We all know that the lands surrounding the Teton Range are some of the most beautiful and unique pieces of ground on earth. We also know that the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem is one of the most important relatively intact temperate ecosystems remaining in the world, and the Teton region makes up an integral part of Greater Yellowstone.
Teton Valley a top conservation priority
But, did you know that Teton County, Idaho, was ranked the #1 conservation priority in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem? It’s true. In 2001, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition commissioned a study of 42 conservation “mega-sites” in Greater Yellowstone, and then prioritized them on the basis of the irreplaceable qualities of the ecosystem and the threat posed by human development.
Why didn’t Jackson and Teton County, Wyoming, make the top of that list instead of Teton Valley? When comparing the Teton counties, one major difference is that the Wyoming county is 97% public land while the Idaho county is 67% privately owned. With so much sensitive land open for development, land use practices in Teton Valley have significant potential to cause irreparable harm to the regional ecosystem.
In the decade since the conservation priorities study was completed, over 6,000 new residential lots have been created in Teton Valley by subdividing nearly 20,000 acres of critical wildlife habitat, migration corridors, nesting grounds, staging areas and meaningful open space. To put that number in perspective, today there are over 7,000 empty but entitled subdivision lots in a county with around 8,000 residents. 75% of our lots have not been built on, not to mention the untold number of spec homes that continue to stand empty. Absorption estimates give the county a 70 – 300 year supply of residential lots, while a 7-year supply is considered healthy.
Looking for environmental and economic solutions
Valley Advocates for Responsible Development (VARD) has teamed up with the Sonoran Institute and Lincoln Institute of Land Policy to seek out solutions to the looming economic and environmental disaster that is represented by the inventory of subdivisions on the ground in Teton County, Idaho, today. In the first phases of the Reshaping Development Patterns project, VARD and our partners have identified a range of potential options that are mutually beneficial for property owners, taxpayers and the regional ecosystem.
The current phase of the project is aimed at putting conservation-based solutions to the subdivision problem in Teton Valley into practice. In order to move from theory to reality, VARD is taking a three-pronged approach:
- As a resource for local government, VARD is working to help the county implement a predictable and streamlined re-approval process for what we call “zombie subdivisions” that want to leave the world of the undead. Fast-tracking the process for entitled subdivisions to undergo a redesign that creates measurable community and sustainability benefits will help reduce the barriers to increased sustainability.
- Through conversation and collaboration with local and regional lenders, it has become apparent to VARD that a series of detailed economic studies and analyses are a pre-requisite for developers seeking lender approval to redesign their projects. In order to reduce the barriers to financing sustainable yet non-traditional development proposals, VARD and our partners are working to commission the baseline studies that the lenders require to move forward.
- Without a real-life example to point to, changing the development status quo might well be an impossible task. Therefore, VARD is in the process of working with local developers who have volunteered to act as guinea pigs in the redesign process.
As VARD’s three-pronged push for sustainability moves forward, the key to making widespread changes is tied to messaging. By investing the time and energy to disseminate the results throughout the region, VARD expects that countless more projects will follow suit. The threat to the regional ecosystem in Teton Valley right now is extraordinary which is what led VARD to become involved in this innovative multi-disciplinary project. Yet, the fact that rural communities throughout the intermountain West face the same problems with zombie subdivisions is what led Sonoran and Lincoln to tackle the issue. We hope that you will join us in this struggle by providing support through 1% for the Tetons.
Valley Advocates for Responsible Development
355 North Main Street
PO Box 1164
Driggs, ID 83422
208-354-1707
www.tetonvalleyadvocates.org
Learn more about the Reshaping Development Patterns project at the project page, where you can watch a 5-minute video and download the project application.
Tags: 1% for the Tetons, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, One28, Sonoran Institute, Teton Valley Idaho, Valley Advocates for Responsible Development, VARD
