A picture is worth a boost to Laramie County development

Granite Peak Development and AVI PC presented the commissioners with a framed photograph of the Swan Ranch Rail Park Tuesday at the Laramie County Commissioners meeting.

“This project was a game changer,” said Bruce Perryman from AVI PC. “The park created 650 jobs on 3,000 acres and still has room for expansion. And all this would not have been possible without your cooperation.”

Scott Sutherland of Granite Peak Development echoed Perryman’s words and offered to take the commissioners on a tour of the park to show them all the work being done.

Commissioner Diane Humphrey complimented the vision of the developer and said the “McMurtry’s are class A kind of people who made money in Wyoming and invest money back into the state.”

In other business, Cheyenne public transportation director Joe Dougherty asked the commissioners to renew the contract between Laramie county and the city for transportation in the county.

“Thirty-two percent of the people bused from the south stop were from outside the city,” explained Dougherty.

He added the buses drove 27,960 miles in the county on the south route. The estimated cost from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is $2.40 per mile. Dougherty said the buses provided 4,992 “curb to curb” rides last year for county residents which resulted in 21,397 miles. The FTA has the curb to curb cost at $5 per mile.

“The additional cost covers dispatchers and other power costs passed down,” Dougherty explained. “The south route was the second highest used route with 42,311 rides last year. Walmart is the highest used. The system runs six routes, 13 hours a day, five days a week, and seven hours on Saturday.”

Both routes covered 458,917 miles last year.

Dougherty said the cost to operate for the county routes and passengers would be $174,089 but the federal government grant covers half of that amount.

Dougherty said commissioner chairman Troy Thompson had asked him to keep the requested amount the same as last year, but reminded the commissioners there was a 15 percent increase in fuel costs from last year. “This is a good starting point, and I will bring it to the town council for their approval,” Dougherty said.

In other business, the commissioners agreed to recommend three grants to the Temporary Aid to Needy Families Community Program Initiative grant for funding through the Wyoming Department of Family Services. They recommended Cheyenne Boys and Girls Club for $5,000, CLIMB Wyoming for $75,000 and Wyoming Family Home Ownership Program for $10,000. Thompson asked what would happen if the programs weren’t funded, and clerk Debbye Lathrop said the commissioners could decide to fund the programs with county money.

Shooting Sports Complex manager Kevin Burns asked the commissioners to consider an agreement between Elavon and the complex to set up a point of sale credit card account. Burns explained that many customers don’t bring cash with them and only carry a debit or credit card.

“Right now we only take cash or checks,” Burns said. “Sometimes they have to dig for change in their car or only one in the group gets to shoot. I think this would increase sales. The company would charge .195 percent on each transaction.”

Commissioner Amber Ash asked if Burns had considered ATM machine instead of the credit sales.

Laramie county deputy attorney Sylvia Hackl said the regulations and rules for an ATM were just as strict, and she thought the fees would be similar.

“I think it would be easier on the customer to pay at the counter rather than being charged an ATM fee and taking out the money,” Burns said. “That way they can buy more if they wanted, rather than only buy the amount of cash they took out.” Burns felt sales would “easily increase by 50 percent” after the machine was placed.

The commissioners agreed to the contract for a credit card machine at the shooting complex.

Burns asked the commissioners to postpone reviewing the contract for the automated target retrieval system.

“We are considering expanding the range from 14 to 19 lanes and would like to wait for the system in case we expand,” Burns said.

The commissioners agreed.

In other business, the commissioners discussed accepting the bid from Naranjo Civil Constructors for phase three of the Allison Draw project. Hasenauer was concerned it wasn’t a local company and asked how much more it would be to award the bid to a local company. Director of public works Don Beard said it would be “considerably more” to go with a local company, but added some or most of the material will be purchased locally. The contract was approved by the commissioners.

The commissioners moved on to approve the fees for liquor licenses for 2013-2014 fiscal year. Lathrop explained the fees are set by the state and a few of the licenses are at their maximum level. She added not all the types of licenses are used in Laramie County but they had to list them. The commissioners agreed to the fee scale for all the liquor licenses.

Mike Sorenson with the Laramie County Sheriffs Department asked the commissioners to consider an agreement to renew the agreement that funds a sheriff for security at the county court house. Sorenson said this also helps the county since the sheriff can fill in when needed for security at other locations. The commissioners renewed the agreement.

Sorenson was also appointed by the commissioners to the Laramie County Juvenile Services Joint Powers Board to serve until 2016.

Court Appointed Special Advocate Association director Betsy Putnam requested the commissioners to proclaim April 2013 as “Hope in Hands” month in recognition of CASA of Laramie County’s activities during National Child Abuse prevention awareness month.

Putnam said the volunteers work “one-on-one” with the children and give 1,000 hours per year, usually driving 1,000 miles in a year serving as an advocate for children in the court system due to abuse or neglect. “They serve as the voice for the children in court and represent them during proceedings,” explained Putnam.

After an open hearing for comments regarding a permit for a subdivision in Grizzly Cliffs, the commissioners narrowly passed the first filing. Some of the concerns were the ability to drill a well and place a septic tank.

The next commissioners meeting will be Tuesday, April 2 at 3:30 p.m.