Cache,looking North, 1955 The stone building on the right-hand side of the street is the Jackson Drug Co. at 15 Deloney. The Jackson Drug was started in 1912 in the Clubhouse by Jim Simpson. Simpson sold the business in 1922 to Bruce Porter. Porter constructed the building in the photo in 1937 and moved the soda fountain to the new building. The soda fountain featured homemade ice cream which was made in the cellar of the building. Behind the drug store on Cache is the Teton Theatre constructed in 1941. Originally the theatre did not have a concession stand. Thus, patrons would purchase their refreshments at the drug store prior to going to the movies. Jackson Drug Co., 1939 The log building to the right of the drugstore is the post office. With the change in Jackson during the 1980's rents available for commercial space on the Square rose dramatically. In 1988, the then owners of the building attempted to evict the drug store. The courts refused the eviction. In the words of Mr. Justice Cardine of the Wyoming Supreme Court: The record indicates that Brazelton's motive for attempting to void the lease was to increase the rent from Jackson Drug, because the rent charged was lower than rents charged other businesses in the vicinity of Jackson Drug. We have the duty to sustain the legality of contracts fairly entered into if reasonably possible [citation omitted]. Absent overreaching, we will not aid one who discovers that he has made an unwise bargain in entering into a contract [citation omitted]. Brazelton asks us to do just that. We decline the invitation. Other than the Cowboy Bar, Jackson Drug was the last of the old time businesses on the square. It closed on October 31, 2001. The building is now occupied by a trendy rug emporium. On Cache, across the street from the Teton Theatre, was orginally located Charles "Pop" Deloney's General Store. The site is now occupied by a motel. Oldest existing building in Jackson, approx. 1920, now a playhouse, see photo, lower right. In those days many of the local vehicles consisted of pickup trucks and International Scouts, for ranching was still an important part of the economy. As of this writing (August 2003) the pickup trucks are no longer rusty and have four doors. South of town at Smith's, the new Hummers are on display. Growth and development has, however, changed the base of economy, and by 2001 one of the last working ranches in the area, the Porter Trust property, was proposed for development. This, along with the Rafter J annexation provoked a furious debate before the Town Council. Arguments relating to "urban sprawl" and "big box" stores were made to the Council. Raye C. Ringholz in her 1992 book, Little Town Blues, Gibbs-Smith Publishing, Layton, UT, wrote of the effect of the "gentrification" of Jackson. She noted that Lumley's, see photo previous page, had been replaced by Albertson's, and small individually owned cafes were replaced by upscale restaurants: "The people who migrated to Jackson for its wild scenery, outdoor recreation and frontier flavor started clamoring for paved roads, airport expansion, and increased cultural facilities. Instead of fitting into frontier life themselves, they tried to impose upon their new home the gentrification of the places they had left. Polarization of the community resulted." Pink Garter Playhouse The big growth in Jackson, however, started in the 1970's and has, in fact, created Ms Ringholz's "polarization" as most recently evidenced by the debate over the Porter Trust annexation and the "Rafter J" annexation. In March of 2002, the writer was discussing the growth of Teton County with a horse breaker who grew up in the Sunshine Basin, southwest of Powell. His attitude was indicated by his observation that Teton County and adjacent Lincoln County to the south, were "no longer Wyoming." In a lawsuit, see Board of County Commissioners of Teton County v. Crow, 2003 Wy 40, 65 P. 3d 720 (2003), the issue came centerfold. That action dealt with the construction of a house containing some 11,000 square feet of habitable space. Bill Collins, the county planning director, observed that the county had studied the problem. At the time of the study the average house was only 1,342 square feet and the very largest ranch complex was 6,988 square feet. Traditionally, homes in the valley were one-story ranch houses. But by the early 1990's, Mr. Collins continued, much larger two-story residential "edifices" began appearing. Most of the new houses were, according to the Comprehensive Plan, second homes "ranging from 5 to 12 times the size of most normal housing in the valley." The impact was, according to Collins, to caused an "upward spiral in land prices, unaffordable to most County residents; that a a result, residents have been displaced outside the community." This in turn, changed the County's social structure: Social and economic classes that once mingled in the community are growing apart as households that cannot afford homes in Teton County are relocating to Teton Valley, Idaho, Alpine, and Bondurant. Indeed, to some extent Mr. Crow, the owner of the 11,000 square foot home, in a way, confirmed that the community was growing apart. Justice Hill of the Wyoming Supreme Court noted: Crow's argument goes like this: Some "permanent residents" stereotyped newcomers to Teton County as "wealthy/affluent non-residents" who were causing land values to skyrocket. Furthermore, Crow characterizes Teton County's efforts to channel and control development as discrimination and exhibiting an "animus" for "wealthy non-residents." Crow also contents that the LDR's [Land Development Regulations] are founded by a belief in the minds of "permanent residents" that the "very affluent" or those "with extensive families" have no part in Teton County's "community fabric." Left: Snow, Jackson, 1936. Scene believed to be near present day Rafter J. Right: Snow, Jackson, 1947. Mr. Collins' observations are borne out by a 2001 Housing Needs Assessment prepared for the Teton County Housing Authority by Prior & Associates. The report noted that the average price of homes sold in Teton County during the first six months of 2001 was $1.17 million and that in July 2001, the median residential lot price in Teton County was $950,000. The impact was forcing employees to commute from Idaho over Teton Pass. In winter, the route over the pass can best be described as problematical. The road is subject to closure as a result of avalanches. . . Left, Teton Pass, undated; Right, Teton Pass approx. 1941 Next Page: Growth in Jackson continued, the Wort Hotel.