Approximately 70 people packed Ketchum City Hall Tuesday evening to express impassioned opinions on a proposal that could allow public access to the property where writer Ernest Hemingway spent the last years of his life.
More than half of the attendees spoke at the City Council hearing, with a slightly higher percentage—by a ratio of 5 to 4—saying they do not support the plan.
At issue Tuesday was a proposed text amendment to the Ketchum zoning code to allow limited public tours in all zoning districts. If approved by the City Council, the amendment would open the door for public access to the Hemingway House, located next to the Big Wood River on East Canyon Run Boulevard.
The Nature Conservancy, which owns the house, and neighbors of the Hemingway estate, have been at loggerheads over opening the site to the public.
"What I had hoped for ... are my two favorite words: reasonable compromise," said Mayor Ed Simon. "I'm sorry it hasn't been reached."
The council called the special meeting for people on both sides to air their concerns.
Some view the amendment as an infringement on their property rights, and the rights of others who may consider future investment in Ketchum.
"I relied on the city's zoning code to protect me when I invested in my house," said Jack Bunce, a Hemingway House neighbor.
Others, however, had a different take on what the city's best interests are.
"The comprehensive plan and the planning and zoning code are living documents," said Jed Gray. "We review these ... we revise these repeatedly. They are allowed to be changed for certain circumstances. We all give up things for our community, to try to make our community better."
A history of dispute
In June 2004, the Ketchum Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval of the text amendment, with the condition that it apply to all zones.
If the City Council approves the change, an applicant could apply to the P&Z for a conditional-use permit to allow limited public tours, educational programs and workshops at historic sites. Appeals of P&Z decisions would be heard by the City Council.
In 1986, Mary Hemingway, Ernest's widow, bequeathed the 13-acre property to The Nature Conservancy. The group, however, recently determined that the maintenance of the house was too costly and the possession of it too removed from their mission of establishing nature preserves.
TNC formed an alliance with the Idaho Hemingway House Foundation to transfer ownership of the building, while retaining the surrounding property as a nature preserve.
The foundation hopes, among other things, to conduct limited tours of the property most days of the week. News of their wishes prompted some of the site's neighbors to fight what they see as an erosion of their privacy.
Gary Slette, an attorney retained by a group of neighbors opposing the foundation's plan, urged the council Tuesday to consider why TNC and IHHF want such an amendment, and the possible repercussions of enacting it.
"Imagine a private property owner comes to (the city) and says they cannot make a viable economic use of their property. It's not generating enough revenue," Slette said. "They say 'I need a text amendment to allow me to do something else with my property.' That is the exact matter pending before you tonight."
Slette indicated that the creation or amendment of ordinances for one property, even one belonging to a popular writer, would constitute an illegal application of law.
"This is not a Hemingway issue," Slette said. "This is a land-use issue, pure and simple. What is being proposed is special legislation."
All for one, or one for all?
Council members were keen to consider that possibility.
"We're really only talking about one limited residential zone and one particular site," said Councilwoman Terry Tracy. "Let's call it the way it is. This amendment request is here for the Hemingway property only, as I see it."
Councilman Baird Gourlay disagreed and asked the city's planning director whether other structures might be affected by the text amendment.
"I think there are other structures that are historic," Harold Moniz said, adding that "historic" means something more than 50 years old.
"I'd say we probably have a lot of historic structures," he said. "But do they have value to this community? I can't answer that question."
Defining what is historic is up to the City Council, Moniz said. Buildings that might be considered valuable include the Reinheimer Ranch buildings and the Ketchum Korral, he said.
Jim Jaquet, a member of the IHHF board of directors, added the Lane Mercantile building to the list, and denied that the amendment was tailored for the Hemingway House only.
"It's important to the history of Ketchum to have a provision in the zoning code whereby historic structures can be recognized and have public tours so the community can appreciate those historic structures," he said.
Council members requested that by the next meeting city staff compile a list of historical sites in all city zones that could be affected by the text amendment.
Considering the options
Some council members reminded opposing parties that they are not faced with an either-or proposition.
Possible compromises include: issuing a temporary permit for public tours; building a bridge over the river so the public can access the house without using the private road; and mediating the dispute between TNC and the neighbors.
But no option elicited more discussion than the idea of moving the house to a different site.
Neighbors of the Hemingway House have proposed buying—possibly for several million dollars—the building and relocating it.
"We'd arrange to have the house moved to a suitable location," Bunce said Monday. "I'm surprised that in the face of the offer, (TNC) would rather give it to the Hemingway Foundation. I'm surprised they're essentially giving it away."
Lou Lunte, acting director of the Idaho chapter of The Nature Conservancy, said Tuesday that separating the house from its site is not an attractive option.
"The house and the place are inseparable," Lunte told the crowd. "Mary Hemingway did not donate this property for the Conservancy to sell to fund other conservation projects. She did not intend for the home to be moved."
If the home is moved, the community will suffer the loss of a tangible link to Ketchum's past, several supporters said.
"An important part of (community) is connection to the past," said Van Sauter, a member of the IHHF governing board. "The Hemingway House should be preserved on its site ... "
Councilwoman Terry Tracy concurred that moving the house would diminish its historical value.
"I agree the site and the building are one," she said. "I can't or wouldn't support trying to move the Hemingway House in order to preserve the Hemingway history."
Other council members expressed an alternate view.
"I would love to see the Hemingway House open," Gourlay said. "I'm not sure the site it's on is the place to do it. I tend to lean towards a relocation of the building."
Private interests vs. public benefits
No one at Tuesday's meeting denied the value of the Hemingway house; many, however, didn't want the cachet it has to trump their own rights.
"Probably the thing that has been of concern is that once it becomes known in the area (as open to the public) the trespassing—and that's what I would call it—would increase," neighbor Joan Anderson said Monday. "That's what we're talking about: an invasion of our privacy."
Actor Tom Hanks' neighbor, Kingsley Murphy, was compelled to share with meeting attendees his experience with fans whose curiosity gets the better of their decorum.
"I have to open the door for people to use the bathroom. I have to pull people out of the river," he said.
Councilwoman Tracy is concerned about how an extension of public access might affect neighbors of historic buildings on a wider scale.
"I see this has the potential to happen in every neighborhood, and I don't want to go down that road," she said. "We're infringing very slowly on everybody's property rights. If I'm going to err, I'm going to err on the side of the neighborhood."
Others in the audience spoke of opening Ketchum's unique offerings to as many people as possible.
"The Hemingway House is not just our private treasure," said Debra Kronenberg. "Not sharing it would be selfish and downright rude on a global scale."
She noted that she bought a home on a bike path and has come to appreciate the people who pass through her neighborhood daily.
"We have chosen to live by a place that makes our community special," she said.
What lies ahead
Several council members discussed the fact that approving a text amendment would not immediately allow public tours of the Hemingway property: The P&Z would have to approve any application for a conditional-use permit.
"A text amendment would (simply) allow for further discussion," said Council President Randy Hall. "We're a long way from making any decisions."
Simon said there would be ample opportunity for everyone to express his or her wishes before such a decision is made.
The topic will be scheduled as a discussion item on the council's agenda in May. Two other readings of the ordinance would take place, probably in June.
The Ketchum house that was Ernest Hemingway's final residence was built in 1953. The structure was designed to resemble the Sun Valley Lodge, the famous resort hotel located just a few miles to its east.
In Hemingway's master bedroom, relics of his life decorate the tabletops and walls. Some hearken back to the author's days in Spain, where he often attended bullfights.
In the living room of Hemingway's Ketchum house, two African trophy heads decorate a large stone fireplace.
Express photo by Chris Pilaro
