Town’s rapid growth cause for concern

DRIGGS, Idaho – Brenda Hargraves lived in Pocatello just a few months before moving back to Driggs and her home of seven years near the Tetons.

She missed Driggs’ neighborly atmosphere and friendly residents. Pocatello felt too big compared with the town of 1,300.

But even in four months, Driggs changed.

“I went into Broulim’s (grocery store), and I didn’t know anyone in there,” she said. “That’s a first for me.”

And she knows more change is coming as people continue to discover the Teton Valley, its mountain scenery and the fact that the cost of living is cheaper than in towns such Vail and Aspen, Colo., or Jackson, Wyo.

Change is Hargraves’ and other residents’ biggest concern, according to a survey conducted by the city aimed at getting feedback for its comprehensive plan. The desire to keep Driggs’ small-town atmosphere received more votes than any other item on the survey.

“They have a desire to maintain the small-town character,” said Doug Self, Driggs’ planning and zoning administrator. “They fear it’s being eroded by all the development.”

In 2003, the city recorded about $600,000 in new commercial development. That number jumped to $4 million in 2004 and stayed about the same in 2005 as new grocery, hardware and other retail stores were built.

And nearly 70 new residential permits have been issued in the past two years.

“It’s phenomenal what’s going on,” said Travis Thompson, owner of Pinnacle Real Estate Group in Driggs. He estimates the cost of bare land in Teton Valley has risen 50 percent in the past year and a half. “There’s been a lot of hype and speculation,” he said.

Developers from Idaho Falls and Sun Valley, as well as Utah, California, Texas and Wyoming, are looking at the area, he said. And city leaders and residents are bracing for more – especially if Grand Targhee Resort gets the OK to expand. It has proposed building 779 lodging units on property 12 miles east of Driggs.

The condos, townhouses, cabins and single-family houses that officials want to build over a 20-year period could potentially turn Targhee into the full-fledged destination resort owners have envisioned, such as Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.

“It would bring year-round employment and a lot of opportunities for people,” said Larry Williamson, the resort’s manager. “It would add to the whole attraction of Teton Valley.”

Though most agree the expansion is a good thing, Driggs officials are nervous about the daunting task before them: making Teton Valley attractive for tourists as well as livable for residents.

“We want it to be a place where tourists can stop but is useable to people in the valley,” said Jeff Carter, executive director for Valley Advocates for Responsible Development, who’s been studying possible impacts of the Targhee development for nine months. “We want to make sure that what attracts people here doesn’t disappear.”

Though the buildings will go up on Wyoming’s side, Teton County, Idaho, is expecting to feel the effects, as it has during Jackson’s rise in popularity.

A large number of workers live on the Idaho side and commute to Jackson, and Carter believes Targhee’s workers will do the same. Although that means more people, the real problem is going to be providing them services, he said. The hospital is small, he said, and the Teton County, Idaho, Sheriff’s Office is the only law enforcement agency.

Schools are already packed; Teton County School District plans to bond for a new middle school in March. Driggs officials are trying to decide how far to extend their sewer system, Self said.

They’re also developing design standards intended to maintain the town’s heritage. Self is also concerned about controlling traffic and, most of all, keeping housing affordable.

Homes are selling for an average of $349,000, he said. High-end homes are going for $800,000 to $1 million-plus. Six Teton teachers commute from as far as Idaho Falls, Rexburg and St. Anthony, Teton County School District Superintendent Gordon Woolley said, and at least two have talked about quitting if they can find a better job.

He lost several teachers last year who couldn’t afford to buy a home in the valley.

“We’re losing teachers and sheriff’s deputies – key people in the community,” he said. Woolley attended a meeting Wednesday with the Blaine County School District in Sun Valley – both districts are looking for ways to keep houses affordable for their teachers.

Officials from Idaho, Wyoming and Grand Targhee are collaborating to iron out those problems – mainly the housing issue and the difficulty of providing services in a rapidly growing city – before they occur.

“We’ve had a lot of meetings about this issue (and its) challenges,” Williamson said. “We’re definitely partners in this. Input is extremely important.”

More meetings are planned, he said, and Targhee officials hope to be able to begin work in about a year.

“We want to make sure it’s a positive thing,” Carter said. “In general I think a good thing is happening.”