Bridger-Teton National Forest officials say they continue to seek money for office and housing upgrades in Jackson, even as they examine selling up to 10.4 acres on North Cache Street to finance infrastructure.

Officials on Tuesday released a cover letter to an environmental document that contains four alternatives for the sale, although they could not post the environmental assessment online until after business hours. Instead, forest planning and lands staff officer Michael Schrotz explained the elements of the study in an interview.

Selling the land is not the ideal solution, he said.

“At this point, we haven’t found another way to finance this stuff, that’s the downside,” he said.

Officials have explored getting capital investment money through Congress as well as stimulus money, without success.

“If anybody can come up with another way to do it, we’re open,” Schrotz said.

The preferred alternative would sell 10 acres along the southern boundary of the property, including frontage along North Cache. The plan would involve building 18 single-family units of employee housing at Nelson Drive.

The housing would be placed among the existing 6-acre development as well as on 3 additional acres near the Putt-putt trailhead, which would be relocated. The property is part of the national forest and near the National Elk Refuge and big-game winter range.

Schrotz said the decision to develop 3 acres with more density on Nelson Drive was a result of several public meetings.

“That really came from the public who said if we have to do it here, stay as small as possible and stay out of the wildlife habitat,” he said.

The preferred plan would also include four homes and a new bunkhouse on another forest parcel – the Cottonwood site south of Jackson at the south end of Fall Creek Road. Eight trailer homes now at the North Cache forest supervisor’s site would also be moved to Cottonwood.

Another alternative would involve selling 7 acres. Schrotz said that would allow the forest to keep more facilities at the North Cache site.

Schrotz was unclear about whether the eight trailer homes would be moved under that alternative. Nine single-family units would be constructed on Nelson Drive. The Cottonwood site would see roughly the same level of development as in the preferred alternative.

A third alternative would sell 10.4 acres on North Cache, consisting of 4.4 acres of frontage, and 6 acres on the north end of the site. The Nelson Drive and Cottonwood sites would see development similar to the preferred alternative.

There’s also a “no action alternative” that wouldn’t involve selling any land.

Schrotz said the trick is figuring out how much money the land is worth.

“You never know what you’re going to get until you sell,” he said.

Schrotz also spoke about a new district ranger office that is under construction in Big Piney. Some worry that money from the sale will go toward that building, not the infrastructure in the Jackson area.

Schrotz said the regional office has allocated money for the Big Piney building, but he said funds from selling the property on North Cache could be used in Big Piney, if there is enough left over. He said the priority is the new construction in Jackson.

“Before we would pay for the Big Piney office, we would pay for all our housing and facilities in Jackson,” he said.

All the money from the sale will remain with Bridger-Teton National Forest, regardless.

Louise Lasley, public lands director for the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, said she’s disappointed that the forest has been unable to find other funding for the needed buildings.

“Selling public lands in order to meet operational agency needs does not seem the best management practice,” she said. “The current market for property, even in Jackson Hole, would also indicate that this proposed sale is not the wisest step to take at this time.”

Lasley said the Conservation Alliance has asked the forest to try to keep as much of the North Cache land as possible to avoid relocating operations and housing.

“These relocations would disrupt a functioning work-housing situation and increase environmental and community impacts in the Cottonwood and Nelson Drive areas,” she said. “It would run counter to current planning desires to have greater density in town and less impacts on our fringes.”

Lasley said she looks forward to reading the entire document.

One person close to the issue who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the preferred alternative would require homeowners who live at the North Cache site to move their mobile homes to Cottonwood. The government won’t pay for the move, which some estimate could cost each homeowner more than $20,000.

“It’s putting hardship on current employees who have been around for many, many years,” the person said. “I feel like they’re putting the needs of future employees above the needs of current employees.”

In March, Bridger-Teton officials said they will slow down the planning process to sell the administrative land on North Cache after a meeting in which the public expressed concerns about getting a good price for the land in a bad real estate market. Developers also said a lack of certainty over the parcel’s zoning could keep them from purchasing the property.

Officials had hoped to finish the planning process and put the property up for auction by the end of the year. When the process began, some estimates put the property’s value at between $30 million and $50 million.

Since then, real estate brokers have reported slow sales and prices on properties around Jackson Hole have been reduced.

The document will be available online at www.fs.fed.us/r4/btnf/projects. The public will have 30 days to comment on the proposal. Comments should be submitted to: Carole “Kniffy” Hamilton, Forest Supervisor, P.O. Box 1888, Jackson, WY 83001. Comments may be submitted electronically to  comments-intermtn-bridger-teton@fs.fed.us. The subject line should specify “Conveyance Project.” For information, contact Schrotz at 739-5560.