Town council asked to revisit allowing chickens in town limits

At the February 7 Thermopolis Town Council meeting held at the Town Hall, Mayor Adam Estenson said that there was no action taken on the following presentation. Darren Butcher returned to the council and gave another presentation for his advocacy to have chickens be legal within the town’s boundaries. Butcher told a story that highlights a “difference between livelihood and lifestyle.” There were no questions asked after the presentation.

A letter to the editor from Butcher appears on page 4 of this newspaper. Butcher indicates he has a plan to introduce Limited Urban Agriculture to the city of Thermopolis.

During citizen participation, Chamber of Commerce CEO Meri Ann Dorman formally invited council members to attend their chamber meetings on the second Thursday of every month at 6 p.m. held at the Big Horn Federal conference room. Council member Bill Malloy said that he would attend.

Kim Bartlett, representing the Hot Springs County Democratic Party, invited the mayor and council to attend the second annual non-partisan community dinner for the 2023 Mardi Gras on Sunday, February 19 from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. at the Community Hall.  

Chief of Police Pat Cornwell gave his report. He highlighted the Rapid SOS program that helps dispatch, emergency medical services, and law enforcement know the location of cell phone users in a 911 hangup call. Cornwell said this is helpful, in locating suicidal subjects faster, car crashes, or any other reason someone would use their cell phone to call 911. The program can also convey user-stored data of important medical information, such as blood type, medications, allergies, and emergency contact information, to EMS when they arrive on the scene, or to the Emergency Medical Staff at the ER.

Cornwell also presented a request to the council and community to potentially be involved with helping law enforcement to allow their doorbell cameras, external cams, or any other video to be used in investigations. Cornwell added that certain convenience stores have good security cameras, but having the community’s cameras would help in their investigations, especially with their limited staff of officers. The partnership with citizens would higher the likelihood of catching crimes in your neighborhoods.

Cornwell is also implementing EMD (Emergency Medical Dispatch) and is in the beginning stages of training. EMD is another tool for dispatchers when there is a medical emergency. This helps them quickly narrow down the caller’s type of medical or trauma situation and provide quality instructions to the caller before the ambulance arrives.

Town engineer Heath Overfield gave a presentation about the potential for water districts in the area, the Big Horn Regional water districts, and the Town of Thermopolis coming together to address the water supply to the region. The town’s water plant will reach its life expectancy in about five years and there is a concern new rules from the EPA could come and restrict surface water usage.

The need for a new water source could be in play. There have been some studies about possible new resources. Overfield said there could be a Level 2 study of drilling for water at the Lysite Mountain location that might be possible. The amount of time needed to determine if that drilling location is feasible coincides with the time the town’s water plant lifetime sunsets. The application cost of the Level 2 study is about $1,000 and it also might be waived.

A public meeting regarding the proposed Hot Springs County Regional Water Joint Powers Board will be held on Thursday, February 16 at 7 p.m. in the meeting room at the Hot Springs County Government Annex building located at 117 N. 4th Street. Any questions regarding this meeting should be directed to Connie Guntly, County Commissioners Administrative Assistant, 864-8040.

At the Town Council meeting, Mayor Estenson also presented an action item regarding their employee handbook and their usage of accrued paid time off (PTO). In order to attract new hires from other regions, they want to have new hires not start their PTO from zero and would continue their level of vacation accrual. Estenson said that the new hire’s previous work must be in the public sector and be in “apples to apples” position or skill set and each application would be handled case by case. The council voted and passed the approval of the policy change effective on February 8. 

Mayor Estenson also communicated how the community can engage with the Town of Thermopolis and department heads by reaching out to Jim Jeunehomme, the Assistant to Mayor and Council. Estenson said, “Jeunehomme is available to field questions and also people can schedule meetings with the mayor. This can help folks get faster responses and not have to wait to address issues at a council meeting that really should be addressed at the administrative level.”