BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho Department of Fish and Game has reached a deal with the Idaho Fish and Wildlife Foundation to build a new headquarters in Boise.
Fish and Game, in a news release on Tuesday, says construction of the 70,000-square-foot building is scheduled to begin in 2020 -- and be finished by 2022.
Fish and Game will lease the new building for 25 years from the foundation, a nonprofit established in 1990 to bolster the state's fishing, hunting and wildlife heritage through financial support of various projects and activities.
The lease would cost up to $1.2 annually and, when it ends, Fish and Game would own the building outright.
Fish and Game’s headquarters staff are currently housed in two different buildings –- the main Fish and Game building at 600 S. Walnut St., which the agency owns, and leased office space in the Washington Group Building at 720 Park Blvd. “That building is owned by St. Luke’s. Fish and Game’s lease in the Washington Group Building expires in June of 2022 and cannot be renewed. The rising cost of leased office space has resulted in new construction being the most responsible, long-term use of sportsmen’s dollars,” said Fish and Game Public Information Supervisor Roger Phillips.
Officials say the existing building from the mid-1960s has reached the end of its useful life. “The tentative plan is to raze the existing 54-year-old headquarters building and replace it with a new building capable of housing all headquarters staff. Additionally, the new building would provide general public services such as license sales and provide space to support public meetings,” Phillips said.
(Associated Press contributed to this story)
(photo courtesy: Idaho Fish and Game Dept.)
