08 June 2024 , 20:36
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A billionaire is trying to rename a small Wyoming town with plans to build a luxury resort - much to the anger of locals.
Joe Ricketts, the TD Ameritrade founder and patriarch of his family that purchased the Chicago Cubs in 2009, wants to change Bondurant, Wyoming to Little Jackson Hole. The 82-year-old has been rallying to build a a 56-acre high-end resort on his 1,300-acre Jackson Fork Ranch property.
The proposed name for the retreat would be Homestead Resort, described by the Cowboy State Daily as a "premium resort experience with a mission-driven focus on protecting, preserving and enjoying the natural beauty of the Hoback region." The old billionaire, pitched the idea during dinner many years ago.
The former stockbroker chairman was keen to pay homage to Davey Jackson, an American pioneer and explorer with several locations in the valley named after him. The billionaire released a study where he wanted to examine the location name “JacksonLittle Hole” along with other variants including Little Jackson Hole. It read: "It also was to provide authoritative documentation of the usage of ‘Jackson’s Little Hole’ within the geographical area known today as Bondurant, Wyoming."
Bondurant had a small but mighty population of 152, according to a 2022 census. The research also found that the American explorer had two favourite hunting spots in the area - Jackson’s (Big) Hole and Jackson’s Little Hole.
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Residents aren't happy with the proposed changes (Getty Images/iStockphoto)Ricketts believes the name change would make the area more marketable, based on name recognition for those who already travel to the area. However, the suggestion irked some citizens of the small town, which sits in Sublette County, 40 miles southeast of Grand Teton National Park, who are angered by Rickett’s proposal for a tourist destination in the community.
Pat Burroughs said: "About 75% of the people all got up and left the dinner right then. They left the gift bags on the table and just walked out. We are Bondurant. This is the Upper Hoback."
Burroughs added that the change from Bondurant could bring confusion for delivery services. The resident added: "One gentleman even had trouble getting his medication. He kept telling them he lives in Bondurant, but they were looking for someone in Little Jackson Hole."
Richard Pearson, who claims to be the oldest lifelong resident of the Hoback Basin Valley, said the privacy of the community will vanish. He said: "I hate to see the change that this is going to bring to the private people who live in this valley. You know, it’s going to be a completely different world in a few years once this, once everything gets going."
Pearson complained that Ricketts had been buying several lands to add to his power to get the name change. He said: "He’s bought several places around here. It’s just like a cancer. He’s just sucking everything up. Anything that becomes available, he’s buying it."