Real estate agent, ex-Bronco basketball player buys west Eagle parkland at auction
A partner in a Boise-based real estate brokerage was the winning bidder in an auction for 34.5 acres of parkland owned by the city of Eagle.
The city of Eagle confirmed through an email that Matt Bauscher is the buyer. He bought the land on Tuesday, June 8, for $9.1 million. Bids started at $5 million.
Bauscher did not respond to a request for comment about his plans. The land is zoned to allow for two homes per acre, Mayor Jason Pierce said at a recent council meeting. That means it could be developed as a subdivision.
The city held the auction despite some objections from Eagle residents, who wanted the land to become a city park.
Former Eagle Mayor Stan Ridgeway and the City Council purchased the land on the southwest corner of Floating Feather and Meridian roads. They planned to build a large park. Pierce defeated Ridgeway in the 2019 city election and said there were problems with the funds used to buy the land and said the city needed to replenish its budget.
Pierce said the city will look for a different location in west Eagle to put a public park, though he did not say where it may go.
Bauscher, a Vallivue High School graduate, played basketball at Boise State University from 2005 to 2008, then played professionally in Europe for six years before becoming a founding partner in 2014 of Amherst Madison, a Boise real estate agency.
