Council directs staff to develop wildlife‑friendly fencing and movement standards after wide discussion

Planning staff outlined a multi‑phase process on Sept. 28 to draft wildlife‑friendly fencing and wildlife movement standards and asked the council for policy direction. Andrew Bowen, a planning staffer, told the council the objective is to prioritize wildlife safety while balancing neighborhood and development needs and suggested a tiered approach aligned to the town’s NRO tiers.

"So tonight, we are here to discuss wildlife friendly fencing and movement standards, and gather some policy direction on both kind of the scope and scale of regulations that staff will form," Bowen said. He explained three core issues staff had identified in an urban context: entanglement (animals snagging on fences), entrapment (animals entering spaces with no clear egress), and blocking of movement (barriers to larger movement corridors). Bowen said staff recommends addressing entanglement townwide and prioritizing movement standards in higher‑value wildlife areas.

Public commenters included Amy Kushak of the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, who supported staff’s approach to start with outcomes before drafting specific rules: "I think starting with the outcomes we wanna achieve before deciding on specific standards is exactly the right approach," she said. Councilors probed how success would be measured, whether standards should apply to new development only or to existing properties, and how rigorous retrofit requirements might be enforced. Bowen acknowledged data limitations and said Game and Fish and stakeholders estimate entanglement events are relatively low in number—"maybe 2 to 4 a year"—but that design standards could reduce those incidents.

Following questions, Councilor Beeman moved to direct staff to proceed with the phased public‑engagement and drafting process described in the staff report; Councilor Schechter seconded. The council approved the motion unanimously.

Next steps: staff will hold targeted stakeholder roundtables (wildlife/conservation groups, property owners/neighborhoods, public works/transportation, and police), draft regulatory options, hold a public open house and then bring a draft code amendment to planning commission and the council.