Kuna Council approves Gallica Heights rezoning, prelim plat with conditions; charter school included

The Kuna City Council voted to approve requests to rezone about 132.5 acres for the Gallica Heights subdivision and to grant preliminary plat approval for 514 single‑family lots, 103 common lots, 20 common driveways, a commercial lot and a 4‑acre charter school site.

Troy Buhuna, Kuna Development Services Department, told the council the application seeks to rezone the property from agricultural to R‑4, R‑6 and C‑1 zoning and that staff finds the proposal consistent with the city’s Future Land Use Map. Buhuna outlined the project’s eight‑month redesign after a prior denial and said the applicant removed a planned unit development request and reduced overall density to align with council direction.

Applicant Elizabeth Kekritz of Givens Pursley said the revised plan responds to neighbor and council concerns by increasing lot sizes on the perimeter, adding a public park and a centrally located four‑acre charter school lot. “We have worked hard to do everything that was requested by city council and the neighbor,” Kekritz said during her presentation.

The council and members of the public focused much of the hearing on traffic and school capacity. Brian Fletcher, chief financial officer for Gym Prep Charter Schools, said the proposed Gym Prep CUNA school would be a public charter serving K‑12 students. “When fully built out, Gym Prep CUNA will be about 50,000 square feet and will serve 574 students,” Fletcher said, and added the school plans to offer busing and child nutrition services.

Danielle Horace, representing Kuna School District, summarized the district’s letter of non‑support and urged caution because charter admission is selective while the district must enroll every resident student. “Charter schools can and do deny admission,” Horace said, and she said the district estimates Gallica Heights would generate about 257 students zoned to Crimson Point Elementary, which the district said is at about 83% capacity; Kuna Middle School about 95%; and Kuna High School roughly 110% capacity.

Several residents testified about traffic and timing of planned road improvements. Tammy Huff said planned widening and major improvements on nearby roads are years away and worried that local collectors such as Shayla Avenue would become informal bypasses. The applicant and traffic consultants said a traffic impact study reviewed by Ada County Highway District (ACHD) identified mitigation steps and staged triggers that the developer must fund as the subdivision builds out, including additional traffic counts and possible signalization at specific build thresholds.

The developer also told the council it will construct a number of required off‑site and on‑site improvements at its expense and estimated impact fees paid with building permits would total approximately $4,194,000. The applicant agreed on the record to work with neighboring property owners to provide stub‑outs for future utility connections to adjacent parcels not currently annexed.

After deliberation, council members moved and seconded approval of case numbers 22‑07‑ZC and 22‑15‑S with the staff‑recommended conditions. The motion carried by unanimous voice vote.

Votes at a glance: the council approved the rezone and preliminary plat for Gallica Heights (cases 22‑07‑ZC and 22‑15‑S) with conditions; the council recorded the motion as approved by voice vote with no recorded opposition.

Next steps: the charter school site will require future permits (a conditional use permit was mentioned) and the developer must complete the traffic mitigation, utility extensions and platting steps outlined in staff conditions before final plat approval. The council did not adopt a development agreement tying specific school construction milestones to subdivision buildout; the applicant indicated the school will pursue its own approvals and financing.