Pine Haven: Council picks new member

With the resignation of Kristy Speed in April, Pine Haven’s governing body has been actively seeking applicants for the empty council seat.

The council tentatively chose a replacement during an interview session last week.

Three individuals stepped forward, offering applications, however, one informed Mayor Karla Brandenburg before the interviews that, due to unforeseen circumstances, they would not be pursuing the position and another simply did not show up, leaving long-time resident and former mayor Dan Blakeman sitting down to the interview.

The four members of council had before them a list of questions and were encouraged by the mayor to pose any other inquiries they thought would give them a better idea of the person before them. As Brandenburg explained to the applicant, “We know who you are, but we don’t know you.”

Blakeman has lived in Pine Haven since 1987 and has raised his family in the area, saying, “I have always cared about this town.” He held the office of mayor of Pine Haven 20 years ago and has worked for municipal government since then.

According to Brandenburg, Blakeman also brings a much sought-after skill to the table – with decades of experience, he has become a gifted hunter of grant funding for needed town projects.

“I have a lot of experience to give, I know my way around Cheyenne, WAM and places like that and I take a lot of pride in that and worked hard at it,” he said.

Blakeman answered the question of his vision for the town candidly: “It’s hard to really stand on a vision because it’s a moving type of deal with what we have going on. A lot of people move to our state because of what we have…The vision is that we keep chugging along.”

The group also discussed the future of the surrounding area as well as the subdivisions within town limits and how that will affect the municipality with the applicant opining.

“Many ranches are selling and those become 35 acre ranchettes. We need to be on top of it – it’s going to change things a lot,” he said.

“This little corner of Wyoming is the last frontier. It’s going to continue to explode…and there’s nothing wrong with growth if it’s done efficiently and considerately.”

After sharing his thoughts on the needs of the town and challenges facing council in their efforts to be fair to residents and still manage the ever-increasing costs of water and sewer, Blakeman admitted those decisions are “really tough”.

Finally, Blakeman advised those listening of what Pine Haven is all about as a recreational community: “There are a lot of things we need to leave alone because the nice thing about Pine Haven is that my neighbors can jump in their golf cart and drive down to the golf course and go golfing. I think that’s beautiful.”

With the end of the conversation and the departure of Blakeman, the council discussed what this veteran of local government has to offer and are prepared to move forward in appointing him at their June 13 meeting.