n e s s r e v i e w. c o m


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4/24

City of Sandpoint seeks mixed-use project as infill downtownBY ANNE WALLACE ALLEN

Idaho Business Review

Sandpoint has a relatively healthy, popu-lated downtown area. But right in the mid-

dle is a parking lot that Aaron Qualls, Sand-point’s director of planning and economicdevelopment, sees as the perfect opportuni-ty for mixed-use infill development..

The city is looking into a feasibility studyfor the 55,000-square-foot parcel, whichnow serves as a city parking lot. Qualls al-ready has some ideas.

“We would love for some kind of anchordowntown to be there on top of a parkingstructure - we can’t lose any parking,” he said.“It could be a hotel, it could be housing on topof commercial use, we’ve even talked about acity hall if we could make that happen.”

S a n d p o i n t , with a populationof about 7,800,already has some

mixed-use devel-opment down-town. And thecity has some in-centives in place,such as an elevatedheight allowancecreated in 2012 forcommercial areas

if the building includes a residential compo-nent. A developer can build higher than 35feet if half of the floor area of the building

is devoted to residential construction. Thecode allows residential development in thecommercial district of the city, but the resi-dence must be above or behind a storefront.

The city also adopted a mixed use resi-dential zone in 2014 that allows for single-family, multi-family and limited low-impactcommercial uses.

“Although there is no requirement thatthere be mixed-use development, there isa density bonus associated with mixed-usebuildings,” Qualls said. The city code itself laysout a vision that calls for enhancing the specialcharacter of the historic downtown core area.

“The downtown is a compact assembly ofstorefront buildings, short walkable blocks,mixed uses, pedestrian amenities, and con-solidated on- and off-street parking,” the

code says. “The community’s commercialcharacter is especially vulnerable to intru-sion from incompatible uses and physicaldevelopment practices which are inconsis-tent with the historical fabric.

“The city’s downtown, designated ascommercial A, is so important and signifi-cant to the city that it justifies a special set ofregulations designed to protect and enhance

its character in light of new development.”

Qualls also listed some deterrents to

mixed-use development, such as the ex-pense of complying with complex firecodes that will cover varied uses in older

buildings, and the difficulty of borrow-

ing money from lenders unaccustomed tounconventional projects. One issue is that

people who are building mixed use usually want to sell the residences associated with

the project, he said.

“Banks aren’t keen on financing condosright now,” he said.

A pending project called the Milltown

Development on the edge of the downtowncore is the largest potential mixed-use devel-opment in Sandpoint’s future. The formerpole yard underwent extensive environmentremediation a decade ago and has been par-celed off into lots for apartments.

Aaron Qualls

Photo courtesy of Aaron Qualls

Sandpoint paddleboarder.

A. Efcient use of land and services.B. A mix of land uses which strengthen

opportunities for economic vitality andsupport pedestrian activity as well ashousing opportunities.

C. Provide for community gathering placesand pedestrian/visitor amenities.

D. Establish a distinct storefront characterassociated with the downtown core area.E. Provide transitions to adjacent neighborhoods

and commercial areas.F. Maintain and enhance the area’s character

through design guidelines.G. Encourage residential development above

ground oor.H. Encourage structured parking in commercial

areas.

THE PRINCIPLES BEHIND SANDPOINT’S

COMMERCIAL ZONES

BY ANNE WALLACE ALLEN


When we set out to talk about mixed-usedevelopment in Idaho for this issue of Square

Feet , we broadened the definition a bit. Architects and developers generally de-

fine mixed-use development as projects

containing at least three distinct uses, suchas stores, apartments, and office space. Suc-cessful projects often include a green or

public space where people can connect andgather. Designed well, these spaces promote

walking, create a sense of place, and enableresidents to live, work, and recreate withoutgetting into a car.

In Idaho, most of us still need to get intothe car. And there’s also a relative abundanceof open space. Accordingly, while mixed-use

development is happening in Idaho, it’shappening slowly, and in sometimes sur-prising places.

We expanded our definition of mixed useto include horizontal, one-story mixed-use

projects in their early stages.In doing so, we took into ac-

count a conservative approachto planning that means insome communities, the idea ofmixed-use is still a novel con-cept that is starting out verysmall. In others, it’s a largenew development of one- andtwo-story homes, offices andstores where the different usesare side-by-side, not vertical.

By expanding the definition, we wereable to include interesting projects like TheHub in McCall, where a B & B shares a build-ing with a coffee shop and a condominium. The Hub’s owner, Mike Maciaszek, wantedto build his home on a lot zoned for com-mercial use on Payette Lake, and buildinga mixed-use project was the only way to

get permission. And we included horizon-tal mixed-use, where developers plan forcommercial, office, multi-family, and sin-gle-family residential development on thesame parcel. Horizontal mixed-use includes

Snake River Landing in IdahoFalls, home to dozens of busi-

nesses, and Boise’s busy HydePark neighborhood (shown onour cover), where century-oldhomes, businesses new andold, and offices co-exist withinthe same few blocks.

In Nampa, the LibrarySquare development, complet-ed by Gardner Co. last year, in-

cludes a three-story library, a 300-space ga-rage, a one-story commercial building and4,300 square feet of retail space. Another development in the planning stages in Nampais a pedestrian-friendly town square. Ownedby the Nampa Development Corp., the development would include retail, restaurant,office space, and public meeting space.

Some cities actively encourage mixed-use

development. Sandpoint will ease its heightrestrictions for a mixed-use building; PostFalls is working on a smart code neighbor-hood plan that embraces walkability andcalls for buildings to be placed at the front

of the lot, with parking behind them. Coeurd’Alene, Ketchum and Boise encouraged

mixed use in their zoning or comprehen-sive plans. Other cities, such as Twin Falls,have zoning in place that calls for commer-cial and residential areas to be separated,although there are developers in town whoexpect to see that change.

It’s ultimately the market that will drivethe creation of mixed-use constructionin Idaho. The same baby boomers whobrought us plush motorcycle seats and hot yoga are now showing a clear preference fordowntown, walkable living. The millennialsare, too. Meanwhile, cities are looking for ways to ease traffic congestion, improve airquality, and encourage healthy alternativesto driving, such as walking and bicycling.Mixed-use is one way to meet some of thoseneeds while promoting a stronger sense of

place, bringing creative new design to ourpublic spaces, and putting our land to itsbest use.

Anne Wallace Allen is editor of the IdahoBusiness Review.

Mixed-use development in Idaho reflects

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5/24

Idaho Falls sets the pace with large mixed-

used development at Snake River LandingB Y T EYA V ITU


Idaho’s largest, most diverse mixed-usedevelopment may well be across the riverfrom historic downtown Idaho Falls.

Snake River Landing in the past 15 yearshas converted a former gravel pit with some300,000 square feet of Class A office/com-mercial space, a nuclear engineering com-pany, 22 single-family homes so far since2009-10, an extension of the city’s Greenbelt with a pier stretching into the river, and a228-unit The Falls apartment complex thatstarted construction in October and will becompleted in summer.

Snake River Landing is just gettingstarted.

Eastern Idaho’s largest developer, Ball Ventures, so far has developed just 40 acresof the 450 acres that Allen Ball assembled in2001 without a specific game plan. Mixed-use development emerged toward the mid-dle of the decade with the first structures inplace in 2007.

Another 300,000 square feet of office/commercial development is anticipated incoming decades along the development‘sPier View Drive, which is where the first waveof offices are clustered. As many as 1,800 to2,200 single-family homes, townhomes, con-dos and apartment units could ultimately sitin what has become prime real estate wedgedbetween the Snake River and Interstate 15running from the mile-and-a-half fromPancheri Drive and Sunnyside Road.

“We definitely want to be a higher den-sity with 16 units per acre,” said Eric Isom,chief development officer at Ball Ventures.

Ball Ventures offered to donate 23 acresnear the freeway to the Idaho Falls Audito-rium District, which is exploring building a4,500-seat events center and possibly bring-ing a professional hockey team to Idaho Falls. The district has issued a request for proposalsfor developer suggestions for an events center.

Ball Ventures also has considered build-ing a shopping center on 65 acres at thesouthern edge of Snake River Landing. Thecompany has earmarked 30 acres for office,

100 acres for res-idential, and 100acres for retail, butmarket forces infuture years couldlead to revisions.

Just across thePancheri streetfrom Snake Riv-er Landing is the15-acre TaylorCrossing, a set ofsix 18th century

Georgian-style Class A office buildings, a

108-room Marriott Residence Inn, a ZionsBank, a Citizens Community Bank andplans for more than 100 condominium andtownhome units.

McNeil Development, owned by brothersRollie and Larin Walker, built Taylor Cross-ing between 2003 and 2013. Constructionis expected to start in March on a 124-roomMarriott Spring Hill Suites.Together, both es-sentially are an extension of downtown Ida-ho Falls. Broadway is the south edge of thehistoric downtown and north edge of TaylorCrossing across the river.

These best business addresses in easternIdaho today are on real estate that wasn’t evenconsidered real estate as recently as the late20th century. On the map, one can’t but won-der how hundreds of acres between the riverand the freeway right by downtown could re-main undeveloped into the 21st century.

But Idaho Falls historically grew east- ward, away from the downtown, the SnakeRiver and, later, I-15, all at the west edge ofthe city. On top of that, the land between thefreeway and river was especially unappeal-ing with lava rock close to the surface anda gravel pit.

Allen Ball at Ball Ventures and the Walk-

er Brothers – all eastern Idaho natives – had

similar motivations of giving back to theircommunity by developing land that had

never attracted developers.

“They were looking at a brownfield,” said

David Strobel, vice president of sales andmarketing at McNeil, of the Walkers. “They

wanted to beautify the city.”Ball Ventures first built 900 and 901 Pier

View Drive, tall, two-story office buildings

that come upon the namesake pier into the

river. They offer 40,000 and 50,000 squarefeet on a street that interprets an old mainstreet with different façade treatments ofbrick, stucco and stone.

“We think it’s the prime location for theresurgence of the growth of the west sideof town,” Isom said. “It was a desire to dosomething different that nobody has donebefore (in Idaho Falls). These are the kindsof projects that are common in many othercities but we didn’t have it.”

Others think so, too. Ball Venturesopened its own office in 901 Pier View in2007. Two years later, U.S. Sen. JamesRisch moved his Idaho Falls office to downthe hall from Ball. The newly establishedtwo-county joint economic developmententity, Regional Economic Development

Eastern Idaho, or REDI, set up shop last yearin the same building. The prominent locallaw firm of Moffatt Thomas brought its of-

TAYLOR CROSSING

1070 Riverwalk Dr. | Idaho Falls

Six Class A ofce buildings designed in an 18th century Georgian style, a 108-

room Marriott Residence Inn, a Zions Bank, a Citizens Community Bank and

plans for more than 100 condominium and townhome units. Construction starts

spring 2016 on a 124-room Marriott Spring Hill Suites

DATE OF CONSTRUCTION

2004-2016

OWNER

McNeil Development

BUILDER

The Russell Corporation

ARCHITECT

Ken Harris Architects, Provo, UT

2007Ball VenturesGL Voigt DevelopmentPotandon ProduceEagle Cap Executive Suites 2008

Primary Health *Current DBA Pacic SourceWells FargoSnake River Landing Discovery Center

2009Teton ToyotaSenator James RischStifel Nicolaus 2010BBSIThe Buckner CompanyBuffalo Wild WingsLove at First BiteLiberty Mutual2011

Carey PerkinsRabo AgriFinanceStevens-Henager CollegeStockman’s Restaurant

2012Adult and Child Development Center Moffatt ThomasNorthpoint CPASuper Fly FitnessLove at First Bite - Expansion 2013Boise Ofce EquipmentLarsen Farms

Bill’s Bike ShopGalusha, Higgins & Galusha *Current DBA

WipiBandon River ApartmentsTeton VolkswagenHorrocks EngineersMacKenzie River Pizza Pub & Grill 2014Curtiss-Wright Flow Control ScientechEdward Jones InvestmentsIntel Security 2015

Northwest Farm CreditKool Beanz CaféHome2 Suites by HiltonREDIFirst American Title Co

SNAKE RIVER LANDING TENANTS AND THE YEARS THEY OPENED

Photo by Pete Grady.

901 Pier View Drive and 900 Pier View Drive are the premium ofce buildings at Snake River Landing, which has a pierthat juts out into the river. Photo by Pete Grady

See IDAHO FALLS, page 23

Eric Isom

(left to right) Bryan Wilson and Brent Wilson

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6/24

Urban renewal agencies help financemixed-use projects

BY BENTON ALEXANDER SMITH


City officials around Idaho are beginningto view mixed-use development as a strate-gic way to increase downtown populationsin order to help businesses. But becausethose projects can have difficulty finding fi-nancing, many cities help with the costs.

One of the main ways to help is through anurban renewal agency. When lending or con-struction costs make a project too expensiveto be feasible, some cities use urban renewalfunds to help make the project happen.

The Idaho Falls Redevelopment Agency,an urban renewal district, heard from down-town businesses that it was vital to get alarger population living downtown to createa healthy business market. A study commis-

sioned by the agency and conducted by theLeland Consulting Group in June conclud-ed the city needed 500 downtown housingunits to fill the need.

The agency decided that two mixed-useprojects could help to solve its problem.

“You know you need commercial and re-tail development downtown to attract peo-ple to shop and make it a destination, but you need residential to attract the retail,”said IRFA Chairman Lee Radford. “Gettingthem both in one building seems like thenatural way to do it.”

One of the projects is planned for the his-toric Bonneville Hotel, which was originallya mixed-use space consisting of a restaurantand hotel. The hotel is now dilapidated andthe restaurant has closed. The city has tried

for years to get a developer to renovate theproperty, Radford said.

“It’s something we’ve wanted to see hap-

pen,” Radford said. “In Boise you see a lotof this. There are good developers with ex-

pertise there, but we don’t have a lot of de-

velopers that are regularly doing this typeof construction here. We thought we couldhelp to get the project done.”

The agency is now taking proposals forthe Bonneville Hotel and will help to con-nect the chosen developer with low-incomehousing tax credits and historic preservationtax credits, Radford said.

An urban renewal district is a sanctionedagency that helps to repair a deteriorated orblighted area of a city or county. The agencyhelps to foster development in the area andin return collects any increase in property tax-es that results from the work. It then appliesthat money to future public improvements.

The IFRA got its idea for renovating theBonneville Hotel after looking at what urbanrenewal agencies in Boise, Moscow and Po-

catello have done to help mixed-use projects.“It’s not the same as getting the financial

backing from a bank, but it helps,” SmartGrowth Executive Director Scot Oliver saidof urban renewal agency contributions todevelopers.

The Boise urban renewal agency CapitalCity Development Corp has helped devel-opers restore many downtown landmarks,including the Idanha Hotel.

“We gave thedevelopers ofthat project afaçade-easementpurchase to makesure they wouldkeep the exteriorintact,” said Oli- ver, former CCDCproject manager.“It’s a gift for thecity because it en-sures a building with historic value

and an iconic look stays that way.”Many developers said that without

the help of urban renewal agencies they wouldn’t have been able to afford the mixed-use projects they’ve done.

“The CCDC has been involved in allthree of our projects,” said Local ConstructCo-president Mike Brown, a developer whorestored the Owyhee Hotel and is devel-oping The Fowler and a mixed-use projectat the former location of the Watercooler.

“Without development dollars, these proj-

ects would not be getting built because of

the expense of building downtown.”Construction costs can rise because of the

building codes located in some downtownareas. A code that requires a certain amountof parking or implements a particularly highimpact fee can make a project unfeasible.

“When you’re talking about urban build-ing, the forum is largely expensive in Idaho while the rent you can charge is relativelyinexpensive,” Brown said. “We were lookingat building in Denver and in Boise and wefound we could charge $2 per square foot forrent in Boise and $3 in Denver and the proj-ects had similar construction costs. Withoutthe urban renewal agency, we wouldn’t havebeen able to afford to do the Owyhee.”

The CCDC is now helping with a newmixed-use project being designed by Michael

Hormaechea called the Afton. Hormaecheapurchased the property on Eighth Street wherethe project is being constructed, but will be paidthe full purchase price back once he finishes thetwo construction phases of the project.

The CCDC has a similar deal with Brownfor the Watercooler project. He will ultimate-ly get back most of the original purchasingprice, and the expected increased propertytaxes from the project will pay the CCDC.

“The Watercooler is a good examplebecause to build good retail space on theground floor rather than building housingunits is expensive,” Brown said.” It costs alot to design a retail space. You have to dothe floor-to-ceiling glass windows and thehigher ceilings.”

Cities all over the state are looking for ways to incentivize downtown developmentand mixed-use projects. The Legacy Crossingurban renewal district in Moscow is empha-sizing residential/office mixed-use develop-ment to revive the area between its down-town and the University of Idaho. Pocatello’sOld Town Pocatello Association helped thedeveloper renovating the Whitman Hotel toget a historic-preservation tax credit. And inSandpoint, city code only allows a buildingto exceed 35 feet downtown if it dedicates 50percent of its space to housing units.

“Sometimes there are almost two different worlds in Idaho,” Radford said. “You haveresidential trying to slap up apartments andcommercial. Often, those two worlds don’tmeet and in Idaho I think you are starting to

see more cities try to get those together.”

Scot Oliver

Photo by Erika Sather-Smith.

The Los Angeles company LocalConstruct developed the Owyhee Hotel in downtown Boise using urban renewal fundingfrom Capital City Development Corp.

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7/24

Mixed-use development renews anoriginal design for cities

BY TEYA VITU


The idea of mixed-use development is asold as the human community. For hundredsof thousands of years, people have conduct-ed business from a dwelling that doubled asa storefront or workshop.

Yet “mixed-use development” has gainednational currency in the past few decadesas planners seek to revive downtowns andreject the sprawl that comes with suburbiaand freeways.

After World War II, people sought cul-de-sac living. Family life became associated with the perceived freedom from the noisy,busy, hectic quality of urban living as it wasknown in the earlier 20th century. Govern-ments and civil engineers in the post- WW

II decades became fully complicit in erasingany notion of the pre-war norms of retail onthe ground floor with offices and residentialunits above.

In subsequent decades, zoning regu-lations specifi-cally segregatedcommercial fromresidential devel-opment. The eraof walking to thestore, to school,to the park, van-ished quickly inthe 1950s and1960s as the loveaffair with the car

and freeways blossomed into the 1970s and1980s.

“That whole concept was abused reallybadly,” said Hal Simmons, planning directorat the city of Boise. “Part of suburbia is peoplebeing in an idyllic setting. In the long run, it wasn’t functional. As the country got good atbuilding suburbs, engineers got really goodat laying out standard designs for roads andsubdivisions. Everything got standardized.”

With that, historic vestiges of what wenow call “mixed-use development” weredemolished across the country. It returnedin the early 2000s with a modern interpreta-tion, said Jaap Vos, head of the University ofIdaho Urban Design Center based in Boise.He was living in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., witha downtown of mostly commercial and of-fice space. Then the city added 5,000 unitsof downtown housing.

Boise in 2014 set its own metric of 1,000new housing units for downtown. Boise,however, got a bit of a head start on mixed-use development in the mid-1980s long be-fore the phrase entered the lexicon.

The mixed-use concept was in play as theBoise Redevelopment Agency, today’s Capi-tal City Development Corp., wrestled withthe four cleared city blocks at Eighth andGrove Streets. The agency built the GrovePlaza in the middle of the massive empty lotand in 1989 established the city’s first redevelopment district, the Central District.

Mixed-use development is truly aboutpeople, especially the millennial generation

born from 1980 to 2000, and the baby boom-

ers. Both want to get out of the suburbs.

“It’s about placemaking, living in a more

authentic place,” Simmons said.

The boomers have seen traditional soci-

etal norms decline, including the mixed-use

communities from the old days. They saw

housing become more affordable as develop-

ers moved farther from employment centers.

“A tipping point was ‘drive until you qual-

ify’ (for a home loan),” said Bryant Forrester,

president of Urban Concepts of Keller Williams

Realty Boise, a sales firm focused on high densi-

ty, smart-growth development. “It’s taken peo-

ple so far away from the cultural center.”

The Treasure Valley hasn’t yet endured

Bryant Forrester

Photo by Patrick Sweeney.

The Hyde Park neighborhood in Boise, developed around the turn of the 20th cen-tury, includes ofce space, single-family homes, restaurants, stores, and apartments.

See DESIGN, page 22

As executive director at Capital City De- velopment Corp., my work has significantinfluence on the growth and developmentof downtown Boise, the center for commerceand government in Idaho’s largest city. Thisposition of influence means the agency is

constantly collaborating and creating withother planning agencies, and always seekingthe perfect blend, or mix, of uses within ourdistricts. Although CCDC is not a regulatoryentity that focuses on planning and zoningshifts and random suburban project appli-cations, I often get this question: what arethe merits of mixed-use development, anddoes it fit into a larger strategy for economicgrowth in the downtown area?

The larger strategy for economic develop-ment in the 700 acres of CCDC urban renew-al districts includes a blend of mobility, resi-dential, hospitality, retail and entertainmentuses. In our analysis, the merits of mixed-useprojects, or a similar array of connected proj-ects that result in a dynamic and active neigh-borhood, is essential for a successful urban

environment. In fact, CCDC has achievedan “18-hour city” in some small areas of ourolder districts. That is good for the health and vitality in the heart of city.

As a redevelopment agency, we’re primar-ily focused on projects that enhance eco-nomic growth and eliminate deterioratingand blighted properties. We work very close-ly every day with private sector developers,builders, entrepreneurs and thought leadersto bring ideas to reality. And CCDC worksclosely with the professionals at the city ofBoise to understand and support the land usegoals and neighborhood plan objectives. Theshared belief is that a mix of uses adds to thestability and vitality throughout the city.

Two current initiatives at CCDC to sup-port mixed use involve downtown housing,

and downtown mobility.

In 2015, the agency commis-sioned and published a newdowntown housing study to ex-plore the aspiration of adding1,000 new housing units by the year 2020. With little growth in

this area over the past decade,the idea was to provide data fordevelopers and investors andfacilitate growth. It worked. The project continues gatheringmomentum and mixed use suc-cess, with nearly all the residential projectsincluding a retail or restaurant component.

Some of the 300 new housing unitsunderway are the result of our proactiveCCDC-driven projects using an RFP process,such as our mixed-use residential housing, The Afton condominiums, and the upcom-ing Watercooler apartments redevelopment.Other projects found traction with marketdemand and will add to the mosaic of hous-ing options.

The most timely and serious threat to sus-

taining downtown success is parking, a keyto successful growth in any urban setting. Re-cent reports suggest that demand for weekdaydaytime parking is projected to exceed supplyby more than 500 spaces based on the pace ofdevelopment by 2017. The private and publicparking garages have been instrumental increating a walkable, dense, active and vibrantmixed-use downtown. But structured park-ing is only part of the solution for a healthy,modern and balanced urban mobility systemin a mixed-use environment.

Among the current planning efforts arethe City of Boise’s Transportation ActionPlan; CCDC/Boise City’s Strategic ParkingPlan; Ada County Highway District’s Down-town Boise Implementation Plan; and ValleyRegional Transit’s Regional Transportation

Development Plan. All plans envision a fu-

ture where “parking demandreduction” is achieved by park-ing management strategies andpractical alternatives to drivingand parking downtown. Practi-cally, this should lead to more

options to bike, walk, and rideor drive safely, comfortably andconveniently.

If there is no access to reason-able parking and no alternatives,people don’t show up. The warn-

ings come from many sources, including base-ball great and philosopher Yogi Berra, whoonce said of popular restaurant “Nobody goesthere anymore. It’s too crowded.”

Fortunately, we have the time and visionto avoid major pitfalls. Together, the publicand private interests improving downtownBoise can reposition the role of parking tosupport mixed uses, and do so in the largercontext of a shared multimodal future.

Although we only control 28 percent ofdowntown’s monthly parking spaces, CCDC

is identifying ways to improve our usageof existing parking spaces. Plans are in the works to convert 400 spaces across four ofour six downtown parking garages fromhourly to monthly – during the daytimeonly, and only on weekdays – as a first step. This move is the equivalent of constructinga new parking garage, but without the cost. The result will be an immediate benefit tonew business looking to find parking for aninflux of employees, yet still allow hourlyusers to occupy spaces not in immediate useby the larger workforce.

That would only be the beginning of anoverall plan for repositioning parking in thenext phase of downtown Boise’s develop-ment. To realize this plan, public and privatesector leaders will work together to:

• Maximize use of all existing parking

spaces in and around downtown Boise. This

means allocating the correct parking ratios

for different user groups, coordination with

private parking lots, planning for special

events and, potentially, use of spaces outside

of downtown with shuttle services.

• Increase the amount of alternativetransportation available to downtown.

Ride-sharing, carpooling and support for

development guidelines.

• Coordinate parking rates among stake-

holders to incentivize the most efficient us-

age by drivers.

• Budget space for more parking across a

wide variety of developments in and around

downtown.

There are plans in place at CCDC to ad-

dress, in part, all of the described pieces of

this strategy and more. We are working to

gain consensus among stakeholders, be-

cause despite its easily recognizable parking

structures, CCDC only operates 15 percent

of the estimated total 17,000 available spac-

es in downtown Boise, including monthly

and hourly options.

Within the boundaries of CCDC’s dis-

tricts we are approaching becoming an

18-hour city. Ready or not, every sector of

growth will be bringing more people and

more cars to downtown Boise in an array of

uses -- all good for downtown Boise. Mod-

ernizing our transportation, parking, and

circulation plans with a holistic approach

using a “mixed use” of transit modalities

will assure the next chapter of prosperity in

downtown Boise.

John Brunelle is executive director of Capital

City Development Corporation. The redevelop-

ment agency oversees investment in four districts

spanning 700 acres in downtown Boise.

VIEWPOINT:John Brunelle

In Idaho’s capital, mixed-use development

means finding the right balance



8/24

Historically, all development was mixed-use. Residential, agricultural, commercial,

and manufacturing uses occurred in closeproximity. People lived and worked in thesame place. Economic considerations andlimited transportation options inherentlyproduced compact and mixed-use develop-ment. Transportation improvements andmodern zoning facilitated suburbanizationand the separation of uses. Uses were sep-arated in reaction to negative conditionsfound in urban centers.

Governmental policies, demographicchanges, and modern planning encouragemixed-use development today, which isnothing more than the inclusion of differ-ent types of land uses in the same project.Mixed-use development may be vertical with ground floor retail, and residential oroffice space above, as is common in historicurban centers. It may also be a more hori-zontal type of development found in lessdense areas where diverse uses are encour-aged in close proximity to each other.

Mixed-use development encourages effi-cient use of land and infrastructure. When land values increase, mixed-use development per-mits certain types of development that wouldbe uneconomical for single-use projects be-cause of the costs associated with constructionand infrastructure. A stand-alone retail projectthat may not generate sufficient rents to justifythe project may be possible with the inclusionof office, residential, or public components. Alarger, more intensive mixed-use project pro- vides a larger base to support such investment.

Mixed-use projects more efficiently uti-

lize infrastructure. Utility relocation and ex-pansion can be very expensive. Sharing these

costs over a larger and morediverse project results in effi-

ciencies. Additionally, parkingis never free. Surface parkinglots have land costs, mainte-nance and operating costs, andtax and insurance expenses, which are recaptured throughtenant rent. Offices demandparking during the day, Mon-day through Friday. Retail andentertainment uses demandparking in the evening and weekend. Thecombination of office with retail and enter-tainment requires less land for parking thanif they were single use projects.

Studies indicate that an increasing prefer-ence for mixed-use development in the Unit-ed States. Everyone has a story of the quaint village, town or neighborhood that they vis-ited on vacation where they never needed todrive. However, they may have a different re-action to mixed-use projects at home.

Mixed-use projects utilize land more inten-sively than occurred over the past fifty years.Density is the first and primary objectionraised to any project, even one proposed inintensive commercial zones within an urban-ized area. Objections are voiced in terms ofheight or mass or population of the project.

In an automobile-centric society, trafficand parking are also cited in oppositionto projects. Mixed-use projects spread tripsthroughout the day. Projects in the rightlocation with the right mix of uses can en-courage trips where a car is parked, multipleactivities occur, and peak hour trips are re-

duced. As noted above, mixed-use projectsmake parking more efficient, thereby re-

ducing the amount of requiredparking. Some mixed-use proj-

ects are legitimately criticizedfor their artificiality where theyfeel like amusement parks, withapartments grafted into a tradi-tional mall surrounded by anoversized surface parking lot.

Effective mixed-use develop-ment must be organic, it can-not be mandated or forced. Re-quiring ground floor storefront

on streets with minimal pedestrian activityor residential uses on high-traffic streets area recipe for failure. Retailers need customersand customers need a place to park. Withoutfrequent and convenient transit, most peo-ple still require automobiles.

Notwithstanding the support for mixed-use development by planners and pundits,developing successful mixed-use projects isdifficult. Location and density dictate success. There are specific building code requirementsfor every type of use. The egress requirementfor commercial and assembly uses can resultin more and very large exit stairwells. The ven-tilation and fire suppression requirements forrestaurant uses are very particular and are achallenge to integrate into a larger structure.Multistory residential development has veryspecific life safety code requirements. Whenuses are combined, building code compliancebecomes complicated. Boise City has takenthe time and effort to work with developersto develop appropriate code modifications toencourage mixed-use development. Howev-er, even with cooperative code officials, these

code issues add expense to mixed-use projects.Obtaining construction and permanent

financing for a mixed-use project is morecomplicated. Construction lenders may have

an area of expertise in one type of develop-ment. Permanent lenders look for specificproject type meeting very specific underwrit-ing standards. As such, when a project hasa variety of integrated uses, lending necessi-tates creativity and flexibility.

Financing of residential elements withina mixed-use project is also challenging. FHArequirements for residential condominiumloans are stringent and FHA imposes addi-tional requirements regarding the mixture ofcommercial and residential uses in a project.Compliance takes time and interjects uncer-tainty into a project. As a result, many devel-opers frequently forego residential elementsthat would attract FHA buyers, resulting ineither apartments or high end condomini-ums that are not FHA eligible. As a result,the residential components of mixed-useprojects generally do not meet the expecta-tions of planners or the public.

In spite of these issues, mixed-use devel-opment is proving successful in the Trea-sure Valley. Bown Crossing is an exampleof a planned commercial node, that giventime and a specific mixed-use vision canbe successful. The mixture of residential,retail, commercial and public uses at thatsite demonstrates that in the right location,a horizontal mixed-use hub can work. It re-quires patience, however, as the various useshave different development and life cycles.

The benefit to including office space with-in a lifestyle center is evident at The Village inMeridian. With the absorption of over 100,000

See WARDLE, page 22

VIEWPOINT:Geoffrey Wardle

Done properly, mixed-use development

brings intensity and diversity



9/24

Historically, downtowns have been thecenter of the community. But they are more. They can be the best example of mixed-usedevelopment. Downtowns show how vari-ous built forms, functions and uses such as

places to work, live and recreate can be har-moniously integrated.

Mixed-use development generates an en-ergy and intensity of use that very seldomexists in other built environments. Tradi-tional modern city centers often had a truelive/work environment; however, during thesuburbanization of our cities, this notiondisappeared in many instances.

That said, not all urban centers or mixed-use developments are created equal. Theinvention of the skyscraper, while a testa-ment to great architecture and engineering,did not always bode well for the experienceof the pedestrian at the street level. Manybuildings were created with a single use inmind, creating a separation of purpose, andin many instances built on “super-blocks”

that resulted in areas that were seldom activeat the street level and uninviting to the pe-destrian. Much of this type of development was led by “separate-use zoning” which wasprevalent following World War II.

Many cities, including Boise, have nowadopted “form-based” standards, whichrecognize that the current and desired char-acter of streets may change from block toblock, thus providing a flexibility of designoptions and encouraging a mix of uses. Thecity’s “Blueprint Boise” reinforces a mix ofuses in the downtown planning area, andstates: DT-CCN 1.2: MIX OF USES Developa vibrant mix of uses in Downtown whichencourage: 24-hour activity, office; retail andservice businesses; residential; hotel, conven-tion and medical facilities; and civic, cultural,

educational and entertainment uses.

Another wayto view mixed-usedevelopment inthe urban environ-ment is the design

of streets and sidewalks for multipleuses. For exam-ple, sidewalks canbe used for cafés,streets can be usedfor events, andstreets can be shared by automobiles and bi-cycles. Public open spaces are often underusedand can be leveraged to create communityevents or other interactions in spaces that inmany instances were previously off-limits.One of the best examples of rethinking thepublic space in a creative way is Times Squarein New York City, where the roads have beenredesigned, adding additional public space forevents and pedestrians.

Downtown Boise, through comprehen-

sive planning, entrepreneurial spirit, creativeideas and thoughtful leadership, now hasexamples of a built environment with a mixof uses and vibrancy in the core. The BasqueBlock and Eighth Street are good examplesof street spaces that have been modified tocreate wide sidewalks, providing space foroutdoor dining areas and a narrower streetthat can easily be converted into publicevent spaces ideal for events like the CapitolCity Public Market and Jaialdi.

The Grove Plaza was carved out of the in-tersection of Eighth and Grove streets, creatinga public plaza that has had a long history ofcommunity gatherings, including events suchas Alive After Five. The Grove Plaza is sur-rounded by many uses, including the BoiseCentre which hosts conventions and commu-

nity events, the Century Link Arena (home

to the Idaho Steelheads and Idaho Stampedeteams), the Grove Hotel and two office towers,and the Wells Fargo and US Bank buildings with retail space at ground level.

The mixed uses of this area will soonexpand with the addition of the City Cen-ter Plaza development, which includes theMain Street Station, the Boise Centre ex-pansion, and a nine-story office tower that

will house a technology company and BoiseState University’s computer science school.

The addition of educational opportunitiesin the core has added another valuable use toour urban center. With the addition of Con-cordia University of Law, University of Idaho Water Center and College of Law, and the ex-pansion of Boise State University into the core,students now frequent downtown Boise.

The goals of Capital City Developmentto improve downtown Boise, have resultedin many visible improvements that can beseen throughout the core including publicparking garages, sidewalk improvements,and the Grove Plaza. While sidewalk im-provements may seem somewhat insignif-icant, they have certainly encouraged the

proliferation of sidewalk cafés. To enhance

the sidewalk-built environment, the city

of Boise also adopted a sidewalk café ordi-

nance that allows for this use that creates a

vibrant street scene.

Another valuable use in the mix of uses in

downtown Boise is urban housing. The city

has a goal of adding an additional 1,000 units

by the year 2020. With more than 600 units

well under way, that goal is very attainable and

will add many more residents to the down-

town neighborhood. In addition to perma-

nent residents, three new hotels in downtown

Boise have broken ground. They will add close

to 450 rooms over the next year.

There are many elements available to create

a good mixed-use place. Downtown Boise has

achieved many of these elements, and with con-

tinued planning, creative ideas and community

investment, a mix of uses will continue to evolve

to improve and invigorate our urban core.

Kâren Sander is the resident downtown office

and retail specialist at Cushman & Wakefield/

Commerce. She leads and supports the Boise

team in building relationships with existing and

prospective clients in all sectors of Boise’s Down-

town commercial real estate market.

Mixed-use projects are receiving escalated

attention and have become increasingly popu-lar in both the public and private sectors.Mixed-use development blends residen-

tial, commercial, cultural, institutional, and where appropriate, industrial uses. Mixed-use projects can be as small as a singlebuilding with multiple uses or include sev-eral hundred acres with many buildings andtenants. The mixing of these uses, howeversmall or large, creates inclusive and con-nected communities that are physically andfunctionally integrated.

Idaho Falls has seen a surge in mixed-useprojects over the past ten years. One example,Snake River Landing, is a mixed-use projectthat is home to a broad range of uses in-cluding restaurants, offices, auto-dealerships,a hotel, a high-tech research facility, and

housing options ranging from single-familyhomes to senior apartments and higher den-sity apartments. The development will alsobe home to the future Idaho Falls Event Cen-ter. Snake River Landing has invested heavilyin amenities for its businesses and residents, with miles of walking and biking paths con-necting the development with Idaho Falls’“riverwalk,” downtown Idaho Falls, and local water features.

Recently the Idaho Falls Redevelopment Agency (IFRdA) released two requests forproposals for downtown mixed-use projects.One proposal is for the redevelopment of ahistoric hotel, the Bonneville Hotel, whilethe other is for new construction on the cor-ner of Broadway and Memorial Drive. Bothprojects are expected to include a combina-

tion of retail, of-

fice, and restaurantuse along with amix of housingoptions.

The city andthe redevelopmentagency believe thistype of project isgood for the localeconomy.

For residents,living in a mixed-use community can translate to monthlysavings on gas and other transportationcosts, as having an immediate customer base within walking distance creates increasedfoot traffic to all stores and businesses inthe development. This helps the municipal-

ity by promoting inclusion and comraderyamongst organizations.

In downtown Idaho Falls, taking amixed-use approach is important for twomain reasons. First, a recent housing marketstudy revealed that Idaho Falls’ downtowndoesn’t have enough housing.

Housing options are vitally important inproviding a reason for downtowns to stay“awake” and vibrant after workday hours when many employees leave the area. Froman urban design standpoint, however, themain floors of these buildings should beused for something other than housing be-cause of privacy and security. Therefore theuse of retail, restaurant, or office space be-came important for these spaces as well.

The second reason taking a mixed-use

approach is the ef-

ficient use of landmixed-use proj-ects provide. Mostdowntown parcelshave already beendeveloped. Thereis limited space tospread out. Mixed-use projects en-courage verticaldevelopment.

The downtownBonneville Hotel project demonstrates an ad-ditional aspect of some mixed-use develop-ment, which is the importance and advantageof being sensitive to the historic character ofexisting buildings. Demolition of buildingsis costly. Besides the cost of the demolition,

there are expenses related to removing debrisand disposing of hazardous materials, of-ten containing lead or asbestos. Restorationof structures certainly has its own expenses,but if a developer is willing to maintain thebuilding’s integrity, there are opportunitiesfor 30 percent of the costs to be eligible forfederal historic preservation tax credits. InIdaho Falls, community development blockgrant funds have been used downtown tohelp restore historic facades at a huge costsavings to the developer.

The downtown, Snake River Landing, anda development called Taylor Crossing mixed-use projects have something in common:they are all located in urban renewal districts.Each of these areas, before development, wasblighted and presented enormous challenges

to interested developers. Snake River Land-

ing, for example, is the site of a former gravelextraction pit. Developers of these projects

have stated publicly that without urban re-

newal programs and tax increment financing,

development wouldn’t have happened.

Criticism of urban renewal in Idaho has

been a constant topic in the Legislature.

These Idaho Falls projects show that when

used correctly and responsibly, urban renew-

al is a tremendous tool to encourage mixed-

use developments and reinvigorate distressed

parts of cities.

Community opinions vary when mixed-

use development projects are proposed.

Some community members ask why

we would redevelop a build ing when

it could be demolished and used for a

parking lot. For developers who are used

to the standard pattern of development, it

presents new challenges they may not feel

prepared to address.

There must be an understanding of what

the market will support. Will residents in the

community be willing to share their neigh-

borhood with offices, grocery stores, and

restaurants? When all of the pieces come to-

gether the result is a development that will

benefit the community for decades to come.

Brad Cramer is the director of community de-

velopment services for the City of Idaho Falls.

Dana Briggs joined the City of Idaho Falls

as the Economic Development Coordinator

in August.

Brad Cramer Dana Briggs

VIEWPOINT:Kâren Sander

Not all urban centers are created equal

VIEWPOINT:Brad Cramer and

Dana Briggs

Mixed-use development

creates inclusive communities

Graphic Source: http://formbasedcodes.org/denition/



10/24

Mixed use meets McCallBY ANNE WALLACE ALLEN


When Mike Maciaszek set out to buildhis home in McCall, he looked for a down-town space on Payette Lake. He quickly re-

alized that with zoning on the downtownlakeshore limited to commercial buildings,he’d have to put up a mixed-use property.

“I wanted to bedowntown and bythe lake, and sothe only way toaccomplish that was to do mixed-use on a com-mercial lot,” saidMaciaszek, whopreviously livedabove a coffeeshop in San Fran-cisco and is a pro-ponent of dense

urban development.

“If you get into the philosophical sideof it, mixed-use makes for a vibrant down-town,” he said. “A downtown that only hascommercial buildings is dead.”

The result: the Hub, Maciaszek’s4,800-square-feet coffee shop, bed and break-fast, and third-floor personal residence.

For a small resort town, McCall has a lotof mixed-use development: the city of 3,000full-time residents has three separate proj-ects downtown including the Hub. The oth-er two are Park Street Plaza, a condomini-um development on the corner of Highway55 and Park Street, which has commercialspace facing the highway with the residen-tial units above, and Alpine Village, the city’slargest and newest mixed-use project, with27 condos and a clubhouse, 18,000 square

face of retail and office space, and parking. A master plan calls for more construction onthe 5-acre site.

Mixed-use is a priority for McCall, saidMichelle Groenevelt, the city’s communitydevelopment director. City code was actu-ally revised in 2006 to require mixed-useconstruction in the central business district.

The code calls for50 percent of theground floor areato be designed foreither commercialor public use.

“We just have alimited downtownarea,” Groeneveltsaid. “Back during

the last boom peri-od, we were losinga lot of our centralbusiness district

to condo development. And once you lose your commercial district, it’s hard to get itback.”

Maciaszek said he had run into obstaclesfrom bankers when building his Hub.

“There are a few loan options for such

things,” he said. “I built it with cash andthen took out a loan.” But he said he hadno problem finding a buyer for the Hub. It’sunder contract with someone who plans tocontinue using it as a mixed-use building,he said.

Alpine Village was the first mixed-usedevelopment for its builder, said principalMichael Hormaechea, who is also building

the mixed-use Afton condominium projectin downtown Boise.

“It’s a good way to diversify the markets you’re approaching, by selling residential andleasing commercial,” Hormaechea said. Andhe felt the downtown location would appealto vacationers.

“There was an opportunity to get people todrive to McCall, park their car, and live workand play and not have to drive around,” he said.

Because McCall is a resort community,downtown housing doesn’t necessarily bringthe vibrancy to the downtown that it does inmore full-time cities, Groenevelt noted. Al-though the population can swell to 20,000

on a busy week-end, at other timesdowntown condos

can be empty formonths on end.

“In McCall,our downtownbecomes very qui-et around 6 to 8o’clock, becauseright now there arenot a lot of peopleliving downtown,”

said Groenevelt. “There are some apart-

ments and houses, and some subdivisions

right near there. But there’s not that activity

and vibrancy, and that’s usually why you en-

courage mixed use.”

The city council also looked at an af-

fordable housing project within McCall’s

downtown core. It was rejected last year, but

Groenevelt said it will come up again this year.

Groenevelt said she’s heard talk of more

mixed-use projects downtown as the econ-

omy has picked up over the last few years.

“Even within small towns, when you

show the public the kind of pictures of that

mixed-use mountain town development,

with two, three, four stories, the walkable

sidewalks, everyone seems to like it,” she

said. “As long as the architecture is good.”

Michael Hormaechea

Michelle Groenevelt

Mike Maciaszek

ALPINE VILLAGE

600 N 3rd Street | McCall

A master plan approved for the 5-acre site includes 4 buildings, only one of

which has been constructed. The master plan is being revised. Right now there

27 one to four-bedroom condominiums, all but ve of them leased, and about

18,000 square feet of retail and ofce space, about 70 percent of it leased. An

owners’ clubhouse and surface parking is also in place.


January 2016

OWNER

Alpine Village Company

Michael Hormaechea

Amy Wray

Richard Hormaechea

BUILDER

The Russell Corporation

ARCHITECT

Epikos Land Planning

CTA

Photo courtesy of Mike Maciasze

The Hub in McCall is a mixed-use downtown building that includes a coffee shop and a bed and breakfast, and has theowner’s home on the third oor.

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11/24

Mixed use is fundamentalto Boise’s comprehensive plan

BY SHARON FISHER

Special to the IBR

Mixed use is fundamental to the compre-hensive plan in Idaho’s largest city.

“Our comp plan is all about trying to cre-ate an urban environment where people havechoices, the ability to get around, differentforms of transportation, and convenience intheir daily needs, and a more healthy life-style,” said Planning Director Hal Simmons.“Mixed use is a big part of all of that.”

To encourage mixed-use development,Boise offers incentives such as personal at-tention to get through the process, and re-duced parking requirements, Simmons said.

Boise has also been working to improveits zoning to help encourage mixed-use development. The city is trying to get awayfrom the traditional method of dividing it-self into distinct land-use categories and dic-tating “you shall do commercial here,” Sim-mons said. Most corridors are specificallydesignated for mixed use, and almost all ofthem allow a combination of uses through aconditional use permit, he said.

Some mixed-use zones don’t requireconditional use permits at all, which helpsstreamline the process because no publichearing is required. Boise has created a “pe-

destrian commercial zone” designed to fos-

ter mixed use. It was used for Bown Crossing

in east Boise and is being used for St. Mary’s

Crossing on State and 27th streets. “We want

to come up with a zone to allow you to re-cre-

ate places like Hyde Park,” Simmons said.

In addition, Boise is working to expand

its C5 zone, “downtown mixed use,” beyond

the core of downtown, such as on Fairview

toward Whitewater Park, and is looking to-

ward developing mixed-use transit-oriented

development along transit corridors such

as State Street. “We’re always interested in

evolving our zoning,” he said.

Residential zoning has hampered some

mixed-use development. Boise discovered

this with the mixed-use 36th Street Garden

Center’s live-work units. “Buyers had a hard

time getting residential loans because it waszoned commercial,” Simmons said. “It’s oneof those things you don’t think about.”

Mixing uses makes things more compli-cated. “It adds an extra complexity and it canbe an extra challenge in underwriting feasi-bility,” said Michael Hormaechea, managerof Hormaechea Development LLC, whichis building the Afton mixed-use project atEighth Street. Retail was particularly dif-ficult at that location because there wasn’tmuch other retail around it, he said.

Commercial units in the developmentare just coming onto the market for lease,

while residential units are for sale. Hormae-chea said he’s seen “very strong demand”but wouldn’t disclose numbers.

At the 951, a mixed-use project on Frontstreet east of Broadway, the two-level live/ work units were the last to fill up.

“It was a new concept,” said Cathy Ro-sera, president of Perrine Investments, theproperty manager for The 951.

On the commercial side, the building hasone vacancy.

“We were almost full by the time we

Rendering courtesy of Michael Hormaechea

The Afton apartment building planned for Eighth and River streets.

36TH ST. GARDEN CENTER

PLAZA

3823 N Garden Center Way | Boise

Two main anchor buildings, the 9,000-square-foot 36th Street Garden Center

& Bistro Building (modeled after the Linnean House in St Louis), & the

20,000-square-foot, three-story 36th Street Garden Plaza Building. Also two

2,500-square-foot stand-alone commercial buildings fronting 36th street and

ve live/work units. The two main buildings use geothermal wells.


Project is complete. Residential was completed in 2015.

OWNER

The Terteling Company, Inc. (TTCI) owns the commercial buildings, 7 attached

townhomes & 5 attached live work units. The remaining 11 single-family

detached residential units are owner-occupied.

BUILDER

TTCI properties by Intermountain Property Development, remaining homes by

Wood River

ARCHITECT

Modus Architecture & others

CITY CENTER PLAZA

777 W. Main Street | Boise

Underground multi-modal transit center that will be owned and operated

by Valley Regional Transit. A nine-story retail and ofce building anchored

by Clearwater Analytics on the top ve oors, with Boise State University

occupying the second and third oors, the Greater Boise Auditorium District

occupying the fourth oor, and Gardner Company retaining the rst oor

retail space. An expansion of the Boise Centre with a new ballroom and

meeting facility owned by the auditorium district, ground-oor retail and two

oors of structured parking owned by Gardner company. The MultimodalCenter occupies approximately 50,000 square feet, the Clearwater Build ing

is approximately 175,000 square feet, and the Centre Building occupies

approximately 90,000 square feet.

DATE OF CONSTRUCTIONJuly 2014 - August 2016

OWNER

KC Gardner Company, L.C.

BUILDERESI

ARCHITECT

Babcock Design Group

KENSINGTON APARTMENTS |

NORTH POINTE

7570 W. Saxton Rd. | Boise

Residential, Kensignton Apartments : Clubhouse, pool, and ten buildings 156units ranging between 1-4 bedrooms. Retail, North Pointe: 48,000 square feetwith four buildings under construction

RESIDENTIAL PORTION:


October 26, 2015

OWNER

Kensington Apartments LLC

BUILDER

Bach Land and Development LLC

ARCHITECT

Tuttle and Associates, Inc.

RETAIL PORTION:


October 5, 2015

OWNER

Hawkins Companies LLC

BUILDER

Radix Construction

ARCHITECT

BRS

THE AFTON

611 S. 8th Street | Boise

Two six-story buildings to be built in two phases, totaling 60-65 residential

condominiums and 6,000-8,000 square feet of commercial/retail space.

Includes private parking garage, bicycle and general storage areas, owner

clubhouse, guest suite and rooftop garden deck.


Phase 1: Sept. 2015 - Feb. 2016

OWNER

620 S. 9th Street LLC - Hormaechea Development LLC - Manager

BUILDER

Andersen Construction Company

ARCHITECT

GGLO & CTA Architects-Engineers

See BOISE, page 22

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12/24

Mixed use will defineMeridian’s Ten Mile Interchange

BY ANNE WALLACE ALLEN


Although mixed-use is having its mo-ment around Idaho, that moment is a littlemuted in Meridian, which is known as theplace where homebuyers can find a largehouse for their money in the wide-openspaces of a subdivision.

However, the city, which grew from35,000 to 75,000 between 2004 and 2014,still has some mixed-use proposals underdevelopment, said Caleb Hood, planningdivision manager for the city’s communitydevelopment department.

A huge one is the Ten Mile I-84 inter-change, a 5-square-mile space of largelyundeveloped land that is slated to becomea lifestyle center with several different hous-

ing choices, office space, light industry, andretail space. The city hired a consultant a de-cade ago to help create an ambitious landuse and transportation plan for the areaaround the interchange, which opened in2011. The consultant’s plan specifically calls

for the type ofdense mixed-usedevelopment thatis now scarce inthe greater Trea-sure Valley, withpedestrian-friend-ly design stan-dards geared tohelp people live, work and shop inthe same area.

“We said, let’s

not just make this another interchange in Ida-ho; let’s make this a lifestyle center,” said Hood.

Done properly, mixed-use development will create smaller communities within thelarge community of the city, said MeridianMayor Tammy de Weerd.

“It’s bringing our society back to the ba-sics that we once enjoyed years ago,” shesaid. “Home is defined by relationships, and when you have services closer to where peo-ple live, they get to know more of the people who live in their area.”

At least two different developers haveplans for the Ten Mile Interchange project,said Bruce Chatterton, Meridian’s commu-nity development director.

There’s some scattered residential devel-

opment on thesouth side of thearea, but Chat-terton said mostdevelopers haveshown interestin the northeastquadrant.

“This was a newinterchange and you don’t get manynew interchanges,and there wasn’ta whole lot of de-

velopment there, so you really do have anopportunity to implement something differ-ent,” said Hood.

Hood defines mixed use as developmentthat includes two or three key elements, such

as residential, commercial, industrial, or civ-

ic. There’s also a building in downtown Me-

ridian where Flatbread Community Oven

is located, with a bike shop on the ground

floor, the restaurant, and then office above.

As such, the Village at Meridian, an

80-acre commercial development with 1

million square feet of new space, doesn’t

qualify, because the development itselfdoesn’t include housing, Hood said. There’smulti-family housing nearby.

“They have office and commercial, whichis to us essentially the same,” he said. “So wedon’t technically classify them as mixed use. Though they’re probably the closest thing

Bruce Chatterton

Mayor Tammyde Weerd See MERIDIAN, page 22

Ten-Mile Interchange

The PlanThe city’s Ten Mile Interchange

Specic Area Plan, created in 2007, in-cludes the following principles regard-ing mixed-use development:

The neighborhoods in the Ten Mile In-terchange Area are proposed to includea variety of housing styles, densities andprices. They will offer easy access to rec-reation, shopping, services, employment,and a range of transportation options.

The Urban Design Features

Many of the basic rules of good de-sign are promoted by the Ten Mile In-terchange Specic Area Plan.

These include:• buildings are built to public rights-

of-way• building frontages, rather than sur-

face parking lots and landscaped areas,

“hold the corners” by framing side-walks or public spaces

• distinctions are drawn betweenground and upper stories

• entries are announced throughchanges in details, materials, and de-sign compositions

• storefronts offer wide expanses oftransparent glass for an enhanced pe-destrian environment

• doors to individual shops and restau-rants open directly onto public space

• materials are durable and façades aresimply detailed and well proportioned

• the facades of larger commercialbuildings should be broken down into

short frontages and “big boxes” shouldbe wrapped in smaller commercial, res-idential, and ofce uses

• signage and lighting is restrainedand designed to complement the build-ing’s design

• service entries and loading docksare located on secondary and tertiarystreets and screened from public view

(208) 429-6740

1444 S Entertainment Ave, Suite 300

Boise, ID 83709

www.LaytonConstruction.com

PHOENIX | BOISE | IRVINE | SALT LAKE CITY | ORLANDO | HAWAII | NASHVILLE

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DESIGN THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE

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13/24

Twin Falls’ agricultural roots drivedevelopment decisions today

BY ERIC HAYES

Special to the IBR

Twin Falls was conceived as a planned com-munity to serve an agricultural region morethan a century ago, and those roots still directplanning and zoning for the city of 45,000. Agribusiness drives the city’s economy.

The area’s conservative roots and wide-open spaces have discouraged the kind ofthinking that has led to mixed-use develop-ment in other Idaho cities. Consequently,there isn’t much mixed-use at all in Twin Falls.

“The closestthing to mixed-usein Twin Falls is al-most like the mall: you have the foodcourt, and thenthe surroundingstores,” said MitchHumble, deputycity manager for Twin Falls.

No verticalmixed-use projectsare underway in

the region, and city codes still call for res-idential and commercial development tobe separated. But two horizontal mixed-use

projects, Canyon Village and Rio Vista, aregoing in near the city’s large temple on thenortheastern side of town.

Canyon Village will occupy 40 acres, andRio Vista 75. Both will include single-familyand multi-family residential development,and retail. Developer Gerald Martens saidhe chose mixed use for Rio Vista because theparcel is adjacent to two major roads.

“It’s not very desirable for the frontage tobe developed as residential, so the configu-ration is to use the frontage as commercialor professional, and then internally go toresidential as it transitions to residentiallyzoned properties,” said Martens, who startedEHM Engineering 40 years ago.

The 40-acre parcel is on the rim of the

Snake River Canyon. “The value of the real estate is such, andthe development costs are so significant, thata stand-alone residential project wouldn’tcarry the cost of the infrastructure,” Martenssaid of that development.

Although Humble said he would like tosee more mixed-use development, most res-idents aren’t familiar with the concept andit’s a hard sell.

“It makes people very uncomfortable in Twin Falls, especially anywhere near a resi-

dential neighborhood,” Martens said. “Theyanticipate that no matter what you say, it’sgoing to end up commercial.”

Twin Falls is undergoing rapid change with the recent or planned arrival of largefood processing companies such as Choba-ni, Powerbar, and Glanbia. The new employ-ees attracted by those companies might shiftthe market closer to the type of mixed-usedevelopment seen elsewhere, even in Idaho. Twin Falls building owner and developerFran Florence said that mixed-use projects would help draw business to the area.

“Twin Falls is becoming home to a tran-sient population of young professionalsusing hi-tech jobs in agriculture as spring-boards before moving on to larger cities,”said Florence, owner of Westerra Real Estateand Milestone Builders.

Despite the existing lack of mixed-usezoning, Florence said the city seems will-ing to embrace multi-use development, andthat he’s looking forward to zoning modifi-

cations.“Those needs exist, but the zoning isn’t

there yet,” said Florence.

Both Humble and Florence pointed tothe downtown area and the Canyon Rimoverlay zone west of the Perrine Bridge asopportunities for future mixed-use develop-ment. Downtown’s Old Town already allowsfor accessory dwellings to commercial prop-erties, and the Canyon Rim overlay has basezones of residential and commercial withclauses that allow for some creativity in development.

Two buildings with locally owned restau-rants and office space are located in the Can- yon Rim overlay, but the residential elementis missing from that area. Humble and Flor-ence said that plans for a building with con-dos and bottom-floor office space are beingdiscussed.

Developer Bob Roberts plans a 24-acrecommercial and residential mixed-use development called Pillar Falls on 1,400 feetof canyon frontage on Pole Line Road East.

“Our goal is for the development to cre-ate a self-efficient combination of residential

and commercial use integrated with func-

CANYON VILLAGE

Pole Line Road | Twin Falls

Project is a mixed use project providing opportunities for 4.5 acres of single

family residences, 5 acres of multifamily housing, 2.5 acres of professional ofce

and 11.7 acres of commerical/retail.


Construction started in 2015

OWNER

Northeast Investment, LLC

BUILDER

TBD

ARCHITECT

EHM Engineers, Inc.

PLANNING STAGE

Final Plat and PUD approval -

Fully Entitled

PILLAR FALLS

2051 Poleline R. E | Twin Falls

There will approximately 75 units of townhomes and condos, 45,000 square

feet of professional/medical ofce available, a hotel site on the canyon rim,

12,000 square feet or commercial space, 20,000 square feet of neighborhood

services, pad sites for a couple of restaurants on the Canyon Rim.


Midsummer to fall 2016

OWNER

John, Susan and Dirk Reitsma

BUILDER

TBA

ARCHITECT

TBA

STATUS

Developer is going through plat and re-approval processes, and expects to

start work on infrastructure in midsummer or fall 2016.

RIO VISTA DEVELOPMENT

Pole Line Road E | Twin Falls

Project consists of 30 acres located

adjacent to Snake River Canyon.

The mixed use community includes

approximately 6 acres of gated sin-

gle family residences, 7 acres of

townhomes and condominiums, 7

acres of hospitality and ofces and 8

acres of mixed retail and ofces.


Anticipated Fall 2016

OWNER

North Butte Farms, LLC

BUILDER

TBD

ARCHITECT

EHM Engineers, Inc.

PLANNING STAGE

Currently in Preliminary Platting and

Approval

Mitch HumblePhoto by Pete Grady.

Canoeists in the Snake River with the Perrine Bridge in the background. Thecity sits at the edge of the Snake River Canyon, which is up to 500 feet deepin places. While there is an abundance of big box development on the canyonrim, some developers are also proposing mixed-use projects that aim to providewalkable spaces.

See TWIN FALLS, page 22

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14/24

BY ERIC HAYES

Special to the IBR

Coeur d’Alene has two existing mixed-use developments called Parkside and the Village at Riverstone.

The city has not received any applicationsfor new mixed-use projects, although therehave been recent inquiries about mixed-usedowntown, said Hilary Anderson, the city’scommunity planning director.

“A lot of people are kicking tires, but noth-ing has stuck yet,” said Tony Berns, the execu-tive director of Ignite CdA, the city’s urban re-newal organization. “That’s the way it works.People are still nervous. There’s a lot of mon-ey sitting on the sidelines still. It’s much morecautious now than it was before 2007.”

The city does have some incentives in

place to promote mixed-use development,such as Floor Area Ration, or FAR, bonusesin the downtown core zoning district and inthree overlay zoning districts surrounding thedowntown area. The city also allows develop-ers to increase the number of residential unitsif a lot is split by two zoning districts. AndCoeur d’Alene allows developers to pay a feeof $10,000 in lieu of providing parking in thedowntown core. The fee is $5,000 per spacein the midtown area, and developers can alsoreduce their parking obligations by makingspecial accommodations for bicyclists.

“To date, no development has takenadvantage of this option. But the rate perparking space is significantly less expensivethan the cost of a parking space in a parkingstructure,” Anderson said.

Ignite CDA, which used to be calledLake City Development Corp., reimbursed

Riverstone with $9 million in tax incre-ment financing starting in 2001, said Berns.Parkside, which was completed in 2007, gotabout $720,000 in urban renewal funding.Berns said Riverstone, which went in on thesite of a former mill and gravel pit, has gen-erated about $100 million in new valuationand Parkside about $50 million.

A new Winco development on a formergravel pit in Coeur d’Alene loosely fits the de-scription of mixed-use, because it includes retailand office space. Berns said the city is encourag-ing infill and mixed-use development becauseit’s running out of space for new construction.

“Speaking for the agency and the city, we would like to see more densification of theurban areas here, instead of continuing to de-

velop subdivisions out on the periphery,” Ber-ns said. “It just makes more sense over time tohave the infrastructure downtown. Why notgo up taller and be more dense and have amore vibrant downtown? Some of the moremature communities in our country are start-ing to embrace that, but Coeur d’Alene is stilla little more on the frontier side of things.”

Coeur d’Alene seeks to encouragemixed-use development

PARKSIDE

601 Front Ave | Coeur d’Alene

20 story mixed-use high-rise with 53 residential condo units (2 & 3 bedroom),

14 commercial condo units; 10,000 square feet of retail space (4 units), 30,000square feet of ofce space 10 units, 250 space parking structure on 3 levels

below building for a total of 23 oors. Private gym, 18-hole putting green,

bakery, restaurant, salon, ofces, and residential.


2008 completion

OWNER

Parkside, LLC

BUILDER

Goebel Construction

ARCHITECT

Miller Stauffer Architects

Parkside Condos, courtesy of the City of Coeurd’Alene.

VILLAGE AT RIVERSTONE

1745 Tilford Lane Suite A

Coeur d’Alene

Over 400 residential units, 3,447 parking spaces, over 150,000 sf of retail,

14-screen regal cinemas, gyms, 13 restaurants, 28 shops and a salon,

bookstore, ofce space, Starbucks and a orist.


2013

OWNER

Riverstone Holdings, LLC.

BUILDER

TBA

ARCHITECT

Benson & Bohl Archi

Square Feet April 2016 Web

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