A vision made real

At 10 a.m. on October 20, around 50 people came for the grand opening of the Carbon County Road and Bridge, Medicine Bow Shop and Sheriff Complex. That might be a mouthful, but the facility impressed all that came.

Representatives from Rocky Mountain Power and Power Company of Wyoming joined Carbon County Commissioners, engineering firms and many residents from Medicine Bow.

Medicine Bow Mayor Sharon Biamon was pleasantly surprised at how many residents showed up.

"We have been watching it go up, but I was surprised at how many townspeople came in for a look," Biamon said.

Carbon County Commissioner Sue Jones was also surprised at how many people came for the opening.

"There wasn't a lot of advertising, mostly just flyers and word of mouth," Jones said. "It was excellent to see the turnout."

The first building that people visited was the Sheriff Complex with its apartments.

When the complex had been put on the drawing board, there was no law enforcement in the town of Medicine Bow. The apartments had been built to house personnel from the Sheriff's Department who might be staying overnight.

"The apartments are really nice," Biamon said. "They might be able to be used for visiting SCWEMS (South Central Wyoming Emergency Medical Services) personnel since it is a Carbon County building."

The tour of the Road and Bridge -Medicine Bow Shop was given by Carbon County Commissioner Chairman John Johnson.

The huge facility made social distancing easy as the crowd gathered inside.

"Bill Nation has to be thanked for this building," Johnson said. "It wasn't exactly what he envisioned because we ran out of money. It still cost $1.5 million."

Johnson thanked Craig Kopasz and his firm, Engineering Associates, for their hard work.

"They have done a phenomenal job," Johnson said. "I have to fess up, I think twice I had to take a time out in meetings when we were talking about the project, but it is water under the bridge. This building is a testament to what good ideas bring forth."

Johnson thanked Rocky Mountain Power for putting in the wind projects which led to impact funds that allowed for the construction of the building. He also thanked Shepard Construction for doing an outstanding job in building the facility.

"This place is going to house the blades for the area very nicely," Johnson said. "The apartment is a great residence and it allows the Sheriff Department to have a presence in the town too."

Johnson laughed when he heard a comment that the building came in on budget.

"That is something we always like to hear," Johnson said smiling. "Something we really, really like to hear."

Medicine Bow resident Kay Embry said humorously, "Now the blades don't have to be parked in the operators driveways anymore."

After the speakers were done making their comments, there were refreshments served.

"This is a good day for Carbon County and Medicine Bow," Biamon concluded.