Teton PC urges town/county to keep joint long-range planner position

Teton County’s Planning Commission voted to recommend that the Town of Jackson and Teton County continue funding the “joint” long-range planner position, after staff said they were unsure whether the role would continue.

In the commission’s March 2 discussion of the annual Long Range Planning work plan and indicator report, Principal Joint Long Range Planner Ryan Hostetter told commissioners that, as of writing her report, she was uncertain whether the jointly funded town/county position would remain in existence and that discussions were ongoing between the Town Manager and county administrators. Commissioners later included “maintaining the joint long-range planner position” as one of three recommendations attached to their work-plan recommendation.

The minutes also tie the joint position to upcoming comprehensive-plan work. Staff reviewed the plan’s “adaptive management” system and noted that the plan’s 7% residential unit growth trigger has been met — a threshold that can prompt a community check-in/update process. Hostetter described a consultant-led approach that would likely require an RFP and a multi-person project team, with early work focused on auditing the current plan, identifying major issues, and running community engagement before formal amendments move into hearings.

The Planning Commission did not take any formal action on the staffing question beyond its recommendation in the work-plan discussion, and the minutes did not document a final decision by town/county leadership on whether the joint position will continue. Source: Board Meeting Minutes.