The City of Boise closed a deal on a two-acre mobile home park off of Vista Avenue this week to preserve two dozen affordable homes.
The park is located on Malad Drive near Shoshone Park and has 26 mobile homes on the 2-acre property, according to the Ada County Assessor. The city moved to buy the park with the goal of having it kick off the city’s latest affordable housing program aiming to preserve 1,000 existing units.
The city bought the park for $3.25 million from the Betts Family Trust and only City Council Member Luci Willits objected to the purchase, as BoiseDev reported earlier this year.
“Ensuring we have a home for everyone, at Boise budgets, includes preserving existing affordable housing,” Mayor Lauren McLean said in a press release. “Our housing team is exploring innovative solutions and partnerships to take care of our most vulnerable residents, many of whom are at risk of being displaced from their homes. The purchase of Sage Mobile Home Park will keep 26 more homes affordable for Boiseans and allow us to invest in improvements to the park to address life and safety issues.”
Upgrades coming to small park
Although the City of Boise owns hundreds of its own affordable housing units, the park will be managed through a partnership with the Boise City/Ada County Housing Authority.
The city press release said there are “no immediate plans” to redevelop the park and instead, the city will start making repairs to the aging park’s electrical system and other improvements to lots and amenities.
The City of Boise also just inked a deal with a New York-based consultant to study the creation and possibly start up a revolving loan fund, which could help fund more purchases like this in the future.