Water rate increase passed on first reading

At the November 21 Thermopolis Town Council meeting, Town Attorney Marshall Keller presented three ordinances for the first reading.

First was a water rate increase from $19.80 to $25 per month. Second was to increase the number of bar and grill liquor licenses from two to four. Third was to amend ordinance 864 to correct a typo but does not change the language meaning. No discussion was held on the ordinances.

The council voted and passed the approval of all three ordinances separately. These are in their first reading. After passing approval in the third reading, the ordinance will take effect once they are published in the Independent Record. 

Chief of Police Pat Cornwell presented several grant awards. The first was for State Query Software for $15,000. This software allows mobile users to query state and federal databases without having to ask for the information from dispatch. 

The second was for eCitations, a third-party interface for $6,800. This is a file transfer module that is compatible with their current software Eforce. The software will submit citations to the appropriate court as they are issued. 

The third grant is for the Patrick Leahy Bulletproof Vest Partnership for $2,800. This grant pays for 50% of the cost of bullet-proof vests for police officers. The current vest application was for four replacement vests totaling $5,600. 

The next grant was with Wyoming Highway Safety, $3,135.50 for impaired driving focus and $2,000 for occupant protection. Another grant was for WASCOP EUDL for enforcing underage drinking laws for $1,000. 

The council voted and passed the approval to accept the grants.

Director of Public Works Basil Sorensen reported that there were two new pumps installed at the main lift station. He also said he was impressed with the crew and “things are going really good”. The town crew installed the Christmas lights and decorations. 

The council also discussed with Sorensen about the recent snow removal summit discussion with business owners. Mayor Adam Estenson said they have “good dialogue.” Sorensen said that they were listening and were open to new ideas and established communication with the business owners. Mayor Estenson and Sorensen also discussed the priority of which areas are plowed first. They mentioned Richards Street next to Mack’s Market as a new priority due to the town’s residents’ activity there.

Town Engineer Anthony Barnett gave a brief update that he spoke with DEQ about the transfer station matter and they plan to present to the council in December about it.

In administration, Assistant to the Mayor Jim Jeunehomme continued their plans with TextMyGov and explained that he recommends they go separate from Hot Springs County because the end user, the resident, would have difficulty knowing who the text came from and add confusion. The initiation setup was $5,400, but they discounted it to $3,750 for the first year. For the following recurring years, it was $3,600, but they discounted it to $2,500 with a 5% increase each year. The council voted and passed the approval to move forward with TextMyGov as a separate account.

Mayor Estenson said they purchased the equipment to livestream the council meetings but are waiting on IT to set up the gear and software.

The council also voted and passed the approval of the Local Government Liability Pool. The Vote went as follows, Rick Grant for County Commissioner; Mike Bailey for Municipal Elected Official; and Hale Redding for Special District Representative.

The council held an executive session regarding a legal matter. Afterward, they announced that no action was taken.