Boise to pipe underground heat into a 300-unit affordable housing project

Boise will extend its geothermal heating network to a planned affordable development of 300+ homes, with residents possibly saving up to 80% on utilities.

Boise, Idaho, plans to connect a new affordable housing development in its Lusk District to the city's geothermal heating system. Micron Technology, headquartered in Boise for 48 years, gave the city $2.5 million to help extend the network. The development will have more than 300 units, and the city puts the total project cost at about $140 million. The Housing Land Trust Program is partnering with J. Fisher Cos. on the build. Groundbreaking is expected in spring 2027, with residents moving in during 2028. Nothing has been built yet, so those dates are expectations.

The network is already the largest geothermal heating system in the U.S. It delivers 177°F water from underground to about 100 buildings, including the Idaho State Capitol. The city says it already avoids thousands of tons of emissions each year, equal to removing over 2,000 gas cars, and Boise aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050. In February, Bloomberg Philanthropies' Mayors Challenge awarded the city $1 million to upgrade the system for affordable housing and explore a new use.

The point for abundance is who gets the benefit. Heat from the ground has no fuel cost, so once the pipes exist, the running cost of warmth is low. Putting that heat into housing built for lower-income residents aims it at the households that feel utility bills most. The city says residents could save up to 80% on utility bills. That is a city estimate and an upper bound, not a measured result.

Watch two things. One is whether the extension is built on schedule and at the stated cost. The other is the cooling idea: the city says early-stage technologies might use the system's hot water for cooling, but that is unconfirmed. Elsewhere, the Building Decarbonization Coalition counts 33 geothermal network projects across the U.S. that are planned, under construction, or complete. Eversource's Framingham, Massachusetts network serves about 140 customers and won an $8.6 million federal grant to double in size.

Source: Canary Media