Boise Real Estate Blog

Microsoft completed its purchase of ProClarity, a Boise-based business software company, yesterday.

The big new Microsoft sign was installed on the building earlier this week and the changeover to Microsoft Boise is now complete.

Bob Lokken, former ProClarity CEO and now a Senior Director of Microsoft’s Office Business Applications, said the company will roll out new Microsoft-labeled software products in the near future.

Microsoft could have moved the company’s operations to Redmond, Washington but chose to have them remain in Boise out of appreciation for the area’s quality of life and to allow employees to remain in the Boise area.

The company has already added a few new positions to its local workforce, which now numbers around 100 employees.

Microsoft has also been working closely with Boise State University’s computer science and engineering departments to build a working relationship for potential future employment growth in the Boise area.

So  .  .  .  .  we actually have a genuine Microsoft presence here in Boise !

Wow ~ how cool is that ?

Meridian real estate will get a huge shot in the arm with the construction of the new Ten-Mile Road/I-84 freeway interchange.

The City of Meridian is conducting a $65,000 study to decide what the area around the interchange will look like.

Developers are planning new shopping centers, apartments, office buildings, stores, and more homes in the area.

Ten-Mile Road is the next hot spot for commercial growth in Meridian because available land along the other major corridors in the area is already being built out.

Funding has been secured for the project and construction could start in 2009.

Estimated completion for the interchange is sometime in 2011.

If all goes as proposed, the Boise real estate market could soon see 1,800 new homes and a new business campus in the undeveloped, sagebrush-covered area south of Boise’s city limits.

Construction would start in the Fall of 2007 and could take 12-14 years to be completed.

The residential portion of the development would utilize the urban village concept with a variety of smaller, pedestrian-oriented communities and neighborhood commercial areas.

The business campus would be similar to the El Dorado and Silverstone developments at Eagle/Overland Roads in Meridian.

The project is one of three requests for large annexations that will be discussed in hearings before the Boise Planning & Zoning Commission in October.

If the City of Boise approves the annexation, the developers will submit an application to develop the land as a master-planned community.

Depending upon the mix of housing offered, and pricing, this area could be very attractive to homebuyers who work at Micron or downtown due to the relatively easy commute.

The August issue of Money magazine ranked Boise as the 8th best place to live in the U.S.

Criteria for the ranking included low crime rates, affordable housing prices, lack of traffic, income potential, and the cost of living.

No wonder everyone wants to live here!