Brian Muir, Administrator for the City of Kemmerer, called into the Weekday Wake-Up on Thursday, June 11 for his monthly report. Muir discussed summer events in Kemmerer/Diamondville, temporary housing facilities for TerraPower workers and work beginning on permanent housing projects.

(0:00) First guest interview segment of the hour and Brian Muir with his monthly report from the city (0:05) of Kemmerer. He’s the administrator in Kemmerer and joining me live over the phone this morning. (0:09) Brian, good morning.

Did you blow away yesterday? Kept everything down on the ground? (0:14) Yeah, it was batting down the hatches yesterday. Our flowers we just planted (0:19) in the front yard are straining. Dang it.

Well, Wyoming, man, I guess, huh? (0:27) Well, appreciate your time as always, Brian. Hey, you know, we are into the summer. Sometimes it (0:32) feels like it, sometimes it doesn’t, but today it does.

And, you know, this is the last time (0:36) we’ll talk before we have America 250. A lot of communities have some big plans and big parties (0:42) in the works. Tell us what the city of Kemmerer will be doing for the 4th of July weekend.

(0:47) Yes, we actually have, we’re preparing a special coin just as other communities have (0:54) for the event. And we’re excited to, there’s a way to earn the coin through some stuff that (1:03) the county has worked on through Bob King and the tourism. So we’re excited to get that going.

(1:09) We’re also participating, Diamondville is actually the place where we do the most things on the 4th (1:17) here in Kemmerer. And of course, there’s going to be fireworks and all of that, but that’s done by (1:24) the Cape Town Boomers. We actually, I think, are going to be contributing towards having (1:31) people at the booths at the Diamondville celebration on the 4th.

And I think we might (1:37) actually have bouncy houses and stuff like that going on that we’re going to try to support. So (1:42) we’re looking forward to it as well. It’s exciting time for our country and for our community.

And (1:47) this is a very, very patriotic community, as you will, you probably already know. (1:52) Oh yeah, absolutely. And so that’s going to be a great weekend.

And then, (1:56) as far as events that Kemmerer does at least host, of course, shortly after the 4th, we’re looking at (2:03) Fossil Fest and the Oyster Ridge, of course, that’s what I was thinking of. Oyster Ridge is (2:09) going to be another great big show this year. Yes, and we’re really grateful for Camille (2:15) Plowman for keeping the Fossil Fest going with her volunteers.

We’re trying to support as much (2:21) as we can. Fossil Fest is a really family focused event on the 19th and 20th of June. (2:30) And so that’s obviously coming up next weekend, not this weekend, but the next.

And (2:38) beg your pardon. Yeah, yeah, I was right. I’m just looking at my calendar here.

So we’re good. (2:43) Our pool has opened, by the way. And so that’s part of that’s in support of Fossil Fest as well (2:48) as Oyster Ridge.

And Oyster Ridge is scheduled for the 24th, 25th, yeah, 24th and 25th of July. (2:58) There we go. Friday and Saturday.

And so they’re working with us as well on trying to (3:06) have some additional vendors in the triangle. And we’re working closely with them. We’re (3:12) getting a preparation meeting as well coming up next week to prepare for that.

We’ve already (3:17) had our prep meeting for the Fossil Fest. So yeah, please come join us and see the new downtown (3:24) Kemmerer and all the changes that are going on. And we’d love to see everybody there.

(3:30) Love it. Busy, busy summer again in Kemmerer and southern Lincoln County. Brian, outside the (3:34) summer events, what else is taking place in Kemmerer and some things that you’re working (3:37) on with the council? So we just passed, the council just passed, and we’re grateful for that, (3:45) our budget for the fiscal 26-27 year, which includes some additional street maintenance (3:53) projects, crack seal and preservation and seal coat.

It also includes two new police officers (4:01) to help prepare for the coming workforce, additional workforce for the temporary work (4:07) and construction workforce that’s coming. And so those will be coming on as far as you’ll be (4:15) seeing those advertised for those positions. So something to be thinking about.

Also, (4:21) we’ve had a lot of feedback from the community about, you may have heard about a workforce (4:26) hub, a temporary workforce hub housing facility. What we’re doing right now is we’re simply (4:32) creating language, working with the zoning board and the city council to be able to give the zoning (4:40) board some direction and flexibility on creating a conditional use permit, should those workforce (4:50) hubs be, I guess, approved. There’s proposals out there for those.

And one thing that people (4:59) need to know is we don’t even know for sure if we’re going to have a workforce hub. It’s just (5:04) all depends on what else is going on with our housing and kind of how things play out or how (5:11) big they will be. And there are two potential locations in the city that could be workforce (5:17) hubs.

One is a 60 acre one by Cowboy Trucking. Another one’s about a hundred acre one by the (5:24) Justice Center there. So, and on June, so we had a good discussion and good feedback from the (5:30) community on Monday for that.

And on June 16th, the zoning board is welcoming any additional (5:38) feedback or to answer any questions or to address any concerns about that. So June 16th at six o’clock (5:48) here at city hall. Okay, great.

You know, you talked about some of those concerns that come up (5:54) with that style of temporary facility. Man camp is the one that kind of the word that gets thrown (6:00) around quite a bit. What were some of the concerns shared by the community and what would the city (6:06) do to help alleviate maybe some of those concerns if this were to come to fruition and happen? (6:13) Yeah, some of the concerns have to do with, you know, how the traffic that it might increase (6:20) with it and the potential crime increase, obviously.

And also the proximity and the (6:28) appropriate buffer between the workforce hub and any other kind of permanent residential areas. So (6:38) those are some of the criteria. Obviously, some things that can be used is creating the right (6:44) distance between the residential areas, as well as now, obviously, some of the things if they (6:53) bring in a workforce hub, it’s important for them to have security at those places.

And so that’s (6:58) one of the things that is probably going to be discussed by the zoning board. It’s really, (7:03) there’s a lot, it’s a very complex issue that the zoning board’s very prepared, I think, to handle (7:10) and talk about what those, I guess, impact mitigation would be. (7:16) Ryan Muir, City of Kemmerer Administrator, this morning on the Weekday Wakeup.

Brian, (7:19) anything else you’d like to mention while we have you on the air today? (7:23) Well, we did receive, and this was also discussed on Monday, the Gateway PUD Phase 1A. We did get (7:30) the bond, the surety bond was provided and approved by resolution by the city council, (7:37) as well as a letter of credit. And already the Grade Tech, who’s their construction company out (7:45) of Salt Lake City, has mobilized excavation equipment.

They’ve got scrapers out there. (7:51) They’ve mobilized. They’ve also are already implementing the stormwater pollution plan.

So (7:57) the dirt is getting ready to be moved. They’re staking things out and there’s equipment out (8:04) there for the 78 homes that will eventually be out there. And also at the next zoning board (8:12) meeting, there’s a public hearing on one of the workforce hub, potential workforce hub (8:24) zone change that needs to occur to change it from heavy industrial to light industrial (8:29) to prepare for that.

There’s all of our other subdivisions I’ve talked about. We do have a lot (8:37) of the same company, Grade Tech, out of Salt Lake is trying to get ready as well for the apartments (8:47) in the townhomes that we’re trying to put in over on the south of Canyon Road over there. So (8:53) they’re hoping to build some of those apartments this summer as well as the homes that I mentioned.

(8:58) Perfect. All right. Things plugging right along in Kemmerer, aren’t they? (9:03) Oh, yes.

And more to come. Kemmerer City Administrator Brian Muir on the Weekday (9:09) Wakeup. Brian, as always, thank you so much for your time.

We appreciate it. (9:12) You’re welcome. (9:13) It’s the Weekday Wakeup this morning on the SBI radio network.