By Rana Jones
Kemmerer Gazette
Via- Wyoming News Exchange

KEMMERER — As Kemmerer prepares for an influx of workers tied to the TerraPower nuclear project, city leaders are moving forward with plans for workforce housing — while questions are emerging about how public funds are being used to support new development.

During public comment at Monday’s city council meeting, Kemmerer Chamber of Commerce President Jesica Lozier raised concerns about funding tied to the Canyon Road and Gateway PUD housing projects.

RELATED: RADIO INTERVIEW WITH KEMMERER CITY ADMINISTRATOR BRIAN MUIR –

RELATED: RADIO INTERVIEW WITH TERRAPOWER COO ERIC WILLIAMS – 

RELATED: TERRAPOWER OFFICIALLY BREAKS GROUND ON KEMMERER NUCLEAR POWER PLANT – 

RELATED: TERRAPOWER CEO CHRIS LEVESQUE PROVIDES NATRIUM ONE REACTOR – 

“Large amounts of money are going to fund a private development that has not broken ground,” Lozier told the Gazette in a separate interview.

Lozier said she believes millions of dollars in State Loan and Investment Board funding are tied to sewer and infrastructure improvements that would benefit the Canyon Road development. She said questions about how taxpayer dollars are being used to fund private developers prompted her to begin looking into the issue.

She also questioned why public funds would be used in connection with a development led by an out-of-state company.

“I just can’t even fathom what the reasoning is,” Lozier said.

Public funding for infrastructure such as roads and sewer systems is commonly used to support community growth, though those improvements can also benefit private development projects.

Kemmerer Mayor Robert Bowen addressed the money granted by SLIB for road development, stating, “While that is going to benefit the developer putting those roads in, they will be city-owned in the end.”

Bowen said the developer will be required to put in its own gas lines. He explained that the city council took away the “loophole” in the previous code that did not require a developer to provide a gas line.

According to the Wyoming Business Council, more than $4 million in SLIB grant funding was awarded to Lincoln County to expand sewer infrastructure in the Kemmerer and Diamondville area. The funding is intended to address capacity limitations that have stalled housing and commercial growth, as well as support increased demand tied to the TerraPower project.

Lozier said she believes the public should have a clearer understanding of how those funds are being allocated.

“It’s a large amount of public funding going to a private entity,” she said. “I think the public has a right to know.”

Lozier also works as a local realtor and said her family is pursuing a separate housing development in the area called Cumberland Hills Subdivision, which she said is expected to go before the Kemmerer Zoning Board next month.

Lozier said her main concern was how much public funding should be given to a developer.

“In my opinion, not much,” she said.

Canyon Road Development is a planned 291-acre mixed-use project north of Interstate 80 designed to include housing, commercial space and recreational areas. Plans call for more

than 1,000 housing units along with retail and community amenities. The nearby Gateway Development spans 116 acres and is expected to include 270 single-family homes.

In addition to long-term housing developments, council members also discussed the need for temporary workforce housing to accommodate an influx of workers tied to the TerraPower project.

Kemmerer City Administrator Brian Muir spoke of the need for temporary workforce housing — often referred to as “man camps” — which will be necessary in the short term while permanent housing options are developed. Earlier this month in a zoning board meeting, issues such as parking, storage, and fencing were discussed.

“This is happening fast,” Muir said of the upcoming workforce housing. The topic, Muir said, will be discussed again in the next planning and zoning meeting.

Council members reiterated the importance of being mindful not to allow the temporary housing to infringe on existing neighborhoods and to get further clarification on density allowance.

Discussion also included whether temporary workforce housing would allow a cantina on site, which drew mixed reactions from council members. Some said an on-site bar could reduce drinking and driving by keeping workers at the camp, while others raised concerns it could take business away from local establishments by limiting those customers’ trips into town.

“We are still going to get workers who come into town, have a drink and socialize,” Mayor Bowen said, noting that local restaurants and bars would not have the capacity to accommodate an influx of up to 2,000 workers.

Muir added that having a cantina on site could also help avoid overbuilding in town, since demand may decline once workers leave the area.

As Kemmerer prepares for rapid growth tied to the TerraPower project, questions surrounding housing, infrastructure and public investment are likely to remain a key part of the conversation.

The above story may be used ONLY by members of the Wyoming News Exchange or with the express consent of the newspaper of its origin.