State officials, Jacksonites question 'disposal' of Kelly parcel

JACKSON — For the first time in recent memory, a small herd of horses was grazing outside the Teton County Library.

Inside, their owner, Jake Hutton, wore a worn, drooping cowboy hat as he regaled state officials with his thoughts on why 640 acres of state land near Kelly shouldn’t be auctioned off. Hutton grazes his small herd on the parcel, which is just east of Grand Teton National Park, and runs an outfitting business there. He’d like to keep that job, but couldn’t if a developer buys the land and subdivides it.

Hutton and others took issue with the state’s use of the word “...