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Seattle Times – “A youthful vibe and lively cultural scene are fueling Idaho’s capital city”

May 11, 2016

News & Notes

Boise was recently featured in the Seattle Times Life & Travel section. It’s exciting to that all of the great new developments in downtown are being recognized by other cities that value vibrant urban lifestyles!

Article By Brian J. Cantwell
Seattle Times travel & outdoors editor

Penny Postcard5_02.27.04
BOISE, Idaho — I think it was a Garrison Keillor line: No matter how smug a Boise tech millionaire might feel as he drives around in his fancy Mercedes, his license plate still says “Famous Potatoes.”

OK, there, the potato joke is out of the way. Now for the real story:
When I visited Boise recently, I found the capital of this state with a reputation for root vegetables to be a hip and happening place, easily dashing many people’s notions about Idaho.

Its progressive, Basque-heritage mayor set out 12 years ago to make this America’s most livable city, and it shows, in the prospering downtown, beautiful parks, and a lively arts and cultural environment. How many cities this size (pop. 216,000) have their own arts office?

 

There’s plenty to attract a young and energetic populace: miles of bike trails, a hometown ski hill (Bogus Basin), a burgeoning craft-brewery scene, even — yes — a surf park, where a diversion structure on the Boise River can be adjusted to make white water for surfers, kayakers and so on. Go ahead and say it: Surf Boise.

Read the rest of this article here.