News

Council wrestles with Airbnb issue

Published by admin on Thu, 09/14/2023 - 3:47pm

A request for a conditional use permit has put the Greybull Town Council in the position of needing to decide whether allow the continued operation of an AirBnb in an residential area or reject it due to fears about the potential impact it would have on the neighborhood.

Council members heard from both sides on Monday night before tabling the matter until next month.  Ian Crouse, the owner of the home at 700 N. Third St., is seeking the conditional use permit.  Described as a "cozy brick house," it is one of nine in the Greybull town limits listed on the official Airbnb website. The list includes a couple offerings from local campgrounds.

As part of the application process, Crouse was asked to gather input from property owners within 300 feet of his property. With their signatures, 12 neighbors voiced approval of his CUP request while three opposed.

GHS offers new CNA certification program

Published by admin on Thu, 09/07/2023 - 3:51pm

Among the new class offerings at Greybull High School this year is a CNA certification program taught by school nurse Tracy Boyer, which gives students the opportunity to earn a CNA license by the end of the school year.

A CNA, or Certified Nursing Assistant, works in a hospital or long-term care facility and assists nursing staff with patient care. Their primary responsibilities are to assist activities of daily living, including feeding, dressing, hygiene and exercise.

“The nurses and healthcare staff really look to them…they play a huge role in providing patient care,” Boyer explained.

Boyer said a CNA class has been in the works for a few years now, with her and GHS principal Ty Flock buckling down last August to implement the program in the district.

Slick track impacts August drag races

Published by admin on Thu, 08/17/2023 - 1:24pm

Cloud Peak Drags organizers were pleased with the car count and turnout for their August races, but not so much with the resurfaced crosswind runway that doubles as their drag strip at the South Big Horn County Airport.

Saturday's event attracted approximately 60 cars and trucks. Cloud Peak Drags estimated the turnout at around 400, with 330 of them paying the admission fee and kids 12 and under, who got in free, accounting for the rest.

The racing organization has had better seasons.  Inclement weather impacted the first two dates on this year's schedule.  While the May races went on, the June get-together had to be cancelled, wiping away what's normally the biggest event of the season.

This time, the weather was perfect, but the track was not.  Big Horn County resurfaced the runway earlier this summer. The sealer that was used contained a substance that "made it slicker than heck," said Kip McIntosh of Cloud Peak Drags.

Junior livestock sale grosses $274k

Published by admin on Thu, 08/10/2023 - 10:46am

Despite having 17 fewer animals up for bid, the Big Horn County Fair junior livestock sale still managed to eclipse last year's total as buyers shelled out more than a quarter million dollars for steers, lambs, hogs, sheep, goats and rabbits Saturday afternoon in Basin.

SVID considering options for Leavitt Reservoir

Published by admin on Thu, 07/27/2023 - 9:24am

Citing a lack of funding, the board of the Shell Valley Watershed Improvement District did not award any of the four Leavitt Reservoir expansion construction contracts during a meeting Thursday afternoon at Shell Hall.

The board has not yet decided on a course of action, but its goal is still to start construction this year, according to Kevin Mininger, an engineer with RJH Consulting.

It's not the first time that the project has been held up by funding issues. The gap this time is considerably smaller than the one the SVWID faced in January 2022, when a Minnesota company bid $70.3 million to complete the project.  At the time, the SVWID had anticipated it would cost around $46 million.

SVID considering options for Leavitt Reservoir

Published by admin on Thu, 07/27/2023 - 9:24am

Citing a lack of funding, the board of the Shell Valley Watershed Improvement District did not award any of the four Leavitt Reservoir expansion construction contracts during a meeting Thursday afternoon at Shell Hall.

The board has not yet decided on a course of action, but its goal is still to start construction this year, according to Kevin Mininger, an engineer with RJH Consulting.

It's not the first time that the project has been held up by funding issues. The gap this time is considerably smaller than the one the SVWID faced in January 2022, when a Minnesota company bid $70.3 million to complete the project.  At the time, the SVWID had anticipated it would cost around $46 million.

Art Shelter celebrates 30 years

Published by admin on Fri, 07/21/2023 - 11:18am

The Art Shelter Studio and Gallery east of Shell will host an art exhibition Saturday, July 22 as part of a summer-long celebration to commemorate the art shelter’s 30th anniversary.

“In 30 years of providing similar summer events for the community, this is my pleasure,” said Karyne Dunbar, artist and owner of the space.

The event is free and open to the public. Food will be provided by the Shell Valley Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary, alongside a wine and soft drinks bar. 

Brett Savage of The Rewinders is set to provide live music.

Four artists have arranged to exhibit their work at the celebration. Dunbar is joined by nationally acclaimed photographer Rowene Weems, painter Teresa Bain and artist Rachel Wade, who will be showing “visual things meant to capture light.”

Some parking will be available on sight. A shuttle will run for those who park on the highway.

County valuation soars past $300 million mark

Published by admin on Fri, 07/14/2023 - 11:10am

By Nathan Oster

Big Horn County residents who did not take a close look at their property assessment notices when they arrived in their mailboxes a few months ago are likely in for a big surprise when they get their property tax bills in September.

On average, each residential property in the county increased by about 17% this year, according to Gina Anderson, who serves as the county assessor.

She said she and her staff use a combination of cost tables provided by the state and market data from recent sales to set property values.

The cost tables reflect the expense of replacing the improvements on your property. 

"The last few years, while so many people have been building, the cost of materials has gone way up," said Anderson. "Even though it was a relatively short window of time, those are the figures and calculations that are used, and that caused our values to go up even though some of the sales weren't as high."

First geoscience summer lecture draws crowd

Published by admin on Wed, 07/05/2023 - 1:25pm

Approximately 50 people assembled in the library meeting room last Tuesday to attend the first installment of the Big Horn Basin Dinosaur and Geoscience Museum’s summer lecture series, which featured Dr. Aaron Wood, director of the Iowa State University geology field station, and his talk “Eocene Climate Change in the Willwood Formation, Bighorn Basin, WY.”

Wood grew up in southern Indiana, but he nurtured his geologist roots in a small farmhouse on the north side of Powell where he woke to the sight of the Willwood Formation every day. 

“The value I see in it is that it’s a great record of ancient ecosystems, environments and climate change. In other words, it serves as a nice natural experiment,” Wood said.

The formation, a sedimentary sequence that can be seen when driving to Cody or McCullough Peaks, underlies portions of the Bighorn Basin and is distinguishable by its red, pink and purple layers.

PEAKS enjoys another successful fundraiser

Published by admin on Wed, 06/28/2023 - 4:22pm

Thunderstorms and heavy rain did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of PEAKS to Conga cyclists, volunteers and attendees as the nonprofit organization set several new records during Saturday's annual fundraiser.

There were a record number of cyclists this year, 167, up from 152 last year.

The silent auction generated $8,598, also a record.

A 50/50 raffle contributed an additional $4,630, with the winner of the drawing pocketing the same amount.

Overall, the fundraising activities generated about $45,000.  After expenses are taken out, PEAKS expects to walk away with about $35,000 to help cancer patients in the Big Horn Basin with their non-medical expenses.

Laurie Stoelk used the word "fantastic" to describe the fundraiser.

"We've heard a lot of people say it was the best one ever," she said.