Orchard St. Realignment Returns to Five-Year Plan
Ada County Highway District has placed the Orchard St. realignment back on its five-year plan, with design slated for 2027-2028.
Updated on Nov. 13, 2026 in Home Renovation
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Ada County Highway District placed the Orchard St. realignment back on its five-year plan after the project had been removed from the 2026-2030 plan. The project was previously dropped from the City of Boise's road priority list in 2023.
Why it matters
The realignment would extend the road north past Gowen Rd. instead of terminating there, and it would likely link back up with the existing Orchard St. near the New York Canal. ACHD determined the project needs to be completed before or around the same time as the Lake Hazel extension, which received federal design funding.
The City of Boise ranked the project sixth on its priority list submitted to ACHD, and a previous concept study called for a four-lane road with a raised median and roundabouts. Construction funding has not been secured, and ACHD's prior federal grant application for the project was denied.
The players
Ada County Highway District
Ada County Highway District is the regional agency responsible for planning, building and maintaining roads across Ada County, including Boise.
The details
The road would pass through or near sewer lagoons and a decommissioned landfill, complicating the alignment. ACHD hopes that completing design and right-of-way work will make the project more competitive for future grant funding.
Timeline
2023: City of Boise removed the project from its road priority list.
2025-2029 five-year plan: Project listed as a future project with no specified year.
2026-2030 five-year plan: Project removed from the plan.
2027-2028: Design for the project is slated to occur.
Roadmap
The project's status shifts repeatedly across ACHD's five-year capital plans, mirroring how the agency sequences large corridor projects against federal grant timing. Its reappearance follows the Lake Hazel extension, which already secured federal design money in the Boise area.
Residents near Orchard St. and the New York Canal should expect the realignment to change local traffic patterns once construction begins, though no construction date has been set. Homeowners and renters in the corridor should watch the 2027-2028 design phase for public notices about right-of-way acquisition.
The takeaway
Long-range road projects often move between capital plans as funding and sequencing change, so the 2027-2028 design phase will be the clearest signal of whether the Orchard St. realignment advances.
What happens next
Design for the Orchard St. realignment is slated for 2027-2028, according to ACHD's current five-year plan.
Further reading
For related local planning coverage, explore Home Renovation in Boise.
Source note: This article includes information reported by BoiseDev.
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