BOISE, Idaho — In 2015, the College of Western Idaho purchased 11 acres of prime real estate in the west end of downtown Boise for $8.8 million.
It was all in the hopes of expanding their Ada County campus by building a 600,000 square-foot full urban campus. But five years later, that piece of land near the Boise River sits unchanged.
We asked Mark Browning, CWI's Vice President of College Relations, what the school has planned for that lot.
"Absolutely nothing. Our trustees are still evaluating all the options that are possible, which are numerous," he explained. "We don't have any immediate plans for the property... we're looking at it for a number of potential things but nothing's been decided yet."
The school's main campus is in Nampa just off Idaho Center Boulevard.
In 2016, CWI attempted to pass a $180 million bond to help pay for the site's construction, but it failed by less than 200 votes. To cater to Ada County students, CWI currently has several spaces in Boise where they hold classes.
Recently, the community college renewed its lease at its current Ada County campus at the intersection of Overland and Maple Grove roads. The new lease keeps them there for another five years, which opens the door for more questions.
What does the new lease mean for the college's property at Whitewater Park Boulevard and Main Street? If CWI can't come up with the money to build a new campus, would the college be willing to sell it?
"You know, that's one of the topics of conversations that they've kind of nibbled at," Browning said. "I would believe that in the future as planning and ideas come around, that's got to be part of the discussion."
Over the years, there was some talk that the land could be sold for the proposed mixed-use stadium, but CWI officials said there are no plans for that that they're aware of and with their involvement.
Join 'The 208' conversation:
- Text us at (208) 321-5614
- E-mail us at the208@ktvb.com
- Join our The 208 Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/the208KTVB/
- Follow us on Twitter: @the208KTVB or tweet #the208 and #SoIdaho
- Follow us on Instagram: @the208KTVB
- Bookmark our landing page: /the-208
Still reading this list? We're on YouTube, too:
Idaho Life: CWI's mythical mascot is no more