SUBLETTE COUNTY – A golden addition to the Board of Sublette County Commissioners’ chambers flanked the panel of four out of five commissioners during Tuesday’s meeting. A ceremonial golden shovel, granted to commissioner Dave Stephens at the groundbreaking of the new Dry Piney wildlife crossing last week, was propped behind the board and next to the mounted commemorative rifle as part of the county’s centennial celebration.

That shovel moved dirt on a planned multi-million-dollar project that’s meant to protect citizens and wildlife in Sublette County for years to come. Stephens and Doug Vickrey, the only commissioners to attend the ceremony, Tom Noble and Sam White conducted a commissioners’ meeting on May 17 that largely involved potential future projects across the county. Commission chair Joel Bousman was thousands of miles away in Anchorage, Alaska, sitting on a Western Interstate Region meeting concerning public lands.

One of the largest potential projects, both in terms of money and community reaction, is the community hall building at the Sublette County Fairgrounds. Jay Brower, fairgrounds manager, replaced the doors on the community hall last fall.

“That soon opened a can of worms,” Brower said.

Crews discovered the front steps of the community center were pulling away from the building itself. Brower told the board there were some curiosities at that point but they took a backseat to other priorities.

It’s since been determined water comes off the building’s roof into puddles under the stairs. It then continuously freezes and breaks so often that water has gotten between the building and existing steps. Brower said he didn’t know how much to invest into the project.

So far, Brower and engineers at Rio Verde Engineering got together and made plans to tear out the concrete steps in favor for an Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant ramp. The ramp itself would cost $29,500. They could address drainage but the question those involved asked commissioners was how far to go with fixing the situation. There could be quick fixes all the way to complete renovations done to the building, but it was originally the Big Piney schoolhouse so its age is starting to show.

The building is rented to a church group once a week, the rock club once a month, then for various classes throughout the week, Brower said. The kitchen in it is not commercial and is used more for hosting family reunions, which the building hosts in the summer. During the fair the building is used to host art shows.

Vickrey, who visited the building with Stephens after the Dry Piney groundbreaking the week before, said cement issues with drainage may be the tip of the iceberg.

The full extent of the project will be better known once the cement steps are removed, although there are troubling signs wrapping around from the foundation to underneath its porch.

Brower said he is concerned about community reaction if there isn’t an investment into the building. Commissioner Vickrey said there absolutely would be upset people.

Commissioners decided to move forward with installing the ramps for the time and bringing in an inspector to gauge the life expectancy of the building. Brower suggested reaching out to the Historical Society because of the historical relevance of the building, which has sat at the fairgrounds for approximately 60 years.

Pioneer Senior Center

Supporters and representatives of the Southwest Sublette County Pioneer Senior Center outnumbered commissioners, 2 to 1, as chair Carie James asked the board how to proceed with potential remodel discussions.

James had sketches and ideas for increased space for the center’s activity room. Remodel plans also include creating a larger area dedicated to veterans. Supporters, like former commissioner Doc Burnett, stressed the importance of opening up space to show community members the various veteran items.

With that said, supporters wanted the board’s voice of support in moving forward. Vickrey said he’s absolutely in favor of moving forward with the project but would be sensitive towards the costs. Stephens said it was “the nicest facility in the county” and that he “totally supports” the project. White and Noble were both supportive of moving forward.

Ultimately, it was determined that the county would hire a professional engineer to look at the project in total and estimate project costs. From there, the county could decide logistics of financial investment.

County clerk Carrie Long said rushing to get a budgetary number for the project would be difficult this close to a new budget session. The board is capable of budget amendments and transfers of funds should they be required. Vickrey said he was fine with that but preferred the project move forward sooner rather than later. 

Ongoing projects

Todd Hurd of Forsgren Associates gave the board a brief rundown regarding ongoing projects in the county. There is headway at the Daniel Fire Station building and the sprinkler system will be pressure tested. Controllers are installed and the electrical interior is being finalized. It was recently brought up that the building needed two Internet connections. Hurd said that was the first he’d heard of that requirement. LR Communications didn’t have a solution but Union Wireless representatives said they might.

With costs continuing to rise on the project, even beyond the initial projections, Hurd said the county would not pay anything beyond what is already established on the project.

Trusses for the Rendezvous Pointe garage building have been delivered. Crews are hopeful to complete that project by the end of July. Hurd said he was trying to track down delivery times for other items and jury duty put him behind schedule.

The Big Piney Library, Hurd explained, will go over budget on the roof. He didn’t have an estimate on costs but library manager Sukey Hohl got estimates, budgeting an architecture fee of $168,000 and roof for $40,000 next year. An architectural fee was not included in the original project budget.

The county budgeted $2 million on the library project to start. That doesn’t include plans to potentially replace the building’s boilers. Optimistic estimates showed the library would open in late July. Now, Hurd anticipates the library to open in late August.

Lakeside Lodge expansion

Among his presence for much of the early part of Tuesday’s commissioners’ meeting, Mike Jackson of Rio Verde Engineering presented the board with Lakeside Lodge’s plans for expansion.

Jackson was there to simply explain the project and ask commissioners for a letter of support, which would join support for the project from the Town of Pinedale, Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service. Proposed expansion wouldn’t move county property and the asset would stay on its existing federal lease while continuing to serve the public good. 

Hospital District talks

Deputy county attorney Clayton Melinkovich said the main hiccup with one contract between the county and Sublette County Hospital District centers around shared costs with the owners’ representative. District administration hired the same owners’ representative who worked on the critical access hospital in Afton. That person, who is also currently overseeing parts of the new Riverton hospital project, is budgeted for one onsite visit per month for the 18 months currently scheduled between groundbreaking and completion.

Vickrey, and others in the audience, expressed concern over the owners’ representative’s little onsite involvement. District administrator Dave Doorn said locals will be involved and he would ask the owners’ representative if they could hire a knowledgeable, interested local to help in building the hospital.

Doorn explained the district has been answering the USDA’s questions regarding the loan application and still awaits a decision. Vickrey asked if they’re concerned about local hospitals’ struggles. Doorn said they’ve done the legwork on logistics to figure this out and that this hospital would benefit from distance and the county’s isolation – some medical centers in the Big Horn Basin, for example, are more congested and compete for patients. 

Mosquito appointments

Six nominees applied for three positions in the Mosquito Abatement District No. 1.

The spots were for one three-year term, a four-year term and a five-year term.

Commission White suggested the county appoint Bob Jones to the three-year term, Mike Henn to the four-year term and Josh Adams to the five-year term. That motion was seconded and passed unanimously.

New appointees were left in a jam as the bank accounts for the district are effectively frozen. Peggy Winters formerly came before the board and explained this upcoming mosquito season was accounted for.

Commissioners gave approval for the new members to work off draft minutes for the time being.

Other items:

• Commissioners unanimously approved, without discussion, renewal for liquor licenses on retail, restaurants and limited entities.
• The board approved providing just a 10-percent match for the upcoming Skyline Drive/Fremont Lake Road project.
• Officials decided to not recognize Juneteenth as a paid holiday. It was recognized as a federal holiday recently but potential legislation in the Wyoming State Legislature recognizing it as such wasn’t brought up. Commissioners decided to not recognize it unless there’s movement at the state level.