|
 |
 |
 |
||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||
1) How
far has Comp Plan revision come in a year? • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1) How far has Comp Plan revision come in a year? April 13th is the one-year anniversary of the release of the current draft of the Jackson/Teton County Comprehensive Plan and it’s an appropriate time to ask where we’re at. The short answer is that there have been some positive steps, but we still have a long way to go to get to a plan that will do a better job of achieving our community’s goals – protecting wildlife and open space, managing growth responsibly and providing workforce housing – than our existing Comp Plan. Click here for the long version. Meanwhile, the Teton County and Town of Jackson planning commissions are continuing their joint review of the draft at public hearings each Thursday, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the county commissioners’ chambers at 200 S. Willow. For recaps and future discussion items, please click here. In early April, the planning commissioners are expected to outline the remaining review process. This topic – what to expect this summer – will be the subject of the Alliance’s next Comp Plan open house on Tuesday, April 13, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at our office, 685 S. Cache. (UPDATE: THE WEEKLY COMP PLAN HEARINGS HAVE ENDED FOR NOW AND ARE NOT SET TO RESUME AGAIN UNTIL JUNE 3. Even though many questions remain unanswered – and many of the public’s concerns unaddressed – the planning commissioners decided to wrap up their initial review of the draft Comp Plan on April 8, just a few days shy of the one-year anniversary of the day it was released. They decided to postpone discussions on the draft’s administration chapter and the still unwritten “energy conservation” chapter until their final review begins in early June. The planning commissioners also decided to put off reviewing the draft’s Future Land Use Plan section until after the elected officials complete their review of the plan. (Click here for a link to all their votes to date.) Here is the schedule that the planning commissioners and planning staff agreed to on April 8 for the remainder of the review process: Friday, April 30: A rewritten draft incorporating all the joint town and county planning commission recommendations is to be released on the Comp Plan website, www.jacksontetonplan.com. Friday, May 21: Public comment on the new, rewritten draft of the Comp Plan will be due by May 21 to the planning staffs, either via www.jacksontetonplan.com, via email to Jeff Noffsinger (jnoffsinger@ci.jackson.wy.us) or Alex Norton (anorton@tetonwyo.org), or in person to the town or county planning departments. Thursday, June 3: Joint Town/County Planning Commission meeting on new revised draft of the Comp Plan, 5:30 p.m., County commissioners’ chambers, 200 S. Willow. Planning commissioners say they intend to discuss any new ideas and inconsistencies that need to be reconciled in the revised draft starting on June 3. They say they will not reconsider past votes. Staff will then rewrite the draft yet another time and send it to the elected officials for their review. As it stands now, the planning commissioners do not intend to review that next version of the plan before it’s submitted to the Jackson Town Council and Teton Board of County Commissioners for them to take their shot. Please check back for further updates.) Looking forward, the Alliance will continue to advocate for a strong plan that will serve to protect what makes our community so unique – our wildlife and natural resources. Click here for links to our comments. To view plan documents and planning commission votes, and to submit your comments, visit the plan website, www.jacksontetonplan.com, or email comments to Jeff Noffsinger at jnoffsinger@ci.jackson.wy.us or Alex Norton at anorton@tetonwyo.org.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 2) Environment Commission, SPET up for discussion April 5 For the eighth month in a row, the proposed Environment Commission is on the agenda for the joint town/county information meeting scheduled for April 5, starting at 2 p.m. at Jackson Town Hall, 150 E. Pearl. Since this appointed volunteer board could provide the public and officials with a comprehensive, science-based understanding of the health of the Teton region’s ecosystems – plus make it easier for scientific data to be incorporated into public policy – we hope that the electeds will soon make it a reality. For our full comments on this issue, please click here. Also at the April 5 JIM meeting, the county commissioners and town council members are scheduled to continue discussing projects for possible inclusion on this year’s Special Purpose Excise Tax ballot. (SPET is a 1 percent sales tax approved by voters to fund capital facilities in Teton County.) A group of community members, with Alliance support, had applied for $1.5 million for seed money to help fund the acquisition of properties important for wildlife and community character, but it looks like this proposal is out of the running for now. (Click here for the Alliance’s comments in favor of this proposal.) At a March 30 SPET meeting, most of the electeds present said that while they supported the concept of creating a permanent funding source for protecting open space, they didn’t think that SPET was the right tool. We hope discussions continue on what would be the right tool, especially since surveys have shown that our community strongly supports this concept as well. Please consider telling the electeds what you think – their contact info is available by clicking here. Possibly due to Spring Break, most of the agendas for other upcoming town and county meetings are not yet available. Please check back or visit www.ci.jackson.wy.us and www.tetonwyo.org for updates. Some late-breaking items: TOWN'S AUTO-URBAN RESIDENTIAL ZONING DISTRICT: Another workshop on a proposal that would allow accessory units within the auto-urban residential zoning district to be sold separately (essentially as condominiums) to independent owners has been set for April 19, 3 p.m. at Town Hall, 150 E. Pearl. (One single-family residence and two accessory-residential units are allowed on single lots in this district, but current regulations stipulate that all three structures must be owned by one owner.) Since the A-R zone is currently a source of affordable rentals for the local workforce, there's concern that this change could inflate housing prices. Click here for the Alliance's comments delivered at a March 25 workshop on this issue. TOWN'S PLANNED MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT TOOL: In a surprising but welcome move, the April 7 Jackson Hole News&Guide reported that Jackson Mayor Mark Barron had asked town staff on April 5 to begin working on an emergency moratorium on all planned mixed-use developments. Barron is quoted as saying that no PMD applications are currently in the pipeline or expected, and "We've been talking about making changes for a while and this seems to be a good time to do it." (Some background: In January, at the last workshop on the flawed PMD tool (which allows increased development potential in exchange for questionable community benefits) Barron had said he wanted to make the tool more predictable but did not want to eliminate it. On March 24, the News&Guide published the Alliance's letter to the editor encouraging people to ask the town councilors to schedule a workshop to discuss repealing the PMD tool. Click here to read it and click here for our detailed report on the PMD.) What's next? As of April 15, the Jackson Town Council is scheduled to discuss whether they want to implement a moratorium on the PMD, repeal it, or change it at 6 p.m. on April 19 at Town Hall, 150 E. Pearl. We'll keep you posted. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 3) Bridger-Teton land sale, Forest Service planning rule updates In March, Michael Schrotz of the Bridger-Teton National Forest announced that B-T Supervisor Kniffy Hamilton won’t be making a final decision regarding the sale of the forest’s North Cache site until this fall. This gives our community more time to help the B-T figure out ways to fund needed new facilities and employee housing other than selling off public lands. If you’d like to pitch in, please join us on April 7, 2 p.m. at the Alliance office, 685 S. Cache. Disturbingly, the regional office of the U.S. Forest Service recently hinted that if the Jackson Hole community succeeds in blocking the sale of this public land, then the Forest Service might reconsider its decision to keep the Bridger-Teton supervisor's office in Jackson. (Click here for a copy of Regional Forester Harv Forsgren's Feb. 12 letter.) For more information, contact Louise Lasley at (307) 733-9417 or Louise@jhalliance.org. Background info on the land sale is available by clicking here. In other Forest Service news, officials are looking for more public input as they develop new rules that will determine how and for what purposes our nation’s forests will be managed for years to come. This means that we now have the chance to tell them that we want the health and vitality of wildlife and their habitat to take precedence over extractive uses, such as energy development, mining, logging and grazing. On April 8, the Forest Service is hosting two sessions (1 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 9 p.m.) in Jackson for the public to comment at Hansen Hall, St. John’s Episcopal Church, 170 N. Glenwood. Click here for details. Hopefully, this process will result in a new plan that will remove uncertainties about how to approach forest planning – uncertainties that have stalled revisions to the Bridger-Teton’s 20-year-old management plan.• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 4) Alliance public lands committee to discuss air quality April 12 New federal regulations have been proposed to protect people from harmful ozone levels, but meanwhile energy development on public lands in Wyoming continues to threaten our environment. You’re invited to join the Alliance at noon on April 12 at 685 S. Cache for a discussion about what people can do to protect Teton County’s health, clean air and pristine views. For details, contact Louise Lasley at (307) 733-9417 or Louise@jhalliance.org. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 5) Please don’t poach the powder! Even a mild winter is still tough on wildlife, and having to avoid people, dogs and snowmachines makes it tougher. Wildlife are most vulnerable in late winter because their reserves are low and the food pickings are slim. Please help our moose, elk, deer and bighorn sheep survive by staying out of those places that are closed through April to protect wildlife. Click here for the maps. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 6) Alliance seeks executive director The Conservation Alliance is looking for a collaborative, dynamic and passionate executive director to lead the organization and a staff of eight into its 4th decade of partnering for a wild and beautiful Jackson Hole. Click here for details. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 7) Give a gift to Mom, and to Mother Earth In honor of mothers everywhere, the Alliance is offering gift cards for your loved ones in celebration of Mother’s Day, May 9. For more information, please click here. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 8) Coming Events Saturday, April 3 (DUE TO SNOW, THIS EVENT WAS
POSTPONED TO APRIL 17) Wednesday, April 7 Thursday, April 8 Friday, April 9 Monday, April 12 Tuesday, April 13 Saturday, April 17 (RESCHEDULED FROM APRIL 3) Sunday, April 18 Wednesday, April 21 Wednesday, April 21 Thursday, April 22 Saturday, April 24 Saturday, April 24 Tuesday, April 27 Thursday, April 29 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • (Back to top) 9) Valley Voices “We are not bound to win, but we are bound
to be true. - President Barack Obama
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Alliance Action is a publication of the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance. The Conservation Alliance is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to responsible land stewardship in Jackson Hole to ensure that human activities are in harmony with the area’s irreplaceable wildlife, scenic, and other natural resources. We’re located at 685 South Cache Street in Jackson, Wyoming. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 2728, Jackson, WY 83001-2728 and our phone number is (307) 733-9417. If you'd like to sign up to receive our monthly Alliance Action via email, please click here. |
|
Home | About
Us | Take
Action | Issues | Monthly
Agenda | Events | Success
Stories | Library | Maps | Join
and Donate |