Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Your source for news in Hot Springs County
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(totteringtimes@gmail.com) HERE’S THE THING ABOUT ELECTION SEASON: Long before it really gears up - I can’t wait till it’s over. I find it difficult to relate to anyone who would choose to run for public office - particularly a federal or state-wide office. They just don’t seem to be my kind of people. If I bother to watch their campaign ads, or to read their many fliers, I always come away feeling like I have known people who have run for office - even some who have won, and then determined to run again - although I could never underst...
On Wednesday, July 29, Cody Stewart, 37, was granted an early release from a 24 to 30 month sentence to the Wyoming Department of Corrections. In October of 2024, Stewart was charged with twelve felony counts of theft, and fraud by check, arising out of moneys that had gone missing from the bank account of the FFA Alumni group in Thermopolis. At the time, Stewart was serving as the organization’s treasurer. On February 19, 2025, pursuant to a plea agreement reached with Special Prosecutor, Dan Itzel, Stewart entered pleas of guilty to six of t...
The Hot Springs County Travel & Tourism board held their monthly meeting at the State Park office on July 29. It was announced that board member, Tabatha Vandegrift had recently advised that she would be resigning from the board, creating another opening for the county commissioners to fill. In her financial report, treasurer Audra Dominguez announced that the moneys received from the lodging tax for the month of July were down substantially from the amount received in July of last year, representing just $4,567.84 this year. Dominguez stated...
The Board of Directors of Hot Springs Health held their regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, July 28. The board welcomed its newest member, Jennifer Cheney, who attended her first meeting. Cheney will serve the remainder of the term previously held by Melissa Johnson. The board also welcomed Dr. Stephen Asay as the hospital’s new chief of staff. Dr. Megan Winger will serve as the new Vice-Chair. The board was presented a video, which was a project completed by the high school summer interns to wrap up the inaugural session of the new program. O...
The Hot Springs County Commissioners held a regular meeting Monday, July 20. The meeting followed a public meeting in which the commissioners considered and approved a budget for fiscal year 2026-27. County Planner Les Culliton provided the commissioners with a time line of steps taken by his office on the newest land use applications filed by Michael and Michele Stevens on behalf of the Tipi Retreat and other business entities. Culliton advised that the applications continue to have deficiencies, in that the proposals do not comply with the co...
The Thermopolis Town Council held a special meeting on July 15 and a regular meeting on July 21. At the special meeting, the council approved some language changes to the contract with the Thermopolis Golf Course, which had been requested by the state liquor licensing office. The added language makes clear that the golf course liquor permit allows for alcoholic beverage sales outside the confines of the club house - making sales on the course a part of the permitted activity at the location. The council then met in executive session. After...
Over the past year and a half, the Town of Thermopolis has undertaken an informal survey of the water delivery service lines which connect individual water users to the town’s water system. The purpose of the survey is to determine where, and to what extent, lead materials have been used to facilitate the water connections. In some areas of the United States, and at certain points in history, lead was a common element of water service lines - the pipes and connections. Over time, lead will leech from the service line into the water system a...
There is a commercial block in downtown Thermopolis, which has had a difficult past. Arapahoe Street, between 5th and 6th Streets, at one time served as a part of a thriving business district in town. After two fires, several business closures, and years of neglect, the block is finally on track to make a comeback. At the east end of the block once stood a local hardware business, but that structure was lost to fire some years ago. Toward the west end of the block, another structure was lost to...
The Hot Springs County Commissioners held a public meeting on Monday, July 20 to take comments and questions on the proposed fiscal year 2026-27 budget. The meeting was heavily attended, with standing room only in the room in the County Annex building. Of primary concern to those in attendance was the proposed reduction in funding to the 4-H program in the UW Extension office. For many years, Hot Springs County has provided funding to cover one-half of the expense of an on-site educator working out of the Extension Office in the old Carnage Lib...
The Hot Springs County School Board met on July 9 to consider the adoption of a budget for the upcoming school year. The trustees approved the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27 following an executive summary presentation by business manager Jessica Benefiel. The budget takes into account several factors, which will impact the upcoming school year. Included among those factors are an anticipated decrease in the Average Daily Membership (ADM) of students attending the school system; on-going adjustments to a four-day week; and planning for...
At the July 7 Hot Springs County Commissioners meeting, the summary for the proposed 2026-27 fiscal year budget was read into the minutes of the meeting by Hot Springs County Clerk Becky Kersten. There will be a public meeting on the proposed budget on Monday, July 20 beginning at 1 p.m. in the commissioner’s meeting room in the County Annex building. The Commissioners approved a transfer of a liquor license from the LLL Company, d/b/a, Wind River Lounge to the Thermopolis Lodging Group, LLC, d/b/a, Fairbridge Thermopolis. In monthly r...
The Legion Baseball team wrapped up their successful season this past week, playing four home games - two games against the Stifle Chiefs on Tuesday night, and then two final games against the Cody Cubs in Saturday’s stifling heat. In game one on Tuesday, two Bobcats threw a combined shut-out against the Chiefs. Kacey Mackay went four and a third innings, giving up two hits and no runs, while striking out ten and walking four. In relief, Tanner Delay threw two and two-thirds innings, allowing no runs on three hits, with three strike-outs and o...
Let’s face it - no one likes paying taxes. But when they do pay their taxes, people often wish they got more for their money. And, when they don’t, it can come as no surprise that voters love to hear talk of lowering taxes. In Wyoming, we enjoy some of the lowest tax rates of any state in the union. We have no corporate or individual income tax, and the sales tax rate is among the lowest of all the states. We pay no sales tax on food in Wyoming. Wyoming property tax rates are also among the lowest to be found in the United States. Indeed, the...
The Board of Directors of Hot Springs Health held their regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, June 30. The board has faced some turnover in recent weeks, with new board member Robin VanMaarth joining the board in June. A now second vacancy on the board has also been created due to the unexpected resignation of board member Melissa Johnson. The board will meet on July 8 to consider applications to fill the most recent vacancy. Dr. Mathey reported that Dr. Mackenzie has recently moved on to an OB residency out of state, which currently leaves the...
The Hot Springs County Commissioners met on Tuesday, June 30 to tackle a rather full agenda. At the request of the fire warden, the commissioners declared Hot Springs County to be under Stage 1 fire restrictions as of June 30. The Stage 1 designation comes as a result of the current drought/dry conditions in the county and prohibits any open fires, but allows for grilling and barrel fires, with some restrictions. For a full explanation of the fire restrictions, see the Independent Record Facebook page. A scheduled public hearing on any...
The Travel & Tourism Board held their monthly meeting on June 23 and welcomed their newest member, Julie Music, who was appointed to fill the at-large position on the board previously been held by Mike Sinclair. The board approved Ashley Evans to take over as vice president. In her financial report, treasurer Audra Dominguez announced that the board had completed the 2025-26 fiscal year with an increase in fiscal revenue of more than $31,000 over the preceding period, representing an increase in revenues of 8.07%. In old business, dir...
The Legion Baseball team went three for four in the past two weeks. The team played a double-header at Lovell on Monday, June 22 and then another double-header at home on Tuesday, June 30 against Greybull. In game one against Lovell, the Bobcats put scores on the board in the first, second and third innings, but gave up a run in the top of the second on two uncharacteristic errors in the field. Lovell tied the game at three in the top of the 5th inning, on a single by Tyson Yates. The Cats regained the lead in the bottom of the 6th inning, on...
At a brief special meeting held on June 25, the Thermopolis Town Council quickly dealt with some financial issues and entering into a discussion regarding problems with through traffic on 14th Street. The council had a discussion of on-going through traffic issues on 14th Street. Specifically, the usage of the street as a through street despite being clearly posted as a non-through street. Transiting 14th Street between West Broadway and Highway 20 South does allow one to avoid whatever congestion actually arises at the one stop light in...
The Hot Springs County Commissioners held a short special meeting on June 23 taking up matters pertaining to two county projects. To open the meeting, the commissioners held a discussion of the status of funding planning for the new hangar project at the airport. The county has expended a good deal of time gathering possible loan terms from area banks, all at the behest of the USDA. In a recent meeting with USDA representatives, however, the county was informed that funding through the USDA may not be an actual possibility. The county has $1.5...
At their June 16 meeting, the Thermopolis Town Council took up the third and final reading of a proposed budget for the upcoming 2026-27 fiscal year. Council member Rachel Hughes again took issue with the proposed bonus provision for the Thermopolis Police Department. Hughes stated that she felt the monthly reports of activities filed by the department doesn’t show a need for four patrol officers in addition to the chief and sergeant. Mayor Adam Estenson stated that he supports the inclusion of the hiring bonus, as it is designed to assist t...
The Thermopolis - Hot Springs Chamber Board meet on June 18 and welcomed their new director, Cindy Sampson. At that time, Sampson stated that she was in day four of her new position and felt that she was making a good effort to roll with the punches of this new, challenging position. The board again took up the subject of a proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year. With the resignation of long-time director, Meri Ann Dorman, the board finds itself in somewhat of a time crunch to formulate a...
The Hot Springs County School Board met for their regular monthly meeting on June 18. In monthly celebrations, the trustees took time to acknowledge the outstanding work of Laura Stam, who was recently named as Hot Springs County School District Teacher of the Year. Ralph Winters Elementary Principal, Nichole Ciz, described Stam as “an advocate for children, a teacher who is supportive of staff, and a believer in the science of learning.” The trustees reviewed the proposed 2026-27 budget for the Recreation District. District director Brian Par...
The Legion Baseball team was busy this past week - playing three double headers, with four on the road, before returning to play two against Powell at Whitt Field on Saturday, June 20. On Monday the 15th, the team carried their 8 - 6 record into a two-game series with the Chiefs (7-19). The Cats took the win in game one by a score of 13 - 8, tallying 12 hits and 12 walks on offense. Kacey Mackay drove in 8 runs on three hits to lead the hitting for Thermopolis, including a single, a double, and a grand-slam. Tate Roberts got the win on the...
“Invasive Annual Grasses” - there’s a term no one wants to hear. Whether your brain is not wired in a manner to comprehend the hard sciences - like chemistry or biology; or whether you have never worked in some form of agricultural endeavor; or whether, perhaps, you actually do make your living working in the agriculture industry - the subject of invasive annual grasses will never bring a warm feeling to your heart. Today, in the Big Horn Basin of Wyoming, Hot Springs County maintains a “Declared Weed List.” Identified on the list are eight...
