Gem Prep Announces New School Location In I.F. After Abandoning Ammon Location

IDAHO FALLS — A year after selling its initial proposed location in Ammon, Gem Prep Charter School will now be built in Idaho Falls.

According to a news release, the charter school will be located on six acres and have its campus spanning 45,000 square feet at the corner of North 5th East. The school is slated for completion in 2026.

The release states the Idaho Falls location will be the second Gem Prep charter school in eastern Idaho, with plans to open another in Rexburg in 2027.

The original location for this charter school was planned for 3445 Greenwillow Lane, a corner lot at the entrance of the Bridgewater subdivision in Ammon.

The two-story building would’ve had the same footprint of 45,000 square feet but on 4.5 acres.

What sparked the move began in February 2024, when residents spoke against the charter school during a planning and zoning meeting.

Many of the concerns revolved around traffic and safety concerns at the subdivision’s entrance, which intersects with Ammon Road, a busy arterial road. After the planning and zoning meeting, the commission members voted against the charter school’s conditional use permit.

In March, the Ammon City Council voted to require the school to conduct a traffic study before the project could proceed.

Later in March, the property was listed for sale, and the charter school posted on Facebook it was “no longer a feasible location for our future school.”

The Greenwillow property is now under the ownership of Caliber Customs LLC, a home construction business.