The Fair Goes On!
I sure had fun at the Teton County Fair a couple of weeks ago! My favorite was the pie eating contest, of which I was the proud sponsor. Pie eating contests are the apex of Western civilization and this one did not disappoint.
I am happy to report that despite wide-spread fears, rumors and misrepresentation, the fair and other year-round uses of the fairgrounds are not going away.
The affordable housing project that the Town of Jackson is sponsoring at 400 West Snow King Avenue (across the street from the core fairgrounds) interferes neither with holding the fair nor the rodeo. Rather, it provides deed restricted and truly affordable housing next to the fairgrounds, in town, near jobs and public services - where development should go according to sound planning principles.
For background, the Teton County Fair board sponsors an annual fair (subject to the County Commission’s approval). I deeply appreciate the volunteer members of the fair board and other fair volunteers, who produce an exemplary annual event and navigate difficult political seas regarding facilities and grounds. Kudos to the fair board!
The Nuts and Bolts
The Town of Jackson owns the fairgrounds and rodeo arena. JH Rodeo is a private contractor that puts on the rodeo shows during the summer under contract with the town. Otherwise, the Town leases the fairgrounds to the County, which the Fair Board manages subject to a rather complex management agreement.
In the past several months, the County has taken the following steps to support the fair:
Extended our lease with the town to 2030.
Remodeled the building that was used as the temporary fire house into a year-round community center and exhibit hall. The new exhibit hall and community center — which is significantly larger — is a major improvement over the old green metal building.
A political pressure group has been advertising that the rodeo grounds is the soul of Jackson Hole. As much as I support the fair, I take issue with this claim. The soul of Jackson Hole is its people. To protect the soul of Jackson Hole, the people who sustain this community need a place to live. We need housing opportunities for our hospital workers, school teachers, firefighters, social service providers, grocery store workers, and the other people in the public and private sector who make this valley a community. We aren’t a community if the entire housing stock is short-term rentals and luxury homes.
To save the soul of Jackson Hole requires a wide range of local policies: not only staging an excellent fair and creating housing opportunities for our workers, but also protecting water quality and wildlife and striking a balance between community and commerce.
Looking longer term, the current site for the fair presents challenges, including size, congestion, and access not only for the annual fair but for year-round 4-H events and other uses of the exhibit hall and heritage arena. The Fair Board wrote a letter May 9, 2022 which well explains these challenges.
Let's Get to a Win-Win
We need an informed community dialogue to discuss:
Whether the current fairgrounds best meet our long-term community needs and if not, whether there are any suitable and available sites for relocating the fairgrounds close to town.
If so, how to provide a more spacious fairgrounds and a modern Western Heritage Center, while repurposing the current site into a neighborhood that is a community asset – housing for local workers and seniors, space for child care, parks, transit, and attractive community design.
I encourage everyone to approach this challenge recognizing that our shared goal is to improve the short-term and long-term health of the fair and the community. We need analysis and dialogue, rather than threats, name calling, and insults.
Count me as a strong fair supporter committed to protecting and improving the county fair and eager to investigate options to ensure that the fair remains a community asset long into the future and that the community remains a balanced, thriving community.
And kudos to the fair board and volunteers – and the brave souls who competed in the pie eating contest.
Thank you for a great 2022 fair,
Luther