CHEYENNE, Wyo. — In a significant move for conservation and public land management, Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon has approved a $100 million deal to sell a 1-square-mile parcel of pristine state-owned land to the U.S. government for inclusion in Grand Teton National Park. The agreement was finalized on Friday, December 28, 2024, effectively ending a long-standing threat by the state to potentially sell this land to private developers.
The land in question, located near the southeastern part of Jackson Hole, has been part of Wyoming since before the establishment of Grand Teton National Park in 1929. Bordered by the park on three sides and national forest on the fourth, this parcel is one of the last state-owned properties within the park’s boundaries.
Under the terms of the agreement, the federal government will pay $62.5 million, which is the appraised value of the property, with the remainder funded through privately raised contributions. This land, carpeted with trees, shrubs, and sagebrush, offers breathtaking views of the Teton Range and serves as crucial habitat for wildlife, including elk, moose, and grizzly bears.
Governor Gordon, a Republican, emphasized that his approval came after ensuring that a U.S. Bureau of Land Management plan for managing vast areas of southwestern Wyoming would not impose excessive restrictions on development, particularly oil and gas drilling, as stipulated by the state Legislature last winter.
This sale marks the end of a contentious history where Wyoming threatened to auction off the land unless the federal government acquired it. The approval by the Wyoming Board of Land Commissioners in a 3-2 vote in November paved the way for this transaction, which is the last of four such sales over the past decade, aimed at integrating state lands into the national park to preserve their natural beauty and ecological value.
The move has garnered support from conservationists and those who value the natural and recreational offerings of Grand Teton National Park, while also ensuring that the proceeds benefit Wyoming’s public education system, in line with the state’s constitutional obligations to generate income from public lands for educational purposes.