After three years as mayor, and seeking more, McLean says Boise will remain ‘our oasis’

At her final State of the City address before a contested November election, Mayor Lauren McLean touted her work on affordable housing, park protections, and funding for businesses and residents through tax rebates and grants for some workers.

Speaking to a crowded room in downtown Boise on Thursday at JUMP (Jack’s Urban Meeting Place), the mayor, who was elected in 2019, also touched on help for the police and fire departments, as well as transportation issues.

“We will keep this our oasis, our safe and welcoming Boise for everyone,” McLean said.

The mayor’s speech came as the political season is underway, and she faces a challenger to her political right: Mike Masterson, a former Boise police chief.

McLean’s address painted a picture of a city at odds with the state and national political environment, which she said is divisive and looks to “undo the very bedrock of our civil society.”

Affordable housing in Boise

McLean emphasized the city’s efforts to partner with developers to build affordable housing. By the end of the year, she said the city will have opened 250 new affordable homes, with a goal of completing 1,100 by the end of 2026.

The city also offered $1.2 million in property tax rebates to low-income homeowners through a program McLean advocated. It passed the Idaho Legislature in 2022.

“I am intent on expanding the rebate program to more homeowners in the future,” McLean said.

An affordable development is also going up on city-owned land at the corner of State Street and Arthur Lane.

A city-commissioned housing study in 2020 found that Boise needs 2,770 new affordable units every year for the next decade to meet demand in the growing city.

McLean also touted the zoning code rewrite, which aims to allow denser housing in Boise’s neighborhoods and has met some community opposition. McLean said the new changes, which will go before the City Council in June, would “blend gently” into existing neighborhoods.

She said cities that have not updated their zoning codes have seen worsening inequality and put up “invisible walls.”

“We will not repeat the mistakes of other cities,” McLean said. “We will not give up on our neighbors.”

Police, fire department staffing

McLean’s speech came the same week that an independent investigator presented findings from a three-month investigation that highlighted problems with the Boise Police Department’s hiring, promotions and training going back years. The investigation was prompted by the discovery that a retired captain had espoused white supremacist views.

At the State of the City, McLean said the city’s violent and property crime rates are the lowest they have been in more than 20 years.

She also said the city is exploring adding police resources to a location on Willow Lane, near the site of the future Interfaith Sanctuary shelter. That facility, which broke ground in April, received pushback from the Veterans Park Neighborhood Association, which has taken the project to court.

As the fire department rebuilds its downtown station on 16th Street, McLean said her budget for the coming fiscal year includes funding to staff four firefighters on each fire engine instead of three.

Climate and transportation goals

Boise has a goal of getting to 100% clean electricity by 2035, and McLean said the city transitioned three buildings this year. Over the next year, the city plans to electrify City Hall West and the Boise Depot, the former train station.

McLean expressed confidence talking about public transportation and returning rail service to the Treasure Valley. The city is in the process of applying for federal dollars to reconnect Idaho to Salt Lake City.

“I know we will do this,” she said.