The city of Boise estimates it’ll cost a hefty sum to repair the historic Union Block building after it was condemned nearly a year ago.
Boise City Council members unanimously approved a fund of $2.7 million to stabilize the building, as requested by city staff, after a hearing on the matter Tuesday night.
Shawn Wilson, director of the planning and development services, gave a brief presentation that included an itemized report of expenses, with most of the money going toward construction to stabilize the building, repair its facade and secure the alleyway behind it.
In response to a question, Wilson said matters relating to how the city would recoup the costs from the owner would be a separate proceeding.
The Ada County Highway District closed part of the alley behind the building, located at at 730 W. Idaho St., in late August over concerns about its “structural integrity,” the Idaho Statesman reported.
“Once on site, our team agreed that there has been significant change in the hole that was originally excavated for a basement in the building,” the agency said in a statement at the time. “The hole had expanded underneath part of the alleyway itself.”
The city cordoned off the Union Block on Nov. 9 after city officials inspected the space and decided it was unsafe to occupy. An order to vacate the building listed several subsections of the city’s code for dangerous buildings. ACHD also closed the adjacent sidewalk, on-street parking and far-right lane of traffic on Idaho Street.
The two-story building has been under construction for years with steel beams temporarily holding it up after its owner, Ken Howell, a Boise developer and owner of Parklane Management Co., got approval from the city in 2018 to carve out an additional floor below ground to lease to businesses or other tenants. The basement renovation was only supposed to take about a year.
The city gave Howell about six months, or 180 days, including a 120-day extension, to make the necessary fixes to shore up the building and reopen it.
But the repairs were never fully completed, and in June the city decided to take over and pursue the repairs at Howell’s expense under a facade easement, which allows the city to act to preserve buildings with historical or architectural significance, the Statesman reported.
The building, completed in 1902, is on the National Register of Historic Places, and its sandstone facade is a quintessential part of the downtown streetscape.
At the city council meeting Tuesday, the city allotted 20 minutes for Howell to speak, but he did not attend the meeting in person or online.
Only one person spoke during the public comment portion of the hearing. Ron Nahas, co-owner of the neighboring KeyBank building at 702 W. Idaho St., said pedestrian access to his building from Eighth Street has been blocked off since the Union Block building was condemned. The KeyBank building is across the street from the Union Block building.
Nahas said he has vacant space on the first floor of his building and the lack of pedestrian access along Idaho Street makes it “very difficult” to find a tenant to lease it.
“I’ve been in construction all my life, and I know that it can be a messy business, and I think in general, we are very tolerant of neighbors who are trying to improve their property and are creating an inconvenience for us,” Nahas said. “But this has simply gone on too long. It’s outrageous not to have access to the public pedestrian accesses around the building. It is doing harm to us. I think it is time to act.”
He asked the city to set aside the funds and to move expeditiously to make the repairs to shore up the building. Mayor Lauren McLean thanked Nahas for his comments.
Meanwhile, Howell filed for a temporary restraining order against the city in U.S. District Court on Thursday. The order sought to prevent the city from entering the building without his permission, controlling or making the repairs to the building itself and holding the hearing.
Judge David Nye dismissed the emergency motion as moot.
Howell sued the city earlier this year over the building’s forced closure. The lawsuit seeks damages for the loss of tenants and reputational harm to Howell, his company and the building. It also seeks payment for expenses incurred defending any litigation filed by such tenants.
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