Craving a cocktail by the Boise River? Garden City wants to make that easier. Here’s how
In a state with infamously convoluted liquor laws, getting a license to serve hard liquor is no easy feat. The process regularly costs business owners hundreds of thousands of dollars, and can take decades. Many wind up settling for only serving wine and beer.
Many hotels and restaurants along the state’s waterways avoid the onerous license process with a special carve-out – but until now, those along the Boise River didn’t qualify.
A new bill moving through the Legislature may soon change that. It would broaden the definition of “waterfront resorts” to include certain properties along the Boise River corridor, including in Garden City, Boise and beyond.
The bill proposes amendments to state code that would lower the bar on how much water must be flowing through a river for the properties nearby to be considered “waterfront resorts.” The existing code defines a resort property as either a hotel or motel accommodating at least 50 people and serving meals, or a restaurant of at least 3,000 square feet.
In a Wednesday hearing of the Senate State Affairs Committee, supporters pitched the bill as an economic development tool that would bring residents and visitors to the Boise and Garden City-area Greenbelt, spur high-end development, and help raise city revenue through property taxes.
“We’ve only got so much river frontage, and it’s a unique amenity,” said Garden City Mayor John Evans, who testified at the hearing. The bill could “really set the stage for high-end riverfront amenities.”
Boardwalk Apartments would benefit
Development of The Boardwalk Apartments, a mixed-use project going up in Garden City, is a driving force behind the bill, Evans told the Idaho Statesman. One proposal for the apartment development is a high-end restaurant – a challenging prospect without a liquor license.
The amendments do not specify a particular business or location, meaning that the bill could affect waterfront development well beyond Garden City. The Boise River flows west through or on the edge of Eagle, Star, Middleton and Caldwell before it empties into the Snake River.
Some at the hearing raised concerns that the proposed amendments would give an unfair advantage to businesses located on the water.
“I’m torn on these issues,” said state Sen. Kelly Anthon, a Republican from Rupert and the Senate majority leader, at the hearing. “You’re saying the folks who are just lucky enough to be situated on the riverbank, you get one. But you go out into the rural communities where there’s no riverbank, and you don’t get one.”
Evans acknowledged these concerns in a conversation with the Statesman but noted that Garden City is trying to make up for its own disadvantages in the licensing process. The state distributes licenses based on population – one liquor license per 1,500 residents – posing a challenge for a city with only about 12,000 residents.
“We’re at a distinct disadvantage, because our population doesn’t warrant a license,” Evans said. “So what do you do about that? You look at circumstance. We’re right on the river” and should be able to take advantage of the exemption for waterfront properties.
The bill follows a new law that took effect last July seeking to eliminate a secondary market for license sales that’s flourished because of the state’s grip on how many liquor permits each city can have. Under the new law, owners of existing liquor licenses can transfer their permits only once.
No developers have approached Evans about interest in waterfront properties with liquor licenses, but he listed sites along the riverfront in Garden City that could become attractive for high-end development if the bill passes, including the Ada County Highway District Maintenance Yard and the Expo Idaho event venue.
“The opportunity is there, and people will seize on it,” Evans said.
Sen. Tammy Nichols, a Republican from Middleton whose district contains some Boise River frontage, sponsored the bill. The committee voted to advance it to the Senate floor. If it passes, it will go to the House.
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