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1) Release
of Comprehensive Plan second draft postponed
again • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1) Release of Comprehensive Plan second draft postponed again Planners appear to be taking their time with the second draft of the updated Jackson/Teton County Comprehensive Plan, and we hope the delays mean more thought is going toward ensuring that the plan will work to protect Jackson Hole’s cherished wildlife and wildlands. Most recently promised by the end of 2008, it now looks like the new draft won’t be ready till later this winter. A 30-minute discussion on the Comp Plan, to include a revised timeline, is scheduled for the Jan. 5 joint information meeting of the Jackson Town Council and the Teton Board of County Commissioners, 3 p.m., Town Council chambers, 150 E. Pearl. (UPDATE: At the Jan. 5 JIM meeting, the town and county planning directors gave electeds an overview of the update process. In brief, they said that local planners recently submitted a revised "Themes and Policies" section of the draft to Clarion Associates (the Comp Plan consultant) for review. However, the future land use plan maps and associated chapters still remain under local review. Prior to public release of the next draft in its entirety, the planners said it will be reviewed by Clarion and members of the Comp Plan Technical Advisory Group. The Stakeholder Advisory Group, which the Alliance is a member of, is also expected to review the draft. Pending the outcome of this review process, the public may expect to see the complete revised draft sometime in mid-March, and will have four weeks to respond. The Conservation Alliance will hold weekly open houses during this public comment period. We'll keep you posted.) Town councilors and planning commissioners met on Dec. 9 to review future land use plan maps for Jackson, and the councilors directed staff to hold another as-yet-unscheduled map workshop prior to the release of the new draft. We’ll post the meeting information as soon as its available. County commissioners cancelled a Dec. 16 joint meeting to discuss the plan with county planning commissioners, most likely because they were waiting for information from town officials. Our Feb. 18 Alliance info lunch (noon at 685 S. Cache St.) will be devoted to growth issues and the Comp Plan -- you and your questions are welcomed. Meanwhile, visit www.jhalliance.org/issuescompplan.htm for more information on the Comp Plan update, or contact Alliance community planning director Kristy Bruner at (307) 733-9417 or Kristy@jhalliance.org. Also, please keep posted for details about the next event in our educational series, “Next Steps: Exploring Solutions for Jackson Hole,” which will address the fiscal impacts of growth and identify solutions for making sure new developments “pay their way.” Funded in part by The Community Foundation of Jackson Hole, the series is intended to give our community the benefit of lessons learned by other communities that have faced similar issues.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 2) Major town development decisions on deck this month As always, the Conservation Alliance continues to keep an eye on town development and redevelopment issues. Here’s a brief roundup; however, please note that all meetings are subject to change. Call the Town of Jackson at (307) 734-3993 for confirmation, or contact Alliance community planning director Kristy Bruner at Kristy@jhalliance.org or (307) 733-9417. EMPLOYEE HOUSING -- Jackson Town Council, Jan. 5, 6 p.m., Council chambers, 150 E. Pearl. On Jan. 5, town councilors are scheduled to discuss changing the mitigation rates for employee housing. (UPDATE: This has been continued to Feb. 2, same time and location. SECOND UPDATE: The Feb. 2 hearing has been postponed, pending a town workshop on employee and affordable housing recently scheduled for Feb. 9, 3 to 5 p.m., 150 E. Pearl.) The Town of Jackson and Teton County use different methods to calculate how many housing units commercial developers are required to provide for people who will work at the development once its built. Technical differences aside, the proposed amendment is supposed to help mitigate the impacts generated by new developments’ need for seasonal employees. On Dec.17, the Jackson Planning Commission questioned the amendment’s methodology, and would not recommend approval to include all types of commercial uses. AFFORDABLE HOUSING -- Jackson Planning Commission, Jan. 7, 5:30 p.m., Council chambers, 150 E. Pearl. On Jan. 7, after a year-long hiatus, town planning commissioners will review an amendment to increase the affordable-housing mitigation rate from 15 to 25 percent. Review by town councilors will likely follow on Jan. 20. (UPDATE: The Town Council is now expected to discuss this Feb. 2. SECOND UPDATE: The Feb. 2 hearing has been postponed, pending a town workshop on employee and affordable housing recently scheduled for Feb. 9, 3 to 5 p.m., 150 E. Pearl.) The Conservation Alliance hopes the town will take this step toward getting developers closer to covering the actual costs of mitigating impacts. Developers need to supply at least enough affordable housing to offset the demand for affordable housing that new developments generate. The 2007 Housing Needs Assessment, available from the Teton County Housing Authority, recommends increasing the mitigation rate to a minimum of 40 percent just to keep up with housing needs associated with new growth. For more on this issue, please see www.jhalliance.org/Library/Alerts/AffordableHousing.2-08.pdf. GATEWAY DEVELOPMENTS -- Jackson Town Council, Jan. 20, 6 p.m., Council chambers, 150 E. Pearl. January 20th will bring the second round of review for two major gateway developments, one on North Cache, and the other at the intersection of Broadway and Hwy. 22. (UPDATE: Because only two councilors were planning to attend the Jan. 20 meeting, it's been cancelled. All items were postponed to Feb. 2, same time and place. Please visit www.jhalliance.org/library.htm#comments for links to our comments on these proposals.) The approval of either or both of these projects would trigger significant changes to prominent areas of our community, and we question the approval of such large, precedent-setting upzones during our comprehensive planning process: North Cache Planned Mixed-Use Development -- On Dec.15, town councilors moved to continue this application for a 45,492-square-foot PMD project in the 300 block of North Cache to Jan. 20. Town planning staff is recommending denial of the project. After voicing major concerns on Nov. 19 with the project design, in a surprising change-of-mind vote, the Jackson Planning Commission voted 4-1 to recommend approval. The Alliance continues to express concern about the nature of redevelopment permitted by the PMD tool (see below). In this case, we question the type and scale of this project, particularly given its prominence along a main corridor, its proximity to a key community gateway, and its inadequate provision of workforce housing units. The PMD regulations need to be modified to remedy these concerns. Housing at “Y” Intersection -- On Dec.1, town councilors continued to Jan. 20 this application for a 92-unit residential development close to the northeast corner of the Broadway-Hwy. 22 intersection. Earlier this fall, town planning commissioners recommended denial of the project. Of concern to the Conservation Alliance are the bulk and scale of the proposed development; issues of traffic capacity at a key intersection; inadequate community benefit given the size of the development; and character precedent for a prominent community gateway. Our full comments are available at www.jhalliance.org/Library/Comments/Y-PUDcomments.11-08.pdf. PLANNED MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT TOOL -- After canceling several meetings throughout the fall, the Jackson Town Council finally met on Dec. 29 to discuss possible revisions to the controversial PMD tool, but didn’t make any significant headway toward improvement. Some councilors said it was difficult to consider PMD changes while they’re also in the middle of discussing new land use maps in connection with the Comp Plan update. Interestingly, despite this concern, earlier this year elected officials chose not to impose a moratorium on PMDs, which would have given them, and our community, the chance to have a comprehensive discussion about town land-use planning. A temporary pause in the use of the flawed tool would have allowed for a more effective and productive discussion of both underlying zoning and density-option tools in general. Despite our bigger-picture concerns with this process, we commend Councilor Melissa Turley for her efforts to increase workforce housing requirements in return for the extra development potential awarded by the PMD tool. To date, the council-at-large has made no decisions and given no direction to make any changes to the tool. On Jan. 8, the Conservation Alliance again formally asked the Town Council to place a moratorium on use of the PMD tool. Our letter is available at www.jhalliance.org/Library/Comments/2009/PMDmoratoriumreq.1-8-09.pdf. (UPDATE: The Town Council has now scheduled a workshop to discuss the PMD tool on Feb. 2, 3 to 5 p.m., Council chambers, 150 E. Pearl.) MILLER LODGE PMD -- On Dec.15, the Jackson Town Council voted 5-0 to approve a master plan for this 27,000-square-foot PMD on two lots at 155 N. Jackson St., across from Miller Park. In response to the councilors’ earlier complaints that the building was too large, the developer removed a fourth floor from this latest plan, but kept it at its originally proposed height of just over 43 feet, leaving many baffled by the Town Council's decision to OK it anyway. RENDEZVOUS POINT/DAYS INN REDEVELOPMENT -- Also on Dec.15, town councilors voted unanimously to approve a change of use for the existing Days Inn property on West Broadway from commercial lodging to institutional residential use. The 91-unit project will help qualified businesses provide deed-restricted rentals (primarily studios) to their employees. This innovative project is a great opportunity for local businesses to do their part to secure workforce housing for our community. PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT TEXT AMENDMENT WITHDRAWN -- This past fall, the Jackson Hole Community Housing Trust proposed a text amendment for the town’s PUD tool that would have allowed an increase in allowable development potential for PUD projects, including newly introduced “transitional zone affordable housing standards.” And even though the amendment would have provided incentives to produce affordable housing, it didn’t use a clear, predictable definition of what constitutes affordable housing. (The Alliance's comments on this amendment are available at www.jhalliance.org/Library/Comments/AffordablePUDcomments.11-08.pdf.) Given these and other concerns raised by community members regarding the specific language of the amendment, and particularly its timing, the Housing Trust decided to withdraw it for the time being. In coming months, the Housing Trust still plans to proceed with the application processes for three PUD projects in Jackson.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 3) Moratorium extension leads county planning news COUNTY COMMISSIONERS VOTE TO EXTEND FREEZE ON LARGE RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENTS -- On Dec.16, the Teton Board of County Commissioners voted to extend a moratorium on large residential development proposals for another six months. Adopted in May 2008 to keep such proposals from undermining the Comp Plan update process, the freeze was set to expire on Dec. 31. The vote will now go through a public hearing process, beginning with a review by county planning commissioners on Jan. 12, 6 p.m., County chambers, 200 S. Willow. See www.jhalliance.org/Library/Alerts/LocalDevUpdate.Fall08.pdf for background information. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS TEXT AMENDMENT -- Teton
Board of County Commissioners, Jan. 6, 9 a.m.,
County chambers, 200 S. Willow. (UPDATE: On Jan.
6, this hearing was postponed until Feb. 17.)
County commissioners were expected to vote last
month on an amendment to the land development
regulations that would require the county to
hire the consultants who conduct environmental
assessments on properties. (Developers would
still pay for the required studies.) On Dec.16,
commissioners discussed the need for minor revisions
to the amendment before deciding to continue
the matter till January. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 4) Bridger-Teton briefs LEGISLATION TO PROTECT WYOMING RANGE, SNAKE
HEADWATERS PROGRESSES -- As promised,
one of the first actions in 2009 in the U.S.
Senate was reintroduction of the
Omnibus Public Land Management Act (renumbered
as S. 22), which includes federal legislation
to protect the Wyoming Range of the Bridger-Teton
and portions of the Snake River system. On Jan.
15, senators voted 73-21 to pass the bill, which
now goes to the House of Representatives. (The
omnibus combines 53 bills the Energy and Natural
Resources committee approved this past fall with
a 96-bill package approved earlier. The Craig
Thomas Snake Headwaters Legacy Act and the Wyoming
Range Legacy Act were included in the earlier
package. Background information about this legislation
is available at www.jhalliance.org/Library/Alerts/JHCAmagFall08pg19-20.pdf.) Thank you to everyone who has supported these campaigns. Wyoming's U.S. Senators Mike Enzi and John Barrasso both worked for this legislation and also deserve our thanks. Here's their contact information: U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi U.S. Sen. John Barrasso Wyoming's new U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis has stated that she opposes it. Your comments may help her reconsider: U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis Otherwise, not much has changed from the items we told you about in last month’s Alliance Action (see www.jhalliance.org/Library/AllianceAction/Dec08AA.htm#AA5). However, on Feb. 5, we’re hosting a forum with Bridger-Teton managers to help bring people up-to-date on issues regarding the forest. See “Coming Events” below for details. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 5) Fate of Northern Rockies gray wolves remains to be seen In the ongoing and very confusing process of managing wolves in Wyoming, the latest installment came on Dec. 29 with the close of public comment on the Game and Fish Department’s Chapter 21 regulations. This was the next-to-last step in making the state’s Gray Wolf Management Plan official. The final step will probably occur Jan. 29-30 in Cheyenne, when Game and Fish commissioners meet to formally vote on the new regulations. All this is likely for naught, because the delisting of Northern Rockies wolves (and turning of wolf management over to the states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho) remains in the hands of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the politics of the Bush administration. We have no idea when Fish and Wildlife officials will release a final delisting rule, which, if it resembles the last decision, will likely elicit a similar reaction from the conservation community -- a return to Federal Court. (UPDATE: On Jan. 14, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it will remove Northern Rockies wolves from federal protection everywhere but Wyoming. See www.jhalliance.org/issueswolves.htm for more information.) As is if this were not confusing enough, several bills have been filed for consideration during the upcoming Wyoming Legislative session (Jan. 13 to March 5), only one of which simply and clearly eliminates the dual classification of Wyoming’s wolves. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Keith Gingery (R-Jackson), is the one the Conservation Alliance will likely support. The other bills are variations of the current plan that maintains dual classification, whereby wolves found in about 88 percent of the state are classified as predators, which can be killed on sight by anyone. It is this system that a federal judge found particularly troublesome in his ruling to stop the last delisting attempt this past summer. Until Wyoming legislators do away with dual classification, we will continue to oppose the state’s Gray Wolf Management Plan and the removal of federal Endangered Species Act protections. The Conservation Alliance will also continue to keep you informed about wolf management in the Northern Rockies, and to work for an acceptable Wyoming wolf management plan. It’s high time that wolves are welcomed back to Wyoming’s native habitats and regain their place as an important part of our natural heritage. In other endangered species news, on Dec. 11, the Bush administration issued revised regulations that reduce the input of scientists and block the Endangered Species Act from being used to fight global warming. Under the new regulations, federal agencies can bypass U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists when proposing projects that could impact endangered species. Conservationists contend that removing this safety check erodes Endangered Species Act protections. Several environmental groups, as well as the state of California, have already filed lawsuits challenging the revisions.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 6) Citizen lobbyist training offered Jan. 14 The Wyoming Legislature will convene in Cheyenne on Jan. 13 to consider bills ranging from wolf management (see above) to consolidation of town and county governments -- another hot issue for this valley. For people who want to get involved in the legislative process, the nonprofit Equality State Policy Center is offering a hands-on lobbying workshop on Jan. 14, starting at 8 a.m. at the Plains Hotel in Cheyenne. For details, visit www.equalitystate.org/HTML/projects.html.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 7) Conservation Alliance annual report now available online Please visit www.jhalliance.org/Library/Reports/JHCAAnnualReport.12-08.pdf for our 2008 annual report. It includes our financial information from fiscal year 2007-08, as well as our top accomplishments of 2008 and top goals for 2009, making it a great way to get all the highlights. You’re also welcome to pick up a printed copy at the Alliance office, 685 S. Cache St. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 8) Coming Events Wednesday, Jan. 21 Tuesday, Jan. 27 Thursday, Feb. 5 Feb. 7 to 10 Sunday, Feb. 15 Wednesday, Feb. 18 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 9) Valley Voices “Be always at war with your vices, at
peace with your neighbors, -- Benjamin Franklin
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Alliance Action is a publication of the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance. The Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance is dedicated to responsible land stewardship in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, to ensure that human activities are in harmony with the area’s irreplaceable wildlife, scenic, and other natural resources. The Alliance is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization. |
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