Friends of Pathways seeks $67.5k to keep 14 “pathway ambassadors” on duty

Friends of Pathways wants to keep a 14-person Pathway Ambassador Program on the ground, and it is asking the Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Board for $67,500 in FY27 to help pay for it. The goal is not marketing. It is face-to-face visitor management on the multi-use pathway network: directions, rules and etiquette, and minor bike repair, according to the application in Friends of Pathways Ambassador Services Funding Application Attachment.

The group frames the ask around sheer volume and conflict. Pathway counters logged more than 1.6 million trips in 2025 (not including Grand Teton National Park), and Friends of Pathways says increasing use and the popularity of e-bikes have driven complaints about speed, etiquette, and user conflict. The program is set up to run April 20 through Oct. 15 with paid and volunteer ambassadors, plus participation from Town police and County sheriff staff, although only law enforcement can issue tickets.

This is not a new cost center for lodging tax. Friends of Pathways says the program received $70,000 in the prior grant cycle (7/1/25 to 6/30/26) and expects those funds to be spent by the end of June, largely on a lead ambassador wage ($35,000), e-bike leases ($15,000), uniforms ($5,000), and stipends ($15,000). For FY27, the group also lists $27,000 of in-kind salary support from the Town and county, plus $32,500 in Friends of Pathways operating support, and says it intends to ask for $60,000 the following year.