The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming
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Pine Haven’s Over the Hill Gang will be hosting a mayoral candidate question and answer event at the community center on Saturday, October 8 at 7 p.m. Incumbent Karla Brandenburg and candidate Fred Nelson have agreed to attend; however, the session will continue with only one present. This is not a debate; the purpose is not an argument of policy or opinion, but an opportunity for the candidates to answer questions. Local resident and former councilman Mike Pommarane will be moderating and, after Brandenburg and Nelson introduce themselves, the...
Pine Haven Director of Public Works Sunny Schell will be installing speed limit signage informing drivers of the 20 mile an hour limit throughout municipal roadways as well as ensuring drivers of tractor/trailers recognize the ten mile an hour limit to which they must adhere. After ascertaining how many speed limit signs Schell has on hand, Mayor Karla Brandenburg asked the director to let the council know the areas where it would “make sense” to install signage and they then can purchase more, if needed. Schell currently has three and the cos...
Pine Haven resident Don Dihle spoke to the town council last Tuesday evening regarding his concerns about the increased truck traffic along Vista Grande Drive, calling it a public nuisance and safety issue. He and his wife have lived on the paved residential street for several years. Vista Grande Drive is not a through street, but entertains a number of homes along both sides as well as suburban side streets. Pine Haven's council and the developers of the new C Bar Subdivision project had...
Pine Haven’s fire department auxiliary is hosting their 20th annual Octoberfest Saturday, October 1, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. Brats, German stew and dessert are on the menu with a bake sale and silent auction for guests to peruse as well as a cash raffle with eight chances to win money and $500 for first prize. This is one of the Pine Haven Fire Auxiliary fundraisers to benefit the volunteers who put their lives on the line with every call and a great opportunity enjoy a hearty meal with friends and neighbors. Contact an auxiliary member to p...
Moorcroft businessman Neil Gray and wife Dee have been familiar faces in Moorcroft for several years, having opened the doors to their antique store eight years ago. Not all of the items Gray gathers on his travels, though, are on show. "A lot of times, there are antiques that are just beyond useable so I've got piles and piles of them at home," he says. Now, others may see only junk, but Gray sees possibilities: "Once in a while, I think of some way to make them useful. The modern day word for...
After a series of discussions between the mobile home park owners whose properties are tapped into the town’s water and sewer infrastructure and Moorcroft’s governing body, a compromise has been reached regarding the investment fees required and why. Unless revisited by a future council, this compromise will be in effect until such time that a future water project incorporates adding meters to the individual trailer sites for all parks within the municipal area, making them all equal. The Ellis Mobile Home Park will be responsible for each ind...
Moorcroft has sold the North Big Horn property. The town has owned the empty commercial property north of the Texas Trail Museum for more than a decade and has been trying to sell it almost as long. Due to restrictions, though, there have been no bids on said land when advertised. These numerous restrictions will follow the property through any future sales. "That's probably one of the reasons it's taken forever, because there are a lot of restrictions on it," Councilman Dale Petersen explained...
At approximately 8:45 a.m. on Saturday, the Moorcroft and Pine Haven Volunteer Fire Departments were called out to a structure fire reported at 312 North Yellowstone. According to long-time firefighter Fred Devish, a compromised stove pipe traveling up through the structural chimney from a wood burning stove was the culprit. The fire subsequently moved from the chimney into "a little bit of the roof materials", necessitating the fire crews to soak the space between the outer and inner layers of...
Black Hills Bentonite LLC of Casper, WY has asked for a permit to mine bentonite a couple miles south of Pine Haven. At last week's public meeting of Pine Haven Council, residents and Land Quality Division of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) representatives entertained approximately 60 guests from Pine Haven and the surrounding area to discuss concerns about the mining process. Mayor Karla Brandenburg later noted, "All who spoke objected to the mine being built in the area it is...
Pine Haven’s town council plans to apply for a Business Ready Grant in the new year to enable the town to build the infrastructure for a business park and subsequent fire hall. According to Mayor Karla Brandenburg, along with this main funding they are actively seeking “other avenues for grants for this project”. The Wyoming Business Council’s Business Ready Grant has specific prerequisites, though, one of which is the donation of the land that will hold the infrastructure and on which the structures are to be built. The present land owners...
After many years conducting the town’s business in two monthly meetings to comfortably get all agenda items covered, Moorcroft’s council is considering returning to one meeting a month in an effort to lessen costs. Mayor Ben Glenn opened the discussion: “We’ve batted around going to one meeting a month again, does anybody have any thoughts on that?” “One of the reasons we went to two is because of how long they were,” Councilman Dale Petersen remembered. “We don’t want to have 11-12 p.m. meetings [but] I’m good with trying it and if it doesn...
Consequences of the closure of the municipal landfill are beginning to be felt and are following the long-held predictions of Moorcroft Mayor Ben Glenn, former mayor Dick Claar and many others who dreaded the inevitable rise in costs under the auspices of outside facilitators. “We’re trucking to Gillette now so I think we have to look at our commercial rates,” Glenn reported at the last council meeting. “For years they have been too low, but we got away with it because our landfill [rates] was at $60 a ton. We are now paying $80 a ton at Gill...
According to the National Wildlife Federation, "Bees pollinate a staggering 80% of all flowering plants, including approximately 75% of the fruits, nuts and vegetables grown in the United States." "I really enjoy them. I think they're fascinating," long-time beekeeper and lifetime Crook County resident Renee Brunson says, explaining why she has stayed with beekeeping for the last several years. She farms hybrid Italian/Carnolian bees, because "Italians are a lot gentler and they produce more...
After extensive discussions, Moorcroft’s council has approved a mitigated investment fee for water and sewer to be imposed on residential mobile home parks that distribute services through one meter through a resolution. Unrented spaces/trailers will not be charged and rented domiciles will be graced with a 30-35% discount on the total investment for water and sewer. Mayor Ben Glenn and Councilman Paul Smoot both expressed a lukewarm advocacy of this understanding. “We had several long discussions about it,” said the mayor, “And we are all in...
The concrete streets that beautify several of Moorcroft's residential blocks are holding up very well since the initial installation. However, an issue with a crack running along Park Street has been a concern for the Moorcroft Council for some time. The governing body had hoped to leave it until the work could be added to a project, thus alleviating extra cost to the town, but the damage is now at a point where further delay can possibly do more harm and there is no project planned at this...
Moorcroft's own Texas Trail Cruisers Car Club celebrated their 19th annual Devils Tower Car Show Saturday. The event was held at the gate to the tower with 98 classics, some true to the original and others considerably upgraded. Each vehicle had a story at this show, such as one about a rig built of friendship and love as one of the bucket list items completed by the Orr family before the death of one of their own. "My dad and my uncle built it for my uncle's retirement out of the service back...
Moorcroft Interfaith Community (MIC) has employed a different type of pantry for the past few years with positive results, ensuring food for an ever increasing number of households. However, the program is slowly becoming overwhelmed by higher food costs and weekly increases in the number of households in need, "We're setting records almost every week of the number of senior citizens coming in from as far away as Hulett and Newcastle." The program served 2135 individuals in June, this is an...
Upon the recommendation from Chief of Police Bill Bryant, retired Chicago police officer Dan Latham was hired for the open position on the Moorcroft police force by council Monday night. The formerly retired Chicago, IL police officer has lived on Pine Ridge with his wife for about a year, since moving north from New Mexico where he also worked as law enforcement. The new officer must pass a two week class conducted in Douglas to become familiar with Wyoming statutes etc. before donning the...
The Webb kids, six-year-old Waylon, four-year-old Levi and three-year-old Thomas, were proud of their hard work selling lemonade and homemade peanut butter bars at their stand in Moorcroft last weekend. This stand was unique because the sign informed passers-by that this one was to help the first responders and, when people stopped, they found the treats were sold by donation. Mother Jordan Webb summarized how this unusual situation came to be. "They wanted to do a lemonade stand and I told...
Black Hills Bentonite LLC of Casper, WY has asked for a permit to mine bentonite a couple miles south of Pine Haven and the Land Quality Division of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) invites all area residents to a public meeting at the Pine Haven Community Center to share in the discussion on August 31, at 6 p.m. According to the Wyoming Mining Association, the process of mining bentonite involves removing the top soil with heavy equipment, removing the bentonite and refilling each pit created with the soils from subsequent pits...
Fire season has already brought significant damage to Crook County, with the Fish Wildfire responsible for devouring thousands of acres. This has brought the welfare of residents and property to the fore with fire department and council in neighboring communities, Moorcroft and Pine Haven. Moorcroft While Moorcroft has not previously mandated an absolute fire ban, adhering to an ordinance allowing open flames under specific conditions. After discussion with Moorcroft Volunteer Fire Department Ch...
The Over the Hill Gang is sponsoring a Medicare workshop at the Pine Haven Community Center on Wednesday, August 17, at 1 p.m. This presentation will be conducted by Wyoming Senior Citizens’ Peg Thew. She will be discussing the different parts available and their specific benefits and requirements. Guests are encouraged to attend with any questions or concerns and take full advantage of this opportunity to better understand how to take the best advantage of this federal program....
Saturday sat hot and clear, as Pine Haven residents came together for the public meeting at Waters Park to listen and discuss any concerns they have regarding the presented mapping of the multi-phased bike/walking path the council plans to establish and complete within the next few years, as well as concerns regarding any other issue of infrastructure, etc. Attendees had many questions and comments over the hour-long meeting; an open communication that gave Mayor Karla Brandenburg confidence in...
Often, when people think about art, they imagine oil on canvas and sculpting in stone or metal. However, among the elemental mediums through which some artists express their passion are plants. Donna Ricks has volunteered at the Moorcroft Senior Center for many years and is a familiar face at the center's get-togethers. She also provides many of the beautiful annuals guests enjoy at the entrance and in the rooms. Ricks, like many kids who grew up in rural areas at the time, worked with her...
Moorcroft's council came together with HDR Engineering's Heath Turbiville, Jeron Smith and Lucas Edwards for a workshop Monday evening before their regular meeting to discuss the rejuvenated Transportation Alternatives Program grant through WYDOT that will allow the town to continue the bike path through town. This funding ended for some time before going through many attempts at revitalization since the town completed the first phase of its project ten years ago, but the TAP grant is now,...
