SUBLETTE COUNTY – Multifamily housing in a proposed mixed-use development at the Daniel Junction is envisioned as “employee housing … ideal for working in Teton County” according to an applicant seeking zoning changes.

The 28.47-acre ag-zoned property in question, at the intersection of highways 191, 189 and 354, is owned by The Dorothy Noble Trust with Danielle Dover applying to change zoning to sell and develop lots for highway commercial, light industrial and multifamily housing, according to Sublette County Planning & Zoning records.

“The light industrial and highway commercial will provide business opportunities and the multifamily residential would be used as employee housing,” Dover said in the rezoning application. “Initially the eastern lots that are zoned light industrial will be the focus.”

One LI-zoned lot would house new storage units, it says; the family’s company Dover Drilling would relocate its drilling yard and office from the Pinedale Industrial Site to another lot. Also, it would make Dover Drilling’s work in other counties more convenient to access.

This is the second rezone request to be heard by Sublette County Planning & Zoning Board at its July 21 public meeting; both propose more intense development along the two main highways, a harbinger perhaps for an onslaught of commercial and residential development from Daniel to Bondurant. 

Moyes seeks subdivision

Jason and Melinda Moyes are first up at the July 21 meeting at 6 p.m., seeking to rezone 299 agricultural acres to one 10-acre and possibly 50 or more 5-acre residential lots with a followup subdivision request.

The Moyes property is located along and across Highway 191 at Pape Road (Beaver Creek Road) and 40 Rod Road. As a comparison, 40 Rod parcels visible from the highway are 10-acre lots, according to Sublette County GIS.

Daniel expansion

The Dover-Dorothy Noble application seeks a patchwork of zoning changes, with a highway commercial strip and light industrial zoning around the corner where Highway 189 splits off to go through the tiny community of Daniel and beyond. Light industrial zoning uses include sawmills, lumberyards, storage units and others leading into the town.

“I believe the other lots are prime locations for local businesses looking to expand, such as a car dealership or building contractor,” Dover’s application says under “criteria for rezoning.”

The Sublette County Comprehensive Plan does “encourage commercial property development along major thoroughfares,” it says, and this property “is at the intersection of the two main thoroughfares in Sublette County.”

Rezoning the lots within the parcel is appropriate as highway commercial with “the Daniel Junction gas station and other highway commercial and light-industrial businesses across the highway to the north.”

The Dover request states that a groundwater well would be sufficient “for the supply.” It does not specifically mention a sewer system, and there is no sewer system to connect with. The property is situated by or near Horse Creek, Prairie Creek, Faler Creek and the Green River.

Lots to sell

The application says of the proposed multifamily residential parcels, “For the northern most lots, we are hoping to work with the commuter bus from Teton County to provide needed parking and transportation for work out of Sublette County.”

The plan is to sell the rezoned lots to individual buyers rather than develop it personally.

“The public’s ability to purchase lots in this subdivision will provide jobs in the construction and development phase of the area,” the application says. “Once development is final, then jobs and housing will be available for long-term sustainability. Many commuters and companies that live in Sublette County, yet work in Teton County, will benefit from the development. The access point is ideal for working in Teton County.”

Much of the surrounding landscapes just off the highway are owned by longtime ranch families and are very large ag-zoned properties – the Roberts and Beard families of Daniel being two.

Rumor?

Although rumors are rampant that billionaire Joe Ricketts bought land in Daniel to build housing for employees of Jackson Fork Ranch in Bondurant, this piece and surroundings parcels do not currently show Ricketts or Jackson Fork Ranch as a developer, according to Sublette County GIS.

WYDOT is adjacent with industrial zoning for highway materials and equipment storage.

Another 3.43-acre parcel belongs to Green River Exploration and Drilling for industrial oil and gas uses, it says.

That owner, DeWitt Morris, wrote county planner Dennis Fornstrom a letter of support for the Dover-Noble proposal. However, if development plans “included any activity which generated noise levels exceeding the current level of sound in this area,” Morris would not support it.

WYDOT also has access off Highway 354, Horse Creek Road, next to one of Dover’s proposed accesses.

One 2.47-acre residential parcel would be surrounded on all sides by development with the proposed rezones – the George and Laura Jean Rahm home administered by Dwayne Burson, now of Oklahoma.

However, one 340-acre ranch parcel, next to the Dover-Noble proposed rezone, was purchased less than a year ago by Harber Investments LLC, of Nevada, with Jemas LLC of California listed as its agent. Faler Creek Ranch LLC is close, with two parcels totaling 91 acres zoned residential.

To be clear, none of these neighboring owners have yet applied for zoning changes.

For more

For complete information about the rezoning applications submitted by Jason Moyes and Danielle Dover- Dorothy Noble, contact county planner Dennis Fornstrom at 307-367-4375 or Dennis.Fornstrom@sublettewyo.com.

After the July 21 public meeting, to be held at the Sublette County Courthouse at 21 S. Tyler St. in Pinedale, the P&Z board will make its recommendations to the Sublette County commissioners for their Aug. 2 decisions.