Post-fire limbo difficult for building owners in Idaho City, Boise

Jan. 20--Law enforcement officials haven't charged anyone in connection with an arson fire that destroyed the iconic Idaho City boardwalk last June. But the owners of the building have removed the debris and settled with their insurer.

"When we were in the middle of it, it felt like it was never going to happen," said Toni Barrett, co-owner of the property with her husband, Randy.

That's a feeling that Lori Porreca and Miguel Gaddi know too well. The couple has been in limbo since a Sept. 5 fire ravaged their Boise International Market, which housed at least 16 small businesses.

"The most unnerving or stressful thing is this amount of uncertainty," Gaddi told the Statesman last fall. "You don't know how long the tunnel is and when you're going to come out the other end."

In early January, investigators announced that they believe the market fire, too, was intentionally set.

"The arson thing was pretty devastating," Gaddi said Monday. "Knowing that somebody out there, for whatever reason, was willing and able to do this. That's a lot more worrying ... How will this play on potential partners and others considering being part of the second iteration [of the market]? Is this something that instills fear or concerns?"

"Not a day goes by that it [doesn't] cross my mind -- the why, the who," he said.

Boise police are investigating the fire. Police spokesman Ryan Larrondo said Wednesday he couldn't comment on whether any suspects have been identified.

BOARDWALK PROPERTY FOR SALE

The Barretts reached a settlement in mid-October, and the boardwalk building was demolished and removed shortly after.

There was a lot of community pressure on the Barretts to get it done sooner -- the charred remnants were a painful reminder of what was lost, and an eyesore in the tourist town. But their hands were tied until investigators were done.

"There were rumors that they [the city] were going to start fining us for every day it was still there," Toni Barrett said.

She declined to disclose how much the insurance company paid but said it was less than half of the estimated $700,000 it would have cost to rebuild the boardwalk. They've decided not to rebuild.

The Barrett's boardwalk property is one of five adjacent properties that they own near Idaho Highway 21 and Main Street. All of the properties -- about 2.5 acres in total -- are up for sale.

The boardwalk parcel is 0.61 acres, and its current list price is $75,000. The least expensive of the five parcels is a 0.37-acre sliver of land right on Idaho 21. That's listed at $25,000.

Anyone interested in the properties can contact agent Dale Hoyd at Todays Real Estate Group in Meridian.

The boardwalk fire is still under investigation by Idaho State Police, Boise County Prosecutor Jolene Maloney said Wednesday.

SPIRIT OF MARKET LIVES ON

Porreca and Gaddi aren't sure what the future holds for their building because they don't have a full accounting of what's damaged -- or, more importantly, what's not.

The vision they had for the Boise International Market was much more than just bricks and mortar, more than a place where things were bought and sold. Hearts are broken, and the structure may be unrecoverable. But their dream lives on.

"We're not trying to do a mall," said Porreca, who has a doctorate in sociology and works as a planner for the Federal Highway Administration. "This is more a community place where there's culture and knowledge transfer, not just buying something."

Gaddi is an architect and urban planner who works as a consultant and manages real estate investments. He and Porreca were aiming for something more akin to La Paloma in San Diego or the Agora, a famed marketplace and public square in Athens, Greece.

"This is a space where people very different could feel comfortable together," Gaddi said.

They tapped their personal savings to buy, repair and renovate a fire-damaged building on the Boise Bench. They interviewed hundreds of possible vendors for the market and created a vibrant mix of entrepreneurs from all over the world, including refugees from Africa and the Middle East. Then, they connected these fledgling business owners with mentors and groups with expertise that could help them succeed.

"For us, it was always a legacy project," Gaddi said.

"We were trying to create something," Porreca said.

It was short-lived. But they did succeed in turning an empty, damaged building into a destination for residents across the Treasure Valley. It was a place where you could eat, share a coffee or tea with friends or strangers, take a belly dancing class and buy handmade clothing and novelties.

LOOKING FORWARD

Porreca and Gaddi believe the vendors who were part of the market are better off today than they would have been if it had never existed. They're happy to see some of the vendors open new shops, and they support the temporary Global Community Market at Trailhead and efforts to create another permanent market.

They found out about the fire just hours after they arrived in Philadelphia for their wedding, and they canceled that ceremony. Gaddi's family, who traveled from Argentina, were able to come out to Boise to see Mayor Dave Bieter marry the couple at City Hall on Sept. 11.

Many of the market vendors attended the wedding. It was a way to bring everyone together for something happy amid a "sea of sadness," Gaddi said.

They're currently working through what they hope are the last stages of the insurance process. They'll start salvage efforts next.

"What would we do with it? We don't know," Gaddi said. "At this point, let's try to understand what can be saved and how much it will take. Can we make it in a way that we can accommodate a wide array of potential uses, another market?"

Katy Moeller: 208-377-6413, @KatyMoeller

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