KEMMERER — The Kemmerer City Council convened for a special meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 17, to approve the submission of a bid for the salt and sand project. By joining the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) bid, the city aims to reduce costs for these essential materials.

Last winter’s mild conditions led the city to rely on its existing stockpile, but with supplies now dwindling, a new order is necessary. The council hopes to secure $30,000 to replenish the salt and sand inventory.

During the meeting, the city also approved the submission of a Mineral Royalty Grant in the amount of $30,000 for the replacement of a police vehicle. Kemmerer Director of Events and Recreation Trista Gordon said she received an email from the State Loan and Investment Board stating that Mineral Royalty Grant applications were due, with a clause stating applications for emergency vehicles were available.

“Since we already had a police vehicle in the budget, I thought we would give it a try,” Gordon said.

The application states that, with the influx of population surrounding the TerraPower Nuclear Plant construction, it is imperative that the town’s police officers have reliable equipment.

The city also approved the submission for a Mineral Royalty Grant in the amount of $25,000 for the engineering of the Antelope Ridge walking trail. The trail would connect Antelope Ridge subdivision to Canyon Road. Gordon said the trail would solve a lot of safety issues for those living in the subdivision. 

The city decided not to submit the current request for a Mineral Royalty Grant to cover engineering costs for the Gateway PUD and Canyon Road Development after being informed by the state of Wyoming that Lincoln County cannot seek funding for the infrastructure related to these projects because they will not own the streets and stormwater system. As a result, the application as it currently stands, was deemed ineligible.

Kemmerer City Attorney Dean Stout acknowledged to the council that the housing developments are important projects and will be a benefit to Kemmerer; however, he said, “We just need to make sure we don’t cause the city to incur debt or liability that is going to [cause] harm in the long run.”

Although there were talks about possible ways to secure the grant in the future, time constraints and technical issues led to the recommendation that the council should not approve the application for the SLIB Mineral Royalty Grant for the development. Submitting the application with the intention of passing the funding to the developers could cause constitutional issues, budget shortfalls, and might affect future applications, Stout said.