On July 13th, Mayor Lauren McLean, City Council members, and employees gathered with the Bowler family to open the park named after their late family members. The park, located in the 25-acre area located off South Surprise Way below the cliffs of the Columbia Village neighborhood.
Photo Credit: Bowler Park | City of Boise
This park is an especially exciting addition to the Boise network of parks because it is a model for building future parks. McClean remarked, “As a city, we have a goal of making sure that everyone, every child, in particular, has a 10-minute walk to a park.” Another remarkable feature of the park she noted was that only six acres of the land were turned into either grass, concrete, or playgrounds for visitors. A remaining 19-acre area has been left in its natural ecosystem. This was an intentional effort by the city and the America The Beautiful Campaign that the city of Boise is involved in.
Purchased by the City of Boise in 1995, the land has long sat, intending to becoming a park. While a large portion of Boise parks are named after influential women, the City Council wanted to create something special with the land and honor the Boise legend it was named after. Bruce Bowler is what you could call an Idaho Conservationist legend. Throughout his life, he sought to preserve the many wild spaces of the state against mining in the White Cloud Mountains, dam construction on the Snake River, and creating the 2.3 million-acre River of No Return Wilderness bill. Much of what we currently enjoy in Idaho’s landscape has been preserved largely by the activism and legal work of Bruce Bowler.
Bowler Park is Open With Many Amenities
City officials and the Bowler family were excited to unveil this turn-key park to the neighboring residents of South East Boise. It’s exciting to see a new standard of the park being set for the City of Boise and intentional efforts being made to honor the natural floral, fauna, and wildlife of our unique mountain dessert. This park truly honors the legend and hard work of Bruce Bowler.
The park amenities include:
- Fenced dog park
- 1-acre dog off-leash area
- 0.2-acre shy dog area
- Skate/Bike park
- Outdoor fitness area
- Bocce ball court
- Misters
- Playground
- Natural landscape play area
- Open grass play area
- Shelter in the center of the main area of the park
- Disc golf course
- Hiking trails from neighboring communities
- Homestead Interpretive area
- Pollinator Garden
- Firewise Garden
- Acres of natural Idaho landscape!
Download The Park Map
Photo Credit: Bowler Park | City of Boise
You can find the park at 4403 S. Surprise Way in Southeast Boise, Idaho. As the contractors put the finishing touches and safety features in place, guests can expect to enjoy the entire park by the end of the week.
Photo Credit: Bowler Park | City of Boise
Photo Credit: Bowler Park | City of Boise