Conditional use · Planning application
County approves 150-megawatt solar farm with battery storage and substation
Developer DESRI's project includes about 354,000 solar panels, battery storage and a mostly underground transmission line. Commissioners approved it Dec. 30, along with a variance to exceed the 5% lot coverage limit, and conditions include a raptor nest survey before construction.
From the filing
The application's description as it appears in Ada County's record. See the official record
DESRI proposes a solar power facility with battery storage, an on-site substation, and a transmission line on about 1,376 acres of mostly state-owned and private land near Kuna-Mora Road and S Pleasant Valley Road, roughly 10 miles east of Kuna. The project includes ground-mounted solar panel arrays, battery storage structures no taller than 15 feet, and a 5,000-square-foot maintenance building. The request also includes a variance to exceed the 5% lot coverage limit in the Rural Preservation zone.
Conditional Use and Master Site Plan for a Centralized Power Facility (Solar Farm), Electric Transmission Line, Battery Energy Storage System and Substation. Also included is a Variance to maximum site coverage. The property is generally located north of Kuna Mora Rd and east of S Cole Rd and contains approximately 2,600 acres in the Rural Preservation (RP) District; Sections 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, T.2N, R.2E and Section 3, T.1N, R.2E.
Timeline
Dec. 30, 2025
Approved
Ada County Board of County Commissioners: Approved.
Dec. 30, 2025
Public hearing: Ada County Board of County Commissioners
Dec. 10, 2025
Ada County staff recommended approval
Dec. 10, 2025
Public hearing: Ada County Board of County Commissioners
Dec. 5, 2025
Document added: Memo (Board of County Commissioners, Dec 10, 2025)
Dec. 3, 2025
Document added: Staff report (Board of County Commissioners, Dec 10, 2025)
Dec. 3, 2025
Document added: Findings (Board of County Commissioners, Dec 10, 2025)
Aug. 12, 2025
Application filed
Documents
Staff reports
- Download Staff memo with additional exhibits for Dec. 10 Board hearing
Planner's memo to the Board of County Commissioners listing public comments received Dec. 4, 2025, submitted after the staff report was published, including opposition emails.
Dec. 5, 2025 · 5 pages · 345 KB · Staff Memo
- Download Staff report for Board of County Commissioners hearing
Staff report for the Dec. 10, 2025 Board hearing on DESRI's conditional use and master site plan for a 150 MW solar farm, transmission line, battery storage and substation, plus a site coverage variance.
Dec. 3, 2025 · 1098 pages · 103.3 MB · Staff Report
Decisions
- Download Board of County Commissioners findings of fact, conclusions of law and order
Board's written findings, conclusions and order on the DESRI conditional use application, following the Dec. 10, 2025 public hearing.
Dec. 3, 2025 · 27 pages · 366 KB · Findings