You Asked: What are the tall poles near Eagle Rd. along I-84 for? (And when will it open?)

A flood of BoiseDev readers asked what’s going up along Interstate 84 near Eagle Rd. Construction crews put up a series of 150-foot plus poles along the freeway, making a dramatic impression on drivers.

The poles will support netting for the future TopGolf going up at Eagle View Landing. As BoiseDev reported in recent years, TopGolf fuses together a sports bar atmosphere with a driving range and interactive golf features. The concept has spread rapidly around the world since the first outlet opened outside of London in 2000.  

Guests playing Topgolf in Naperville, IL
(PRNewsFoto/Topgolf)

The Boise location will feature 60 private bays for groups to play. Project developer Tommy Ahlquist of Ball Ventures Ahlquist is looking forward to the new tenant. “We’re thrilled to be able to have this anchor our site,” he said. ”It’s a best-in-brand family entertainment that has brought a lot of activity to sites all around the country. They’ve been great to work with and we’re excited for it to open and for Idaho to experience it.”

Teeing off for fall

Ahlquist said they hope to have it open late fall of this year and said it looks like construction is on track to meet that timeline. The two-story Meridian TopGolf building will include 33,000 square feet of space while the driving field will extend a depth of 205 yards.

It will be joined on the Eagle View Landing by a number of office projects, including headquarters for local firms ESI Construction and Power Engineers, in addition to the existing building occupied by ICCU. Ahlquist said BVA would also move to the site from its current offices at Ten Mile. A Hyatt Place Hotel and multi-family apartments are also part of the build-out. A retail area will include future restaurants, though Ahlquist said BVA didn’t have any announcements to make for that component yet.

Feeling blue?

One remaining unknown: will the Idaho TopGolf feature green turf, as all other locations do — or blue? TopGolf teased that it would make the turf blue if a TikTok video got 50,000 likes. The post has more than 100,000 likes. Boise State owns a US trademark on the color blue for athletic fields and likely would have to agree to a license with TopGolf.

Site renderings filed with the City of Meridian showed green turf. Ahlquist said that decision is ”above his pay grade.” A TopGolf spokesperson couldn’t be reached. And a Boise State spokesperson didn’t have immediate knowledge.

Last September, BoiseDev filed a records request under Idaho’s Public Records Act for contact between TopGolf and Boise State – and at the time, the school had no record of communication. We’ve filed another request for further communication since September, but the records were not back by our publication deadline.