Town, Stevens head back to court

The town of Saratoga will be continuing their legal battle with Randy Stevens this summer.

As an addition to the agenda, Richard Rideout, an attorney for the town of Saratoga, announced the three separate pending actions between Stevens and the Town of Saratoga have been consolidated for trial in mid-August.

Stevens and the town of Saratoga have been in the midst of a legal battle beginning in 2008, involving two pieces of property adjacent to each other in Saratoga. The property to the north is owned by Stevens, while the other property is owned by the town of Saratoga.

Wade Waldrip, of Wyoming’s second district court, will be the judge for the case. Waldrip was the Judge the last time the town of Saratoga and Stevens met in court in May 2013. At that hearing, Waldrip reprimanded both Stevens and the town, saying he was “embarrassed by the conduct of [both parties].”

When asked if the town was aiming to settle out of court, Rideout said “It would be my fondest hope and most sincere wish that we get this thing resolved as quickly and cheaply as possible. And I think the town feels the same way.”

Veterans Island

The town is currently making efforts to restore Veterans Island.

The popular Saratoga park, which was under several feet of water during this year’s flooding, has been under restoration for the (past week) and is expected to be partially open in the near future.

Crews have been moving sediment that had been washed away by the flood to repair the walkway around the island. Additionally, the skateboard park has been cleaned up.

Zeiger said in a previous interview he was pleased with how well the park held up after the flood event.

Construction on the pedestrian bridge, which would reach from Veterans Island to the hot pool, is expected to commence this summer.

Franchise Fee

Mayor John Zeiger said the town is in negotiations with Carbon Power and Light (CP&L) concerning the franchise fee agreement.

“It’s in the lawyers’ hands, and we will see what they come up with together,” Zeiger said about the negotiations. He added he had not seen anything concerning the agreement yet.

The town council will go through its first reading at the July 15 meeting.

The agreement will impose a four percent fee on CP&L for using town (utilities). At the May 7 town council meeting, CP&L general manager Chuck Larsen said the added fee would have to be passed on to the customers, who would see anywhere between a $2.80 to $7.01 increase in monthly dues, depending on the amount imposed by the town.

Zeiger and town council members have previously noted the town is looking for additional revenues, and CP&L is the only utility provider who does not pay any type of franchise fee.

The next town council meeting will take place at 6 p.m. on July 15 at Saratoga Town Hall.