Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance Annual Report 2019

20182019

ANNUAL REPORT

O U R M I S S I O N Protecting the wildlife, wild places, and community character of Jackson Hole.

LETTER FROM OUR DIRECTOR

Dear Alliance Members & Friends: Thanks for another year of support as we fight to protect what we love about Jackson Hole.

I’ll be honest – it’s hard to stay focused locally

when we’re bombarded by disturbing national and global news every day. Climate change is at our doorstep, we’re in the sixth great extinction of species on this planet, recycling is falling apart, and both wildlife and people are suffering from an out-of-control political and economic system all over the globe. So how is it even ethical to focus on such small and localized issues as road expansion, elk feeding, ski area expansion, or new condo development?

For me: two reasons.

First: it’s all connected, and what we do here matters. Jackson Hole is the southern end of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and the Yellowstone-to-Yukon corridor. Our local mountain ranges are climate refugia – rare and critical places where wild animals and plants may be able to survive a changing climate. And “our” wildlife migrate all through this ecosystem, and keep it alive. Migration researchers refer to the elk herd as the lifeblood of the whole ecosystem. So when we fight for good wildlife and public lands management, it has an ecosystem-wide impact.

Second: because it’s more feasible. You can spend lifetimes working in DC and not get anything done – or get things done and see them all undone in an instant. Here, at the local (and sometimes state) level, we’re closer to our elected representatives.

We can build grassroots teams of locals who care, and get the Town Council and County Commission to make good decisions. For me personally, it’s much more satisfying to make a lot of small change – to get our community to fund wildlife crossings at key moose, elk, and deer crash sites all over the county; to protect mule deer habitat from developers at Snow King; and to stand strong on local regulations that require commercial developers to build some new housing for the workers they generate. Hopefully when we get things right here, that change can ripple around the ecosystem, country, and world.

At the same time, we can’t pretend that we’re the only place that matters, and we can’t ignore the big national and global decisions that will impact our valley.

So as the old proverb says: think globally (and nationally, and Wyoming-ly) – and act locally. Get involved with one of our Watchdogs groups, write your Town Councilors and State Reps, and come see us at our quarterly Picnic briefings. We need you, now more than ever.

Sincerely,

Skye Schell Executive Director

S TA F F

Skye Schell

Dawn Webster

Brooke Sausser

Molly Watters

Tisa Djahangiri

Ryan Nourai

Clare Stumpf

Lucy, Luna

Executive Director

B O A R D O F D I R E C T O R S

Community Engagement Associate

Operations Director

Outreach Associate

Community Planning Manager

Community Engagement Fellow

Development & Communications Manager

Dogs of the Alliance

Tim O’Donoghue Chair

Kirk Davenport Vice-Chair

Maria Damon Treasurer

David Sollitt Secretary

Jean Anderson Heather Ewing

Bruce Hawtin

Beedee Ladd Brad Nielson

Danielle Shapiro

Michael Stern Juliet Unfried

P R O T E C T I N G W H AT W E L O V E

For better or for worse, there’s never a dull moment working to keep the soul in Jackson Hole. We’re always migrating forward – here are some things we got done this year.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS & MILESTONES

Wildlife Crossings Funded Through SPET We’ve spent 10 years working with volunteers, neighbors, and partners to build community support for wildlife crossings. We succeeded in getting the town and county to include wildlife crossings on the November SPET (Specific Purpose Excise Tax) ballot, then worked vigorously to get out the vote and ensure the measure passed!

Raised The Community Voice For A Balanced Snow King We want Snow King to succeed as our Town Hill, not an amusement park. We wrote letters, made videos, and kept a watchful eye on the Forest Service and town approval process.

We’re grateful that the Town Council did not rubberstamp the developers’ massive proposal to the Forest Service.

Launched Accountability Checks And First Voter Roundup

Hired Fellows And Launched Watchdogs Program

It can be a challenge to get involved and make a difference if you aren’t “in the weeds” of local politics every day. So we launched Alliance Accountability Checks - including voter guides, newspaper ads, and our Conservation Vote RoundUp – all highlighting local and state elected representatives’ decisions on key conservation issues.

As hard as we try, we simply can’t stay on top of every issue, threat, or decision on the horizon. But with the help of dedicated community members, we can! This year we launched our Watchdogs program and hired organizers to recruit and lead three volunteer groups: Snow King, Wildlife & Public Lands, and Community Planning.

P R O T E C T I N G W H AT W E L O V E Celebrated Our 40th Anniversary

Genevieve Saved

We dug deep to celebrate our 40 anniversary as an organization. We read decades of articles, interviewed longtime supporters, and reconnected with former board members. We compiled our history and made an anniversary film to tell the story of who we are (see it on our website). We felt 40 years of passion and community during our Annual Meeting Story Slam in June and 40th Anniversary Party in August. And we partnered with the art community to compile and auction off the “Conservation Collection.” Thank you for being a part of our past, present, and future!

When a group of women from CLI heard rumors of hotel development on the Café Genevieve block, they took on the issue as their team project. They went to public meetings, met with local elected representatives, organized info rallies, and opened the floodgates for an outpouring of community support. This prevented a hotel-focused upzone and paved the way for the Land Trust’s successful fundraising effort to protect the block forever.

Don’t Poach the Powder

Graduated Another Round Of New Leaders

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Last winter, we teamed up with coalition partners to spread the word about the need for responsible backcountry recreation. We recruited passionate volunteers, gave out stickers at trailheads, shared info at WYSAW, and discussed bighorn sheep habitat at Avalanche Safety Night.

Hired A Community Planner Since our founding as the Jackson Hole Alliance for Responsible Planning 40 years ago, our staff and volunteers have profoundly influenced the way that Jackson Hole has (and hasn’t) developed. Since we haven’t had a dedicated planner on staff for two years, we held a quiet fundraising campaign this year to bring it back. Thanks to generous supporters, we succeeded in securing 3 years of funding and hired Brooke Sausser as our Community Planning Manager.

Another 16 participants went through the Conservation Leadership Institute (CLI) and learned how to make a difference in their community. That’s 140 total! During the 12-week course and beyond, this 10th class really moved the needle on local issues including the plastic bag ban, wildlife crossings, and the Genevieve block.

Housing Mitigation We spoke up for housing, and successfully saw the town and county adopt increased housing mitigation requirements on commercial development. We believe that protecting what we love about this place requires a strong community, which means a diverse group of committed residents is able to live here long-term.

Bear-proof Trash Can Plan Formed Following a robust report put together by intern Emma Leither in summer 2018, we have worked toward implementing bear proof trash can policies in Teton County. We presented research findings to the Natural Resources Stakeholder Group, met with local representatives to discuss feasibility, and built a campaign plan to move this project forward.

Millstones These are the opposite of Milestones. We don’t win ‘em all, and we think it’s important to highlight big losses for the conservation community in the past year. In this case, the action was at the state legislature in Cheyenne. These two bills were the worst of a whole suite of bills taking away local democratic control for the future of our community.

County Zoning Authority: Private Schools – SF49 Passed – Alliance Opposed The Jackson Hole Classical Academy got the Legislature to strip all Wyoming counties of zoning authority over private schools – removing local control because the school didn’t get what it wanted in the local democratic process. The Alliance opposed the bill because it would override local decisions based in community values and rural character.

Local Regulations: Subdivisions – HB196 Passed – Alliance Opposed The stated purpose was benign: allowing ranchers to break off lots for their children. However, the lack of safeguards means it could be one giant loophole to allow speculative real estate development in important open space.

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 0 Y E A R S O F C O N S E R VAT I O N

1979

1980

1983

Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance forms as the Jackson Hole Alliance for Responsible Planning.

Stopped a shopping center from being built in Kelly.

Thwarted a proposed dam on the Snake River that would have drowned the Oxbow Bend in GTNP.

1980s

1982

Helped secure $1.8M in federal funds that allowed the Jackson Hole Land Trust to preserve $4M in private, scenic ranchlands in Buffalo Valley.

Kept oil and gas development out of Cache Creek Canyon.

2000 Succeeded in a joint campaign to secure 369,900 acres on Togwotee Pass from oil and gas leasing.

2005

2010

Received National Conservation Education Award for Alliance’s Don’t Poach the Powder program.

Successfully advocated for the establishment of a Town and County Natural Resources Technical Advisory Board (NRTAB).

2001

2006

Led efforts with partners to defeat Porter Estate annexation proposal to develop 822 acres of ranchland adjacent to Jackson.

Fought oil and gas drilling on the Hoback River through field trips, research, comments, and advocacy.

C E L E B R AT I N G 4 0 Y E A R S O F C O N S E R VAT I O N

1990

1994

Prevented a Wal-Mart store from being built on scenic hay meadows on the south end of Jackson.

Helped keep a grizzly bear theme park out of Teton County.

Late 1980s Worked successfully to keep a water slide amusement park from being developed across from the National Elk Refuge.

1992

1999

Worked to keep an IMAX theater out of downtown Jackson and an outlet shopping mall out of the “Y” intersection in Jackson.

Coordinated community response to defeat a proposal for a North Snake River Bridge, a threat to one of the valley’s intact wildlife corridors.

2013

2016

Launched the Conservation Leadership Institute to empower locals to make a difference on issues they care about.

Won EarthJustice-led lawsuit to protect wolverines.

2012

2015

Provided input for a Joint Town & County Comprehensive Plan, adopted with core language “protect & preserve the area’s ecosystem.”

Prevented a tripling of downtown commercial development which could have resulted in 20 more Marriott-sized hotels downtown; and Town & County elected representatives agree to cap commercial development.

2019 Led grassroots campaign for voter support of $10M for wildlife crossings.

GOALS NEXT YEAR

We work for a better, balanced future for Jackson Hole. Together, we can achieve a lot in the next year.

Keep Public Lands Public And Protected Building on the work of the Wyoming Public Lands Initiative (WPLI) Teton County committee, the Forest Service should protect wild lands by permanently removing industrial extractive uses in Teton County (drilling, logging, mining, new roads) and by balancing conservation and recreation in the Bridger-Teton Forest Plan revision or federal legislation.

Establish A Dedicated Public Funding Source For Conservation Our community should create a dedicated conservation funding source and obtain voter approval if needed in 2020. This could be a general penny of sales tax, an impact fee on development, or from other sources. We should also establish a transparent way to spend the funds, including stewardship incentives for landowners.

Build An Active And Civically Engaged Community We want all of Teton County to be represented in our democratic process: this means more people from underrepresented communities (youth, women, Latinx) will vote, join appointed boards and commissions, and run for elected office. We also aim to increase voter turnout in relevant ballot measures.

Focus Growth In Our Existing Developed Footprint, Instead Of In Open Space The county should direct growth out of rural areas into walkable neighborhoods through zoning changes, updates to land development regulations, tools that shift growth, and other incentives. We should reject proposals to upzone or develop in greenfields (like Hog Island) unless they are models of responsible planning and good design, and include significant transfers of development rights (TDR) from higher-value habitat.

Adopt World-Class County & Town Natural Resource Protections We’re proud to serve on the county’s stakeholder group tasked with developing new natural resource protections, and want to get them adopted. This includes an expanded requirement for bear-proof trash cans, updated residential wildlife-friendly fencing requirements, and work to find voluntary incentives for agricultural operators to protect important migration and movement routes. The town should adopt these new natural resources protections as well in 2020, with a focus on protecting bears and water quality.

GOALS NEXT YEAR Adopt County-Wide Conservation Goals And Increased Staffing

Ensure Responsible Development On Snow King

Our Comprehensive Plan vision to “protect and preserve the area’s ecosystem” is bold and visionary. To ensure that we adequately live up to it, we’re working with conservation partners to define goals for wildlife, open space, waterways, and other ecosystem indicators. Then the town and county should insert and adopt measurable conservation goals in the Comprehensive Plan and Indicator Reports. The county should also hire a conservation-focused staff-person.

We want Snow King to succeed as our Town Hill, not an amusement park, and believe that development can occur in balance with protecting wildlife habitat and community character.

To protect the wildlife that depends on our public land, the Forest Service should just say no to any expansion of boundaries or footprint into wildlife habitat.

Adopt A Town Historic Preservation Ordinance And Incentives

Scenario Planning: Visualize The Future Of Jackson Hole Based On Different Growth Policy Choices

Our community character is also our unique sense of place, which includes our historic buildings, community spaces, and local businesses, all of which are increasingly under threat from speculative commercial and hotel development. The identity we sell to our visitors is “the last of the Old West” – let’s be true to that slogan. Many peer communities have adopted historic preservation ordinances with a combination of smart regulation and incentives.

The town should support the Historic Preservation Board in crafting an ordinance, and adopt it in 2019 – including incentives and funding to protect the places we love.

Can Jackson Hole become a national model for a community living in balance with nature while remaining a true community, not just a resort destination? Building on proven scenario planning models in other communities, the “Conservation 2040” scenario planning project will display and analyze growth scenarios and their impacts through a combination of GIS-based visualization and numerical analysis. This will help inform development plans and policy decisions to ensure a balanced future for Jackson Hole.

FINANCES

2% 16%

16 %

84%

82%

EXPENSES

IN COM E

Program: 82%

Philanthropy: 84%

Administrative: 16%

Grants: 16%

Fundraising: 2%

THANK YOU DONORS

Thank you to our members, donors, and volunteers – we could not achieve our mission without your support!

Sponsors: Skinny Skis, Stio, Grand

Teton Brewing, Westside Wines, Sinclair Communications, Jackson Hole EcoTour Adventures, Patagonia, Roadhouse Brewing Co., Lucky’s Market

Our Values We believe we have a responsibility to leave things better than we found them and create a better world for our children.

We believe we should have an honest conversation about the long-term consequences of our decisions based on facts and data.

We believe in empowering people to work together toward a better future.

We believe our elected representatives should make decisions in the best long-term interest of our community – and that we as a community have a responsibility to hold them accountable for these decisions.

We believe in advancing balanced solutions that will create a better future for our community.

We believe in constructively responding to the big challenges we face.

J H A L L I A N C E . O RG 685 S CACHE ST, JACKSON, WY 83001 P.O. BOX 2728 • 307-733-9417 info@jhalliance.org