Make Table Rock Worthy of the View
Help launch the first $25,000 to start the work toward a clearer, safer, better cared-for Table Rock summit.
30-Day Founding Goal
$25,000
Raised so far
Opening now
Supporters
Invited
Your gift helps start the work: mapping, documentation, coordination, and public materials.
The view is incredible. The top is not.
Table Rock is one of Boise’s most loved places. People hike it, bring friends there, watch the sunset, walk their dogs, and see the whole valley from the top. But the summit and approach feel unfinished. Gravel. Gates. Towers. Broken glass. Confusing access. Scattered signs. Unclear responsibility.
Table Rock gives Boise one of its best views. The summit should feel worthy of it. For a place this important, Boise can do better.
Why hasn't this changed?
Because Table Rock is more complicated than it looks. Different parts involve different owners, agencies, roads, leases, towers, access questions, safety issues, and legal limits. That is where most good ideas stall. People love the place, but love has not been enough to organize the work.
For a place with this much public consequence, the first step is a clear record: who controls what, what people experience, what risks are being ignored, and what serious care would require. That is what Phase 1A funds.
Why Table Rock matters
People have gone there for generations
Long before today’s trail traffic, people climbed Table Rock to get above the city, see the valley, and step out of daily noise.
It is part of Boise’s civic habitat
Table Rock is where foothills, trails, roads, towers, public access, ecology, history, and the city’s sense of itself come together.
It helps Boise know where it is
Table Rock is seen from across the city, and from the top people see the whole valley. It anchors Boise between river, downtown, foothills, and sky.
It should stay Table Rock
Better care should make the summit clearer, cleaner, and easier to steward while protecting the rugged character people already value.
What Phase 1A pays for
Map who controls what
Land ownership, management boundaries, roads, towers, gates, access points, and constraints.
Document existing conditions
Photos, notes, maps, and plain-English explanations of the summit, approach, infrastructure, signs, and site conditions.
Clarify public access
Where access is clear, confusing, blocked, unsafe, or unresolved.
Prepare serious conversations
Identify the biggest risks and bring agencies, landowners, experts, funders, and civic partners into a clearer conversation.
Build the public case
Clear materials that make the problem understandable and the next step credible.
Coordinate the work
Keeping the pieces organized, moving, and pointed toward a completed feasibility baseline.
What success looks like for Phase 1A
- A clear public map of ownership, access, and responsibility
- A photo-based record of summit and approach conditions
- A plain-English summary of the barriers to improvement
- A stronger case for completing the full feasibility package
- A serious starting point for agencies, partners, and donors
- Regular updates showing what has been completed
This is the work that makes better decisions possible.
Current status
Table Rock selected
Boise Rising has selected Table Rock as its first major civic landscape effort.
Nonprofit structure established
Boise Civic Trust Inc. has been formed as the nonprofit home for Boise Rising’s public-interest work, with federal 501(c)(3) recognition pending.
Feasibility scope drafted
The early scope covers ownership, access, infrastructure, safety, documentation, and long-term care.
Community voices engaged
Local designers, trail advocates, business owners, historians, and civic leaders are already part of the conversation.
Public input in progress
The survey is gathering local perspective on how people use, experience, value, avoid, and think about Table Rock.
Funding pathway opening
Public contributions, early backers, and larger donor conversations are beginning to support the first feasibility work.
Milestone path
$25,000: Founding Launch Goal
Funds the first launch-stage work: public materials, project coordination, early documentation, donor outreach, and the first steps toward the Phase 1A baseline.
$50,000: Fieldwork Expansion
Expands site documentation, ownership and access research, public-input review, mapping, and early coordination with relevant parties.
$150,000: Full Phase 1A Baseline
Funds the full first-stage baseline: site documentation, ownership and access analysis, infrastructure and stewardship questions, public materials, consultant support, and next-step recommendations.
Give what you can
Better care starts before construction. It starts with a clear record, a credible path, and the people willing to fund the first step.
$5,000
Founding Supporter
Supports coordination, stakeholder preparation, and early Phase 1A capacity.
Custom
Other Amount
Give another amount toward the $25,000 founding goal or the full $150,000 Phase 1A effort.
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Money is one way to help. It is not the only way.
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Follow the Table Rock Project
Add your name and email to receive project updates, public milestones, and ways to support Phase 1A as the work develops.
Who is behind this?
Boise Rising is the public-facing civic initiative of Boise Civic Trust Inc., an Idaho nonprofit corporation formed to help Boise strengthen the places, patterns, and public systems that shape civic life. Boise Civic Trust exists to translate the civic, health, and design consequences of the built world into practical public action.
Table Rock is the first major proof of this model. It is one of Boise’s most consequential civic landscapes, and its future should be guided by stewardship, clarity, and shared responsibility rather than neglect, fragmentation, and guesswork.
Practical Details
Boise Civic Trust Inc. is an Idaho nonprofit corporation. Federal 501(c)(3) recognition is pending.
Contributions support the restricted Table Rock Phase 1A fund: research, mapping, site documentation, public education, project leadership and coordination, consultant support, administration, fundraising, and related project costs.
Table Rock Phase 1A is an independent public-interest feasibility baseline led by Boise Rising / Boise Civic Trust. It documents site conditions, ownership, access, infrastructure questions, public input, and stewardship needs. It is not an agency project, construction plan, design approval, access-change effort, or claim of authority over the site. Any future improvements would require the proper landowners, public entities, permissions, approvals, funding, and public process.
Donors receive a contribution record. Tax deductibility is subject to IRS recognition and applicable law.
Common Questions
Are you planning physical improvements or designs?
Phase 1A does not fund construction, design approval, access changes, or physical improvements. It funds the first phase of a longer stewardship effort: documenting site conditions, clarifying ownership and access, gathering public input, reviewing infrastructure constraints, and identifying responsible paths forward.
Boise Civic Trust intends to carry this work beyond the baseline if Phase 1A confirms a viable path. The purpose is to establish the factual, civic, and institutional foundation needed for future improvement to happen responsibly. Any later design, access change, or physical work would be shaped with the appropriate agencies, partners, funding, approvals, and public process.
Will this bring more traffic, litter, or vandalism?
No increase in traffic is being proposed. This phase focuses on the heavy use Table Rock already receives and how to care for it better.
The Greenbelt showed Boise what active care and clear responsibility can do for a heavily used public place. Table Rock needs the same basic discipline: better stewardship, better maintenance, cleaner summit conditions, and less unmanaged wear. This phase focuses on the existing trail and summit. Any future change to vehicle access would require agency review, neighborhood coordination, and public input.
Is this about the cross?
No. This effort is about the whole Table Rock landscape: summit, approach, trails, roads, access, safety, ownership, infrastructure, and long-term care. The cross is part of the site’s existing public reality. Phase 1A is focused on understanding the full landscape responsibly before larger decisions are made.
Are donations tax-deductible?
Boise Civic Trust Inc. has filed for federal 501(c)(3) recognition. Determination is pending. Donors receive a contribution record. Tax deductibility cannot be guaranteed until IRS recognition is received. If recognition is approved retroactive to formation, qualifying contributions may be deductible to the extent allowed by law.
Where does the money go?
Gifts made through this page support the restricted Table Rock Phase 1A fund. Funds are used for research, feasibility preparation, public education, mapping, site documentation, access research, stakeholder coordination, project management, consultant support, communications, administration, and related costs.
This is the work that turns a beloved but fragmented place into a project serious enough for agencies, funders, and civic supporters to evaluate. This does not fund construction, design approval, access changes, or physical improvements. Any future improvements would require later study, funding, approvals, and the appropriate public process.
Who owns Table Rock?
Most of Table Rock is owned by the Idaho Department of Lands. Other parts involve smaller parcel owners, communications infrastructure, nearby public agencies, and access points that do not all line up neatly. That is why Phase 1A matters: it puts the ownership, access, infrastructure, and stewardship picture in one clear public place.
What happens if the full goal is not raised?
Funds go to the highest-priority work first: documentation, mapping, public materials, and coordination. Progress updates will show what has been completed, what remains, and what the next funding need is.
Community Voices
This effort is informed by early conversations with people who care about Table Rock, local history, public access, stewardship, and a clearer path forward.
Bill Mullane
VP, Foundation for Ada/Canyon Trail Systems
Byron Folwell
Principal, Byron Folwell Architect
Clay Carley
General Manager, Old Boise
Christopher Hawkins
Landscape Architect, The Land Group
Grant Shealy
Owner, Neckar Coffee
Hannah Mae Schaeffer
Idaho for Good / HMK Impact
Heather Eastman
Executive Director, Idaho Business for the Outdoors
Jared Talley
Idaho State Policy Advisor, The Nature Conservancy
Jeffery Holley
Architectural Historian
Lisa O'Flaherty
State Director, Idaho Conservation Corps
Melanie Vining
Executive Director, Idaho Trails Association
Sam Blaine
President, Southwest Idaho Mountain Biking Association
Listed names reflect early conversations and permission to be named. They do not imply endorsement, formal participation, agency approval, or support for any future design, access change, construction project, or public process.
Care or drift.
We can take deliberate action to care for Table Rock, or we can let it keep drifting. The choice is ours. Help start the work.