Swap Meet Discussion Series: Comissioner Luther Propst

Like a book club, but less of a commitment.

Read and discuss thought-provoking articles with local electeds.

Discussions take place in the fireplace area of the library. Please arrive by 7:05 p.m., as these programs are after-hours, and the front door must be staffed for you to enter.

Teton County Commissioner Luther Propst
THUR, OCT 26
7-8:30 p.m.

Article: How our Roads Hurt Us and Everything Around Us by Emily Raboteau (New York Times, September 10, 2023)
Article: It’s Only Community If Everyone Has a Place by Antonia Malchik (On The Commons, September 6, 2023)
My thesis is that Jackson Hole has a limited supply of land available for development and a nearly unlimited national or global demand for tourism and housing. This means that new housing is either deed restricted for the workforce or goes largely (almost entirely) for wealthy retirees, highly paid remote workers, or second/third homes. (Employer provided housing is another issue). This leaves little opportunity to local workers to live in Jackson, but instead commute from not only Victor, Driggs, and Alpine, but increasingly Rexburg, Bondurant, Pinedale, and Idaho Falls. It also means that we have ever-growing pressure for creating new jobs – with new hotels and mansions laying the foundation for job creation and ever more and longer commutes, largely in single occupancy vehicles. The topic for discussion is whether and when we should start discussing limits to job growth in this isolated valley and start discussing both supply and demand for workforce housing, with the goal of creating a balanced community.