Might as well JUMP?!

If you were around way back in 1984 you remember David Lee Roth crooning for Van Halen that “you might as well Jump!” If not, you’ll still get the gist of this story. The Simplot family has finally decided to develop a massive tract of property in Boise just west of what is now referred to as “Bodo.” Unfamiliar? This is the tract of land bordered by Front and Myrtle, and Ninth and Eleventh. Still confused? See the map at the IBR website.

At any rate. I am grateful for a $100 million investment into downtown Boise, but have some concerns.

1) I am never happy when it is a MAJOR news story when it is discovered that Governor Butch “Buy Idaho” Otter buys his coffee from some out of state place (total economic value maybe a couple hundred bucks a year), but then some Idaho company like Simplot turns around and awards a $100 million construction contract to an out of state firm. Priorities, people.

2) The name. “Jack’s Urban Meeting Place?” Are you serious? This isn’t a serious name for a $100 million project, this is silly. Sure, you’ve got the acronym - JUMP - we all get that. Still, it’s silly. There isn’t a single important building or urban space in this state bearing the name of “Simplot.” So wouldn’t it suffice to name the development Simplot Plaza or something along those lines? Even the Simplot world headquarters is in the “One Capital Center” building.

3) Reality check. I’ll believe that we’re going to see $100 million worth of investment when I see the first tenants move in. Boise has a long history of pipe-dream projects not the least of which is the “Hole” at Eighth and Main. This property too has seen numerous proposals and setbacks over the course of 20 years.

4) Design. It remains to be seen what the site planners are thinking. A ringed fortress in the city’s cultural district? There is zero visibility between the buildings in the complex, that is a negative. The one good thing about that could be sound mitigation from traffic. We’ll see though what design review and the Council have to say.

There are a few comments on the IBR blog already. What do you think?

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1. The Mega Frontier » City to JUMP: Take a Flying Leap — December 4, 2009 @ 12:26 pm

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