Boise Idaho
If you are not from Boise you may be wondering what the fuss is all about? There is this little school with a football team, Boise State Broncos, that is probably the most talked about team in the country for their accomplishments. Endless recognition from major media sources setting records for Best Place to Live Work and Play in the country but what could be so great about a city in the middle of a desert? Of course, that’s what they said about Las Vegas years ago as well.
I actually have the opportunity to visit with people moving to Boise on a regular basis and ask them this very question- Why Boise, ID? For everyone it is a little different but I have found two common themes. First and most popular- Following Family. This is by far the most common answer. Families are suggesting and encouraging their parents and siblings to move to Boise with them. Imagine the people you love the most saying come with us to Boise, ID? You’d have to believe there is something to that. Want to know what the second common string is? Lifestyle. Obviously these two things go hand in hand but so many people have come to Boise and had such a great time that they decided to make Boise their base camp. We could write an encyclopedia on all the things to do in Boise, with four seasons, a desert, a river, mountains, foothills, extensive greenbelt system, ski resort, lakes, and numerous parks. Boise truly is the Metro Resort of the Northwest. Combine this with other popular features such as affordability and culture, it makes sense that the growth of the area has exploded over the last decade.
So why are you considering Boise? Whether relocating for a job or following family, when you are considering Idaho real estate, it really is about the location. Each area of Boise Metro is very distinctive and can provide more of the lifestyle you may want. For example if you want to walk or bike to the local coffee shop in the morning and then find your friends for cocktails in the afternoon you may enjoy the North End. Of course, you may not want to see anybody most of the day and enjoy the urban areas surrounding Boise. Each area has its own feel and energy. Your Idaho real estate agent can help you better understand each community in the Boise Metro Area. We want you to tell your friends as well how great life is in Idaho!
Trey Langford
Founder Build Idaho
Boise Overview
Boise Idaho
Most people did not know about Boise, Idaho until about ten years ago when the capital city and largest city in Idaho started consistently making the nations list of top places to Live, Work and Play. People started noticing businesses like Micron and HP as major innovators and the Boise State Broncos football team started winning games on the national stage in style. There are many reason people move to Boise from jobs to family but one theme everyone mentions is the LIFESTYLE! Spend a week exploring Treasure Valley and you will find this is a place you can feel safe living in and raising a family. Boise is also an affordable place to Live, Work and Play. Located along the Boise River and nestled against foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Boise offers many outdoor activities to local residents, from skiing at Bogus Basin Ski Resort to biking on the Boise River Greenbelt to boating at nearby reservoirs. The Boise Valley has it all - desert, rivers, mountains and lakes for hiking, camping, kayaking, river rafting, hunting, fishing and many winter activities including snowmobiling. If you like the outdoors and open space, you will be immediately attracted to Boise, Idaho. Boise has numerous recreational opportunities including extensive hiking and biking in the foothills to the immediate north of downtown. and an extensive urban trail system called the Boise River Greenbelt that runs along the river from north Boise to Eagle. The Boise River itself is a common destination for fishing, swimming and rafting. You may also want to check out the Rivers to Ridges trail system. The climate is characterized as semi-arid with four distinct seasons. The summers can be hot and dry with mildly cold winters with fair amounts of snowfall. Rainfall is usually infrequent and light, averaging 1 inch (25mm) per month. March is the wettest month with an average of 1.41 inches (36mm), August is the driest month in Boise and spring and fall are generally temperate in Boise, ID.
Boise Idaho has it all!
Boise (pronounced boy-see), the capital and largest city in the State of Idaho, is the hub of commerce, banking and government for Idaho.
Located along the Boise River and nestled against Boise foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Boise offers many outdoor activities to local residents, from skiing at Bogus Basin Ski Resort to biking on the Boise River Greenbelt to boating at nearby reservoirs. The Boise area has it all - desert, rivers, mountains and lakes for hiking, camping, kayaking, river rafting, hunting and fishing.
Many large regional, national and international companies are headquartered here, including Simplot Corporation, Boise Cascade, Washington Group, Micron Technology and Hewlett-Packard.
Boise is home to Boise State University, the state's largest university with an enrollment of over 18,600 students, as well as 34 grade schools, 9 junior high schools, and 5 high schools.
Boise's climate is characterized as semi-arid with four distinct seasons. Boise experiences hot and dry summers where temperatures can often exceed 100 °F (38 °C), as well as cold winters with fair amounts of snowfall. Rainfall is usually infrequent and light, averaging 1 inch (25 mm) per month. March is the wettest month with an average of 1.41 inches (36 mm). August is the driest month in Boise with 0.30 inches (7.6 mm) of rain. Spring and fall are generally temperate in Boise, ID.
The name "Boise" may actually derive from earlier mountain man usage, which contributed their naming of the river that flows through it. In the 1820s, French Canadian fur trappers set trap lines in the vicinity where Boise now lies. In a high desert area, the tree-lined valley of the Boise River became a prominent landmark. They called this "La Rivière Boisée", which means "the wooded river."
The original Fort Boise was 40 miles (64 km) west, down the Boise River, near the confluence with the Snake River at the Oregon border. This fort was erected by the Hudson's Bay Company in the 1830s. It was abandoned in the 1850s, but massacres along the Oregon Trail prompted the U.S. Army to re-establish a fort in the area in 1863, during the U.S. Civil War. The new location was selected because it was near the intersection of the Oregon Trail and a major road connecting the Boise Basin (Idaho City) and the Owyhee mining areas. Both areas were booming at the time. Idaho City was the largest city in the area, and as a staging area to Idaho City, Fort Boise grew rapidly. Boise was incorporated as a city in 1864. The first capital of the Idaho Territory was Lewiston, but Boise replaced it in 1865. Source
Boise has grown considerably in recent years and is now comparable in size to other mid-size cities at the center of their own metropolitan areas in the United States. Boise frequently receives national recognition for its quality of life and business climate.Education
Downtown Boise
Downtown Boise is Boise's cultural center and home to many small businesses and several high-rises. The area has an array of shopping and dining choices. Centrally, 8th Street contains a pedestrian zone with streetside cafes and restaurants. The neighborhood is home to many local restaurants, bars and boutiques and supports a lively night life.
The North End, which contains many of Boise's older homes, is known for its tree-lined drives such as Harrison Boulevard, and for its quiet neighborhoods near the downtown area. Downtown Boise is visible from Camel's Back Park. On 13th Street, Hyde Park is home to four small restaurants and other businesses. The North End also hosts events such as the annual Hyde Park Street Fair.
Southwest Boise has traditionally been known for its more bucolic aesthetics. It contains sparsely populated neighborhoods built from the 1960s to the early 1980s. Many include acre-sized plots and the occasional farmhouse and pasture. Growth in the area was limited in the 1980s due to a moratorium on new construction to prevent urban sprawl. Since this has been lifted there has been widespread growth of new homes and neighborhoods. The area lies fairly close to Interstate 84, theaters, shopping, the airport, golf and the Boise Bench area.
Northwest Boise lies blanketed against the Boise Foothills to the north, the major thoroughfare State Street to the south, the city of Eagle to the west, and Downtown Boise to the east. It contains an eclectic mix of old and new neighborhoods, including Lakeharbor, which features the private Silver Lake, a reclaimed quarry. Northwest Boise has some pockets of older homes with a similar aesthetic to the North End, yet housing prices tend to be lower. Downtown is minutes away, as is Veteran's Memorial Park and easy access to the Boise Greenbelt. Across the river sits the Boise Bench and to the west is fast access to the bedroom communities of Eagle, Star, and Middleton.
Warm Springs
Warm Springs is centered around the tree-lined Warm Springs Avenue and contains some of Boise's largest and most expensive homes (many of which were erected by wealthy miners and businessmen around the turn of the 20th century; Victorian styles feature prominently). The area gets its name from the natural hot springs that flow from Boise's fault line and warm many of the homes in the area. The far east end of Warm Springs was once known as Barber Town, featuring a hotel with hot springs nestled into the foothills. It now has some new residential developments, with easy access to Highway 21, which leads to the south-central Idaho mountains, the Boise River, the Boise Foothills, and the Idaho Shakespeare Festival.
South East Boise spans from Boise State University to Micron Technology – all areas between Federal Way and the Boise River. The older area just south of the University can be described as a cross between the North End and the Boise bench. The rest of South East Boise was developed in the last thirty years with suburban style homes. Unlike the more typical flat suburban sprawl, residents of South East Boise are reminded of their city's natural beauty as they catch a close view of Table Rock, or drive along the winding Parkcenter Blvd. along the Boise River. Columbia Village and the older subdivision Oregon Trail Heights, were the first major planned communities in South East Boise with an elementary and middle school all within walking distance from all homes. Developed with the middle carved out for schools and a large soccer complex (over 20 fields), as well as a baseball complex, swimming pools, and the best view in the valley. Most people consider this end of Boise a hidden gem as just about everything is about 15 minutes from home: the river, greenbelt, the mountains, lakes, snow, high mountain desert, and more. The subdivision is located at the intersections of Interstate 84, Idaho 21, and Federal Way (former US Highway), which are all major arteries to get anywhere in Boise. On August 25th, 2008 at about 7:00 pm a fire started near Amity and Holcomb during a major wind storm and destroyed 10 houses and damaged 9. A linguistics professor at Boise State University lost her life in the fire.
The Boise Bench is south of Downtown Boise and is raised in elevation approximately 60 feet (18 m). The bench is named such because the sudden rise in elevation gives the prominent appearance of a step, or bench. The Bench (or Benches, there are 3 actual benches throughout the Boise Valley) was created as an ancient shoreline to the old river channel. The Bench is home to the old Boise Train Depot and extensive residential neighborhoods. Due south of the Boise Bench is the Boise Airport, raised up on another "bench".
West Boise is home to Boise Towne Square Mall, the largest in the state, as well as numerous restaurants, strip malls, and residential developments ranging from new subdivisions to apartment complexes. Hewlett Packard's Printing Division is located here. It is relatively the flatest section of Boise, with sweeping views of the Boise Front.
Boise Idaho Schools
Boise Schools & Education
The Boise School District includes 30 elementary schools, 8 junior high schools, 5 high schools and 2 specialty schools. Part of the Meridian School District (the largest district in Idaho) overlaps into Boise city limits.
Post-secondary educational options in Boise include Boise State University and George Fox University, as well as a wide range of technical schools. University of Idaho and Idaho State University each maintain a satellite campus in Boise. Boise is home to Boise Bible College, an undergraduate degree-granting college that exists to train leaders for churches as well as missionaries for the world. Nearby Meridian is home to a campus of the University of Phoenix and neighboring towns Nampa and Caldwell boast Northwest Nazarene University and The College of Idaho respectively. As of May 2007 a community college special district was formed, with the intention of starting a community college in , Nampa, Idaho. Learn more about Boise Idaho Schools.
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Nampa School District
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Middleton School District
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Colleges/Universities in Boise:
* BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY (Full-time enrollment: 12,033; Location: 1910 UNIVERSITY DR; Public; Website: www.boisestate.edu; Offers Doctor's degree)
* ITT TECHNICAL INSTITUTE (FT enrollment: 419; Location: 12302 WEST EXPLORER DR; Private, for-profit)
* AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF HEALTH TECHNOLOGY INC (FT enrollment: 235; Location: 1200 NORTH LIBERTY STREET; Private, for-profit)
* BOISE BIBLE COLLEGE (FT enrollment: 110; Location: 8695 MARIGOLD ST; Private, not-for-profit; Website: WWW.BOISEBIBLE.EDU)
* NEW IMAGES ACADEMY (FT enrollment: 110; Location: 1270 S VINNELL WAY; Private, for-profit)
* CONTINENTAL COLLEGE OF BEAUTY AND BARBER STYLING (FT enrollment: 60; Location: 10222 FAIRVIEW AVE; Private, for-profit)
* SHADOW MOUNTAIN BUSINESS CAREERS (Location: 11911 USTICK RD; Private, for-profit)
* IDAHO SCHOOL OF MASSAGE THERAPY (Location: 5353 FRANKLIN RD; Private, for-profit)
* CRI-BOISE (Location: 9460 FAIRVIEW AVE; Private, for-profit; Website: WWW.CRI.ORG)
Beyond Boise
* COLLEGE OF SOUTHERN IDAHO (about 115 miles; TWIN FALLS, ID; Full-time enrollment: 3,433)
* EASTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY (about 150 miles; LA GRANDE, OR; FT enrollment: 2,192)
* WALLA WALLA COMMUNITY COLLEGE (about 188 miles; WALLA WALLA, WA; FT enrollment: 2,812)
* LEWIS-CLARK STATE COLLEGE (about 196 miles; LEWISTON, ID; FT enrollment: 2,213)
* IDAHO STATE UNIVERSITY (about 210 miles; POCATELLO, ID; FT enrollment: 10,057)
* UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO (about 224 miles; MOSCOW, ID; FT enrollment: 9,823)
* RICKS COLLEGE (about 228 miles; REXBURG, ID; FT enrollment: 8,670)
Boise Public High Schools
* Centennial High School (Students: 1906; Location: 12400 WEST MC MILLAN ROAD; Grades: 9th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Capital Senior High School (Students: 1525; Location: 8055 GODDARD ROAD; Grades: 10th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Borah Senior High School (Students: 1481; Location: 6001 CASSIA STREET; Grades: 10th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Boise Senior High School (Students: 1375; Location: 1010 WEST WASHINGTON ST; Grades: 10th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Mountain Cove (alt.) High School (Students: 335; Location: 911 MOUNTAIN COVE ROAD; Grades: 8th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Boise Evening School (Students: 149; Location: 6001 CASSIA; Grades: 9th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Meridian Night (alt) School (Students: 65; Location: 12400 W MCMILLAN ROAD; Grades: 9th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Treasure Valley Math/Science Center School (Students: 53; Location: 6801 NORTH GARY LANE; Grades: 7th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Marian Pritchett Memorial School (Students: 38; Location: 1617 N 24TH; Grades: 6th Grade - 12th Grade)
* Ada County Juvenile Center School (Students: 24; Location: 6300 DENTON STREET; Grades: 5th Grade - 12th Grade)
Private high schools in Boise:
* BISHOP KELLY HIGH SCHOOL (Students: 714; Location: 7009 FRANKLIN ROAD; Grades: 9 - 12)
* VALLEY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL (Students: 639; Location: 4995 N BRADLEY ST; Grades: KG - 12)
* MARANATHA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL (Students: 306; Location: 12000 FAIRVIEW AVE; Grades: PK - 12)
* COLE VALLEY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL (Students: 112; Location: 4955 N BRADLEY ST; Grades: 9 - 12)
* BOISE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL (Students: 71; Location: 219 N ROOSEVELT STREET; Grades: PK - 12)
* SHERIDAN ACADEMY (Students: 22; Location: 1273 SHORELINE LN; Grades: 7 - 12)
Boise Major attractions
The State Capitol in Boise, Idaho
A number of recreational opportunities are available in Boise, including extensive hiking and biking in the foothills to the immediate north of downtown. Much of this trail network is part of Hull's Gulch and can be accessed by 8th street. An extensive urban trail system called the Boise River Greenbelt that runs along the river. The Boise River itself is a common destination for fishing, swimming and rafting.
In Julia Davis Park is Zoo Boise, which has over 200 animals representing over 80 species from around the world. An Africa exhibit expected to include lions and giraffes is currently under construction, slated to open in late 2008.
Boise's Bogus Basin Mountain Resort hosts several winter activities, including cross-country and downhill skiing, snowboarding and snow tubing. “Bogus” is just 16 miles (26 km) outside city limits (less than an hour drive from downtown).
Minor professional sports teams in Boise include the short-season Class A Boise Hawks, the Idaho Steelheads hockey team and the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League. An arenafootbal franchise, the Boise Burn, began play in 2007.
The Roady's Humanitarian Bowl football game (formerly known as the Humanitarian Bowl and later the MPC Computers Bowl) is held in late December each year, and pairs a team from the Western Athletic Conference with an Atlantic Coast Conference team.
The World Center for Birds of Prey is located just outside Boise city limits, and is a key part of the re-establishment of the Peregrine falcon and the subsequent removal from the Endangered Species list. The center is currently breeding the very rare California condor, among many other rare and endangered species.
| Boise Financial Statistics |
Median household income
(per year) |
$48,532 |
Income change over time
(increase since 1990) |
58.01% |
| Sales tax |
6.00% |
State income tax rate
(highest bracket) |
7.80% |
State income tax rate
(lowest bracket) |
1.60% |
Auto insurance premiums
(average for the state) |
$593 |
| Median home price |
$162,804 |
Home price gain
(2-5 year gain) |
11.10% |
Colleges, universities and professional schools
(within 30 miles) |
5 |
Junior colleges and technical institutes
(within 30 miles) |
2 |
Personal crime risk
(100 is national average, lower is better) |
52 |
Property crime risk
(100 is national average, lower is better) |
87 |
Population
(town and surrounding area) |
227,322 |
Population change over time
(increase since 1990) |
39.21% |
| Median age |
34 |
Movie theaters
(within 15 miles) |
7 |
Restaurants
(within 15 miles) |
1,023 |
Bars
(within 15 miles) |
109 |
Public golf courses
(within 30 miles) |
16 |
Libraries
(within 15 miles) |
22 |
Museums
(MAA accredited; within 30 miles) |
2 |
Annual precipitation
(inches) |
13.17 |
High temp in July
(degrees F) |
89.10 |
Low temp in Jan
(degrees F) |
23.30 |
| Heating days |
6,050 |
| Cooling days |
698 |
See also: Boise Chamber of Commerce, City of Bose
There are lots of features in Boise but there are also numerous things to do. From Professional sports to cultural events to fairs. Discover them here and please share your suggestions.
There are a few semi-professional teams in Boise
- Idaho Stampede
NBA D League Team
The team plays at Qwest Arena November thru April
www.IdahoStampede.com
- Idaho Steelheads
Minor League Hockey
The team plays at Qwest Arena October thru April
IdahoSteelheads.com
- Boise Hawks
Minor League Baseball Team
Hawks Stadium at Boise River in Garden City, Western Idaho Expo Center
BoiseHawks.com
Other Boise Valley Professional Sports
- Snake River Stampede Rodeo
- Caldwell Nights Rodeo
- Meridian Speedway
- Firebird Rceway
Sporting Events
- Race to Robie Creek
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Boise River Greenbelt Map
Search Homes for Sale on the Boise River Greenbelt
Boise River Real Estate
State of Idaho
ORIGIN OF STATE NAME: Apparently coined by a lobbyist-politician, George M. Willing, who claimed the word came from an Indian term meaning "gem of the mountains."
NICKNAME: The Gem State.
CAPITAL: Boise.
ENTERED UNION: 3 July 1890 (43rd state).
SONG: "Here We Have Idaho."
MOTTO: Esto perpetua (Let it be perpetual).
FLAG: On a blue field with gilt fringe, the state seal appears in the center with the words "State of Idaho" on a red band below.
OFFICIAL SEAL: With cornucopias at their feet, a female figure (holding the scales of justice in one hand and a pike supporting a liberty cap in the other) and a miner (with pick and shovel) stand on either side of a shield depicting mountains, rivers, forests, and a farm; the shield rests on a sheaf of grain and is surmounted by the head of a stag above whose antlers is a scroll with the state motto. The words "Great Seal of the State of Idaho" surround the whole.
BIRD: Mountain bluebird.
FLOWER: Syringa.
TREE: Western white pine.
GEM: Star garnet.
Idaho History
Human beings came to the land now known as Idaho about 15,000 years ago. Until 1805, only Indians and their ancestors had ever lived in the area, eking out a bare living from seeds and roots, insects, small animals, and what fishing and big-game hunting they could manage. At the time of white penetration, Shoshone and Northern Paiute Indians lived in the south, as did two linked tribal families, the Salishan and Shapwailutan (including the Nez Perce, who greeted the Lewis and Clark expedition when it entered Idaho in 1805; it was their food and canoes that helped these explorers reach the Columbia River and the Pacific).
Fur trappers—notably David Thompson, Andrew Henry, and Donald Mackenzie—followed within a few years. Missionaries came later; Henry Harmon Spalding founded a mission among the Nez Perce in 1836. The Oregon Trail opened in 1842, but for two decades, people merely crossed Idaho over it; virtually no one settled. In 1860, 14 years after Idaho had officially become US land through the Oregon Treaty with the United Kingdom, Mormons from Utah established Franklin, Idaho's first permanent settlement, and began farming. Gold was discovered that summer in northern Idaho; a gold rush, lasting several years, led directly to the organizing of the Idaho Territory on 10 July 1863.
Boise became the capital of Idaho in 1864, and the following decade saw the inauguration of telegraph service, the linking of Franklin with the transcontinental railway, and the birth of the territory's first daily newspaper. Idaho's population nearly doubled between 1870 and 1880, and the pressure of white settlement impinging on Indian hunting and fishing grounds touched off a series of wars in the late 1870s. The most famous of those was the Nez Perce War, culminating in Chief Joseph's surrender in Montana on 5 October 1877 and the subsequent confinement of Idaho Indians to reservations.
Lead and silver were discovered in south-central Idaho in 1880 and in the panhandle in 1884, touching off yet another stampede of would-be miners. With a population of 88,548 in 1890, Idaho was eligible to enter the Union, becoming the 43rd state on 3 July. Statehood came to Idaho at a time of turmoil, when Mormons and non-Mormons were contending for political influence, the Populist Party was challenging the established political organizations, and violent labor disputes were sweeping the mining districts. In 1907, in a case that grew out of the labor conflict, William "Big Bill" Haywood (defended by Clarence Darrow) was acquitted on charges that he conspired to assassinate former Idaho governor Frank Steunenberg, who was murdered on 30 December 1905.
From 1895 onward, federal land and irrigation projects fostered rapid economic growth. The modern timber industry began in 1906 with the completion of one of the nation's largest sawmills at Potlatch. By World War I, agriculture had become a leading enterprise; however, a farm depression in the 1920s lasted up to the Great Depression of the 1930s and ended only with the onset of World War II. After the war, an agro-industrial base was established, with fertilizers and potato processing leading the way. Idaho has also developed a thriving tourist industry, with large numbers of vacationers visiting the Sun Valley ski resort and the state's other scenic areas. Population expansion and the push for economic growth have collided with a new interest in the environment, creating controversies over land-use planning, mineral development, and water supply and dam construction. In April 2000, the National Wildlife Federation urged President Bill Clinton to designate the Owyhee Canyonlands, a 1.8-million acre scenic area in southwest Idaho, a national monument. The efforts to persuade Clinton failed, and environmentalists, ranchers, and off-road vehicle riders came together to agree on a conservation plan suitable to all. In 2004, they came up with the Owyhee Initiative, which will protect nearly 400 miles of river corridors and 500,000 acres of wild lands as wilderness, including the canyons themselves. Livestock grazing in wilderness areas will be gradually retired. Public lands in Owyhee County will be closed to cross-country all-terrain vehicles during preparation of a recreation plan that will manage motorized recreation on a designated system of roads and trails.
Idaho celebrated its 100th year of statehood in 1990, at the same time ushering in a decade in which the major environmental issue was nuclear waste contamination. The matter was highlighted by wildfires that raged in western states during the summer of 2000. One blaze charred the grounds of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Lab, a nuclear research and waste storage facility. Thirty thousand acres were burned before the fire was brought under control. But environmentalists, concerned citizens, and many Idaho lawmakers remained concerned that such storage facilities are vulnerable to natural disaster and pose a serious threat. In the early 2000s, wildfires broke out in the West once again, including Idaho. In the summer of 2002, wildfires burned over 7.1 million acres of public and private land in the United States, most of it in the West.