PZ - REVISED NarrativeCompass Charter School East Parcel- Project Narrative
Compass Public Charter School is an established K-12 charter school in the City of Meridian.
Compass began operating within the City of Meridian in 2005. Compass's initial facility, which
currently houses their elementary students, is located on Cherry Lane between Ten Mile and
Linder. In August of 2019, Compass moved the secondary (6-12) students to the current school
building on the Black Cat Campus. The ownership contact for the property is:
Compass Public Charter School Inc.
4667 W. Aviator Street
Meridian, ID 83642
Phone: (208) 888-5847
Contact: Kelly Trudeau
Compass Charter Schools is seeking annexation of property located near the intersection of North
Black Cat Road and Aviation Street in the City of Meridian with a proposed zoning of R-15. The
property consists of a single parcel which is located within the ADA County jurisdictional boundary
and is contiguous to the City limits. This property will have an 8-inch water line within Aviator
Street which will be extended across this parcel's northern frontage. An existing 12-inch water
main and a 36-inch sewer line are in Franklin Road along the property frontage.
In March 2020, Compass Public Charter School began constructing their next phase to house
their elementary school and combine their campuses. The proposed expansion will build out the
overall school site, as originally planned. At the time the original 68,134 sf building was approved,
167 parking spaces were provided, 30 more than what was required by the ordinance in place at
the time (1 space per 500 square feet of gross floor area). With the elementary school addition,
the square footage of the building will total 101,377 sf, requiring 253 parking spaces (1 space per
400 square feet of gross floor area), which would require the addition of 86 spaces to the campus.
The construction of the parking on this project will replace the Alternative of Compliance
requirements granted as part of the Compass Expansion project (A-2020-0008).
The original master plan which was included in the Development Agreement intended to provide
additional parking on the property the school owns on the north side of Aviator Street. There were
concerns with pedestrians crossing a public street (Aviator) to access the school site. This
concern grows as development continues in the area and as Aviator gets extended to the east.
Summary of Applications/Requests
The Compass Charter School East Parcel site plan design will provide 88 parking spaces and
future play fields on 5.148 acres. The applicant is requesting the following approvals:
• Annexation/Zoning
• Development Agreement Modification to reflect relocating the additional parking from the
north parcel to this east parcel.
• Request for a Council waiver to reduce the landscape buffer along east property line
A pre -application meeting was held with the City of Meridian Planning and Development staff on
February 6, 2020. A neighborhood meeting was held on March 10, 2020 at Compass Public
Charter School, 4667 W. Aviator Street, Meridian, ID 83642. There was no opposition from the
neighbors who attended.
Annexation
Compass Charter School is requesting the following parcel identified below be annexed into the
City of Meridian.
PROPERTY FOR ANNEXATION APPLICATION
Parcel
Address
I Current Zone
Proposed Zone
S1210336403
4540 W. Franklin Road
I RUT
R-15
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Development Agreement Modification
As there has been a change in the Master Concept Plan to relocate the parking, it is necessary
to revise the Development Agreement approved at City Council on August 16, 2018, recorded at
the Ada County Recorder's office on August 22, 2018 as Instrument No. 2018-079763. By
developing this site immediately adjacent to their existing school, they can create a more cohesive
campus. Accompanying this submittal is a revised Concept Plan that includes the existing school
and proposed improvements.
Request for a Council waiver
The City of Meridian requires a 25-foot landscape buffer adjacent to residential uses according to
their Unified Development Code. Given the narrowness of the parcel, the proposed parking lot
geometry overlaps this landscape buffer. Compass Charter Schools is proposing to provide a 6-
foot tall solid fence and landscaping along the east property which is an equal to or better than
option. The ability to utilize a fencing selection rather than vegetation has been discussed with
the property owner and they support this requested waiver. We are requesting a City Council
waiver for a reduction landscape buffer along the proposed parking lot limits.
Summary
With continued growth of our campus, we look forward to working with the City of Meridian on this
next step. We are respectfully asking for approval of this application for Annexation, and
Development Agreement Modification and Council Waiver for Landscape Buffer Requirements.