JACKSON — The Teton County Board of County Commissioners may exempt homeowners building bigger homes from paying fees that help fund affordable housing.

At the same time, some commissioners are trying to reduce the size of the largest homes allowed under county code.

Commissioner Natalia Macker suggested changing housing mitigation policy at a meeting last week. Her proposal comes after Wyoming lawmakers tried, but failed, to outlaw the fees in consecutive legislative sessions. Hoback homeowners Shelby and Trey Scharp challenged the fees in court before reaching a settlement that refunded their money but spared the program.

“I feel a great urgency,” Macker said. “It would be great to get something done.”

The town and county charge some residential property owners building new homes — and commercial developers — mitigation fees to offset the impact of their development on the community’s housing stock. The logic of the fees is that workers need to build the homes and plumbers, electricians and house keepers need to maintain them, meaning development creates jobs — and that the people who work them need a place to live. The fees have helped the town and county build hundreds of homes but have increasingly drawn the ire of lawmakers and some community members.

Homeowners building homes under 2,500 square feet currently do not have to pay mitigation fees. Macker suggested upping that figure to 3,000 square feet. She asked the county to begin the process early next week with a workshop.

Big, big houses

In the same meeting, Commissioner Len Carlman suggested changing another county regulation that would limit how big of a house people can build.

Regulations currently allow homeowners to build up to 10,000 square foot homes in some rural areas of the county. By limiting how large homebuilders can build, the county can tackle the “demand” for housing, Carlman said.

He’s interested in a maximum home size that’s about half the current cap.

“Really big homes take more people to build,” Carlman said in an interview after the meeting. “Four or 5,000 square feet still provides ample space for even large families to gather.”

If a 5,000-square-home just won’t cut it, Carlman suggested the well-heeled seeking a commodious abode look to the community’s existing inventory of very large homes.

People who just “can’t be happy” in a smaller home should look to what’s already built, Carlman said. “If they don’t like the color of the paint or the textures or the configuration of the rooms, they can remodel to their heart’s content.”

Detractor reactions

Rep. Andrew Byron, R-Hoback, said he thinks the county should revisit mitigation fees. He’s not keen on Carlman’s proposal.

“They just can’t get out of their own way,” Byron said.

Byron voted for House Bill 141 this session, which would have eliminated the town and county’s ability to impose the fees. The bill failed but lawmakers pledged to revisit the issue. While Byron said he is glad commissioners are beginning the conversation, increasing the exemption won’t likely deter lawmakers who want to eliminate the program.

Asked if the change to a 3,000-square-foot exemption would change his stance, Byron said he’s not sure and would want to know why commissioners settled on that figure.

Shelby Scharp, who sued the county for wrongly charging her family more than $24,000 in mitigation fees, said in an interview Monday that commissioners’ move to widen the exemption was a “reactionary” one that would ultimately be “missing the forest for the trees.”

“They’re still missing the point,” Scharp said. “Imposing limitations on private property is unconstitutional.”