StreetAdvisor - your street, your voice

South Loggers Pond Place is not really much of a street. It runs along the River Quarry Apartments and doesn't have anything else on it. It runs behind several businesses, such as the Springhill Suites and the Super Valu employees credit union. But it dead ends on both sides, one side into a culdesac and the other into the back parking lot for the hotel. The area is nice, though, and pretty quiet, except for the geese and ducks that live on the pond in the apartment complex!

East Pennsylvania St. connects Boise Ave. and Parkcenter Blvd and is a quiet, residential street. There are a lot of apartments on this street, mostly smaller, privately owned ones. Towards Boise Ave, where there once stood a trailer park, there is now an empty lot that looks as though it has been prepared for a housing development, but nothing has been put there yet. Also at the Boise Ave. end, there is a small office park consisting of doctors, dentists and other practices. It's a very nice, quiet street and was pleasant to live on.

Apple is a fairly short street, intersecting Burgeson St., Boise Ave. and Parkcenter Blvd. On it's south side, it runs through several neighborhoods with single family housing and apartments alike. It crosses Boise Ave. right next to Timberline High School and continues through a shopping area. It passes by fast food restaurants and stores such as Albertsons and Walgreens until it ends at Parkcenter Blvd. It is always clean and is well lit at night.

Boise Avenue is an interesting street, as it spans a good portion of the east side of Boise. On it's west end, Boise Ave. runs along the outside of Boise State University and you can find both student housing and family housing. As it moves east, it goes through many different neighborhoods, some nicer than others and then cuts through a shopping area. There are typical stores and fast food restaurants, as well as an elementary school and a high school and then it continues north through some more housing areas. It passes by the newly developed Bown Crossing area and some upper scale neighborhoods until it comes to an end by the Boise River and a more rural area.

This road cuts through Julia Davis Park at the north side of the river. There is everything you can think of in this park. Tennis courts, trails to walk your dog or jog on, the Boise Art Museum. Be sure to check this place out in its entirety!

West Fort works along the edge of a medical/business park on the fringes of Boise. A couple of the more famous medical enterprises here consist of the Boise Veteran's Hospital and the Idaho Elks Rehabilitation Center. A historical attraction is also nestled right here: Old Fort Boise.

East Parkcenter Blvd. is a very pretty, tree-lined street that carries the bulk of the traffic through the southeast side of Boise. There is a very nice bike path that runs along the side of the street and there is access to the Greenbelt at several junctures off of Parkcenter. In the past year or so, they've developed the Bown Crossing area at the end of Parkcenter, so it's created a bit more traffic than there used to be, but it has still maintained most of it's charm.

The State Capitol of Boise lies just a few blocks away from all the action around Qwest Arena. This street is very, very busy. Both State workers and office workers crowd the streets here, but with that being said, it is still probably better to walk here and park. Farther south on Capitol Blvd, there are a couple nice eateries.

8th Makes its way from the river to the center of the city. At the river, 8th has an impressive Ann Frank Statue at the Human Rights park. "The Aspen" building is definitely an architecturaly unique building farther north. From here, 8th dives right into the "grove" or essentially the city center with Qwest Arena right beside it.

Bronco Lane is the circle that goes through parts of the Boise State Campus. Probably most importantly, it provides access to the Boise State Stadium. Yet it also goes right past Taco Bell Arena and the Student Union. At some times of the year, it seems like this is the busiest part of the city.

West Taft Street extends eastward from the Collister Fire Station, crosses N 36th Street and ends at 28th Street. The largest thoroughfare is W State Street just to the south, while Hill Road to the north is only a two lane through road, but very busy during "drive times." Traffic all along Taft Street is very bearable, and between midnight and 5:30 a.m. almost non-existent. This is a residential street all the way, and is populated mostly by lower middle class homes. The area used to be farm & pasture lands before the mid 1960s, and gradually the farm plots were sold off to accommodate residential homes. A small irrigation canal still flows nearby, and the are is heavily wooded with such trees as ash and sycamores.

Crime rates are really pretty low, but there have been intermittent vandalism problems (teenagers) from time to time. Racial composition is almost entirely Caucasian, with a smattering of Hispanic, oriental and former Yugoslavian Republic emigrants. I know of no serious racial or cultural problems between residents. Some homes are a bit run down, wile others are well maintained.

Access to public schools is very good, with two grade schools (Taft and Collister) and a junior high school (Hillside) within walking distance from the western end of Taft. Access to public parks is also excellent, with a small neighborhood park located right on 39th Street, Collister Park to the north just a couple of blocks, Sunset Park nearby and Veteran's Park and Boise River Walk access within walking distance just across State Street to the South. All have picnic and restroom facilities (except 39th Street). In addition, Collister, Taft and Hillside schools all have spacious public areas, including a few tennis courts, and there is a baseball complex adjacent to Hillside Jr. High. Owned by the city and operated by the North Boise Little League, the complex has a 60 foot baseball diamond, a 90-foot diamond and a softball diamond. The 90 foot diamond is lighted.

There is an Albertson's (groceries & etc) within walking distance (from the western half of Taft) on the corner of 36th & States Streets, with three nearby fast food stops. There is a city bus stop on the corner of Taft and 36th Streets.

There is a Collister Neighborhood organization that almost nobody belongs to, and in truth neighborly friendliness is not a strong point here, though there seems to be little animosity anywhere as well. There is a community church located on W. Taft Street just before the fire station that has been here many years. Several churches are located within a mile of Taft Street, including an LDS (Mormon) chapel.

Not the sleepy, family friendly small city it was 20 years ago, Boise still ranks pretty high in such quality of life features as family friendliness, available outdoor activities, and business. The capital city of Idaho, Boise is at the cross-roads of the Northwest between Salt Lake City (Utah), Reno (Nevada), and Portland (Oregon). Well known for its' parks and abundance of trees throughout the city, Boise features a great abundance of outdoor activities within a short distance of wherever you live. CLIMATE: a very livable arid (high desert) climate means relative low humidity, plenty of sunshine and seasonal temperatures that vary widely from a few degrees below 0 (F) in the winter and up to 105-107 degrees (F) in the summer. Air quality is usually very good with an occasional problem due to inversions. Boise and the Treasure Valley are known as the "banana belt" of Idaho due to the relatively small amount of snow that accumulates in Winter months. ECONOMY: generally excellent, with a low unemployment rate and very attractive climate for business all the way around. Boise employees are high quality, but pay isn't as high as in other capital cities. HEALTH: Excellent. Medical facilities are very adequate and disease rates (both mental and physical) are below natioanal averages. SOCIAL: a relatively cosmopolitan center for Idaho and the western states in general; many races, religions and cultures blend very well together. Live theater availability ranks below average, but there are plenty of social opportunities. The city hosts an AA baseball team (Boise Hawks), an arena football team (Boise Burns) and a hockey team (Boise Blades). A healthy and dominate Christian ethic is obvious in most communities, however tolerance levels of other social norms are relatively high, with small but healthy representation from Jewish, Muslim, pagan and most near and far eastern cultures. GOVERNMENT: While Democrats dominate local city offices, the county and state is overwhelmingly Republican. A vibrant libertarian and independent political philosophy can be found. City services are adequate for the region, and not unduly obtrusive or obstructive. The city police force I would rate as only average in service to the community, but with a very low level of corruption. County and state troopers are generally very well respected. SCHOOLS: a major university (BSU) with an excellent football team not generally found in a city this size. Public schools are above average in comparison with national norms, private educational opportunities are generally excellent, and home schooling is well tolerated. OUTLOOK: Excellent.

Meridian is a suburb of Boise and is growing larger every day. There is a lot of convenient shopping nearby, as well as tons of restaurants. There are a lot of nice city parks, so it's family friendly. My only real complaint is that the traffic gets worse every year. I don't think they planned for the population growth we've seen when they first developed Meridian and its surrounding areas.

Boise is a beautiful city with a fabulous variety of activities for active people. In the summer, you can raft the Boise River, walk or bike ride on the Greenbelt that runs the length of the city along the river, or hike in the foothills. All of these activities are within minutes from any part of town and are very easily accessed. There are many parks for relaxing, a zoo, and a soon to be built aquarium. In the winter, Bogus Basin ski resort is just outside of town with downhill skiing, cross country skiing and a tubing hill. Boise is a great place to raise children and enjoy a quality, active life.

Linda Circle Living...
Its on the far West Side of Idaho Falls, but not to far. Things I like about the street, I like being close to Reed's Dairy (GREAT Ice Cream) on a hot summer day. Some think it may stink often, but the wind is usually blowing to the North so we don't get a stench often. I like being close to the Soccer fields. I take my kids on a short bike ride to the play ground over there and they love it. I like being by the airport and seeing all the neat planes that come in and out. I like being in a cul-de-sac, However there is a daycare in the cul-de-sac that increases traffic greatly. It would be nice if i had my own children in daycare to have that so close, but since I don't i find it to be a drawback. This street could use a couple more Light poles, there are some but not enough in my opinion. Overall I like the area and am glad I have had a chance to experience living on Linda Circle.

Woodbury Drive is located just minutes from old town Meridian. Within a few miles you have access to shopping, groceries and many parks. We are in a great neighborhood with families, couples, singles and retirees. Any given day you will see many familes outside riding bikes, walking or working in the yard. When we are outside many neighbors wave or stop and chat. It is nice to know who your neighbors are and that your home is being watched over when you are gone.

Great for people who work downtown. This street has changed alot over the last year, with lots of patio homes being built in place of what used to be a single home on a large lot. The population density has increased alot. Lots of barking dogs on my block.

We don't need retail, food or public transportation, our quality of life is so much better than any city dweller! We live in a green paradise!