Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Serving the Platte Valley since 1888
Sorted by date Results 1654 - 1678 of 5184
The Carbon County Visitor Council’s (CCCVC) monthly meeting was held at 10 a.m. on January 22 at the Platte Valley Community Center in Saratoga. The agenda, minutes and financials were quickly approved. Director Leslie Jefferson went over her report and then applicants for grants gave their presentations. After the presentations, the CCCVC adjourned at noon to go to the Hotel Wolf to meet with legislators on the subject of tourism and the proposal of a new statewide lodging t...
Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon will be embarking on a listening tour this weekend in regards to his Migration Corridor Executive Order. The executive order, which was released in December, pertains to the Sublette, Baggs and Platte Valley Mule Deer Migration Corridors. The tour will be co-hosted by Gordon, the Wyoming County Commissioners Association and the commissioners of the respective counties. The tour will include stops in Rawlins, Pinedale, Kemmerrer and Rock Springs....
The Saratoga Town Council is requesting public input before purchasing five new security cameras to be used at the Hot Pool and Saratoga Town Hall. At the January 21 meeting of the governing body, Sergeant Tyler Christen of the Saratoga Police Department provided a quote for five frogeye security cameras. Two would be placed at the Hot Pool, two placed on either side of Town Hall and one inside the council chambers. The estimate for all five cameras is $16,560.20. “We have had...
Plans for Memorial Hospital of Carbon County (MHCC) to establish a clinic in Saratoga appear to be moving forward, though not with the property in which MHCC had originally shown interest. The plans of the hospital came during the January 14 meeting of the Saratoga Planning Commission. As was reported previously (see “Medical debate continues” on page 1 of the November 27, 2019 Saratoga Sun), MHCC interim CEO Bob Quist had appeared before the Saratoga Town Council on Nov...
The Hanna Town Council met at 6 p.m. on January 14 at the Hanna Town Hall for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting. All council members were present with the exception of council member Tracy Fowler. Before the actual meeting started, the council went over the bids for the new police vehicle. The money for the new truck came from impact funds given to the town by the Wyoming Industrial Siting Council. It was a full house and several members in the audience asked if the...
The Carbon County Council of Governments (CCCOG) met at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday in Rawlins for their regularly scheduled meeting. CCCOG usually meets every other month, but met in December to make up for the November meeting that had been canceled due to weather. Although there were several towns not represented, there were enough representatives for a quorum. The council quickly approved the minutes from the December 18 meeting and the agenda. The treasurer’s report was approv...
The Saratoga Planning Commission discussed a variety of topics at their January 14 meeting. Cattle Nuisance A complaint was made to the Saratoga Planning Commission regarding a cattle nuisance. The property in question is a 17 acre plot of land within the Town of Saratoga. Owner, Randy Stevens, appeared before the commission. He had purchased the property and along with it, the territorial irrigation water rights. The property has always been used for agricultural purposes;...
Evergreen Disposal was briefly handicapped over the weekend following a fire in one of their garbage trucks, but the Encampment-based trash hauler is showing that they won't be kept down for long. At approximately 5:45 p.m. on January 16, the Saratoga Volunteer Fire Department (SVFD) was called to respond to reports of a fire at 210 N. State Street in Saratoga. A fire in one of the garbage trucks was observed upon arrival and the fire was eventually extinguished. The garbage...
A special executive session was held before the Encampment Town Council meeting on January 9 where the Council interviewed an applicant for the vacant police officer position. Encampment has been without a police officer for approximately three months. During the meeting, the motion was passed to hire Carbon County Sheriff Deputy Kevin Shue as the chief of police starting February 1. The floor was opened to guests Sid Fox, Carbon County Planning Director, and Sue Jones,...
Over the past several months, a large part of discussion at meetings of the Upper Platte River Solid Waste Disposal District (UPRSWDD) has centered around consolidated billing. The discussion began in the spring of 2019 and culminated in the UPRSWDD presenting one-year contracts to the Town of Saratoga, the Town of Encampment and the Town of Riverside before the end of their fiscal years. Since then, the district has appeared to be moving toward their goal. At the January 8...
When Vivian Gonzales came into the Hanna Recreation Center on December 17, the place was flooded. Pipes had burst in the kitchen area and water made its way, almost, to the aerobic room. The director of the recreation center knew the repairs were going to shut the facility down for some time but she didn't dare guess for how long. She recounted the events leading to the recreation center's closing. "We estimate the pipes burst on Monday morning at 2:30 to 3 a.m. Gonzales...
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 Riverside Town Council meeting January 9, in large part, was an update from guests Sid Fox, Carbon County Planning Director, and Sue Jones, Carbon County Commissioner, regarding Brush Creek Ranch’s ski area. The County Commissioners had approved some conditions for the Carbon County/Encampment Ski Area in the form of covenants back in 2001. Fox said, “They couldn’t get any permits for dwellings without coming back for zoning approval, site specific zoning” with the ori...
The High Country Joint Powers Board (HCJPB) met on January 7 at 6 p.m. at the Medicine Bow Community Center to make up for the meeting that was supposed to be held on January 2. Bad weather was the factor of the regularly scheduled meeting to canceled. Chairman Toby Smith from Medicine Bow and board members Sharon Biamnon, Medicine Bow, Kenny and Pam Campbell, Elk Mountain, Marcia Beals and Bob Patton were present. Besides the full board, Ann Calvert, the HCJPB bookkeeper was...
During the January 7 meeting of the Saratoga Town Council, the governing body approved a water tap for Saratoga resident Randy Stevens. Following the approval of the tap, however, it seemed that where the town council dictated the placement of the meter pit was not the location Stevens was requesting. As was reported previously (see “Tap tabled by Town” on page 13 of the December 25, 2019 Saratoga Sun), Stevens was sent to the Saratoga Town Council following a 4-3 vote fro...
During the first Saratoga Town Council of the New Year on January 7, Mayor John Zeiger made changes to council representation with the recreation department and commission, and the department of public works. Zeiger also appointed two members of the Saratoga Police Department to new positions. Council Representatives There were very few changes when it came to appointing council representatives. Councilmember Steve Wilcoxson remained Mayor Pro-Tem and as representative to the...
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... Full story
The Critical Access Hospital (CAH) designation has become a vital link to providing quality healthcare services in rural America but building one from scratch, as they’re hoping to do in Saratoga, adds an extra layer of challenges. For more than a year, the Platte Valley Healthcare Project (PVHP) committee has been pursuing a Critical Access Hospital to provide services to the North Platte River Valley. According to Will Faust, PVHP chairman, one important aspect of the effort so far has been to seek knowledge and advice f...
While most people were likely bringing in the New Year at home or out with friends, at least one person spent it out in the winter weather according to a press release from the Carbon County Sheriff’s Department. At approximately 8:23 p.m. on December 31, 2019, the sheriff’s department received a call from Shanae Wilfong. She informed the department that her husband, Matthew Wilfong, was hunting alone near Marshal Road, northeast of Medicine Bow, and had become stuck in the snow and his truck’s fuel light was on. Cross...
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...
On the day after Christmas a strong snowstorm hit northern Carbon County and, besides closing down the roads, the winter weather played havoc with the railroad traffic. The early morning derailment of cars between Medicine Bow and Hanna shut down the track for a couple days. The boxcars stacked up on top of each other but, as bad as the accident looked, no one was seriously injured. The weather cleared up, compared to the day before, and crews were on scene quickly to get the...
While there may be benefits to living in the rural areas of Wyoming, including near immediate access to scenic mountain ranges and rushing rivers, a setback is a lack of mental health services. In the Platte Valley, there is access to counseling but access to someone who can prescribe medication is limited by transportation. Even then, patient and provider must work for months to determine what medication would work best in response to depression, anxiety or other mental...
The Carbon County Council of Governments (CCCOG) held a rescheduled meeting that had been originally planned for Nov. 18 but was canceled due to a snowstorm. The council met at 6 p.m. on December 18 at the Jeffery Center in Rawlins. The meeting was scheduled a half hour earlier than the regular time and, at 6 p.m., there were not enough attendees for a quorum. Leroy Stephenson called in at 6:30 p.m. and the meeting started. Jon Nelson arrived shortly after. Elk Mountain,...
The Encampment Preschool is asking for donations, according to a press release from the 501(c)(3) nonprofit’s new director. Rachel Swanson, who replaced retiring director Deb Cunningham, stated in the press release that the preschool is “looking to our community for financial support.” All donations made to the Encampment Preschool go towards paying for tuition for attending students. According to the press release, enrollment at the preschool has increased from last year with eight students in the morning class and 11 in th...
