Regional Forester Harv Forsgren has rejected a proposal that federal land in north Jackson be encumbered by an easement that would prevent construction of a “big box” store there.

Forsgren rejected the idea in a Feb. 12 letter to Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance board member Joe Albright, according to a copy of the correspondence released by the Conservation Alliance. U.S. Forest Service officials began working on a plan to sell agency property in Jackson years ago as a way to raise money to fund the replacement of the aging Bridger-Teton National Forest headquarters building there.

Alliance staffers said their organization told the agency it  should try to sell an easement that would limit the size of future commercial development on about 10 acres of the site. Forsgren’s letter says he would not restrict use of the property.

“Deed restrictions are not being considered for any of the land because we do not wish to preclude future options for the Forest Service or owners who may purchase the land,” Forsgren wrote. “We believe that the future development of land sold should be determined by the city of Jackson and not the Forest Service.”

If the 10 acres were sold, the Jackson Town Council would have the responsibility of responding to any request that the property be rezoned to allow commercial development. Forsgren said he would press on with his plan and would resolve headquarters replacement one way or another, apparently even if that means building somewhere else.

“Adequate facilities and housing are essential for the long-term presence of the supervisor’s office in Jackson,” he wrote “It is my desire that the objectives of new facilities and housing be met in Jackson with this conveyance project. If the social capacity in the community of Jackson is not sufficient to accomplish these objectives, other options for meeting these objectives will necessarily have to be considered.”

The Conservation Alliance interpreted that as meaning “that if the community succeeded in blocking the planned sale of the public land on North Cache, the Forest Service might reconsider its decision to keep the Bridger-Teton supervisor’s office in Jackson,” the group said in a statement.

The Forest Service had considered moving the headquarters from Jackson as part of its plan. But it abandoned that idea after community-wide criticism.

The redevelopment also contemplates employee housing on national forest land on Nelson Drive. Some estimates put the value of the North Cache property at more $30 million before the current economic downturn.

‘Appropriate’ concern

Albright and other Conservation Alliance members, during a Jan. 29 meeting in Ogden, Utah, suggested the agency sell a conservation easement, organization members said. Louise Lasley, public lands director for the organization, said the proposal to sell so many acres at one of Jackson’s gateways “draws an appropriate level of concern” from community members. That might not have been anticipated by the regional office, she said.

“I can understand the regional forester’s disappointment in the process of selling the Bridger-Teton National Forest administrative site on North Cache,” she said. “This proposal has never had strong backing from the community, although the community does support retaining the supervisor’s office in Jackson.

“The Conservation Alliance is very concerned that alternative solutions have not been found,” Lasley said. “And we’re concerned about the potential of having the supervisor’s office relocated brought back into the equation.”

At the Jan. 29 meeting, Lasley, who participated via teleconference from the supervisor’s office in Jackson, said Forsgren rejected the idea of an easement to limit the size of future commercial structures on the North Cache site “handily.” Albright said he hopes Forsgren will work with the community to find a good solution.

“This community tends to react better to compromise than confrontation,” he said in a statement. “And so I hope the regional Forest Service office will reconsider its hard-line approach.”

Bridger-Teton National Forest spokeswoman Mary Cernicek said Bridger-Teton employees are concentrating on the completion of an environmental document that Forest Supervisor Kniffy Hamilton will use to make a decision about the proposed sale. Cernicek said the document, which was due out in March, has been delayed because forest officials are still considering public comments.

“We’re really not really concerning ourselves with anything outside the public process,” she said.

Intent to sell

In the letter, Forsgren reiterated his position that the regional office intends to sell some of the North Cache site. Some have said such statements violate the National Environmental Policy Act, which dictates that federal officials must consider a “no action alternative” during the ongoing review.

“While the final decision has not been made, it is our intent to sell the minimum acreage that meets the purpose and need of accomplishing our objectives,” Forsgren wrote.

Forsgren also mentioned the construction of a new $1.2 million district office in Big Piney, which some are concerned was funded in anticipation of the North Cache sale. Banking that an ongoing review would come to the conclusion that the Jackson property would be sold is another indication that a sale decision has been made, critics say.

Photos obtained by the Conservation Alliance through the Freedom of Information Act show construction equipment on the Big Piney site Oct. 14 and construction in progress Oct. 26.

In the Feb. 12 letter, Forsgren said the money was borrowed from the Caribou-Targhee National Forest but does not necessarily have to be repaid with funds from the North Cache sale.

“The Jackson conveyance may provide sufficient funds to reach other projects ... including the Big Piney office but is not required to do so,” he said. “The priority order of projects ... indicates that Jackson Ranger District and supervisor’s office replacement and housing are a priority over funding of the Big Piney office. Therefore, the future conveyance of the Jackson property in a manner that meets our objectives is not dependent on the repayment of Big Piney office construction costs.”

The Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance is holding a meeting on the land sale at 10 a.m. on Friday at its office at 685 S. Cache St. in Jackson.