Sorted by date Results 926 - 950 of 4997
It’s been nearly a year since the Mullen Fire began southeast of Encampment, Wyoming. The fire, which began on the border of the Savage Run Wilderness Area before burning over 176,878 acres in Carbon and Albany counties in Wyoming and Jackson County in Colorado. The Savage Run Wilderness Area, a part of the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest, was included for treatment plans in the United States Forest Service’s (USFS) Landscape Vegetation Analysis (LaVA) project. Now, a Supplemental Information Report for the project has been released by the...
Black Hills Energy, the natural gas provider to Saratoga residents, will be undertaking a main replacement project in the near future. In a press release from the natural gas provider, it was announced the company had contracted with NPL for the project. The replacement of natural gas mains will encompass the alleyways between Saratoga and Main avenues from North River Street to North 5th Street. The purpose of the project, according to the press release, is to replace aging steel pipelines with new polyethylene pipe which will prive “safe a...
Carbon County Sheriff's Office K9 Zeus has received a bullet and stab protective vest thanks to a charitable donation from non-profit organization Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. K9 Zeus' vest was embroidered with the sentiment "This gift of protection provided by Vested Interest in K9s, Inc.". Vested Interest in K9s, Inc., established in 2009, is a 501(c)(3) charity whose mission is to provide bullet and stab protective vests and other assistance to dogs of law enforcement and related agencies...
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 if Carbon County h...
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 August 3 meeting of the...
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 CCEDC has been ques...
by Morgan Hughes Casper Star-Tribune Via Wyoming News Exchange More Wyomingites received a first COVID-19 vaccine dose in the last two weeks than in any two-week period since mid-May, state figures show. More than 7,400 people received a first shot between Aug. 6 and Friday, according to a count of Wyoming Department of Health numbers performed by the Star-Tribune. In the two weeks prior to that, roughly 5,700 people sought a first dose, and in the two weeks prior to that, just over 3,400 did. That translates to a nearly 20% increase over the...
by Morgan Hughes Casper Star-Tribune Via Wyoming News Exchange By the time Wyoming hit its COVID-19 hospitalization peak last November, nearly 250 people were being treated for the virus statewide. The physicians who were caring for them were largely working without days off, filling in for colleagues who had either tested positive or been exposed to the virus themselves. Then, cases began to fall. Gov. Mark Gordon approved a statewide mask requirement in mid-December, which the state’s top infectious disease experts later credited with the s...
The Parco Sinclair Theatre first opened in 1924, and the interior walls were hand painted and the seating was premier for the era. Its exterior is a unique Spanish style like the rest of the business distict. The Sinclair Oil Corporation owned the theatre along with almost the rest of the town. In 1968 residents could purchase homes and the town purchased the theatre. The theatre stopped showing movies in the 1960s and, though there was an attempt to keep the theater going in the 1970s, it...
*Editor's Note* An earlier version of this story cited an "active shooter situation" as the reason for the two-hour delay. This has been corrected to the reason being an individual who may be armed and dangerous. Parents of Encampment K-12 School students likely woke up to a shock Thursday morning as they were informed of a two-hour delay to the school schedule due to an individual who may be armed and dangerous. The situation began early Thursday morning when a car chase which began in... Full story
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 actual proposal....
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 Encampment’s source...
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 cabins which will...
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. From wood chips to...
The Medicine Bow Town Council met on August 9 at the Medicine Bow Community Hall. Mayor Sharon Biamon and all town council members were present. Councilmember Lucy Schofield said the individual who offered to help with a town splash pad at the town park had not followed through. She said the town did not have monies to fund the project, so the project should be shelved. Schofield said there was much interest by many residents to get the rodeo grounds back into operation. A committee has already...
The Hanna Town Council met on August 10 at the Hanna Town Hall for their regularly scheduled monthly meeting. All council members were present, as was Mayor Lois Buchanan. There were no amendments to the agenda, which was quickly approved. Public Works Director Larry Korkow said on July 28 a water line on Clark Street had been hit by construction work and had shut down water to some residents for several hours. Korkow voiced his concern with the large flow of large trucks moving through the town...
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 review of the...
“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 Ken Lehr about the...
Last year, Wyoming students who returned to school for in-person learning were required to wear masks. This year, Governor Mark Gordon has signaled no such requirement will be issued. The announcement comes as the Cowboy State sees active cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) top more than 1,000 for the first time since February 2021 and confirmed cases of the delta variant continue to rise. In Carbon County, there were 39 active cases of COVID-19 as of August 9 with 16 new cases and 29 total... Full story
The Hanna Agricultural Resource Team (HART) met on July 20 at the Hanna Market to go over what the organization could still achieve while the weather was good. The members of HART have had to be flexible with what they could accomplish with their beds since they are not in a permanent location. The community garden had been moved from its location at property owned by Carbon County School District No. 2 to HART member Chris Karns’ residence temporarily for this summer. C.J. Mahon, the c...
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 announcing her r...
Jo Walliser had an unpleasant discovery as she opened a box containing clothes donated to Bridge Street Bargains. Mixed in with the clothing was a dead mouse. Walliser immediately threw the box out and did not touch the garments. This was a smart precaution. The threat posed by rodents to both our health and property is significant. Rodents invade an estimated 21 million homes in the U.S. every winter, and an infestation can cause more than just a headache for homeowners. The real concern is...
While the Planned Unit Development (PUD) for Green Mountain by Brush Creek Ranch (BCR) has faced much controversy, it successfully moved to the next stage of approval during a special meeting by Carbon County Planning Commission on July 26. The PUD will be sent to the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCC) for review and potential approval. The planning commission staff created a series of amendments for the PUD guide after the July 12 public hearing. Some amendments were minor changes to...
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, two gas leaks result...
The Carbon County Council of Governments (CCCOG) met at 6:30 p.m. on July 21 at the Baggs Community Recreation Center. Encampment and Riverside did not have representatives attending. Jim Espy, who is a transportation commissioner who represents Commission District 2, serving Albany, Carbon and Sweetwater counties was present as was Larry S. Hicks who is a member of the Wyoming State Senate, representing District 11. The agenda was amended to allow time for Wyoming Department of Transportation...