Barrasso weighs in on Bridger-Teton land sale
By Cory Hatch, Jackson Hole, Wyo.
November 30, 2009
U.S. Sen. John Barrasso said Bridger-Teton National Forest officials should consider the high cost of housing and the needs of employees as the they go forward with a process to sell up to 11 acres.
Barrasso, of Wyoming, did not say whether he would seek funding from Congress for employee housing and to replace the forest’s aging and inefficient buildings, which together could cost as much as $30 million. The Forest Service has said it needs to sell the administrative land on North Cache Street to fund a new supervisor’s office and employee housing.
“Housing needs are pressing in Jackson,” Barrasso spokesman Gregory Keeley said in an e-mail. “USFS must consider the needs of their employees and their responsibilities for land management.”
Some Jackson residents and conservation organizations that oppose the project have asked Wyoming’s congressional delegation to find other funds to solve the forest’s needs. The other members of the delegation, Sen. Mike Enzi and Rep. Cynthia Lummis, have said they will continue to support the land sale.
“Senator Barrasso believes any decision should be made on the basis of an open public process,” Keeley said. “The USFS is currently accepting comment on the environmental analysis for their housing proposal. The senator encourages everyone to offer their insight to the agency.”
Forest officials are proposing to sell 10 acres, build 18 residences on Nelson Drive and move the fire crew and equipment to the Cottonwood work site south of Hoback Junction. Their plan also would force eight North Cache homeowners to move their manufactured homes to Cottonwood at their own expense.
Comments on the project are due by 4:30 p.m. today. Mail letters to: Attn. Carole “Kniffy” Hamilton, Bridger-Teton National Forest Supervisor, P.O. Box 1888, Jackson, WY 83001, or e-mail to comments-intermtn-bridger-teton@fs.fed.us (write “Conveyance Project” in the subject line).
The environmental assessment regarding the plan is available by clicking on the “conveyance” links at www.fs.fed.us/r4/btnf/projects.
