BOISE, Idaho — This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press.
In an effort to continue creating a city for everyone, Boise Mayor Lauren McLean proposed using Open Space and Clean Water levy funds to create a one-acre park on Shamrock Street in West Boise on Tuesday. The proposal will go before the city council next week for approval.
"I want every child to be able to walk from their home safely and independently, to enjoy the experience of being outside," McLean said during a press conference.
The goal is to create a city where every person is just a 10-minute walk away from a park or open space, McLean said. That goal requires "investing in every neighborhood," she said. If the city council approves the land acquisition, the park will be a 10-minute walk from a thousand homes.
The placement of the park is ideal, on 915 N. Shamrock Street, nestled between Fairview Avenue and Maple Grove Road, both busy streets that are hard to cross, Council President Elaine Clegg said.
"This little neighborhood was really isolated," Clegg said. "For me, this is extremely important. It's a population that otherwise isn't served well. It's an area that's otherwise pretty isolated and hard to get to, especially on foot or bike."
Clegg said she brought up the area to the Boise Parks and Recreation Department two years ago.
"Land is hard to find, it's not secret," Boise Parks and Recreation Director Doug Holloway said. "Everyone understands that finding a piece of property within the city limits of Boise is very difficult."
With that in mind, Holloway said when this piece of property popped up, they jumped on it. The property costs $800,000 and that money is proposed to come from the $5.36 million in the levy fund, leaving around $4 million for other projects, including connecting pathways and canals in neighborhoods surrounding parks, Holloway said.
“This is a piece of property that we have no plans on what the development will look like, and there's no timeline," Holloway said.
The proposed new park is a mile-and-a-half from Mariposa Park, Holloway said. The last purchase, according to Holloway, was in 2021 for a 29-acre property on the Foothills in Northwest Boise. That property was $605,000 and was paid for by the Foothills Open Space and Clean Water levy funds, Holloway said.
This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press, read more on IdahoPress.com.
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