For most workers in Jackson Hole, finding housing means compromise. There are long commutes for those who live across Teton Pass in Idaho, maybe its unsafe drinking water in Hoback, or, if you’re in town, some of the nation’s highest rents.
For some, the tradeoff looks like giving up a kitchen staple: the oven.
Alana Alfrey has worked several hospitality jobs in Jackson for more than a decade. She first rented a cabin in the area for eight years, without an oven. She didn’t even notice it was missing when she first moved in at 25, but she said it made holidays and gatherings especially difficult.
When Thanksgiving came up or cookouts with friends, anything where she would typically shove one sheet in an oven, “I had to think of another way to make it or show up at other people’s houses hours earlier [and] borrow their oven.”
Alfrey isn’t alone. KHOL interviewed four workers who also described living in rentals without ovens, relying on restaurants, take-out or countertop appliances for their meals.
Jacksonite Jaclyn Barlock, 38, lived for over a year in a hotel room in the Southtown motel while working for the Four Seasons. She ate mostly raw charcuterie-style food, she said, and had an egg cooker. Two others ate mostly from restaurants they worked in.
Soon, around 100 more Jackson-area workers will join the no-oven club.
Sadek Darwiche, who also owns Hotel Jackson, is almost done remodeling a former assisted living facility south of town into workforce housing called Legacy Lodge.
He bought the building in 2021 with his brother. Rooms have been largely vacant until now due to a series of legal battles with neighbors, the Rafter J homeowner’s association and even county commissioners, over if and how the apartments were permitted.
The 57 units range from studios to two-bedrooms. On each counter is a two-burner cooktops and a toaster ovens big enough for pizza rolls. They come with big closets, windows and have been remodeled to add hardwood floors. But, there are no conventional ovens.
Darwiche said the decision helps keep construction costs down, and by extension rent, and allows workers to move in faster.
Studio rent in Legacy Lodge starts at $2,350 per month, which he said is more than 20% below average for the area. He thinks the cost is still fair, especially if employers buy leases and subsidize, a common practice in Jackson.
“We looked at the entire market and we came down 20% below the average,” he said. “When we looked at that, at the first iteration, I said, ‘No, they need to be lower.’”
On the free market, just a few miles north, studios in the Timbers start at $2,596. One-bedrooms go for $2,950 at Latitude 43, according to rental pages. New “luxury-market” apartments at The Loop start studio rent at $2,999.
In that context, Legacy Lodge has been praised by elected officials and housing advocates as a “win.”
First, the Darwiches voluntarily limited rentals to local workers and agreed, in the permitting process, to a county rule giving priority to critical service providers like nurses and firefighters.
Then, there’s the likelihood that the units are saving the county millions by avoiding new construction for deed-restricted housing.
A 2023 county housing study found building a new two-bedroom unit in Jackson can cost $793,000 to construct and $254,520 to subsidize.
Mark Newcomb is a county commissioner who’s still torn about seeing the assisted living facility disappear. But, he said this set-up is the next best option.
“There’s always been the trade-off living in Jackson Hole. You’re going to have to sacrifice something,” he said. “There’s just no way, unless you have financial help, that you’re going [to] be able to expect what you might see in other parts of the country.”
Alfry phrased it similarly.
“In Jackson, we do give up so much just to be able to live here,” Alfry said. “I’m not going to like not sign a lease because there’s no oven.”
Alfry signed her first lease without realizing the kitchenette didn’t have an oven. But she resigned for nearly a decade. It wasn’t make-or-break, she said, rather it was a “giant inconvenience.”
Clare Stumpf, who leads housing advocacy group ShelterJH, said she understands why some are critical of the missing appliances.
A commercial kitchen residents can pay to book on the main floor is a plus, she said. The units meet county livability standards and are an improvement over many current options.
“There are people living in unsafe situations. There are people in overcrowded situations. There are folks living in their vehicles and there are folks, of course, who are forced to leave the valley because they don’t have other options,” she said.
Darwiche said he will poll residents to see how they would like to use common rooms leftover from the building’s days as assisted living homes. They could become amenities such as gym space, TV rooms and a spot to tune and wax skis. There’s even a sauna and outdoor grills.
Legacy Lodge is intended to be a community hub, Darwiche said.
The model reflects a growing trend in mountain towns, where denser, communal housing is becoming more common. About 30 minutes away in Victor, Idaho, the Larkspur Apartments offer dorm-style units starting at $1,500 a month.
Those units do include ovens.
Darwiche said he’s open to feedback and may revisit the idea of adding the appliance. He’s been proud to see lots of interest already in the units, which he hopes will help the employees of local businesses stay here.
“When I hear people talk about how Jackson is changing, or Jackson isn’t the same Jackson,” he said, “I think, okay, if I wanna maintain our heritage, what are the necessary ingredients or requirements to do that?”
