JACKSON, Wyo. — On Monday, April 21, Town Council unanimously approved a continuance to consider Mogul Capital’s sketch plan for a 190,000 square foot (sf) mixed-use hotel and condominium development, after conversation went long with stakeholders and community members sharing opposing viewpoints on the property.
Mogul Hospitality Partners’ original sketch plan was sent back to the drawing board in response to the 2024 emergency building moratorium that put a freeze on commercial building applications that were larger than 35,000 sf. Town Planner Tyler Valentine told Town Council that Mogul’s previous version of the project triggered the moratorium on Nov. 20, “because of its maximum building size downtown.” Valentine said that the Mogul sketch plan is now in compliance.
“It is now much smaller, less dense and broken up into multiple buildings,” Valentine said.
The newly revised sketch plan details the layout of five buildings with underground parking spread out along a 2.46-acre site along North Cache St. The project would encompass a downtown block surrounded by four streets: North Cache St. to the east (400 linear feet), Mercill Ave. to the south (200 linear feet), North Glenwood St. to the west (350 linear feet) and Perry St. to the north (130 linear feet).
Mogul Capital CEO Brad Wagstaff said that the Mogul property is consistent with the Town’s Comprehensive Plan for a mixed-use neighborhood. He explained that the project’s design would be similar to architecture in town — the Cloudveil was referenced as an example — but “the buildings wouldn’t be clones of one another.”
“We have listened and tried to be a good community partner,” Wagstaff said. “The building size by every measure is really one third size smaller. The basement depth versus the prior project is half as deep, and smaller.”
Margie Lynch, Chairperson of Jackson Hole Climate Action Collective, said during public comment that the conversation of how to amend Jackson’s Land Development Regulations (LDRs) needs to be included in project’s sketch plan.
“The developer presented a plan for the largest development ever planned in town,” Lynch said. “The fundamentals of the sketch plan don’t really speak to our core values … I hope you include them in the LDR conditions of this development.”
Mogul proposes to house 17 market units and 16 workforce units as part of the 2:1 Bonus. The applicant would be required to provide approximately four affordable deed-restricted units, which would be constructed off-site at The Loop project on 1060 and 1080 South Park Loop Dr.
During public comment, Aaron Pruzan, owner of Rendezvous River Sports, said the developer needs to consider the community’s need for more affordable housing.
“From a problem-solving standpoint, it would be good to see more affordable housing on site, closer to where many people work,” Pruzan said.
According to Town staff notes, the project would split the “East Site” along N. Cache St. and the “West Site” along N. Glenwood Ave., with the alleyway marking the divider line. The East Site would consist of four commercial buildings, each less than 35,000 sf, and the West Site would be an entirely residential building that uses the 2:1 workforce housing bonus. In an effort to make alley improvements, a traffic roundabout and pedestrian landscaping were added to the sketch plan. Wagstaff added that the alley would remain public.
Tammy Christel, a Jackson resident for 35 years, spoke in objection to the proposed alley roundabout.
“This project is not wanted by the community — we’ve been against this from the very start,” Christel said. “When I first saw your roundabout drawing in the plan, I was appalled. One of the biggest objections that the people of town have is giving up that alley, and the character and place in history that it represents. It’s just another roundabout that frankly a lot of big vehicles won’t be able to negotiate.”
A main concern from the public is the possible contamination of groundwater during and after construction. Valentine acknowledged that a major challenge to the development project is the benzene plume located underneath the northern portion of the site.
“It was discovered in 1990, when they were removing the Old Texaco gas station,” Valentine said. “That is still existing on the site.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, benzene is a colorless liquid chemical that is classified as a known human carcinogen. Exposure to benzene, especially through inhalation, can cause various health problems, including increased risk of certain types of cancers.
Based on the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) geotechnical analysis, the benzene plume should not be dug up or disturbed during construction. According to staff notes, a basement would no longer be constructed in the plume area, per DEQ’s recommendation. The project would be constructed aboveground, over the contaminated soil, in an effort to not disturb the former Exon site. The DEQ stated that “much of the benzene has been remediated or dissipated, however, any remaining contaminated soil would need to be disposed of properly per State requirements during the redevelopment of the site.”
“We think there is 4 feet of clean fill over top of this contamination,” Wagstaff said. “The DEQ’s recommendation is to work over it and not disturb it. They are the experts — we will follow the science.”
In response to the DEQ’s recommendation, Pruzan said that careful consideration of the plume needs to be analyzed.
“Double check with the DEQ to make sure that what they are suggesting is what should be done,” Pruzan said. “Once things are built on top, it’s going to be much more difficult to fix than when it’s during the construction phase.”
In addressing groundwater mitigation, Wagstaff proposed constructing a water treatment structure similar to a giant bathtub to completely seal the groundwater underneath the site.
“We would pump and clean the groundwater that is within the bathtub,” Wagstaff said. “So, we would not have additional water coming into the site. We would mitigate that water, clean it and then we would work with the Wyoming DEQ on discharging the clean water.”
Valentine said that the DEQ would continue its groundwater monitoring of the area, with a new study projected to be done in the spring of 2026. A third party review will also give groundwater recommendations, according to Valentine.
Protect Our Water Jackson Hole Executive Director Phil Powers shared his reservations with the bathtub design.
“There will be a significant amount of dewatering in this project,” Powers said. “A treatment facility will have to be part of the plan. Remember that Flat Creek is impaired and additional sediment can not be added to that creek. I do think there will be repercussions with flooding.”
Town Council will continue to discuss the Mogul development during its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, May 5. The sketch plan will also go before the Design Review Committee at a later date.
