Possibly Moving to Idaho?

Question

My family is looking at the possiblity of relocating to Boise, Idaho. I would love some additional information about the area. We currently live in Southern California and we have an 8 year old boy, and a large dog. Are there any residential areas that I should avoid? Any customs that we should know about? What about festivals or fairs throughout the year? I am looking to gain a better idea of the area and the people. Any help that you can give me would be great!

Answer 1

We moved from Boise several years ago.  We loved it.  Over the past 10 or 15 years, Boise has grown tremendously.  So, there are a lot of families who are in your same situation.

As far as areas to avoid. I would avoid the south/central portion of Boise and Garden City.  Northwestern Boise towards Eagle have very nice neighborhoods. Just be aware that the Boise river does flood.  That does cause problems for residents there.  Meridian also has nice neighborhoods. If your price range is narrow, Nampa tends to be less expensive, with nice areas.  (My brother lives in Nampa, look at the subdivisions north of I 84 around the Idaho Center). My sister lives in Star.  I haven't been there recently, but that is supposed to be nice as well.

The nice thing about Boise is that is has a nice greenbelt along the Boise river. The greenbelt has several large parks downtown.  These parks have several   festivals (art, music, hot air balloon races) during the summer.

As far as customs go, just root for Boise State football and you'll fit in.  The blue turf is still a little weird to me.

Anyway, hope this helps.

Answer 2

Tavira gave some great recommendations for neighborhoods.  I completely agree that if possible, you should stay away from the Garden City area.  Since the neighborhoods were pretty well covered, I'll talk more about fairs and events.

Oh, and I'd recommend checking out chamber of commerce websites for places other than Boise too.  There are tons of events that occur in Eagle, Meridian, and Nampa/Caldwell.

Boise and it's surrounding areas generally have nice parks.  My favorites are Julia Davis Park (in Boise, near BSU) and Heritage Park in Eagle.  At Julia Davis, they have a rose garden that I particularly love.  Julia Davis is pretty big.  And Heritage has fountains that kids can play in (also has a big gazebo and a couple of picnic tables and benches).  Heritage isn't very big though.

Other things I can think of are:

Art in the Park-  Event where local artists set up booths in Julia Davis Park and sell their items.  When I've been in Boise, it's usually happened sometime in June and September.  Looks like they'll be doing this Sept 5-7 this year.

Boo at the Zoo-  Zoo has a special event every year around Halloween.  I've never been to one of these events so I don't know what all they do.

Winter Garden aGlow-  Idaho Botanical Gardens decorate for the holidays every year.  According to the website, it also includes live music and sometimes visits from Santa.

FREE EVENTS:

Alive After 5- Weekly event on Wednesdays 5-8 pm, downtown Boise.  They have live music and vendors.  (Vendors are not free, of course).  It runs from June to September.

Jazz On the Grove- Free Jazz Concert.  This year it's on Sept. 7th from 5 to 10 pm.  Also located in Downtown Boise at The Grove Plaza.

RANDOM:

Blue Moose Cafe- In Eagle.  They have some awesome food there!  Basically, they serve specialty wraps.  Dining environment is casual.  

Smoky Mountain Pizza-  Excellent pizza and pasta!  It's a local chain.  And one tradition they have is that they give out free pizza on Christmas Eve.