Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 266
The new Hanna Elementary School is well on its way to completion Larry Hepner, District Facility Manager with Carbon County School District No. 2, said in an interview Monday the building itself is expected to be completed on Sept. 17. Hepner said they are hoping to move students and teachers in to the building itself on Oct. 6. However, Hepner said these dates are still tentative. Mostly, construction has remained on schedule. Hepner said the big delay they are running into right now is with...
After the town council elected to suspend the franchise fee at their July 16 meeting, town departments have been at work making cuts to their budgets. According to town clerk Suzie Cox, the department heads are currently reviewing their budgets. Once final cuts are sumbitted from department heads, and reviewed by the town council members, town attorney Tom Thompson will write a final budget amendment. Saratoga Mayor John Zeiger expects a first reading of the budget amendment to take place at a S...
On Aug. 19, 2009 I woke up in my empty room one last time. It was 4:30 a.m., and on any other day, it would have taken me an hour to pull myself out of bed. But not this day. I was headed to Spokane International Airport. The day I had waited for all my life had finally come: I was moving out and was finally on my own. My mother made me an omelet that morning; just as she had done almost every morning while I was in high school. I was dressed in full Wyoming gear. She looked back from the stove... Full story
Crowds once again rolled into the Platte Valley Community Center (PVCC) to hear from local primary candidates. On July 29, nearly 80 Saratoga community members arrived to hear from candidates for mayor of Saratoga. The candidates include incumbent John Zeiger and challengers Don Sherrod, Glee Johnson, Lynda Healey and E.J. Glode. All candidates were asked questions about their background, their solutions to the town's budget crisis, how to repair infrastructure, how to keep the zoning ordinance...
Saratoga Mayor John Zeiger has recently been under fire for not commenting on pending and current litigation. During the Valley Service Organization (VSO) Mayoral Candidate Forum, candidates were asked to respond to the litigation issues the town of Saratoga are facing. Zeiger declined to comment because of ongoing litigation. Several audience members were noticeably displeased with his reply. On Monday, Zeiger sent a written statement to the Saratoga Sun on why he could not say more on... Full story
At the Valley Service Organization (VSO) candidate forums this past week, Saratoga residents asked questions to the candidates on ordinances within the municipal code. Specifically, residents asked about enforcing property nuisances and whether or not bicyclists can camp on town property. So what does the Saratoga Municipal Code say about these subjects? Nuisances When the candidates were asked whether or not they would enforce property nuisances, their answers ranged from “It’s hard to enforce,...
Saratoga residents showed up en masse at the Platte Valley Community Center (PVCC) for the Carbon County Candidate Forums on July 23, sponsored by the Valley Service Organization (VSO). Nearly every Carbon County candidate made an appearance at the forums, including the candidates who are running unopposed. Clerk of District Court candidates Deborah Olson and Mara Sanger fielded questions from Sue Jones of the VSO about the responsibility of their job and why they were running Additionally,...
The Saratoga Police Department will be blocking the streets and throwing one of the biggest parties of the summer next week, as Saratoga will host its first ever National Night Out. Tom Knickerbocker, Saratoga Police Chief and organizer of the event, said the National Night out in Saratoga will essentially be a big block party aimed towards crime prevention. According to its website, the National Night Out is a nationwide event to promote police-community partnership, crime prevention and...
The town of Saratoga has several construction projects in the works this week. Town Engineer Chuck Bartlett said town crews will be repaving roadways with pot-holes. Roadways on Spring Avenue, State Avenue, Hickory Avenue, Third Street, Second Street and Main Avenue will all see some construction this week. “We are going to start digging Monday,” Bartlett said. Because asphalt is in high-demand during the summer months, construction in these areas will take longer than usual. Saratoga res...
The planning commission will be joined by a familiar face to the town of Saratoga, as Tom Knickerbocker was approved as the newest member Knickerbocker, who is also Saratoga's Chief of Police, is hoping to lend his expertise to Saratoga's planning commission. "I think I have a lot to bring to the table for the planning commission. I've been in law enforcement going on 17 years. Prior to that, I was in the construction trade: concrete, masonry, carpentry, excavation, landscaping," Knickerbocker s...
d Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) once again took home top honors at the National FCCLA competition in San Antonio, Texas. Competing against nearly 7,500 students from around the nation, Encampment students competed in the occupational division. FCCLA facilitator Cheryl Munroe said occupational is one of the toughest divisions at FCCLA nationals. Munroe said while there were 16 students eligible, she only took five to nationals. Michelle Hooker and Becca Treat took home the gold medal in...
The buckin’ bulls are back in the Platte Valley with the Saratoga Lions Club Bullfest. Now in its fourth year, Bullfest will feature a only bull riding only competition and is not associated with any bull riding associations. Bo Alameda, with the Saratoga Lions Club, said there will be a wide variety of bull riders at the competition. “We will have everyone from NFR [National Finals Rodeo] and PBR [Professional Bull Riding] finalist, to those who are just getting started,” Alameda said. The L...
The tiny town of Riverside hosted some big regional musical acts this weekend. Music enthusiasts from the Rocky Mountain West showed up in droves to watch some of their favorite bands play. The wide variety of acts included bluegrass, reggae, country and indie bands; filling the interests of a diverse set of music fans. On Saturday night, the crowds grew to near 1,000 people to see the popular, Laramie/Fort Collins based band, The Patti Fiasco. It was a homecoming for their lead vocalist Alysia...
The Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD#2) board of trustees approved their budget for the 2014/2015 fiscal year. The proposed General Fund budget for the 2014/2015 year was set at $17,380,000. The budget is a $90,000 decrease from the 2013/2014 fiscal year. Sally Wells, business manager at CCSD#2, said in a report CCSD#2 is financially healthy. Despite the decreased revenue of $1,026,286.79 from fiscal year 2014 to 2013, expenses at CCSD#2 also decreased by $398,856.55. The decreased...
The Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD#2) school board meeting had a fresh face at the table, as new Superintendent Jim Copeland joined the CCSD#2 team. Between moving and learning the district, it has been a hectic few weeks for Copeland, who started working on July 1. However, he said he is excited to take the reins at CCSD#2. “It’s been great just getting to know the community,” he said. Copeland has spent his first weeks receiving a crash-course Wyoming finance systems from CCSD#...
Carbon Power and Light (CP&L) will not have to pay a franchise fee to the town of Saratoga. At the July 15 town council meeting Saratoga Mayor John Zeiger asked for an amendment to eliminate the 4 percent fee in the proposed franchise fee agreement. Instead, Zeiger proposed the franchise agreement would go forward with the stipulation of review in 2016. The CP&L franchise fee has received an enormous amount backlash from Saratoga residents and business owners. The fee would have charged the...
The WHAT Fest returns to the Platte Valley this weekend. The annual concert is now in its third year being held in Riverside. The intimate setting near the river is an ideal location. “We always look for a more isolated venue for the festival,” Adam Bender, one of the organizers of WHAT Fest said. This year’s lineup will feature 37 regional and national performing artists on two outdoor and one indoor intimate acoustic stage again this year. The organizers are expecting crowds to reach anywh...
The campers at Staddle Camp looked at a tangled mess of ropes and wires high up in the trees of Brush Creek Ranch. Wood planks were suspended only by ropes, 30 feet above the ground; which dangled back and forth from the gentle breeze off the Medicine Bow Mountains. "What? There is no way we are climbing that," one of the campers said. "What if we fall?" asked another. They are going to climb that- this is the high-ropes course, one of the camp counselors explained. The harnesses would catch... Full story
At the July 1 Saratoga town council meeting, Richard Rideout, an attorney representing the town Saratoga, announced the three pending actions between the town and Saratoga resident Randy Stevens have been consolidated for trial. Stevens said in an interview Monday the trial had been moved to January of 2015, in hopes of the town of Saratoga and Stevens coming to an agreement before the court hearing. The legal battle between the two parties has been ongoing for more than a half-decade. It...
Fence heights in front yards became a major issue of discussion at the July 8 Saratoga Planning Commission meeting. A debate which started at the April meeting, planning commission members have been discussing setting limits to fence height in front yards. Some concerns brought up were high fence with low visibility would restrict the view of a driver pulling into the roadway and could result in car wrecks. According to town of Saratoga engineer Chuck Bartlett, the current fencing ordinance...
Town of Saratoga engineer Chuck Bartlett clarified the Stantec report posted on the town’s website was not the complete report. Bartlett said the report only covered geomorphology, and there would be a full report available Friday. There will be a meeting public on the preliminary findings during the first part of August. An exact meeting time and date has not been set, Bartlett said.... Full story
Encampment will once again host Cowboys and Cowgirls from all over the West with the Grand Encampment Cowboy Gathering (GECB) this weekend. Now in its 12th year, audiences will be treated to a mixture of cowboy culture, including Dutch-oven cooking, a stick-horse rodeo and cowboy music and poetry. “There will be music continuously going throughout the day,” Steve Moulton, president of the GECB outfit, said. The events begin Friday with an open mic at 7 p.m. on July 18 at Grand View Park. Thi...
Editor’s note: This is the last in a series of stories about Michelle McWain. She is a wife, a mother, a Carbon County School District No. 2 employee and a breast cancer survivor. Michelle’s McWain’s hair was gone. Her breasts had been removed. She had lost 30 pounds. Breast cancer took many things from Michelle. But for everything she lost, she gained even more. When Michelle was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012, her life had instantly changed. She spent days driving back and forth from tre...
The Six-man Shootout was a close game - for the first 15 seconds. "[Team Nebraska] threw a pass over my head and scored on the first play," former Saratoga High School football player Tate Stinson said. But after the opening scoring drive by Nebraska, Stinson and Ryan Malone went on to lead Team Wyoming to a 68-26 win over Team Nebraska in the third annual Six-man Shootout. Out of 18 available roster spots, both Malone and Stinson were selected by Team Wyoming head coach Matthew Jensen, from...
The town of Saratoga will be continuing their legal battle with Randy Stevens this summer. As an addition to the agenda, Richard Rideout, an attorney for the town of Saratoga, announced the three separate pending actions between Stevens and the Town of Saratoga have been consolidated for trial in mid-August. Stevens and the town of Saratoga have been in the midst of a legal battle beginning in 2008, involving two pieces of property adjacent to each other in Saratoga. The property to the north...