Jackson Hole Underground

In case you missed it, “Smart Growth” has the solution to congestion on Teton Pass.

Seriously, smart growth will be the topic as two important issues converge this week: affordable housing and a new Comprehensive Plan.

On Tuesday night, the Jackson Hole Community Housing Trust hosted an open house to talk about a major affordable housing proposal in South Park. The project, called Teton Meadows Ranch, essentially would create another Rafter J, only 80 percent of the homes would be deed restricted.

In all, 400 homes would be built for various categories of affordable, from low income to professionals. An additional 100 free-market lots would help subsidize the deal. More details follow after the jump, below.

On Wednesday night, the public can give input on the new Comprehensive Plan that will shape the town and county for the next 10 to 15 years. Four scenarios will be presented, and citizens can register their approval via an electronic keypad.

This excellent Web site has all the details and allows for public comment.

The meeting runs from 6 to 8 p.m. at the St. John’s Episcopal Church Fellowship Hall, 168 N. Glenwood St. (across from Teton Mountaineering).

If we don’t get involved and help make these decisions, we will have to live with the decisions others make for us.

Teton Meadows Ranch is located between Rafter J and Melody Ranch, on a chunk of the Seherr-Thoss property about five miles south of Jackson.

Here is how the proposal compares with nearby developments:

Rafter J

• • 492 housing units on 295 acres
• • 139 acres of open space (44 percent)
• • lot sizes ranging from .16 acres to .52 acres

Melody Ranch

• • 331 housing units on 254 acres
• • 101 acres of open space (30 percent)
• • lot sizes ranging from .13 acres to .75 acres

Teton Meadows Ranch (proposed)

• • 500 housing units on 298 acres
• • 133 acres of open space (46 percent)
• • lot sizes ranging from .13 acres to .80 acres

Here is the breakdown of the housing:

Of the 400 deed-restricted homes, 125 would be traditional affordable housing for people earning up to 120 percent of area median income ($62,550 maximum for a family of one, or $89,400 for a family of four). These homes likely would cost less than $200,000, depending on construction costs.

The remaining 275 would be “gap” housing, for people earning between 120 percent and 200 percent of area median income. There is a surprisingly high number of these people, often in critical jobs, who are ineligible for Housing Trust and Housing Authority assistance, yet are priced far out of the free market. (The median free-market home price is $1.2 million in Teton County.)

A married couple of two teachers, for example, cannot buy a Housing Trust home yet would need to earn three times as much money to afford the median home. “Gap” homes would be priced between $440,000 and $740,000.

Sales of these homes to higher-income residents will open up existing entry-level homes to lower-income residents.

The Housing Trust would ensure that all buyers meet strict eligibility guidelines. The trust also will ensure that homes remain affordable in perpetuity. Even the most expensive “gap” homes will appreciate only at a set rate.

The Teton Meadows deal is structured so that the Housing Trust collects a 1 percent transfer fee on sales of all “gap” and free-market homes. The trust plans to use this revenue to continue building traditional affordable housing for low-income residents in town, on parcels it has purchased on Millward, East Hall and East Hansen.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 29th, 2008 at 3:46 pm and is filed under environment, conservation, economy, county government. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.