Sorted by date Results 676 - 700 of 1690
Green River will receive approximately $18.5 million in special purpose tax funds if a proposed sixth-penny tax is approved by voters later this year, but concerns remain as far as longterm funding for the city. Mayor Pete Rust is concerned about how Sweetwater County’s communities will remain competitive with other Wyoming communities as they initiate the sixth-penny process. He said other counties have initiated similar sales taxes with an intent to collect over long periods of time. With t...
The Sweetwater County School District No. 2 Board of Trustees announced it hired a new superintendent last week. The board announced it hired Craig Barringer, the current superintendant of the Libby, Mont. school district. Barringer signed a contract with the board and will start July 1. He has been the superintendant of the district for the past nine years. Steve Core, the board’s chairman, said the district is excited to “be moving forward with such a dynamic leader.” “The Board is 100 percent behind current Superintendent Jamie Christe...
The former director of the Sweetwater County Combined Communications Dispatch Center is accused of misusing an Amazon Prime account set up for the center and making nearly $7,000 in unauthorized purchases. According to court documents released last week, Robin Etienne and his wife Laura are facing felony and misdemeanor charges related to the alleged incident. Robin faces charges of felony theft and misdemeanor charges of wrongful appropriation of public property and unlawful use of a credit...
The Green River Fire Department’s foundation, at the center of an embezzlement investigation by the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office, had more than $51,000 in its accounts as of a 2018 IRS filing. The foundation, classified as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, is required to file a yearly report with the IRS, known as Form 990. These publicly accessible documents outline the foundation’s finances and its board of directors. Two filings for GRFD Foundation, Inc., appear on the IRS websi...
Wyoming is at a crossroads according to Representative Stan Blake (D-Green River) and education will likely become a hot-button topic during the Wyoming Legislature’s upcoming 24-day budget session. His cohort in the House, Rep. John Freeman, D-Green River, also sees it as a major discussion point. As coal’s value to the state continues to declines, money that traditionally funded education has dried up, leaving legislators with a conundrum of how Wyoming schools will be funded and if that fun...
A former Wyoming House of Representatives member announced his intent to run for House District 60 in Green River. Mark Baker, a republican, announced his campaign Tuesday morning. Baker was formerly represented House District 48 in Rock Springs, initially defeating current Wyoming Democratic Party Chairman Joe Barbuto in 2012. Baker won a second race against Barbuto in 2014 and defeated democrat Jackie Freeze for a third two-year term in 2016. Baker resigned May 15, 2017 to move to Green River...
Sheriff’s deputies served search warrants at Green River City Hall and the Green River Fire Department Tuesday morning, seeking financial records involved in the department’s foundation. According to a press release from the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office, the warrants were served at 9 a.m. and focus on records sought for an ongoing embezzlement investigation, focusing on “at least one specific member of the Green River Fire Department.” According to the release, no arrests have been made...
A new store is coming to Green River this year. Bomgaars, a retailer headquartered in Sioux City, Iowa, will be opening a branch in Green River. The store will open at the old Shopko building on Bridger Avenue. “We’re looking forward to coming into the community,” Aaron Bomgaars, vice president of property management and store development said. Bomgaars said work is underway at the building and the company is aiming for a spring or early summer opening. He said the Green River location repre...
A Green River man charged for first degree murder in the death of a five-year-old boy plead not guilty to the charge Friday afternoon. Christopher James Nielsen, 26, made the plea during an arraignment in District Court Judge Suzannah Robinson’s court. If convicted, he could face either life in prison or the death penalty. As of press time, the Sweetwater County Attorney’s Office has not decided if it will seek the death penalty in the case. The office has to decide if the death penalty wil...
The cause of the Washington Square fire Dec. 26 is still being determined according to Green River Fire Chief Mike Nomis. A fire burned through the upper floor of the building and took firefighters all night to extinguish. While much of the second floor was burned, the first floor suffered mostly water and smoke damage. Nomis said a majority of the investigation is complete, but the department is waiting for insurance investigators to compile their data with the department’s findings before h...
Sweetwater County residents looking for legal information from the county government will be able to find it in pages of this newspaper. The Sweetwater County Commissioners named the Green River Star its newspaper designee for 2020 after a unanimous vote Tuesday morning. The last time the Star was the county’s designee was in 2018. The county’s designee publishes legal information for the county, including meeting minutes and public notices. This information will be found in the legals section of the newspaper and will be available in this iss...
A fire at the former Washington Elementary School was contained to the upper floors of the building. According to Green River Fire Chief Mike Nomis, firefighters were called to the Washington Square building at about 5:30 p.m., Thursday evening after smoke was reported coming from the building. Nomis said 26 firefighters were involved in combatting the fire. They were able to put out a majority of the fire by about 2 a.m. Friday morning, and were able to completely put it out by 4 a.m. Nomis...
It was an active year for the city as many events, such as the closing of Green River’s Shopko store, continued discussions about a proposed sixth-penny tax, and recyclables being dumped at the landfill, were dealt with by residents and Council representatives. New councilmen placed The Green River City Council had two new faces at the start of the year. Jim Zimmerman and Mike Shutran were elected to the Council in 2018. Zimmerman serves in Ward I with Tom Murphy while Shutran serves in Ward II,...
The Green River City Council approved a rate increased proposed by Wyoming Waste Systems, but questioned what would happen if the Council decided not to approve the request. The Council approved the increase unanimously during its meeting last week. The increase will go into effect in January, increasing rates by 57 cents a month over current rates. The increase is in accordance with an increase in the Consumer Price Index and is allowed under the contract WWS has with the city. Following questi...
After receiving criticism from the Sweetwater County commissioners regarding the city’s project list, Green River representatives submitted a prioritized list to the county last week. The list is heavy on infrastructure projects, focusing on several road packages and totals $32.4 million. The top priority for the city is its first roads package, listed at a cost of $15.9 million. The package would fund full rebuilds, including water and sewer replacement, on both sides of Riverview Drive, B...
A request to reduce the annual weight limit residents have at the city’s solid waste transfer station did not receive support during a workshop meeting last week. The Green River City Council spoke about the request after Michelle Foote, Wyoming Waste Systems’ general manager in Rock Springs, said the company wasn’t making as much money as initially believed. She said the company anticipated more people meeting the 1,800-pound weight limit initially set. “Bottom line, we’re not making money,” s...
Green River police officers arrested a 45-year-old North Dakota an following an alleged hit-and-run collision Friday. Leif Johannessen, 45, of Dickinson, N.D., was arrested after officers discovered he had an active warrant from an original charge of driving while under the influence of alcohol, second offense within 10 years. At 6:34 p.m., officers responded to the intersection of Roosevelt Drive and Uinta Drive to a report of a hit-and-run collision where two people had fled the scene on foot. It was reported a vehicle was traveling...
Members of the Sweetwater County commissioners voiced their displeasure with Green River representatives’ list of projects they’re seeking sixth penny tax funding for. During a special commissioners’ meeting about the tax and various proposals made by local governmental agencies to use the tax, Mayor Pete Rust said the city came to the county with $44 million in projects because the city views all of the projects it identified as important uses of a potential sixth-penny tax. “The Council...
A Green River man faces a charge of first degree murder after a child’s death at Primary Children’s Hospital. Christopher James Nielsen, 26, was initially arrested Nov. 14 and charged with aggravated child abuse, but those charges were amended last week following the child’s death at the hospital Thanksgiving Day. He was placed on a $1 million cash or surety bond and is in the Sweetwater County Detention Center. A preliminary hearing is scheduled Dec. 11. According to court documents, the Green...
