A local developer says it will build a stadium at Expo Idaho, with pro soccer to follow

Talk about fulfilling long-term goals: On Wednesday, Ada County commissioners brought Boise-area soccer fans one step closer to the dream of a new stadium.

Commissioners awarded a 30-year lease to Boise Pro Soccer to transform the former Les Bois horse-racing track at Expo Idaho into a soccer-focused, mixed-use stadium that aims to host professional men’s and women’s soccer teams.

Started last year specifically for this project, the company was founded by four men, including Boise-area residents Brad Stith, a former NBA executive; David Wali, a real estate developer; and Bill Taylor, the vice chair for U.S. Youth Soccer and former vice president of the U.S. Soccer Federation. Its fourth founder, Steve Patterson, who is not from the area, has overseen the development of stadiums and arenas across the country, according to a Wednesday Boise Pro Soccer news release.

Boise Pro Soccer and the county have 90 days to negotiate the terms of the lease and a development agreement. In a statement emailed to the Idaho Statesman and posted on the county’s Facebook page, commissioners emphasized that the project “isn’t a done deal” until after that period.

“We now can enter into a negotiation process to ensure that the needs of the community are met,” the statement reads.

One of its founders expressed agreement with commissioners’ focus on ensuring that county residents reap the benefits of the stadium.

“There’s a lot of kids that I’m involved with in the community that are going to benefit from having professional sports here in our community that lead the pathway for kids to have more opportunities,” Taylor told commissioners.

Boise Pro Soccer bid $150,000 for the lease and is responsible for financing the cost of developing the site, and the county says no taxpayer funds will be spent on the project. Wali said it was a worthwhile investment.

“We see great value out here, long-term,” he told commissioners. “You can’t beat the view looking up east toward the mountains. This is truly a special place, and with some time, energy and money, we can turn it into a great asset long-term for us, and the county as well.”

Which soccer teams will come to Boise?

On Wednesday, Boise Pro Soccer’s founders told commissioners they aimed to host a men’s team in United Soccer League One and a women’s team in the USL Super League.

USL is growing quickly, with a USL Championship that fits in the second division of the U.S. Soccer pyramid. USL League One aims to establish itself as a third division, the Idaho Statesman previously reported.

The new women’s USL Super League, meanwhile, was granted first-division status this year. Few observers expect the USL Super League to compete directly with the National Women’s Soccer League.

The USL Super League fields teams in Spokane and Lexington, Kentucky, and has plans to add teams in Madison, Wisconsin; Chattanooga, Tennessee; and Northwest Arkansas, the Statesman reported.

Failed past efforts to build stadium in Boise

This project follows decades of failed efforts to build a new stadium in Boise. Sites for a combined baseball and soccer stadium fell through in Downtown Boise and the West End, and in 2019, Boise voters passed a law requiring their approval for any stadium costing more than $5 million in public or private money, the Statesman previously reported.

But because the Expo Idaho site sits on unincorporated Ada County land, it is under county commissioners’ jurisdiction, not the city of Boise’s, and is not subject to the Boise ordinance.

Wali expressed excitement about the chance to rehabilitate the racetrack’s old facilities, rather than tearing them down and starting from scratch.

“This is a natural progression of things we like to see done,” he said.

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