Bakken Visits Encampment

The Encampment Town Council met at 7 p.m. on  June 9 at the Encampment Town Hall. Mayor Greg Salisbury was in attendance as were council members, Shannon Fagan Craig, Bill Craig and Gary Stull.

Doreen Harvey, town clerk/treasurer, went over the financials with the council and quickly the bills were ratified.

The first public guest was Yvonne Johnson of the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC) to give an update.

“The document I gave you is an overview of what we have been doing with CCEDC and also to show what your town’s investment is getting,” Johnson said. “I know budgets are done and it is important you see what we do to help Carbon County bring economic development.”

Johnson said since August 2020 when she started until this June, she has logged 25,000 miles, all in Carbon County going to meetings and promoting business opportunities. 

She told the council about the building in Baggs that was donated by Crowheart Energy to Assisted Care Facility that specializes in assisted living; the building is being turned into an assisted living facility.

“Their plan is to move their medical facility over to that building along with the ambulance service,” Johnson said. “There is also a small housing project in Hanna being slated to build.”

She said a new plumber was doing business in Carbon County.

“He lives in Rawlins, but works in Saratoga,” Johnson said. “It might seem like this isn’t such a big deal, but there is a real shortage in the county. His name is Derek Truman of Radiant Plumbing.”

When Johnson finished her update, Alex Bakken, Republican candidate for Sheriff of Carbon County, spoke about why he was running.

 Bakken is currently a patrol deputy in the sheriff’s office. He has worked there for five years. Before that, Bakken said he worked at the state penitentiary in Rawlins.

“I am here tonight to get a better feel of what the public wants and expects from the sheriff’s office, so I have been going around the county and attending town council meetings and various entities around the county,” Bakken said. “I wanted to hear the different concerns because I think it is silly for someone to come in with an agenda without hearing what people want from this elected position.”

Bakken said although he was listening to the expectations of residents, he did have three tenets he had as a foundation for his campaign.

“The first is community engagement and inter-agency cooperation,” Bakken said. “We are a very rural county and we spend a lot of time working together whether it is the Encampment Police Department or SCWEMS. Teamwork is crucial to provide the best service to the residents of this county. I think there is a lot we can do with the communities if we put forth the engagement.”

Bakken said coverage of the 8,000 miles that exist in Carbon County needs to be enhanced.

“Right now we have kind of implemented a culture where it is all right for the deputies to be in Rawlins for eight hours,” Bakken said. “I am doing a pretty big disservice to the communities. With increased area coverage comes better response time, which is what we owe the communities in by Mike Armstrong

The Encampment Town Council met at 7 p.m. on  June 9 at the Encampment Town Hall. Mayor Greg Salisbury was in attendance as were council members, Shannon Fagan Craig, Bill Craig and Gary Stull.

Doreen Harvey, town clerk/treasurer, went over the financials with the council and quickly the bills were ratified.

The first public guest was Yvonne Johnson of the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation (CCEDC) to give an update.

“The document I gave you is an overview of what we have been doing with CCEDC and also to show what your town’s investment is getting,” Johnson said. “I know budgets are done and it is important you see what we do to help Carbon County bring economic development.”

Johnson said since August 2020 when she started until this June, she has logged 25,000 miles, all in Carbon County going to meetings and promoting business opportunities. 

She told the council about the building in Baggs that was donated by Crowheart Energy to Assisted Care Facility that specializes in assisted living; the building is being turned into an assisted living facility.

“Their plan is to move their medical facility over to that building along with the ambulance service,” Johnson said. “There is also a small housing project in Hanna being slated to build.”

She said a new plumber was doing business in Carbon County.

“He lives in Rawlins, but works in Saratoga,” Johnson said. “It might seem like this isn’t such a big deal, but there is a real shortage in the county. His name is Derek Truman of Radiant Plumbing.”

When Johnson finished her update, Alex Bakken, Republican candidate for Sheriff of Carbon County, spoke about why he was running.

 Bakken is currently a patrol deputy in the sheriff’s office. He has worked there for five years. Before that, Bakken said he worked at the state penitentiary in Rawlins.

“I am here tonight to get a better feel of what the public wants and expects from the sheriff’s office, so I have been going around the county and attending town council meetings and various entities around the county,” Bakken said. “I wanted to hear the different concerns because I think it is silly for someone to come in with an agenda without hearing what people want from this elected position.”

Bakken said although he was listening to the expectations of residents, he did have three tenets he had as a foundation for his campaign.

“The first is community engagement and inter-agency cooperation,” Bakken said. “We are a very rural county and we spend a lot of time working together whether it is the Encampment Police Department or SCWEMS. Teamwork is crucial to provide the best service to the residents of this county. I think there is a lot we can do with the communities if we put forth the engagement.”

Bakken said coverage of the 8,000 miles that exist in Carbon County needs to be enhanced.

“Right now we have kind of implemented a culture where it is all right for the deputies to be in Rawlins for eight hours,” Bakken said. “I am doing a pretty big disservice to the communities. With increased area coverage comes better response time, which is what we owe the communities in Carbon County.”

His third tenet was staff investment.

“Right now there is limited investment in staff and as a result, our turnover rate is at 90 percent.” Bakken said. “Now I hope no one in the county ever   has to call 911, but if you do, I want to be able to provide a highly motivated and highly trained deputy that is going to respond to your call in a decent amount of time. I believe the communities will see the return of this investment by training and motivation.”

Salisbury told Bakken he believed there was a  problem with response time around the Encampment area.

Bakken said there are three deputies in Saratoga, but the lack of clear direction and assignment for coverage, most deputies are in Rawlins at any given time.

“Right now in scheduling, 30 percent of every day is uncovered,” Bakken said. “So it is really hit or miss where deputies are going to be at, which is an issue. What I would like is to set up a quadrant system where the county is broken into quadrants each day and a deputy is assigned to a quadrant.”

Salisbury said having only one law enforcement individual made it difficult for 24/7 coverage and the town depended on the Sheriff’s department. 

“I think many people in outlying areas think we cover these places, but we don’t unless it is a serious situation,” Salisbury said. “It is not our responsibility and it is your department, yet we have had complaints come to us several times.”

Bakken said this situation was a problem he has identified in the communities.

“I’ve identified some problems and I am a firm believer that if you identify a problem, you propose a solution,” Bakken said. “I felt there was only so much I could change as a street deputy so I decided to run for sheriff to implement changes I see a need for”.

Bakken said he would rotate deputies through all the  quadrants when asked.

“Yes, because I think it is essential for all deputies to know this county they work for,” Bakken said. “Bad things can happen fast and it isn’t fair to residents that a deputy doesn’t know where trouble is happening.”

Salisbury and the Council thanked Bakken for coming in.

The council approved $11,358.28 for a Carbon Power and Light contract for an easement in the sewer lagoon project. Jon Nelson of Northfork Engineering said there was a pre-bid meeting on June 7 with six contractors in attendance.

There was a public hearing for FY 2021/2022 Budget Amendment for the third and final reading. After the public hearing the budget amendment’s final reading was approved. 

There was a public hearing for FY 2021/2022 Budget Ordinance third and final reading. When the public hearing was over, the budget ordinance was approved for its final reading.

Bill Davis and Stas Banach were appointed to three years to sit on the planning commission. Hayden Crowe was approved as a summer hire.

The council approved the purchase of an aerator motor for $937.10.

A new ignition for the town truck was approved along with installation for up to $1500.

A permit for street closure on July 4 at Emerson between McCaffery and Freeman between 4 to 11 p.m. for the Divide Restaurant. The venue is planning a large party geared for the community.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) was approved between the Platte Valley Arts Council and the town of Encampment.

A carpet was approved to be installed in the office of the police chief. The cost $832.

The council approved advertising for an open seat in planning and zoning.

An ad asking for contract bids for the restroom project in the park was approved. The application for a $500 grant to the Carbon County Visitors Council was approved.

Greg Salisbury confirmed he is running for mayor again. 

The next scheduled meeting is at 7 p.m. on July 14 at the Encampment Town Hall.