City Government
Build It And They Will Come, but Where?
November 1, 2018 
The Hawks propose a multi-use stadium to be used as the home of the Boise Hawks, as well as a professional soccer team and host other community events, such as concerts.
The IDAHO PRESS published a story today revealing there are ongoing talks between developer Chris Shoen and BSU acting president Martin Schimpf over a joint baseball park.
GUARDIAN reader Larry Rincover has offered his own thoughts on a baseball stadium and it is pretty much “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”
GUEST OPINION
By Larry Rincover
In light of the recent GUARDIAN expose over Boise City accepting the Grove Plaza with the restrictive covenant that it can be sold, but proceeds must go toward a baseball park on CCDC land, along with the developer attempt at a joint facility with BSU, the time is ripe to play ball.
We all need to seriously discuss the future of baseball in Ada County. In so doing we might consider all of the factors impacting property tax payers as well as the long term benefits.
First, there is no doubt that a new, multi purpose facility is sorely needed and would be a benefit to baseball, future venues, and as a source of pride for our communities. All these benefits apply regardless of location so the cost, access and location should then become the deciding factors.
Any location considered so far in Boise City limits, the agenda under the current city administration, would create a traffic nightmare and require exorbitant unnecessary costs. Any site purchased for the facility would immediately remove the property from the tax roles adding additional burdens on the rest of us who pay property taxes in Ada County.
The current Hawks Stadium fairgrounds site is located on Ada County property: no additional land cost, now or ever. The only expense would be demolition and construction which would be necessary at any location. No additional property would be removed from the property tax roles and access to a new facility on the current site would continue to be the most advantageous. Glenwood Road is easily accessible from both State Street (Highway 44) and Chinden Blvd. (Highway 20/26) from virtually any location within Ada County. The current site offers a perfect and pleasing venue along the Boise River with room on and off County property for complimentary business opportunities.
Certainly major funding would be required for a new facility, but that would be necessary at any location. The prudent approach would be to demolish and rebuild on the current site to eliminate millions for land costs, eliminate any additional tax increment financing impacting our property taxes and provide the public with access that’s prudent and less invasive to surrounding homeowners. The Boise Hawks don’t just belong to Boise City. The Boise Hawks are the pride of all of Ada County and supported by patrons in all of Ada County. The Hawks Stadium should be rebuilt on its current site and I would urge the Boise City administration to reconsider its folly of packing it into Boise city limits and instead work with the Ada County Commissioners to make this happen for all of us in Ada County that love baseball.
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Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
Nov 1, 2018, 10:55 am
This is the proposal that we need as traffic would not change much and there is plenty of parking. By next Wednesday, there may be some extra property available next door at the horse track. They could play at the old facility while the new one is being built at the old LesBois track.
Nov 1, 2018, 11:12 am
Seems like a sensible approach! Where’s the “like’ button?!
Nov 1, 2018, 11:48 am
Very well stated….totally logical. Sadly, our mayor and his cronies as well as the city council do deals behind the scenes with little transparency and rarely use logic, citizen impact or good economics as important criteria.
Nov 1, 2018, 5:19 pm
From time to time, we’ve heard suggestions that the whole fairgrounds should be picked up and moved to a more remote corner of the county. (Like it was moved 55 or 60 years ago, from Orchard @ Irving to its present location.) Such a move would be the only possible impediment to Mr. Rincover’s idea – which seems AWFULLY common-sense to this reader.
(We have to consider the feelings of greedy developers, too. I bet some of them start salivating when they think about the luxury living quarters they could build on that property, for migrating rich Californians.)
Nov 1, 2018, 6:02 pm
Exaclty what I’ve been saying!
Thank you!
Has anyone heard what their reasoning is for not building it
on the existing Hawks Stadium site?
Maybe some developers are trying to get the current Hawks site and if they build downtown the developers will get to develop that
area too ?!?!
EDITOR NOTE–As we see it, the stadium is merely an excuse for development. Used to be it was a golf course, but if you can get the public to build the attraction, it saves on investment.
Nov 1, 2018, 7:03 pm
They will have lousy-n-loud bands making insufferable noises six nights a week. What a totally stupid idea, unless you are the middleman $$$$$.
Nov 1, 2018, 7:49 pm
Bad: Are you channeling Perry Swisher, who lived up off Goddard. He was so upset by the noise that he once appeared at a Little Feat concert at the Hawks stadium in his bathrobe, carrying a hatchet, threatening to cut the power, literally.
Nov 1, 2018, 11:54 pm
The current location is owned by ADA County. Can someone…anyone… please tell me why I have never heard of anyone from ADA County talk about attempting to keep the Hawks in the same location?
Nov 2, 2018, 9:04 am
So BSU is proceeding with condemnation of property on Beacon for a baseball field. After they get the property what happens if they change the location of the baseball field? They now have the property that they wanted for years to do other things with it….. Have a feeling they won’t give it back if the baseball field at Boise State falls through.
Nov 2, 2018, 11:08 am
To those who think this a great idea. Are you being tricked? As wisely pointed out by Erethizon dorsatum and caused me to wonder. Is the trick to build two new facilities. One stadium at BSU and one stadium somewhere else as an unneeded developer enrichment scheme. Is BSU lending its name as political grease to the unneeded one? As it seems BSU is already well into the process of having their own new baseball stadium. If I am wrong, is BSU using the guise of a new sports stadium to confiscate private land for some other use? Perhaps the court should specify use in the eminent domain ruling.
Prediction. Universities want sports performances kept close at hand for several reasons. On field performance is only a small part of being a semi-pro college performer. Other activities involve constant training, massage, physical therapy, ‘medication’ management, psychological health sessions, regular meetings with the intelligent girl hired to do his homework, drinking to excess, and activities with infatuated female students. This is all far less efficient, and in the public view, if the performance arena and support facilities are not on campus.
Why the shift into baseball? Because only meathead parents let their kids clunk heads in football. So football is slowly on the way out. Build it and they will come? https://www.idahostatesman.com/sports/college/mountain-west/boise-state-university/boise-state-football/article199903144.html
How are the finances playing out at the Nampa Center?
How long before CWI issues a bond to fund sports programs?
Nov 2, 2018, 1:56 pm
Is the current stadium for the hawks at or near full capacity?
Ada county isn’t the only county that supports a baseball team. The big question is will they support a soccer team? Would make sense to build a new stadium at the current location and expand the fairgrounds.
Mark Davis is soaking the taxpayers of Nevada for a new stadium in Las Vegas so he can move his precious Raiders there. This on the heels of helping to pay for an NHL expansion team. If unchecked now, the same will happen to Boise.
Too bad our current governments in both Ada and Canyon counties only think of developers instead of the citizens as a whole and their combined game seems to be soak the taxpayers because they are gullible. Enough already.
Boise needs more culture, but we need more science and education platforms not sports complexes.
Nov 2, 2018, 5:46 pm
You have to remember the sw idaho local government oath:
“I pledge allegiance to the developers of southwest Idaho….what ever they want I promise to give…whatever the cost or whomever it screws.”
Nov 2, 2018, 10:07 pm
Who will pay for rebuilding Hawks Stadium. The County? No. Garden City? No. The team? No. Anyone?
Nov 5, 2018, 5:11 pm
The AAA franchise owners will be glad to pay. That is how it is done. These are good tax shelters. Good travel plans. Good relocations for themselves or families. Perhaps sign a star. Good benefits for attending the majors with travel benefits and write offs.
The other good option is that a person who made it to the show would finance a place.
Nov 5, 2018, 9:43 pm
Why does Boise need a stadium that will be dark over 60% of days?
Nov 10, 2018, 6:03 pm
https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2018/11/oregon_towns_new_teen_mayor_doesnt_appreciate_your_parks_and_rec_jokes.html
This young man for mayor!
Dec 13, 2018, 9:20 pm
https://www.bostonherald.com/2018/12/13/12-concert-proposal-draws-boos-from-fenway-residents/
Dec 15, 2018, 3:12 pm
Doggone is correct. The Kmart site on Shoreline was dropped because the wealthy folks overlooking the venue told the Mayor no way, no noise from crappy rock bands in their upscale area. Mayor concerned about his political cash flow agreed.
This scheme is not about some minor scale baseball training team with puny revenues. It’s about back to back rock concerts. All the crappy bands come to Boise and thrash out their crappy sounds. So crappy they really need to be inside only concerts.
Dec 19, 2018, 1:49 am
BADMUSIC… exactly you hit the nail right on the head and no I’m not talking about Nine Inch Nails. This was their agenda all along maybe some people have forgotten about an article written how they were going to try to get the concerts back at Ann Morrison not long back. They considered an outside developer, who by the way suggested to demolish the fountain.