Post prom venue denied

Moorcroft Volunteer Fire Chief Dan Swaney and associates have refused to allow the post prom party to be held in the Moorcroft Fire Station this year.

His spokesperson, Kelly Donahue explained to Mayor Ben Glenn's enquiry last week, "We made the decision to say 'No'. We feel that there are enough public buildings in town and the MTC. We need to utilize the building and keep our trucks...in the building and not spread out all over town. Sure, we've never had a fire on prom night, but it only takes once and we would prefer to keep our trucks in one spot and be ready for service."

Donahue admitted the right of council to override this recommendation, saying, "If you feel that it would be a better choice to keep the kids and their gaming trailers...It's a city building; you can use it for what you'd like."

The spokesperson also voiced a complaint that the school did not clean the venue when the kids used it as part of the reason for the refusal; this, though, was refuted by Public Works Director Cory Allison, who said, "They've cleaned it up before and after."

Before the issue digressed further, the mayor brought the discussion back to the point, asking Donahue for clarification: "We did approve it contingent on what you guys [decided]. We were kicking the ball into your court. That's your recommendation, then, that we do not allow it at this point?"

The spokesman responded with an affirmative: "That's the decision of the eight officers who were in that meeting."

The fire station has been the venue for the post prom party since 2014 as a safe venue for students who wanted to stay out a little later and have a safe place to enjoy a more informal celebration. Moorcroft's council have offered the town hall as a substitute haven for the kids' party, but have not, as yet received a response from the school.