The would-be buyers of the Idaho Transportation Department’s flooded former Boise headquarters on State Street have filed a lawsuit with the Idaho Supreme Court, asking the state’s highest court to throw out budget language state legislators approved blocking the sale.
Attorneys representing Hawkins Companies, The Pacific Companies and FJ Management filed the suit in the Idaho Supreme Court on Thursday, weeks after the Idaho Legislature passed budget language blocking the $51.7 million sale. The filing is officially referred to as a verified petition for writ of prohibition and writ of mandate. The buyers are seeking to have the budget language blocking the sale thrown out, as well as an order requiring the Idaho Department of Administration to complete the sale of the property, plus costs and other fees the court deems just and reasonable.
“While disappointed we must turn to the courts to enforce fair business practices in the state, we believe it is necessary to challenge the Legislature’s heavy-handed and plainly unconstitutional interference into a competitively bid land sale,” Hawkins Companies CEO Brad Huffaker said in a written statement. “We are confident the outcome of this litigation will be a win for small government and free-market advocates across Idaho,” Huffaker added.
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The lawsuit was not a surprise. In a written statement to the Idaho Capital Sun on March 19, the buyers said they were exploring their legal options after calling out Idaho legislators for, in their words, interfering with the sale after the buyers submitted the highest bid in an open, competitive sale process.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little allowed the Idaho Legislature to block the sale of the State Street property by allowing budget bills that contained language revoking the state’s authority to sell the property to become law without his signature.
A spokeswoman in Little’s office declined to comment on Monday, citing a policy of not commenting on pending litigation.
In an April 10 transmittal letter to House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, Little expressed concern about budget language blocking the sale of the State Street property, which Little called unfair. Little told Moyle he would allow the bill to become law without his signature.
“… I did not sign these bills because the intent language unwinds statutory policy language about how the state handles surplus properties and it increases overhead for office space needs around the state,” Little wrote. “In addition, it unfairly cancels an agreed upon sales process, causing future reputational risk for the State of Idaho.”
The issue of whether or not the Idaho Legislature would block the sale of the Idaho Transportation Department’s campus on State Street divided legislators and was partially responsible for extending the 2024 legislative session past the targeted adjournment date.
Why did Idaho legislators block the sale of the old ITD headquarters property?
The issue relates to the 45-acre flood-damaged former Boise headquarters of the Idaho Transportation Department, which is located at 3311 State St. in Boise. After the building flooded and was contaminated with asbestos in January 2022, the Idaho Transportation Department’s board voted to declare the property surplus property and sell it, the Idaho Press previously reported.
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In November, state officials told the Idaho Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee that the state sold the State Street campus to a joint venture between Hawkins Companies, The Pacific Companies and FJ Management for $51.7 million, the Idaho Capital Sun previously reported.
However, on March 1 the Idaho Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, or JFAC, first put in motion plans to block the sale. JFAC is a powerful legislative committee that sets each element of the state budget. On March 1, JFAC passed an Idaho Transportation Department budget that provided funding to renovate the Idaho Transportation Department’s former headquarters, not sell it and relocate. The budget also included budget language revoking the state’s authority to sell the Idaho Transportation Department’s former Boise headquarters.
Legislators who supported blocking the sale told the Sun they thought spending $32.5 million to renovate the former headquarters building rather than spend $56.3 million to relocate the Idaho Transportation Department to a different state office park and furnish a new headquarters for the department.
“The best for the taxpayers was to keep the property and renovate the building,” Sen. Kevin Cook, R-Idaho Falls, told the Sun in an interview April 3. Cook said money had not yet changed hands and the state had not signed the contract, which he said means the deal was not finalized.
But, like the governor, some Idaho legislators were concerned about blocking the sale of the old headquarters building.
“If we overturn the board decision (to sell the property) with this budget, then we are saying that you can’t trust the word of the state of Idaho,” Sen. Rick Just, D-Boise, said while debating the transportation budget March 28 at the Idaho State Capitol.
It was not immediately clear what will happen next in the case, although the state will have an opportunity to respond to the lawsuit. In the filing, Hawkins Companies and the developers asked for the Idaho Supreme Court to weigh in as quickly as possible because the new budgets are set to take effect July 1.
“Immediate resolution of the constitutionality of the budget bills is critical in order to ensure ongoing funding of ITD and the Department of Administration,” the filing states.
