Ralph McAdams , September 22, 2009 and October 9, 2009
File
Scope and Contents
From the Collection:
This collection contains recorded interviews with Boise citizens. Notable topics include Boise Bench history, Greenbelt history, Foothills Levy history, Boise Fire Department history, Boise Police Department history, and personal and political histories of former mayors and councilmembers.
Dates
- September 22, 2009 and October 9, 2009
Biographical / Historical
Ralph McAdams was born in Boise, Idaho and attended school in the area. He retired from Mountain States Telephone/Mountain Bell, and held several different positions with that company, including District Manager. McAdams served on the Boise City Council from 1974 to 1985.
Extent
2.8 Gigabytes
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Abstract
Ralph McAdams served on Boise City Council from 1974 to 1985 during the heyday of urban renewal in Boise. The local government and business leaders were intent on bringing a mall to the downtown and did not consider any other real alternative to redevelopment. McAdams served up to the point when the mall was approved to move to the suburbs, effectively ending the most controversial urban renewal project that Boise had.
In two interviews with Brandi Burns on September 22 and October 9, 2009, Ralph McAdams describes growing up in Boise, working for the U.S. Forest Service and Mountain States Telephone Company, and what led him to run for city council. His interest in city government was prompted by his relationships with other council members and the issues developing due to Boise’s population growth. He discusses urban renewal and redevelopment in the downtown, cleaning up the Boise River, and the Boise Comprehensive Plan.
September 22, 2009 Interview
Minutes Summary
Track One
00:00 Introduction
00:29 McAdams spoke of his early life living in Boise, Idaho. He worked for for the U.S. Forest Service and Mountain States Telephone Company. 01:40 McAdams described the worked that he did with the U.S. Forest Service. He explained that during World War Two there were no adult men left to work as fire fighters, and so younger boys took up the task.
05:21 McAdams described the work that he did for Mountain Bell Telephone Company. He was a line man, a cable splicer, a line assigner and worked as a service consultant. He retired early in order to avoid moving to Denver.
08:25 McAdams described what Boise was like when he was growing up. He described it as an “interesting beautiful place”. The city started growing after World War Two.
09:25 McAdams discussed the value of managing a city’s growth and the importance of making good decisions.
10:28 McAdams explained that the management experience he received while working for Mountain Bell Telephone helped him as a city council member. He spoke of the need for cooperation and decisiveness.
12:50 McAdams talked about being a PTA parent and singing in a chorus. He talked about keeping up with commitments and being accountable as well as learning from experience and one’s mistakes.
15:30 McAdams explained that his office had been near City Hall, and through this proximity he created relationships with the other city council members. This, coupled with his interest in the direction of Boise’ growth, prompted him to become involved in city government.
17:45 McAdams discussed the help he received in campaigning and the difficulty of becoming involved in city government.
19:19 McAdams explained how much work goes into serving on the city council. He discussed the amount of information he would have to understand to be a city council member. He spoke of spending the entire weekend preparing for council meetings.
21:34 McAdams explained the he continued to work with Mountain Bell Telephone Co. while serving on the city council. He described how busy he was and the importance of staying involved.
24:26 McAdams described the dynamics of the city council during the time that he served. He mentioned serving with Richard Eardley and Marge Ewing.
27:51 McAdams explained that he felt he had served long enough when he decided not to run for reelection. He described how tiring the work was and how tedious it becomes to constantly engage in competing opinions.
30:39 McAdams discussed some of the main issues he worked on. Specifically he mentioned land use, continuous development and developing and implementing regulations to protect public interests. He mentioned the importance of engaging the public.
33:22 McAdams described how the city was bankrupt when he first joined the city council. He spoke of the need for a responsible, accountable, local government. He explained that it took a lot of incremental changes to create financial stability in the city.
36:52 McAdams discussed planning and managing the growth of Boise. He mentioned the problem of connecting new developments to city services, such as the sewer system.
38:43 McAdams spoke of the creation of subdivisions around the city. He described the demand for developed housing and the need to build developments contiguously to the city.
42:41 McAdams discussed how the city was able to annex developments, so long as they were contiguous with the city. He mentioned how as a child he had lived close to the capital building, yet the area had not become part of the city yet.
44:45 McAdams explained that an important project was the redevelopment of Boise’ downtown. He spoke of a traveling around the country as a part of redevelopment. He mentioned the competing opinions when it came to downtown.
46:10 McAdams discussed the creation of the Boise Arts Commission and community development. He mentioned working with developers to create parks for the city and working to provide an urban atmosphere for the city.
50:37 McAdams described one of his goals for the council as being able to maintain the high quality of Boise’ public facilities.
Track Two
00:00 McAdams discussed his interest in cars. lol.
02:22 McAdams spoke of the effort to keep the Boise River clean. He discussed the many sources of pollution threatening the river and the necessity of remaining vigilant about its preservation. He discussed the larger issue of staying aware of all of the issues surrounding a particular project.
08:37 McAdams discussed the need to have a good, hardworking staff at city hall. He explained that good staff members won’t work for poorly run cities, and so to attract the brightest workers the council had to run the city in an organized way.
09:47 McAdams explained that there was an ongoing tendency for the city to to exposed to mistakes that it should have been able to avoid. He worked with Richard Eardley to help remedy this problem.
13:08 McAdams explained the temptation of each council member to become stuck in their own vision and need to be chided from time to time.
(Phone rings. Track is stopped.)
Track Three
00:00 McAdams spoke of former mayor Richard Eardley.
01:15 McAdams spoke of the defining moments of his time on the council. discussed the Downtown Redevelopment Agency. He mentioned the connections he made through the council. He spoke also of the persistent dedication of his fellow council members.
04:20 McAdams described how the council struggled with developers to regain control of the development of the city. 07:10 McAdams discussed the defining moments for Boise. He mentioned the development plan and the progress of the city.
09:01 McAdams explained that many city employees, outside of the council, were not adequately respected.
12:03 McAdams discussed how his working background prepared him for the council. He spoke of not being intimidated by hard work and also a confidence in his abilities and convictions.
14:34 McAdams describes how he sees Boise now. He praised the mayor and said that he did not see any major problems with how the city is being run.
17:48 McAdams described himself as a native son of Idaho. He described how his grandparents came to Idaho.
19:35 McAdams said that he had not spoken with the mayor lately, but that he was still active within the community. He mentioned that the mayor could do more to promote his agenda.
22:03 McAdams described himself as having had a long, good life.
22:53 McAdams discussed the foothills. He spoke of the difficulty of developing the foothills and putting regulations in place to have them preserved.
23:43 McAdams discussed the need for having a well managed city. He stressed the importance of having an informed and active press.
24:40 McAdams explained that maintaining the river was the biggest problem that faced Boise. He said that the river was important to carry off the run off effluent of the sewage treatment plant. He also mentioned his concern for the preservation of the parks lining the river.
26:22 McAdams spoke of his interest in military reserves. He described working on hot water development and wanting to drill on military reserve property. He discussed working with the Secretary of the Interior.
32:47 McAdams discussed the Boise Comprehensive Plan. He described it as a comprehensive plan for the development and decoration of Boise. 34:15 McAdams praised Boise as a wonderful place to live noting its high quality of life, abundance of jobs, the good weather, the diversity of activities, the mountain view and the clean drinking water.
Minutes Summary
Track One
00:00 Introduction
00:29 McAdams spoke of his early life living in Boise, Idaho. He worked for for the U.S. Forest Service and Mountain States Telephone Company. 01:40 McAdams described the worked that he did with the U.S. Forest Service. He explained that during World War Two there were no adult men left to work as fire fighters, and so younger boys took up the task.
05:21 McAdams described the work that he did for Mountain Bell Telephone Company. He was a line man, a cable splicer, a line assigner and worked as a service consultant. He retired early in order to avoid moving to Denver.
08:25 McAdams described what Boise was like when he was growing up. He described it as an “interesting beautiful place”. The city started growing after World War Two.
09:25 McAdams discussed the value of managing a city’s growth and the importance of making good decisions.
10:28 McAdams explained that the management experience he received while working for Mountain Bell Telephone helped him as a city council member. He spoke of the need for cooperation and decisiveness.
12:50 McAdams talked about being a PTA parent and singing in a chorus. He talked about keeping up with commitments and being accountable as well as learning from experience and one’s mistakes.
15:30 McAdams explained that his office had been near City Hall, and through this proximity he created relationships with the other city council members. This, coupled with his interest in the direction of Boise’ growth, prompted him to become involved in city government.
17:45 McAdams discussed the help he received in campaigning and the difficulty of becoming involved in city government.
19:19 McAdams explained how much work goes into serving on the city council. He discussed the amount of information he would have to understand to be a city council member. He spoke of spending the entire weekend preparing for council meetings.
21:34 McAdams explained the he continued to work with Mountain Bell Telephone Co. while serving on the city council. He described how busy he was and the importance of staying involved.
24:26 McAdams described the dynamics of the city council during the time that he served. He mentioned serving with Richard Eardley and Marge Ewing.
27:51 McAdams explained that he felt he had served long enough when he decided not to run for reelection. He described how tiring the work was and how tedious it becomes to constantly engage in competing opinions.
30:39 McAdams discussed some of the main issues he worked on. Specifically he mentioned land use, continuous development and developing and implementing regulations to protect public interests. He mentioned the importance of engaging the public.
33:22 McAdams described how the city was bankrupt when he first joined the city council. He spoke of the need for a responsible, accountable, local government. He explained that it took a lot of incremental changes to create financial stability in the city.
36:52 McAdams discussed planning and managing the growth of Boise. He mentioned the problem of connecting new developments to city services, such as the sewer system.
38:43 McAdams spoke of the creation of subdivisions around the city. He described the demand for developed housing and the need to build developments contiguously to the city.
42:41 McAdams discussed how the city was able to annex developments, so long as they were contiguous with the city. He mentioned how as a child he had lived close to the capital building, yet the area had not become part of the city yet.
44:45 McAdams explained that an important project was the redevelopment of Boise’ downtown. He spoke of a traveling around the country as a part of redevelopment. He mentioned the competing opinions when it came to downtown.
46:10 McAdams discussed the creation of the Boise Arts Commission and community development. He mentioned working with developers to create parks for the city and working to provide an urban atmosphere for the city.
50:37 McAdams described one of his goals for the council as being able to maintain the high quality of Boise’ public facilities.
Track Two
00:00 McAdams discussed his interest in cars. lol.
02:22 McAdams spoke of the effort to keep the Boise River clean. He discussed the many sources of pollution threatening the river and the necessity of remaining vigilant about its preservation. He discussed the larger issue of staying aware of all of the issues surrounding a particular project.
08:37 McAdams discussed the need to have a good, hardworking staff at city hall. He explained that good staff members won’t work for poorly run cities, and so to attract the brightest workers the council had to run the city in an organized way.
09:47 McAdams explained that there was an ongoing tendency for the city to to exposed to mistakes that it should have been able to avoid. He worked with Richard Eardley to help remedy this problem.
13:08 McAdams explained the temptation of each council member to become stuck in their own vision and need to be chided from time to time.
(Phone rings. Track is stopped.)
Track Three
00:00 McAdams spoke of former mayor Richard Eardley.
01:15 McAdams spoke of the defining moments of his time on the council. discussed the Downtown Redevelopment Agency. He mentioned the connections he made through the council. He spoke also of the persistent dedication of his fellow council members.
04:20 McAdams described how the council struggled with developers to regain control of the development of the city. 07:10 McAdams discussed the defining moments for Boise. He mentioned the development plan and the progress of the city.
09:01 McAdams explained that many city employees, outside of the council, were not adequately respected.
12:03 McAdams discussed how his working background prepared him for the council. He spoke of not being intimidated by hard work and also a confidence in his abilities and convictions.
14:34 McAdams describes how he sees Boise now. He praised the mayor and said that he did not see any major problems with how the city is being run.
17:48 McAdams described himself as a native son of Idaho. He described how his grandparents came to Idaho.
19:35 McAdams said that he had not spoken with the mayor lately, but that he was still active within the community. He mentioned that the mayor could do more to promote his agenda.
22:03 McAdams described himself as having had a long, good life.
22:53 McAdams discussed the foothills. He spoke of the difficulty of developing the foothills and putting regulations in place to have them preserved.
23:43 McAdams discussed the need for having a well managed city. He stressed the importance of having an informed and active press.
24:40 McAdams explained that maintaining the river was the biggest problem that faced Boise. He said that the river was important to carry off the run off effluent of the sewage treatment plant. He also mentioned his concern for the preservation of the parks lining the river.
26:22 McAdams spoke of his interest in military reserves. He described working on hot water development and wanting to drill on military reserve property. He discussed working with the Secretary of the Interior.
32:47 McAdams discussed the Boise Comprehensive Plan. He described it as a comprehensive plan for the development and decoration of Boise. 34:15 McAdams praised Boise as a wonderful place to live noting its high quality of life, abundance of jobs, the good weather, the diversity of activities, the mountain view and the clean drinking water.
October 9, 2009
Minutes Summary
Track One
00:00 Introduction
00:25 McAdams discussed the General Redevelopment Plan. It was an outline of how to revitalize the downtown area of Boise. McAdams spoke of the need to compete with the growing suburbs to keep the city center of Boise downtown.
01:3 McAdams explained what factors spurred the need for redevelopment. Specifically he mentioned urban sprawl and the establishment of retail centers on the outer edges of town. This put a strain on city services such as water and fire services.
02:51 McAdams spoke of the loss of small shops in the downtown area. He explained that the loss of small shops leads to the loss of restaurants and larger retailers.
06:21 McAdams discussed some of the factors causing business to relocate outside of downtown. He mentioned lower rents and the tendency of business to cluster together as a means of competing for business.
07:33 McAdams described his vision of redevelopment. Having lived in Boise all of his life, McAdams spoke of his connections within the business community. This led to his understanding of what challenges business face.
10:50 McAdams spoke of the hardships the city was facing in terms of redeveloping. He mentioned the expense of revitalizing downtown and also the pushback they received from the citizens. He explained that many participants in city government are well intentioned amateurs.
15:15 McAdams discussed the decline of Boise before redevelopment began. He described the neighborhood he grew up in. It was here that he began to witness the process of people moving out of the city center.
16:51 McAdams discussed his time working with Mountain Bell Telephone. This gave him an inside perspective to the challenges of urban sprawl and development. He mentioned meeting with other district managers weekly to exchange ideas about how they could better serve the public.
22:30 McAdams described his work with Mountain Bell Telephone as being a natural transition into city government. He already had quite a bit of city planning experience due to his position there.
22:36 McAdams praised former mayor Dick Eardley. He explained that Eardley came to city government with the right kind of experience.
24:38 McAdams spoke of the public response to redevelopment. He explained that members of the business community did quite a bit to help. He spoke of the experts that were brought in to help with planning.
26:32 McAdams discussed the ways in which the city council members worked to educate themselves about city planning and the best possible method of renewing Boise’ downtown and the city as a whole.
27:31 McAdams explained that he preferred to shop at locally owned stores, criticizing how far away the mall was. He speculated about what Boise would be like without the mall.
29:47 McAdams discussed the issues other than downtown renewal which the council was facing. Among these was the need for more transportation. 31:01 McAdams described what motivated him. He spoke of his family coming to Boise and his desire to make things as good as possible.
33:04 McAdams reminisced about a winter when ice was crushing one of Mountain Bell’s antennas and the struggle they went through to keep things up and running. The work ethic he developed there made him better suited for government.
38:27 McAdams discussed the natural travel route through the Pacific Northwest. He spoke of local government as working to facilitate transportation.
41:26 McAdams spoke of the parts of the city which had become obsolete and needed to torn down. He said that transportation had changed and the city needed to change with it. He explained that as the state seat of government, Boise brought many more people into the area and had needed to be updated to accommodate them.
45:36 McAdams discussed the changes that went on throughout southern Idaho. He spoke of the good farm land, the railroad and the opportunities that could be found there.
46:47 McAdams explained that there was a lack of urban facilities to the east of Boise. He spoke also of fire risk in the East. This discouraged building in the east.
50:30 McAdams discussed the difficulty of being in local government and trying to please the public. He explains the challenging nature of it as being what attracted him to city government. He praised the council members that he worked with.
Track Two
00:32 McAdams discussed the redevelopment process. He spoke of acquiring sites, planning for their use and executing that plan. He explained that he had his own concepts of redevelopment that differed from that of the consultants.
02:11 McAdams spoke about his success in his business and the confidence this gave him when he came to redevelopment planning. He explained how he understood things in different terms than the consultants did.
08:06 McAdams expressed that he had to work hard to be successful. He mentioned his family moving from Oklahoma with only two wagons.
09:00 McAdams described the consultants that were brought in to help with redevelopment planning. He mentioned that several consultants were not prepared for the task.
11:35 McAdams explained that he did not plan to reminisce about working on redevelopment and had forgotten much of what was taking place at that time.
18:23 McAdams discussed the competing ideas and motivations which slowed down the progress of the city.
19:00 McAdams discussed downtown Boise. He mentioned that it had turned out “surprisingly well”. He reminisced about the people he knew from downtown.
26:05 McAdams described some of the response from the public towards redevelopment. Many people were worried about the loss of historic buildings downtown.
33:34 McAdams spoke fondly of former council member Marge Ewing. He spoke also of the other council members he had served with.
39:35 McAdams spoke of how other communities were also dealing with urban renewal.
42:02 McAdams expressed that he worked diligently to stay involved in issues of urban renewal and redevelopment. He explained that his office was very close to the office of the Boise Renewal Association.
53:52 McAdams described the Boise Renewal Agency as being complex and requiring a lot of research and preparation.
end of track
Minutes Summary
Track One
00:00 Introduction
00:25 McAdams discussed the General Redevelopment Plan. It was an outline of how to revitalize the downtown area of Boise. McAdams spoke of the need to compete with the growing suburbs to keep the city center of Boise downtown.
01:3 McAdams explained what factors spurred the need for redevelopment. Specifically he mentioned urban sprawl and the establishment of retail centers on the outer edges of town. This put a strain on city services such as water and fire services.
02:51 McAdams spoke of the loss of small shops in the downtown area. He explained that the loss of small shops leads to the loss of restaurants and larger retailers.
06:21 McAdams discussed some of the factors causing business to relocate outside of downtown. He mentioned lower rents and the tendency of business to cluster together as a means of competing for business.
07:33 McAdams described his vision of redevelopment. Having lived in Boise all of his life, McAdams spoke of his connections within the business community. This led to his understanding of what challenges business face.
10:50 McAdams spoke of the hardships the city was facing in terms of redeveloping. He mentioned the expense of revitalizing downtown and also the pushback they received from the citizens. He explained that many participants in city government are well intentioned amateurs.
15:15 McAdams discussed the decline of Boise before redevelopment began. He described the neighborhood he grew up in. It was here that he began to witness the process of people moving out of the city center.
16:51 McAdams discussed his time working with Mountain Bell Telephone. This gave him an inside perspective to the challenges of urban sprawl and development. He mentioned meeting with other district managers weekly to exchange ideas about how they could better serve the public.
22:30 McAdams described his work with Mountain Bell Telephone as being a natural transition into city government. He already had quite a bit of city planning experience due to his position there.
22:36 McAdams praised former mayor Dick Eardley. He explained that Eardley came to city government with the right kind of experience.
24:38 McAdams spoke of the public response to redevelopment. He explained that members of the business community did quite a bit to help. He spoke of the experts that were brought in to help with planning.
26:32 McAdams discussed the ways in which the city council members worked to educate themselves about city planning and the best possible method of renewing Boise’ downtown and the city as a whole.
27:31 McAdams explained that he preferred to shop at locally owned stores, criticizing how far away the mall was. He speculated about what Boise would be like without the mall.
29:47 McAdams discussed the issues other than downtown renewal which the council was facing. Among these was the need for more transportation. 31:01 McAdams described what motivated him. He spoke of his family coming to Boise and his desire to make things as good as possible.
33:04 McAdams reminisced about a winter when ice was crushing one of Mountain Bell’s antennas and the struggle they went through to keep things up and running. The work ethic he developed there made him better suited for government.
38:27 McAdams discussed the natural travel route through the Pacific Northwest. He spoke of local government as working to facilitate transportation.
41:26 McAdams spoke of the parts of the city which had become obsolete and needed to torn down. He said that transportation had changed and the city needed to change with it. He explained that as the state seat of government, Boise brought many more people into the area and had needed to be updated to accommodate them.
45:36 McAdams discussed the changes that went on throughout southern Idaho. He spoke of the good farm land, the railroad and the opportunities that could be found there.
46:47 McAdams explained that there was a lack of urban facilities to the east of Boise. He spoke also of fire risk in the East. This discouraged building in the east.
50:30 McAdams discussed the difficulty of being in local government and trying to please the public. He explains the challenging nature of it as being what attracted him to city government. He praised the council members that he worked with.
Track Two
00:32 McAdams discussed the redevelopment process. He spoke of acquiring sites, planning for their use and executing that plan. He explained that he had his own concepts of redevelopment that differed from that of the consultants.
02:11 McAdams spoke about his success in his business and the confidence this gave him when he came to redevelopment planning. He explained how he understood things in different terms than the consultants did.
08:06 McAdams expressed that he had to work hard to be successful. He mentioned his family moving from Oklahoma with only two wagons.
09:00 McAdams described the consultants that were brought in to help with redevelopment planning. He mentioned that several consultants were not prepared for the task.
11:35 McAdams explained that he did not plan to reminisce about working on redevelopment and had forgotten much of what was taking place at that time.
18:23 McAdams discussed the competing ideas and motivations which slowed down the progress of the city.
19:00 McAdams discussed downtown Boise. He mentioned that it had turned out “surprisingly well”. He reminisced about the people he knew from downtown.
26:05 McAdams described some of the response from the public towards redevelopment. Many people were worried about the loss of historic buildings downtown.
33:34 McAdams spoke fondly of former council member Marge Ewing. He spoke also of the other council members he had served with.
39:35 McAdams spoke of how other communities were also dealing with urban renewal.
42:02 McAdams expressed that he worked diligently to stay involved in issues of urban renewal and redevelopment. He explained that his office was very close to the office of the Boise Renewal Association.
53:52 McAdams described the Boise Renewal Agency as being complex and requiring a lot of research and preparation.
end of track
Names and Places Index
U.S. Forest Service; Mountain States Telephone Company; Mountain Bell Telephone Company; Denver; World War II; PTA; City Hall; Richard Eardley; Marge Ewing; Subdivision development; Redevelopment; Urban Renewal; Boise Arts Commission; Parks; Boise River; Foothills; Military Reserve; Boise Comprehensive Plan; General Redevelopment Plan; Oklahoma; Boise Redevelopment Agency.
Source
- McAdams, Ralph J. (March 25, 1929-April 18, 2020) (Narrator, Person)
Repository Details
Part of the Collections Repository