Been to the Boise Factory Outlets lately? They may soon be history. What’s in the works

Nick Rosenberger
·4 min read

In days past, the Boise Factory Outlets were a center of activity, with families bustling out of stores with shopping bags laden with goods.

Now, the shopping center southeast of Boise is semi-apocalyptic. Most of the storefronts are barren, the parking lot mostly empty save for shoppers at Eddie Bauer and patrons of a few other businesses, including a learning center, a Jazzercise studio, a print shop and photo studio. Among the most recent closures: a Pendleton Woolen Mills outlet store.

In August, parts of the parking lot were barred off with fencing as grass snuck its way through cracks in the cement.

Rather than bring the shopping mall at 6880 S. Eisenman Road back to its former glory, developers are thinking of new ways to use the land. Namely, by razing the buildings and building a new Kenworth Truck Dealership on it.

Ice World, the city-owned ice skating rink, sits just southeast of the property.

The Boise Factory Outlets were once a popular spot to shop but have seen a steady decline as business has fallen.
The Boise Factory Outlets were once a popular spot to shop but have seen a steady decline as business has fallen.

Kenworth, which produces semi-trucks and other commercial and industrial vehicles, has had a dealership just north of the Boise Airport for 60 years, but that is reaching capacity.

“Kenworth Sales Co. needs more room,” said Martha Mills, corporate marketing director for Kenworth, in an emailed response. “The new facility will triple our acreage and building footprint to allow our sales, service, parts, lease and rental departments to better serve the trucking community.”

Mills said the site, which is near the intersection of Interstate 84 and Idaho 21, could serve a larger number of customers. More regional and national industries are making their way through Boise, she said.

“We need more room to accommodate all their growth,” Mills said.

The company would also hire more salespeople, technicians and administrators, among others. According to a PowerPoint attached to its application, the dealership would employ over 90 people with an annual average salary of $90,000.

The iconic water tower has long been a landmark.
The iconic water tower has long been a landmark.

But there’s still a way to go before this could become a reality.

“Anybody can submit an application, but it doesn’t mean (staff members) have to approve it,” said Lindsay Moser, communications manager for Boise’s Planning and Development Services Department.

Moser said the project still has to go in front of the Planning and Zoning Commission and that the city staff hasn’t yet decided if it will recommend approval or not as the project is still in its early stages.

Mills said the permitting and approval process will take time, and if the city approves it, then tenants will have about a year to find new homes.

Patrons enter the Eddie Bauer store in January 2020 at the Boise Factory Outlets.
Patrons enter the Eddie Bauer store in January 2020 at the Boise Factory Outlets.
Heidi and Jeff Burns, of Terreton in Eastern Idaho, shop for pants in January 2020 at VF Outlet, one of the larger stores at Boise Factory Outlets and one of just four still operating at the time. The store has since closed.
Heidi and Jeff Burns, of Terreton in Eastern Idaho, shop for pants in January 2020 at VF Outlet, one of the larger stores at Boise Factory Outlets and one of just four still operating at the time. The store has since closed.

Growing industry in the desert

Mills said it was difficult to find the acreage needed with the city’s continued growth, leaving developing areas on the perimeter of the city — such as the Boise Factory Outlets location — as Kenworth’s best choice.

With the site sitting in an industrial area, Mills said, the company could provide better access for customers driving in and out of the Treasure Valley.

And with a growing shortage of truck and trailer parking throughout the nation, Mills said, the location will have enough room to offer overnight parking for semi-trucks. That could attract out-of-state dollars.

The project site falls within the boundaries of a little-known urban renewal district run by the Capital City Development Corp., or CCDC, the city’s urban renewal agency.

CCDC started that district, Gateway East, in 2019 under former Mayor David Bieter, who now works for Gardner Co., the Utah-based developer that bought the property in 2020. The district is mostly undeveloped land.

The Boise Factory Outlets sits near the center of the Gateway East Urban Renewal District along Eisenman Road.
The Boise Factory Outlets sits near the center of the Gateway East Urban Renewal District along Eisenman Road.

“The thought was that (the district) was an opportunity to tap into, and be competitive with, more industrial-type jobs” and to bring “more job diversity and economic growth to this area,” said Jordyn Neerdaels, communications manager for CCDC.

The district, which was the first in Boise with an industrial focus, aims to address the lack of services southeast of the Boise Airport, revitalize the Eisenman Road corridor and boost industrial development, according to the CCDC website.

Neerdaels said the agency’s work in Gateway East is mostly focused on increasing infrastructure such as building more roads and extending power lines.

Kenworth would build a service area for trucks, such as the one shown in this image.
Kenworth would build a service area for trucks, such as the one shown in this image.

Neerdaels noted that Kenworth has not approached the agency for help.

Drawing inspiration

Plans submitted by the developer outline what the over 24-acre site could look like if the city approves the application.

An 80,000 square-foot semi-truck sales and service building would fill most of the center of the property in what is now the parking lot. The rest of the site would include a sales yard, parts delivery area, truck waiting area and a 14,000-square-foot service building.

An architect’s rendering of Kenworth’s proposed 80,000 square-foot services and sales building.
An architect’s rendering of Kenworth’s proposed 80,000 square-foot services and sales building.

They would landscape the edges of the property and the border shared with Ice World, with submitted plans calling for over 130 trees.

Mills said they would model the dealership after Kenworth dealerships in Salt Lake City, Las Vegas and Spokane.

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