JACKSON, Wyo. — In a unanimous vote at the Town Council Workshop on Tuesday, Jan. 20, a motion was approved to include discussions about amending some Land Development Regulations (LDRs) in the 2026 Fiscal Year (FY26).
On Sep. 15, 2025, the Town directed staff to present strategies or options for making additional changes to LDRs to address development pressures and impacts in the town consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. The discussion comes as a result of an uptick in development projects in town since 2020.
In a Town Council Workshop in October, two high-level paths were presented: to return with specific options to amend LDRs and to modify the existing Comprehensive Plan in a public outreach scoping project.
The discussion on Tuesday centered around the former. Planning Director of the Town of Jackson, Paul Anthony, presented six potential areas in which LDRs could be modified to account for development impacts in town: the 2:1 workforce housing bonus, building height restrictions, land uses (like short-term rentals), basement regulations, design guidelines and any other recommendations from Councilors.
Of the six recommendations, the first five were chosen to be considered in FY26 for amendment. Other recommendations will likely be discussed by Councilors and addressed on a later, yet undetermined, date.
Mayor Arne Jorgensen opened the floor to public comment after Anthony presented all options and answered Councilors questions. Comments were varied but generally supportive of taking action to amend LDRs in FY26. Executive Director of ShelterJH Clare Stumpf emphasized that all new commercial development should benefit the community in which it’s built; namely Jackson.
Other commenters mentioned amending LDRs for basement regulations to protect groundwater.
Some commenters were against stricter LDRs. Resident Stefan Fodor urged Councilors to consider the unintended consequences of stricter regulations.
“It’s already very difficult and very expensive to build here, and every layer of regulation we add has an additional cost,” Fodor said. He argued that basement development should be allowed, but controls should be put in place to protect groundwater.
Town Manager Tyler Sinclair emphasized that discussing the first five potential LDR amendments is reasonable to handle in the next six months, but other recommendations may require some more time to plan. The LDRs will be discussed again for FY26 on July 1.
