Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
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The Saratoga Carbon County Impact Joint Powers Board (SCCIJPB) has cleared all initial hurdles in applying for a loan and grant program from the Wyoming Business Council (WBC). As was reported previously (see “Tapping into town services” on page 3 of the December 18, 2019 Saratoga Sun), Platte Valley Healthcare Project (PVHP) Chairman Will Faust had approached the joint powers board about sponsoring the non-profit group for funding from the WBC. Following a public hearing bef...
The Saratoga Museum and Historical Society (Saratoga Museum) is beginning to follow through with steps to form a special museum tax district. At the February 10 meeting of the Board of Carbon County Commissioners, Carbon County Clerk Gwynn Bartlett informed the commissioners of the Saratoga Museum’s intent. Members of the Saratoga Museum board appeared before the Saratoga Town Council on February 18 to inform the governing body of the process. Connie Patterson, board p...
Despite the predictions of Punxsutawney Phil, it has felt to some that the winter weather that was heralded by storms in October will never come to an end. The Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) are among those frustrated with the extended winter and interstate travelers who continue to get stuck on county roads while following their GPS. During their February 18 meeting, the BOCCC discussed the ongoing issue and possible solutions with Road and Bridge Interim...
During their rescheduled meeting on February 10, the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) unanimously approved a county snow removal policy presented by Interim Road and Bridge Coordinator Kandis Fritz. Fritz also requested purchase of an additional snow blower and the ability to hire part-time employees on an as-needed basis. Snow Removal Policy As was reported previously (see “Snow removal policy released” on page 1 of the January 29 Saratoga Sun), a proposed policy...
The Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) will soon be advertising for two full-time positions for Carbon County Fire Warden and Carbon County Emergency Management Coordinator following their rescheduled February 10 meeting. As was reported previously (see “Evolving emergency management” on page 16 of the January 15 Saratoga Sun), Fire Warden John Rutherford approached the BOCCC about expanding the two positions from part-time to full-time at their January 7 mee...
The Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) is seeking public input on a proposed snow removal policy before their first meeting in February. The proposed policy appeared before the BOCCC during their January 21 meeting. The policy was also discussed at the January 7 meeting. “I think this is a very good idea. It’s been a long time coming. However, I think we should publish this and take action on it next time to where we see if anybody has any issues with it they can...
Carbon County appears to be facing a two-fold dilemma that has transpired over the past few years. While the number of emergency calls has increased, the number of volunteers to respond to those calls has decreased. This is according to Carbon County Fire Warden John Rutherford, who provided information to the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) on January 7. Rutherford also recommended the county commissioners consider creating full-time positions for both the fire w...
The Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) passed four resolutions during their first meeting of 2020 on January 7, two of which denied conditional use permit applications submitted by the Lucky Star and Two Rivers wind energy projects. Both wind energy projects are being pursued by BlueEarth Renewables out of Calgary, Canada. As was reported previously (see “Coming to an understanding” on page 9 of the August 21, 2019 Saratoga Sun), both projects were to be con...
For the first time since 2016, the Saratoga Sun will serve as the official publication for the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) following a unanimous vote during their January 7 meeting. Traditionally, the decision to designate an official publication has been made by the BOCCC during their final meeting of the fiscal year, which runs from July to June. According to BOCCC Chairman John Johnson, however, a letter had been received from the Rawlins Times requesting...
Carbon County is large, diverse and has the most municipalities in one county in the state. The county also has a strong year round travel industry with outdoor activities for every season and a joint powers board that promotes tourism (see “Advocating for tourism” on page 6 of the January 1 edition of the Saratoga Sun). The Carbon County Visitors Council (CCVC) is tasked with promoting Carbon County as a destination and is funded through a dedicated county wide lodging tax...
The mines are closed in Hanna but there is a museum and recreation center that could draw people into the town. Medicine Bow has wind projects, but the main building in the municipality is the Virginian Hotel. It also has a museum that will soon be home to the oldest house in the world, the Fossil House. Encampment and Saratoga have already turned into major tourist destinations for Carbon County with their attributes. Carbon County also has several resort ranches that are...
The last meeting in 2019 had all council members attending along with mayor Greg Salisbury and town clerk/treasurer Doreen Harvey. The council quickly approved the agenda and minutes from the Nov. 14 regularly scheduled meeting. The next order of business was Harvey going over the financials. Harvey reported that at 41.65 percent of the budget year the revenues were at about 28.65 percent of budget and expenses were at about 20.57 percent. Harvey said WYOSTAR interest had not...
As the use of Shively Airfield continues to increase, the need for it to expand to accommodate a high number of aircraft and larger jets increases as well. At the Sept. 11 meeting of the Saratoga Airport Advisory Board, discussion about the upcoming apron expansion took center stage as Dave Shultz of Sage Civil Engineering updated the board on a pre-design conference call with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WyDOT)....
The Carbon County Commissioners met at 2 p.m. on Aug. 20 at the Platte Valley Community Center. All the commissioners were in attendance. The agenda, minutes from the regularly scheduled meeting on Aug. 6 and financials that totaled $1,179,212.78 were approved in the first few minutes of the meeting. Emily Kaluzny, Carbon County Emergency Response Coordinator, told the commission the public health department was working with Wyoming Game and Fish Department (Game and Fish) in...
The Carbon County Visitors’ Council (CCVC) mission is to promote events, tourism, and the hospitality industry in Carbon County. The CCVC Board of Directors feel that it is their fiscal responsibility to help ignite and establish as much tourism-focused growth as possible. An Event Advertising and Marketing Grant is designed to assist Carbon County organizations with advertising and marketing efforts in order to bring out-of-county attendees and participants to a specific event. The promotion and marketing of events in C...
Following John Zeiger’s stint as Carbon County Emergency Coordinator (CCEC), a familiar face has stepped in for the interim. Ron Brown, who has served as the Carbon County Deputy Fire Warden since November 2015, was appointed the same day Zeiger vacated the position. According to Carbon County Fire Warden John Rutherford, while that position could be left vacant until a replacement is found, it isn’t in the best interest of the county. “It actually can be left vacant, but i...
The Encampment Town Council met at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the Encampment Town Hall where three council members and the mayor were in attendance. Shannon Fagan was absent. The agenda and minutes from the March 14 town council were quickly approved. Financials were approved at $44, 320.04. Sid Fox, Planning Director for Carbon County, was the first guest of the council. “I am here with Sue Jones, the county commissioner, to talk about a memorandum of understanding (MOU) b...
On the afternoon of March 12, it seemed as if spring was just around the corner. The premonition of famed groundhog Punxsutawney Phil, Seer of Seers, Sage of Sages, Prognosticator of Prognosticators and Weather Prophet Extraordinaire (author's note: this is the full name of Punxsutawney Phil) seemed to be coming to fruition. With the official start of spring a week away and temperatures around 40 degrees Fahrenheit, it did not seem as if a storm was on the way. Of course,...
The first Encampment Town Council meeting of 2019 saw what could be a record finish as it took less than 20 minutes from beginning to end, including the swearing in of new council member Shannon Fagan and returning council member Gary Stull. Council member Bill Craig was the only one absent as the governing body quickly went through the short agenda. The council approved Resolution 2019-01, provided by the Board of Carbon County Commissioners, which codified the Town of...
Byron Barkhurst is already a familiar face in the Valley. The son of Les and Tammy Barkhurst, he helps his parents manage the family ranch and aided in starting Iron Creek Bison Company. Barkhurst also led a successful campaign for the two-year unexpired term on the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) and has worked for ERA Shepard and Associates and Century 21 Cornerstone Realty in the past. It was these two past ventures that eventually led him to his most recent...
The Saratoga Planning Commission met at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday and prefaced their meeting with two public hearings for setback variances. Public Hearings The first hearing was opened for a 20 foot setback for a garage on 908 Rochester. Though the normal setback is 50 feet, the forms were in order and no discussion was made in moving Bob Keel's request to the commission. The second hearing was on a 1303 Club Court property owned by Kerry Russell. This variance asked for a six...
The Valley Service Organization (VSO) once again held forums at the Platte Valley Community Center (PVCC) preceding the upcoming general election. The first forum, held on Oct. 22, saw candidates for contested county seats and Senate District 11 enter the Great Hall of the PVCC. The second forum, on Oct. 24, was held for candidates for Saratoga Mayor and Town Council. Both forums were live-streamed on the Saratoga Sun Facebook page, though the second night saw some technical...
The Carbon County Council of Governments (CCCOG) met at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 19 at the Hanna Town Hall. Steve Nicholson, the chairman, was not in attendance so Kenda Colman, the vice-chairman, ran the meeting. The minutes of July 18 and Aug. 15 along with the treasurers report were approved by the council. Morgan Irene, mayor of Elk Mountain and CCCOG Secretary/Treasurer, said most information he needed on the 5th penny tax had come in from the municipalities, but there was...
The September meeting of the Encampment Town Council at 7 p.m. on Sept. 13 at the Encampment Town Hall was relatively short, a total of 40 minutes, with the exception of the executive session entered into near the end of the meeting. During the regularly scheduled meeting, members of the town council approved a new representative on the Upper Platte River Solid Waste Disposal District (UPRSWDD), made a decision concerning Encampment’s Economic Development Corporation (EDC) a...
Determining what extraterritorial jurisdiction a municipality has outside of town limits was the primary catalyst for a workshop held on July 31 between the Saratoga Town Council, Saratoga Planning Commission and Carbon County Planning Director Sid Fox. As was reported previously in the July 18 edition of the Saratoga Sun (page 9, “Looking to the future”), the workshop was organized following Fox’s appearance before the planning commission to explain the current issues facin...