The Teton Area Wildland Protection Coalition and Jackson Hole Fire/EMS recommended the county commission disallow “fire-retardant treated wood roof coverings” for buildings in Teton County’s wildland urban interface. But roofers have pushed back on the recommendation, and that issue is one of three controversial topics on the county commissions Tuesday agenda.
The Teton Area Wildland Protection Coalition and Jackson Hole Fire/EMS recommended the county commission disallow “fire-retardant treated wood roof coverings” for buildings in Teton County’s wildland urban interface. But roofers have pushed back on the recommendation, and that issue is one of three controversial topics on the county commissions Tuesday agenda.
The county’s public Tuesday meeting will likely be a lively one.
The Teton County Board of County Commissioners is set to discuss an anti-discrimination resolution, the Gills’ 26-acre development proposal, and a ban on wooden shake roofs in fire prone areas of the county. All three items have seen controversy.
Commissioners requested to review an anti-discrimination measure after members of the public showed up at a December town and county meeting to raise questions about former library director Oscar Gittemeier’s unexplained departure. He is transgender and, without an explanation from county officials, people wondered whether he’d been fired and whether his gender identity was a factor.
“The limited information that Jackson’s queer community does have ... would lead any reasonable person to assume that an injustice has occurred,” Adrian Croke said then.
The resolution as written does not have legal teeth and is rather a statement of values. But, in a staff report, Deputy County Attorney Keith Gingery said that many “sources” had suggested “a multi-step process” to address the issue “with the first step to be to pass a resolution stating ... that the county values diversity, equity, and inclusion.”
While the resolution says “Americans of different races, ethnicities, religions, sexual orientations, gender identities, nationalities, and political persuasions” have “stood together” in “the face of challenges and division,” the final resolved statements do not explicitly address gender identity or sexual orientation. The resolution as drafted is attached to the online version of this article.
Discussion around the Gills’ proposal has also been fraught.
The family is looking to develop 26 acres of its land in northern South Park, but without deed restrictions that would set housing aside for the local workforce. The family claims developing there is a “decades-old legal right” because they’re planning to move ahead under the zoning that’s currently on the property.
But critics have worried that the development would exacerbate Jackson Hole’s housing woes. The town of Jackson has also not said whether it would connect the development to municipal water and sewer, and that has critics of the proposal concerned about water quality in the region.
The ban on wooden shake roofs has also attracted supporters and critics.
Fire officials have said the ban, which would not be retroactive, is intended to increase the resiliency of homes in the county’s wildland-urban interface.
The Teton Conservation District, Bridger-Teton National Forest, Jackson Hole Insurance, former fire official Steve Markason and other members of the public support the ban.
“This proposal to eliminate future construction of fire-retardant treated wood shingles and shakes will help move our county towards a more fire adapted community,” Markason wrote in a letter to the commission. “The science supports that embers can accumulate on roofs and that an untreated wood shake roof is the greatest threat to home survivability.”
But roofers have pushed back, arguing that “misinformation” is “floating around.”
Erich Tucker of MD Roofing told the Jackson Hole Daily that cedar shake roofs “could be a Class A,” or the highest rating as far as fire retardancy goes.
“Wood shake are just the hardiest, the most bomber roof you can put on because they can take a beating,” he said, arguing they’re one of the best options for surviving harsh winters.
Others have also argued that Jackson Hole would lose its character with different roofs.
“My personal view is that if the code is changed, as proposed, the town of Jackson is headed down a path of becoming a theme park with western wood roofed structures in town and a multitude of concrete tile and synthetic roof structures encircling it,” Howard Schirmer Jr. wrote in a letter to commissioners.
Members of the public who want to comment on any of these three items — or anything else on the county commission’s agenda — can do so over Zoom. The meeting ID is 878 3481 3155. The dial-in number is 1-669-900-6833.
Tuesday’s meeting will start at 9 a.m. It will be virtual.
Contact Billy Arnold at 732-7063 or barnold@jhnewsandguide.com.
Billy Arnold has been covering the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and the people who manage it since January 2022. He previously spent two years covering Teton County government, and a year editing Scene. Tips welcomed.
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1) Don't divide us up into identity groups. Treat everyone with respect.
2) More dedicated open space and less housing units would be best for Porter Estate.
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