Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Sorted by date Results 251 - 275 of 1211
"I don't really like the term affordable housing," Jezria Latham, broker and owner of Provident Realty said. "I have been trying to figure out another term because, clearly, what is affordable to some people is not affordable to others." Latham prefers to think of affordable housing as income-based housing and there are different tiers and brackets. "What I am seeing for those looking to come into the Valley-such as police officers, teachers and entry level health care...
The Platte Valley Arts Council is sponsoring the 5th annual Hay Bale Sculpture Contest. All local ranches, businesses or families are invited to show off some good ole’ fashioned ranch ingenuity that could give their outfit creative bragging rights for a year. The rules state that sculptures must be made predominantly of hay, whether loose, round, square or rectangle bales but then are given artistic leeway to incorporate wood, metal, wire, paint, canvas damns, or anything other medium they could dream up. The council did w...
The Town of Saratoga has filled two vacant positions and hired a fourth police officer following the September 7 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council. The position of treasurer, which has been open since the departure of Sammy Flohr in May, was filled with new treasurer Georgia Gayle sworn in by Mayor Creed James on Tuesday evening. The governing body also announced the replacement for Lisa Burton, former recreation director, who resigned August 13. New treasurer While there...
Financials, as they have been for the past 36 months, were discussed by the Saratoga Town Council during their September 7 meeting. Along with making a substantial transfer from four enterprise funds into reserve accounts, the governing body also discussed the ongoing issue of delinquent accounts. The biggest question, which was eventually answered by the Saratoga-Carbon County Impact Joint Powers Board (SCCIJPB) the following night, was whether the accounts of deceased...
The Carbon County Visitors Council (CCVC) met on August 18 at the Cowboy Inn in Baggs. Newly elected Chairperson Danny Burau called the meeting to order. The agenda was quickly approved and the meeting went immediately into the financials. The board approved the distribution of 11 checks to municipalities and the county treasurer for a total of $17,222.37. The total collected from Lodging Tax revenue for the month of August was $172,223.68. This time frame is actually monies...
Editor, It is frustrating to read your article concerning the Saratoga Town Council’s concern for finding housing for the recruits for the police department. As the Sun pointed out in a June article, the master plan of 2016 listed affordable housing to be an issue that needs to be addressed. At the June planning commission meeting the need for the town to address the housing issue was raised, and the body language of the Mayor told of his disgust at the fact the issue was raised. Only now has the town council even a...
It is often easy to forget how insulated our communities are in the Platte Valley until something happens which seems to shatter that peacefulness to which we’ve been so accustomed. I am reminded of the 1998 film “Pleasantville” in which two modern-era teenagers are transported into a 1950s sitcom. Everything in the world seems perfect, bathed in the neutralizing tones of black and white, but reality quickly invades the world of Pleasantville. Soon, that perfect but munda...
On Friday evening, the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC) hosted their event, Black Ties & Boots, at the Platte Valley Community Center in Saratoga. In line with its mission of economic development, the event was a fundraiser to benefit new business startups in Carbon County. Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon was the featured speaker, but was not the only one to speak at the event. The featured speaker was Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon. Gordon was not the only...
The Carbon County Council of Governments (CCCOG) held a special meeting on August 18 at the newly renovated Carbon Building - Courthouse Annex. The meeting was a continued discussion from the July 21 regularly scheduled meeting (see "More expensive, more stringent" on page 6 of the July 28 Saratoga Sun). Carbon County Fire Chief John Rutherford had come before CCCOG to make a case the county should consider creating a fire district. In that meeting, Rutherford said he believed...
Last year, Yvonne Johnson was hired as the executive director of the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC). Since then, she has traveled around the county visiting as many municipalities as possible. On August 17, Johnson made her first appearance before the Saratoga Town Council. Her visit came just days before the CCEDC’s Black Ties & Boots event held at the Platte Valley Community Center in Saratoga. For the past three fiscal years, the contribution to the...
Like an exposed nerve, the recently unveiled drug issue in Saratoga doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. Despite only having three full-time officers, the Saratoga Police Department continues to make drug-related arrests as they search for housing for more officers. K9 Sergeant Justin Brown, attending in place of Police Chief Ken Lehr, provided the Saratoga Town Council with an update at their August 17 meeting. Drugs and fishing holes Two weeks prior, during the Augu...
Though tensions seem to have eased between the Saratoga Town Council and the Saratoga-Carbon County Impact Joint Powers Board (SCCIJPB) compared to where they were over a year ago, the joint powers board is still keeping an eye on proceedings with the Town of Saratoga. During the August 11 meeting of the SCCIJPB, Chairman Richard Raymer led discussion in regards to the administrative fee charged by the Town to the joint powers board. Board members also discussed the ongoing...
From final to preliminary subdivision plans, tenant storage and nuisance properties the Saratoga Planning Commission does not appear as if it will slow down anytime soon. Mike Lamprecht served as chairman with the absence of Tom Westring during the August 10 meeting. First on the agenda was notification of a subdivision around the Whistle Pig Saloon south of Saratoga to carve out the lot on paper from the surrounding land. Additionally, the planning commission was notified of...
The Riverside Town Council tackled projects for Rick Martin Memorial Park at their August 12 meeting. The discussion began as Makenzie Rakness introduced playground equipment plans, complete with pricing options, to Mayor Leroy Stephenson and fellow council members. The plans included images of different setup options of new play equipment. The playground equipment ranged in price from $28,000 to $50,000 with council members debating what the surface of the play area will be....
The old Wyoming adage “Whiskey is for drinking, water is for fighting” seemed especially true during the August 12 meeting of the Encampment Town Council. Both the Encampment Town Council and Encampment residents are preparing for the September 14 meeting of the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC), when the county commissioners will hold a public hearing on the highly debated Planned Unit Development (PUD) for Green Mountain at Brush Creek Ranch. It wasn’t just Encam...
by Micky Jones Passions ran high at the Encampment Town Council meeting on August 12 as the governing body heard two proposals regarding a lease for the Encampment Mill. First on the agenda at the council meeting was Meriwether Timber, represented by Lela Konecny who informed the council of her 25 years experience in the lumber industry. At the July 8 meeting, the Saratoga resident had appeared before the council but was asked by Councilmember Stas Banach to return with an...
The Town of Saratoga is in search of a full-time recreation director following the resignation of Lisa Burton on August 3. Mayor Creed James read an email from Burton, who was not in attendance, announcing her resignation as recreation director at the August 3 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council. Burton’s resignation comes as the governing body continues its search for a treasurer and a planning and zoning officer. Burton bids farewell When James read the email from Burton a...
“In the short time I’ve worked here, I’ve had over 25 drug arrests. I don’t know how many shifts that is (but) I average one a night, some nights I average two drug arrests.” Less than two months after joining the Saratoga Police Department, new officer Justin Brown had sobering news for the Saratoga Town Council on August 3. With a background in both military and paramilitary, Brown was hired by the governing body following months of private and public discussions with Chief...
In the past two years, Saratoga has experienced three significant gas events which have required the presence of emergency responders. At the July 20 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, representatives from Black Hills Energy were in attendance to explain their policy regarding emergency gas events. The most recent one was a gas meter strike in June of this year, which resulted in a shelter-in-place notification through Carbon County’s AlertSense program. In November 2019, t...
While discussion of the Green Mountain zone change dominated the conversation at the July 8 Encampment Town Council meeting, it didn’t completely hog the spotlight. During the meeting, Saratoga resident Lela Konecny spoke to the council regarding a lease on the lumber mill at Grand Encampment Business Park. Konecny gave a presentation as a representative of Meriwether Timber. The lease on the mill is currently owned by TNT Forest Products. TNT currently has no business l...
Less than a year after an ordinance to amend Saratoga Municipal Code regulating specially permitted events failed on first reading it appears changes may be coming yet again. At the July 20 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, Councilmember Jon Nelson discussed potential minor changes to Chapter 5.30. The apparent catalyst for those changes is The Yard, a music venue owned by Saratoga residents Cindy Bloomquist and Chris Shannon. Shannon, in recent meetings of the Saratoga...
“We’re going to clean up this ordinance, we’re going to make everything abundantly clear as to what the rules are and you guys better follow them from now on. Got it? Agreed?” Apparent frustration from the Saratoga Town Council in regards to music events at The Yard was encapsulated by Councilmember Jon Nelson in a stern comment to Cindy Bloomquist and Chris Shannon, owners of the music venue. The comment came during discussion over a late-submitted special events application...
Saratoga may not be getting a new recreational vehicle (RV) park after all. Jimmy and Jamie Campbell, owners of JaJaCa Properties, have been attempting to build an RV park along Wyoming Highway 130 but have faced several roadblocks along the way. At the June Saratoga Planning Commission meeting, they were attempting to make RV parks a permitted use under Highway Business (see “Deal or no deal” on page 1 of the June 16 Saratoga Sun). After the July meeting, it seems JaJaCa Pro...
The July 12 public hearing for the Green Mountain ski area zone change was packed full of citizens voicing their concerns for the development. Representatives from Brush Creek Ranch presented their case to the Carbon County Planning Commission for a zone amendment from Residential to Planned Unit Development (PUD). While the majority of public comments were about water concerns, there also appeared to be an underlying culture war sentiment in regards to the application. The...
Little more than a year after being told the Town of Saratoga was “in a pickle”, the Saratoga Town Council made three motions at their July 6 meeting to correct years of miscoded expenditures. The most recent action by the governing body—at the recommendation of third-party accountant Stuart Webster—appears to conclude more than two years of questions surrounding the Town of Saratoga’s finances originally asked by Councilmember Jon Nelson. In June 2020, those questions...