Community learns about sixth-cent proposals at informational meeting

CASPER, Wyo. — Casper area residents were able to learn about the various proposed sixth-cent tax projects, and voice their questions and concerns, at a Monday evening informational meeting.

Those in attendance had a range of opinions on the proposed tax-funded projects, ranging from support to staunch opposition.

Some in attendance, like Casper City Council candidate Ross Schriftman, said they had problems with the funding mechanism for the tax.

“There’s a lot of problems with the way they’re doing this,” he said. “Things like the ice arena and the softball fields — are these public needs or public wants? … People are dealing with inflation and really struggling; when there are people who are in really tough spots financially it can be hard to be hit with an additional sales tax, especially if it’s for something they won’t even use.”

Schriftman also said that the fact that Casper is seeking voter approval alone, as the other Natrona County municipalities chose not to put it on the ballot, is cause for alarm.

“To my knowledge this is the first time it’s happened where one city decided to go it alone because none of the other communities supported it,” he said.

Others in attendance were supportive of some proposals but not others. Which proposals they support vary, though.

Casper resident John Cole said he supports many of the public safety projects but is skeptical of ones geared towards recreation and other special interests.

“We all need fire stations; we need 911,” he said. “But some of them do give me pause, like Hogadon [which is seeking a new ski lift], and the addition to the rec center.

Fellow Casperite Steven Ruff was of the opposite mind. In his view, important city projects should be accounted for in the city’s budget, with the tax best suited for smaller things.

“Why are they asking us to vote on a fire station? Would that not be part of a city’s normal budget?” Ruff asked. “On the other hand, I can see why they’d use the tax for a baseball field or the ski resort. The city might say, ‘Well, we’re pretty lean in our budget; can we get you guys to vote for more money?'”

In total, there are eight sixth-cent projects up for consideration:

• Construction of a new Metro Animal Shelter – $7.3 million
• New Fire Station No. 1 – $4.4 million (reduced from original cost)
• Second sheet of ice and secondary rink at the Casper Ice Arena – $5 million
• Hogadon Chairlift replacement – $4.2 million
• 911 Dispatch – $5 million
• Auxiliary gym at the Casper Rec Center – $3.6 million
• Washington Park bandshell improvements – $1.5 million
• Fastpitch softball fields – $4 million

Throughout Wyoming, a 4% sales tax is applied to most purchases, with some exceptions. This tax, in place since 1993, is collected at the point of sale and split between state and local governments. The state keeps 69% of the tax finds while the remaining 31% is dispersed to the counties that then share the monies with its municipalities.

The fifth cent tax is collected countywide at a 1% rate. The state keeps 1% as an administrative fee, while the rest is distributed among Natrona County’s communities.

The City of Casper Revenue Team Committee reports that the 1% tax, if approved would raise $35 million within the permitted two-year time period. The list of projects totals $35 million. If approved by voters, tax collection would end when the needed revenue to fund the projects is collected, according to the city.

Proposition 1: Metro Animal Shelter

The Metro Animal Shelter in Casper was built more than 40 years ago, and shelter manager Jodi Decker said the shelter’s duties have long since outgrown its facility. Designed to hold roughly 30 dogs, she said, the shelter nowadays is often tasked with holding 50 or more.

“We want a building that will support our community, because at this point our building is 40 years old and no longer equipped to really do that,” Decker said. “We’re looking to create a facility that is functioning for our animals and our community at large.”

Decker said the size constraints at the current location can create unsafe conditions for both the shelter’s staff and the animals in its care.

If approved, Decker said the new shelter will have indoor-outdoor kennels, more total kennels and other amenities to improve services. She added that the city has identified some possible locations for a new shelter, but no official determinations have been made about where a new shelter will be built if approved.

And Decker said that while she understands the $7 million request — the largest of the eight proposals — might make some blanch, she said she believes the benefits far outweigh the cost.

“This is something that benefits the whole community,” she said. “A more functional animal shelter makes things safer for the people of Natrona County, and the animals too.”

Proposition 2: Casper Ice Arena

With several user groups utilizing the Casper Ice Arena, the Casper Recreation Department is looking to expand the rink sheet and add a secondary arena.

“From local hockey teams, figure skating, tournaments that we host here and a lot more stuff, the rink is pretty maxed out,” Casper Recreation Coordinator Billy McCain said. “This would allow the Casper Ice Arena to accommodate all the groups that want to use our facility.

“The other thing this could do is grow the hockey tournaments we already host. The Casper Oilers Hockey Club hosts a few tournaments each year, and they use every minute of ice time that they possibly can. By adding a second rink, it’d essentially double the number of teams that could participate.”

McCain added that the Casper Ice Arena isn’t just used by local groups, but is used by organizations from throughout central Wyoming.

If approved, the secondary arena would be added to the west side of the current building, cutting slightly into the parking lot, McCain said.

Proposition 3: Hogadon Basin Ski Area

The Hogadon Basin Ski Area is hoping to use sixth-cent for a new ski lift, as its current one is old outdated, Hogadon representatives say.

“Our lift is 42 years old, and it’s to the point that it’s become extremely hard to find new parts for,” Hogadon superintendent Chris Smith said. “We’ve actually had to have companies manufacture parts for us, since we couldn’t get them any other way.”

The lift’s age has sometimes caused complications for the local skiing spot, such as a day earlier this year where issues forced the park to close early.

If approved, Smith said, the new chairlift would be an ADA-accessible quad-chair lift, capable of moving 1,600 skiers per hour, reducing wait times and allowing park users to hit the slopes quicker.

With the accessibility improvements, it would also allow for a broader range of users to utilize the park.

“I know that the community thinks this’ll only be for the locals, but this will help people throughout Wyoming,” Smith said. “We get skiers from Riverton, Dubois and even from outside of Wyoming like Nebraska.”

Proposition 4: Fastpitch softball fields

The Casper Recreation Department is hoping to add two more softball fields in the local community, as the city’s current fields struggle to keep up with the demands of the area schools, travel leagues and more user groups.

“We’re currently seeing a strong interest in the sport [of softball] that’s only grown with the recent sanction of fastpitch softball at the high school level,” Recreation Department director Nick Whipps said.

“We currently have three softball travel teams, and each of those teams are broken into multiple age groups with 8U, 10U, all the way up to 16U,” he added. “Then you’ve got the high schools that use the fields, and each high school has both a varsity and JV squad. And we also host tournaments throughout the season on those fields as well.”

Whipps said there isn’t a location for the fields chosen yet, adding that those decisions will be made after consulting with planners should the proposal be approved at the ballot box.

“We’ve got a few areas in mind that we’ve narrowed it down to, but I can’t say yet what those areas are,” he said.

Should it be approved, the new set of softball diamonds and related facilities would provide tournament-quality space for competitive play, while being flexible enough to support other turf-based sports when not in use by softball team, Whipps said. The use of synthetic turf would also extend how long teams could play on them, allowing play to start earlier in the year and last longer.

Proposition 5: Fire Station No. 1

At 48 years old, Casper Fire-EMS Station No. 1 is the oldest remaining fire station in the city, Fire Chief Jacob Black said. To that end, the department is seeking a new and improved building for its most centralized station.

“This is our largest station,” Black said. “It houses the most amount of our workforce and our apparatus during a shift and it’s the busiest station in the city’s core downtown area.”

Black said that the city has been in the process of replacing its five stations for roughly the last 15 years, and Station 1 is the last to be upgraded. The current location is too small and outdated for modern requirements, including storing fire trucks and other equipment, meeting response times, decontaminating equipment and providing adequate facilities for all genders.

“Our current location is completely full in terms of space, both for equipment and our staff,” Black said. “We have no more storage for any additional equipment. We also don’t have much space for our firefighters when not on call. Those are two really big issues we want to fix.”

Black said the department has been looking for other spaces downtown that could work as new locations for Station No. 1, though nothing has been decided yet.

If approved, the amount requested would fund the first phase of the project, including design and planning work. The second phase is where construction would actually start, Black said.

Proposition 6: 911 Dispatch Center

Dispatchers are instrumental in a community’s emergency response process, and Natrona County’s dispatchers are hoping voters will approve a sixth-cent proposal for new and improved equipment.

“The thing that I most want voters to understand is that this request has nothing to do with construction or a new building,” communications manager Lori Jackson said. “This is only for equipment that we need to do our job.”

According to Jackson, the center’s current equipment is all over a decade old at this point, making it outdated and unsupported. Maintenance and upgrades are often more challenging than they should be if not outright impossible, she said.

“Recording equipment, radio equipment, telephone equipment [and] mapping equipment — it’s all crucial to what we do,” Jackson said. “Almost all of our equipment is at the end of its life and has been for a while. Of course, we’re always going to make sure that we have what we need to help keep the community safe, but it’s harder with outdated equipment, and issues do arise more often.”

If approved, Jackson said, it will lead to faster response times and better outcomes during emergencies as a result.

Proposition 7: Casper Rec Center

Each day, hundreds of people utilize the Casper Rec Center. In fact, so many people use it that it is regularly over capacity. To alleviate stresses put on the center, the city is looking to utilize sixth-cent funds for an auxiliary gymnasium at the center.

“We have leagues Monday through Thursday through most of the evening and night, which doesn’t leave much opportunity for people who want to drop in and play pickleball, basketball, that sort of thing,” recreation supervisor Edwin Luers said. “We’re hoping this will alleviate that and allow the members of the community to enjoy the rec center even if there are leagues using it too.”

The center’s schedule is so full that it currently cannot allow for the addition of new programs or activities. In 2023, the center saw roughly 198,000 visits.

Recreation coordinator Lori Spearman added that this is something the Recreation Department has wanted to do for roughly two decades. They recently decided that with funds they’ve saved plus potential sixth-cent funding, now was the time to seek the addition.

If approved, the auxiliary gym would be located off the back of the current gymnasium, Luers said.

“We love to serve our community and offer programs for everyone, from toddlers to senior citizens,” Spearman added. “This will help allow even more people to use the rec center.”

Proposition 8: Washington Park Bandshell

Washington Park’s bandshell is used throughout the year by the Casper Municipal Band and Wyoming Symphony Orchestra, as well as for countless other concerts, festivals and more. Built in 1939, the bandshell is now in need of several repairs and upgrades, city officials say.

Issues affecting the facility include drainage problems, lack of adequate storage, deteriorating exterior and interior finishes, outdated lighting and sound systems and more. The roof is also in need of repairs.

“The bandshell was built almost 100 years ago and I think has just had one major renovation since then,” public facilities director Zulima Lopez said. “It definitely needs some love. … The drainage issues are a major concern and actually lead to flooding and mold in the basement.”

Also among the improvements the city hopes to see made to the bandshell would improve accesibility features, Lopez added.

“We want to make it easier for people with mobility issues to take the stage as a member of the band playing, but also for spectators,” she said. “We want to add pathways that make it easier for spectators to get down and enjoy the performances much more easily. Right now, if you or a loved one are in a wheelchair, you’ve basically got to push your way through a lot of grass to get close to the stage.”

If approved by voters, the entire process will likely take a year and a half to two years to complete, parks manager Randy Norvelle said.