• Lincoln Star Improvement Service District fails 1-1
A controversial improvement service district proposed for southern Lincoln county has been denied by commissioners following a 1-1 split vote. The vote occurred on Tuesday, June 16 during the regular Lincoln County Commission meeting in Kemmerer. Chairman Kent Connelly voted in favor, while Commissioner Mel Shumway opposed and Commissioner Teri Bowers abstained from the vote.
RELATED: RADIO INTERVIEW WITH LC COMMISSIONER MEL SHUMWAY –
RELATED: RADIO INTERVIEW WITH LC COMMISSIONER KENT CONNELLY –
Brad Barham, Founder and CEO of TriSight and one of the three property owners in the ISD, spoke to the commissioners regarding the history of the ISD and its intended purpose, stating that it would allow landowners to work with businesses to develop their own infrastructure. Other public comment was taken, with some requesting the proposal be denied based on unanswered questions regarding collaboration with the county and county employees.
“We do see the need and the value of bringing mid-level companies to Lincoln County. We want to help bolster the tax base with industry. We want to make sure we can offer employment,” explained Commissioner Shumway this week during a live interview on SVI Radio. “We’ll continue to explore options and we’ll work with companies and industry.”
The ISD was composed of three landowners in the southern portion of the county. Before casting his nay vote, Commissioner Shumway stated during discussion that he had concerns that the properties were spread too far apart and wasn’t sure how beneficial infrastructure could be developed on them when the properties are not close together.
The revised proposal for the district was brought back to the commission to consider after the initial proposal was removed from consideration due to a vote to deny by Sweetwater County Commissioners, as the original proposal included land in sweetwater county. The revised proposal was made up of property just in Lincoln County.
During a previous interview on SVI Radio, Chairman Kent Connelly addressed some of the controversy about the Lincoln Star ISD. “One of the controversies in this instance was that the lands don’t border each other; they don’t have to,” he said. “The first one I was ever around was a swimming pool in Kemmerer. They formed an ISD and then put a bond issue on the ballot. That was businesses stepping up and saying we want this. No ISD is created equal and they aren’t the same. We’d like to get it moving along but we had a proposal to extend it. The first edition had owners in another county. That county said no so they brought it back. It’s a private property rights issue at the end of the day. Sometimes we’ll average up to 20 applications a month. In bigger developments this is a method they use. They came back with a different form.”
When asked about the involvement of TriSight in the ISD, Chairman Connelly stated that “You always take a look at where the applications come in but at the end of the day I don’t get to judge developers whether they are going to succeed or fail. Some businesses are going to make it and others won’t. TerraPower is going to take ten years. Some out there like this one are four or five. IDAWY took eight years. We always have concerns but we would also like to get back to big business when they paid the bulk of the taxes.”
