Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
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Though the Town of Saratoga is well into the Fiscal Year 2021/2022, work is continuing on the audit for Fiscal Year 2019/2020. During the October 19 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, Mayor Creed James informed the rest of the council the audit had been “a lot more in depth” than the auditors-Fagnant, Lewis & Brinda-had originally anticipated. Due to the increased amount of work, Tim Fixter of Fagnant, Lewis & Brinda had submitted a change order as it was believed it would...
The Riverside Town Council had a short agenda for their October 14 meeting. One large ticket item on the agenda was the possibility of a neighborhood watch program. Councilmember Mark Helwick brought the program to the council’s attention after a seeming increase in crime in the area. After the summer’s recent manhunt and other criminal activities the Riverside town council is looking into multiple avenues for the safety of its residents. According to their website, NNW...
The Encampment town Council had a busy agenda for their October 14 meeting. The possibility of a police drone was one topic of attention. Mother Mountain Anglers and Encampment Preschool Director Rachel Swanson were in attendance as well. Other guests included Carbon County Commissioners Travis Moore and Carbon County Emergency Manager Lenny Layman who were in attendance to give the council an opportunity to clarify any questions they may have about the proposed fire...
While it may not be affordable for some people to live in Saratoga, one can spend eternity here for nearly dirt cheap prices. The low cost of burial plots at the Saratoga Cemetery was a point of discussion for the Saratoga Town Council during their October 19 meeting. According to Town Clerk Marie Christen, the current cost for a burial plot is $50. “People laugh and they want to buy 20 plots because it’s so affordable,” said Christen. “I know, when my grandma passed away a co...
Though the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) hasn’t yet painted crosswalks at the intersections of 1st Street and Bridge Avenue, the Town of Saratoga has taken steps to address both driver and pedestrian safety. At the October 19 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, Councilmember Jon Nelson informed the rest of the governing body he had approached business owners at the intersection about extending the “No Parking” zone along 1st Street. Those businesses are Koyot...
The Hanna Town Council met on October 12 at the Hanna Town Hall to a packed room. Mayor Lois Buchanan was present as were council member Jayson Nordquist and council member Sammy Sikes. Council members Tracy Fowler and William Dys were absent. The council approved the agenda and minutes from the regularly scheduled meeting on September 20 and the special meeting held on September 27. Public Works Director Larry Korkow told the council CJ Mahon Construction was done with their...
Too few buildings and too many good employees. That appeared to be the reasoning given by the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) during their October 5 meeting when they revisited the idea of naming a county building after a former county employee. As was reported previously (see “A building by another name?” on page 1 of the October 6 Saratoga Sun), Encampment resident Gary Jacobsen appeared before the county commissioners to consider naming the road and bridge bui...
The Medicine Bow Town Council met at October 11 at the Medicine Bow Community Hall for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting. Mayor Sharon Biamon and three council members were present. Councilmember Lucy Schofield was absent. The Council approved the agenda and the minutes from the August 9 regularly scheduled meeting. There was no meeting in September due to COVID-19 illonesses when the meeting was scheduled. The financials for September and October were approved. The...
After nearly four decades working for Carbon County, Treasurer Patty Bentsen is preparing to retire. The announcement was tearfully delivered by Bentsen during the October 5 meeting of the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC). While the commissioners ultimately accepted Bentsen’s resignation, effective December 3, it was not without statements from Bentsen’s fellow elected officials. “On May 13, 1985 Mary Aydelotte gave me an opportunity to become a part of (the)...
The Carbon County Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC) met on September 27 at Michael’s Big City Steakhouse in Rawlins. The board approved the agenda and regularly scheduled meeting July 12. The financials were approved next. Yvonne Johnson, Director of CCEDC gave her report. She said the office operations changed on August 2. Johnson said when they switched from CenturyLink to Spectrum, the CCEDC website was lost because CenturyLink owned the domain and email. A p...
Medicine Bow National Forest fire personnel are hoping to conduct prescribed burns in the northwest portion of the Sierra Madre Range in the coming weeks. The targeted burns will improve vegetation conditions and wildlife habitat. The burns will also reduce fire danger by mitigating fuel loading to reduce future fire hazard. The primary burn units this will include approximately 430 acres near Forest Roads 435 and 456, between Jack Creek Campground and the National Forest boundary. The burning operations are part of the...
On October 1, the Hanna Marshal's office received two Individual Patrol Officer Kits (IPOK) from the Wyoming Central Healthcare Coalition (HCC). "The Central Wyoming Health Care Coalition received 150 of them and we distributed them around the area of the state that we cover," Melissa Sikes, a charter member and representative of the Central region of HCC said. "I got six for the Hanna Marshal office, two for Medicine Bow Marshal office and two for the Sheriff's office for...
The discussion of affordable housing returned to the chambers of the Saratoga Town Council on October 5 as Reverend Steven Niccolls addressed the governing body on behalf of the Platte Valley Ministerial Association. During the September 21 town council meeting (see “Determining the need” on page 1 of the September 29 Saratoga Sun), Councilmember Ron Hutchins raised the subject under council comments and asked if anyone in town had any information. Primary among the que...
Flooding is not often a concern of Saratoga's in the fall months, as it is usually low water season. On the night of October 5, however, the Saratoga Town Council called a brief recess because water was literally flooding Spring Street in front of town hall. The culprit was a broken water main running from River Street to 1st Street. As council members and town hall staff moved their vehicles from the front of the town hall, it almost seemed like a small-scale disaster movie....
As growth continues to come to Saratoga, the topic of affordable housing appears to be becoming more and more relevant. In May 2021, Saratoga resident Steve Niccolls appeared before the Saratoga Planning Commission and requested the board examine what options were available. For several months, that discussion didn’t appear to take place until the September 21 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council when the subject was raised by Councilmember Ron Hutchins. Now the topic has b...
While the Platte River may be low this time of year, a minor flood occurred in front of the Saratoga Town Hall during the October 5 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council. As the governing body was going about their twice-monthly meeting, Sergeant Tyler Christen requested a short recess for council members to use their vehicles. Upon exiting the front of the town hall, water could be seen bubbling up from under Spring Street and running towards 1st Street. The large break...
When it comes to traveling in Carbon County, there are many unsung heroes who make it possible. Chief amongst those are the employees of the Carbon County Road and Bridge Department. On September 7, Encampment resident Gary Jacobsen appeared before the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) to change that. In what Jacobsen would later call a “good precedent”, he proposed the county commissioners consider naming the road and bridge building in Encampment to honor lon...
With the highwater season all but a distant memory, flooding concerns may be the last thing on most people's minds. At the September 21 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, however, a request to do river work was heard by the governing body. Ralph and Ann Hicks, who own a home behind the Saratoga Hot Springs Resort, wrote a letter to the council which was read by Councilmember Ron Hutchins. "We are lifelong summer residents of Saratoga and each year we are river watchers....
Members of the Sinclair Town Council found themselves in a bind in April. Mayor Asa Meeks had not shown up for several regularly scheduled council meetings. Further, there was no contact with town hall to explain why. Additionally, one of the council members, Leo Black, was missing the same meetings and there had also been no contact to explain the reason. "They just stopped showing up at the meetings," Current Sinclair mayor Leif Johansson said. "We never received anything...
On any given day, entering 1st Street/Wyoming Highway 130 in Saratoga from Bridge Avenue typically requires saying a prayer, holding your breath and stepping on the gas pedal. It can be just as dangerous on foot when crossing that same intersection, often with the feeling of recreating the classic arcade game “Frogger”. While not as busy as Interstate 80, which sits 20 miles north of Saratoga, 1st Street is by no means a quiet street. Though there aren’t any plans in the n...
Is there a need for affordable housing in Saratoga? This is the question at least one member of the Saratoga Town Council is hoping to answer. As housing itself continues to be scarce in Saratoga—as of September 27 only 10 houses were listed on the Wyoming multisting website with only two of those below $200,000—the subject of affordable housing has also come up. Councilmember Ron Hutchins brought up the subject of affordable housing under the council comments portion of the...
The Hanna Town Council met on September 14 at the Hanna Town Hall. Mayor Lois Buchanan and council members Sammy Sikes and Bill Dys were present. Council members Tracy Fowler and Jayson Nordquist were absent. There were few in the audience and the council moved quickly through the department and board reports. Buchanan said the High Country Joint Powers Board would be meeting once every six months, a change from meeting every three months. She said Viper Construction would be...
Meeting on September 15 at Elk Mountain Town Hall, the Carbon County Council of Governments (CCCOG) covered two major topics; the proposed fire district and recently released data from the United States Census Bureau. Representatives from Rawlins, Sinclair, Hanna, Elk Mountain, Saratoga and Carbon County were present. Fire District Travis Moore, Carbon County Commissioner and CCCOG chairman, began the meeting by informing the group Riverside and Dixon had sent him corresponden...
On September 14, the decades-old saga of Green Mountain took a significant step forward as the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC) unanimously approved the Planned Use Development (PUD) for Green Mountain at Brush Creek Ranch. The approval of the PUD followed nearly two hours of public comment in the Great Hall of the Platte Valley Community Center in Saratoga. Along with testimony from representatives for Brush Creek Ranch, Valley residents spoke both in favor and ag...
It was a warm, nearly cloudless, fall day in Encampment as columns of white and black smoke rose from the firepit at Grand View Park on September 12. The source of the smoke came not just from wood, but from American and Wyoming flags being placed on the open flame. Such a sight was surely shocking to some, especially two young boys who witnessed the act and raced home to tell a parent. The parent, equally concerned, called dispatch at the Saratoga Police Department. It was, i...
