Mormon Canyon Road walking path debate continues

Mormon Canyon Road, June 4. (Cinthia Stimson / The Glenrock Independent)

By: 
Gregory Hasman, gregory@glenrockind.com

The Glenrock Town Council remains undecided whether it will move forward with constructing a biking/walking path on Mormon Canyon Road.  

The town has not made a decision despite Mayor Bruce Roumell previously saying that the costs to do an engineering study outweigh the benefit to the town, as early discussions estimated the town would pay $87,000 out of a total cost in the ball park of $400,000, money which he said the town does not have, the Glenrock Independent previously reported.

As of Monday, the town had agreed to allocate about $55,000 toward the study, councilman John Moulton said in an email.

The last answer Converse County Chairman Jim Willox said he received from Roumell was that the own Council was not going to move forward building the walk/bike path. However, some council members aren’t in agreement about that.

Building a path on Mormon Canyon Road toward the South Rec would be really nice. The work would be done in conjunction with a road improvement project that would lower the cost of the paths, councilman Roy Kincaid said.

“This path should be a gift to the future of Glenrock for if (it’s) not included with this road project by the county, the likelihood of a walking/bike path to South Rec area is very slim,” councilwoman Margaret Nunn said.

Not everyone is happy about the idea of a potential walking path down Mormon Canyon Road, though.

Property owner Gary Boldt told town council May 24 he had not been contacted by the town or county about the work.

“How come I didn’t get that engineering diagram?” he asked. “We were never contacted about any of it by the city or county.”

Boldt said he doesn’t mind the work to repave the road, as much as the $55,000 the town OK’d to put toward the engineering study.

“You better get your money back,” he said, adding that while the county is responsible for the road, the town had some role to play in informing property owners about the work that was being proposed.

Boldt told them, “You’re putting that bike path in front of my house.”

Regardless of what town council decides, Willox wants  an answer soon.  

“They have a meeting on the 14th. I hope it’s no later than that.”

Kincaid said he is “unsure when a decision will be made. I don’t think we’re really close,” he said. “I think we’re going to have to talk about it some more as a council.”

If there isn’t a plan in place everyone can agree on ,then it will be time to move on, Moulton said. 

“Maybe there are some other areas of town to put more bike paths in,” he said.

Whatever happens with the bike/walk path, it will not impact the county’s plan to reconstruct and pave almost two miles of the northern end of Mormon Canyon Road. The construction would begin where the road intersects with HWY26 within town limits and end at the turnoff to the South Rec area.

Willox did not have a firm amount of what the road work would cost but predicted it would be at least $2 million.

It is unlikely that road construction will be completed this summer, he said, adding that some work could begin in the fall, then be completed next year. 

“We’re going to do it one way or another. The question that is before us is, does it accommodate the bike path or not? That is up to the town,” he said.

Attempts were made to reach Roumell for comment, but he did not respond as of press time.

Category:

Glenrock Independent

Physical Address:506 W. Birch, Glenrock, WY 82637 Mailing Address: PO Box 109, Douglas, WY 82633 Phone: (307) 436-2211

The Glenrock Independent is located in the Bronco Building

Office hours: Monday, Wednesday, Friday - 10:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday - 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Subscriber Login