Yesterday's Wyoming Board of Land Commissioners and State Loan Investment Board members addressed a crowded room of concerned residents in the Thyra Thompson State Building.

The meeting was held in Casper to accommodate hundreds of Natrona County people who wished to comment on a proposed gravel pit at the foothills of Casper Mountain. 

Several Sheridan County residents were present to discuss a separate state land exchange issue that has been debated for years. 

Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder urged the governor to consider prioritizing Natrona County residents’ commentary time.

The meeting was originally slated to go until 1:00 p.m., but with several important agenda items to discuss, the governor asserted he was prepared for the meeting to last all night if necessary, moving the public comment period on the gravel pit issue to the end of the meeting to allow as many voices to be heard as possible. 

Kyle True, a manager for Prism Logistics -- which owns the lease on state lands in question -- affirmed that he is not backing down from pursuing a substantial gravel market and believes a mine can be responsibly developed at the proposed Coates Road location.

"To be villianized for simply following the process and being stand up citizens and active in our communities is unfortunate," said co-manager Chris Fare.

Superintendent Degenfelder asked how Prism intended to protect the water supply for residents who could potentially be affected by a gravel mine, but both True and Fare declined and said those details will be revealed later if the process goes through.

So far they have not applied for a Limited Mine Operations (LMO) permit.

"While we have the lease, we don't have a right to be up there gathering rock, that would be after a further application" said True.

"We've met with the county commissioners when they had a fully staffed zoning department last year and were notified that exploration did not need a county permit, but anything more than six months would need a conditional use permit from the county."

Commissioners Dave North and Dallas Laird addressed the Board and re-iterated that a conditional use permit would be required according to the County:

"And True, even if the court rulings say that we don't have authority over some of the state lands, that's a county road that gvoes into the area and we do have authority over that."

Six conditions must be met for a conditional use permit:

1.  Will granting the Conditional Use Permit contribute to an overburdening of County Services? •
2. Will granting the Conditional Use Permit cause substantial or unmitigated traffic, parking, or environmental problems?
3. Will granting the Conditional Use Permit impair the use of adjacent property or alter the character of the neighborhood?
4. Will granting the Conditional Use Permit detrimentally affect the public health, safety and welfare, or nullify the intent of the Land Use Plan or this Zoning Resolution?
5. Does the conditional use comply with the use specific standards of Chapter 4 and the zoning district?
6. Does the conditional use comply with all other relevant standards of this Zoning Resolution and all other County resolutions? • Is the conditional use in substantial conformance with all standards or conditions of any prior applicable permits or approvals?

The meeting went until about 8:00 p.m. at night.

Ultimately the Secretary of State motioned to take back the leases to True and pay a settlement to Prism Logistics. The motion failed.

The Board claims they will "look at potential solutions" and decided not to be hasty in making any decisions (as that is what got them in this position in the first place, said by the Superintendent).

Treasurer State Meier concluded: "Let's figure out how to get the toothpaste back in the tube if we can."