Why is it named for a bird? See the new Boise hotel that just replaced the Safari Inn

What once was the old Safari Inn in downtown Boise has now become a boutique hotel whose details display Idaho’s cultural roots.

The Sparrow is located on West Grove Street, across the street from the Hotel Renegade.

Here are seven things to know about The Sparrow:

1. It is one of 4 ‘bird hotels.’

The Sparrow opened July 1, becoming the fourth hotel of Nest Partners, a company based in Bozeman, Montana. Nest joined with Boise’s Oppenheimer Development Corp. to build it.

The other hotels are The Lark in Bozeman, Montana; The Wren in Missoula, Montana; and The Finch in Walla Walla, Washington. The names of all four hotels come from a prominent bird of the city.

2. Boise’s Oppenheimer family is involved.

Nest Partners is managed by Columbia Hospitality, based in Seattle, whose owner is John Oppenheimer. Doug and Skip Oppenheimer, co-owners of Oppenheimer Development, are his brothers and are shareholders of The Sparrow, according to Heather Arns, area general manager at Columbia Hospitality.

This is the first time that a Nest property has shared ownership, Arns said.

John Oppenheimer told the Statesman that the location for The Sparrow was chosen not only because he and his brothers grew up in Boise, but also because they see value in college towns that are growing.

Properties can add personal character to the community, Oppenheimer said. “If you can make them special and unique, which this is a great example of, it makes it that much more of a community treasure,” he said.

3. The Safari Inn was not demolished.

Nest Partners says it seeks to beautify downtown locations by renovating older properties, rather than building from scratch. The company saw an opportunity to reinvent the rundown structure of the old Safari Inn.

The building was originally built in the 1960s. The only exterior demolition for The Sparrow involved changing the roofline of the lobby building, Arns said.

4. These local businesses are partners.

Two of Nest Partners’ goals are to be stewards of the community and to benefit local partners, Arns said. The Boise-based coffee shop Form & Function serves hand-roasted coffee in The Sparrow’s lobby. An Americano costs $3.50 and a latte $5.

The Sparrow leases a trailer to the Crisp, a food truck with locally-sourced menu items. The truck is parked next to the Sparrow’s courtyard.

The hotel will also promote a brewery of the month with exclusive perks to encourage the city’s growing craft-beer scene, Arns said.

Other partnerships include the Idaho Mountain Touring Shop and The Chocolat Bar.

“We don’t want to keep our guests here all day — we want to get them out to explore Boise,” Arns said.

5. It’s one of several hotels opening within 4 blocks.

The Sparrow is one of three newly opened or soon-to-open hotels in a four-block section of downtown’s west side.

The eight-story boutique Hotel Renegade opened in May across the street, the Statesman previously reported. Marriott is building a 15-story building that will house two Marriott-brand hotels, Element and AC, on the other side of Grove Street.

Arns said the competition is a plus, not a problem.

“I can’t help but not be worried, because we are such a different product that people who want this kind of style and love architecture, but also want to feel laid back, I think they will flock to us in a way,” Arns said, “And the box chains, Marriott and stuff, their guests will just be looking down at our courtyard and say ’I want to go over there.’”

A queen or king bedroom on an upcoming Saturday in August is $167 at The Sparrow, $259 at the Renegade and $249 at the Inn at the 500 Capitol.

The community is encouraged to sit outside by The Sparrow’s fire pit in front of the hotel. Visitors can play corn hole and pétanque, a French version of bocce.

Oppenheimer said he doesn’t see the surrounding hotels as competition. Instead, he said they will make Boise more attractive for big groups, offering something different for everyone. The hotel community is talking about how they’re going to work together, Oppenheimer said.

6. Art is a key component.

Infographics are displayed in the lobby of The Sparrow as well as in every room. “Each of them are an ode to the area in which we are at,” Arns said. They display Boise’s details including the botanical gardens, trees, potatoes, and the music scene.

A lot of the artists chosen by The Sparrow have worked with Nest hotels before, but newer artists from the area will also be used, Arns said.

The hotel also has a partnership with the Boise Art Museum, which will showcase a new installation every six months in The Sparrow’s lobby. The museum has full authority to choose the artwork to display over five lobby walls.

7. The rooms don’t have telephones.

The 67 guest rooms at The Sparrow have no phones of their own. The hotel and its customers communicate by text messaging instead.

Arns said they plan on getting wireless leather charging pads on each nightstand.

The Sparrow is focused on sustainability and minimalism, which is why most rooms don’t have a microwave or a minifridge, Arns said. The bathroom kits provided by the hotel are packaged with recyclable materials such as bamboo.

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