Just beyond downtown Boise is the community of Garden City, which over the past 15 years has seen an explosion of art galleries, performance halls, restaurants, bars and coffee shops.
This growing community was born from the vision of artist Surel Mitchell, who, back in 1988, built a home in Garden City where she could create and share her art. As a member of the city’s planning and zoning and inaugural arts commissions, Mitchell advocated for a district where other creatives could build on their dreams.
Thanks to her efforts, the Garden City Live-Work-Create District was established between 32nd and 37th streets on both sides of Chinden Boulevard. After Surel passed away in 2011, the district was renamed in her honor.
Our volunteer Cat Serio has a daughter who works in the heart of the district for VisionKit Studios, which makes videos for everything from Micron to the Boise Athletic Club to the College of Western Idaho. She convinced her boss, Matt Wordell, to tell us how he crossed the bridge from making art to making money-making art in the Treasure Valley.
