Michael Wetherell , May 31, 2011 and June 7, 2011

Mike Wetherell served seventeen years on the Boise City Council. Throughout that time Boise experienced many pivotal changes, notably, urban renewal. He started on the council at the end of years of development stagnation and served through the successful redevelopment of downtown, construction of the Towne Square Mall, and prosperity of the 1990s. His last years on the Council witnessed the controversy with Brent Coles, and the changing of the leadership in 2003.

In an interview with Brandi Burns on May 31, 2011, Judge Michael Wetherell discusses his early life and memories of Boise in the late 1970s and 1980s during the era of urban renewal. He describes how he became interested in local government and the many issues that the city council faced including redevelopment of downtown Boise, affordable housing, neighborhood reinvestment, creation of the Boise Visions Plan, and how population growth affected development in the city center and outskirts of town. He also discusses the reasoning for the placement of the Boise Towne Square Mall and the fire in the Eastman building.

In a second interview on June 7, 2011, Judge Wetherell discusses how the growth of Boise led to the decision to expand the airport and his memories of how a favorable economic climate and population growth of the 1990s affected the city. He describes the initiatives and projects that were implemented during his time on city council that he is proud of including the Foothills Levy, implementation of removal of liquor licenses from organizations that discriminate, creation of branch libraries, and barriers on development near the Boise River. He also describes his recollection of the controversy that led to the resignation of Mayor Brent Coles and the role he played as the Council President during that time.