Wednesday, April 22, 2026 |
Photo – Proposed site for Hanna ambulance barn – Bigfoot99 file photo
SCWEMS is once again moving forward with its new Hanna ambulance garage.
For several years, South Central Wyoming Emergency Medical Services, better known as SCWEMS, has been working to build a stand‑alone structure on the north end of Carbon County to house its ambulance fleet. The service currently stores its vehicles in the Hanna Fire Station, an arrangement that leaves little room for either department.
Carbon County School District Number Two agreed to deed a parcel of land on the corner of School and Adams streets to SCWEMS for an ambulance garage. The site was formerly occupied by the Hanna Elementary School, before underground mine collapses forced the district to demolish the building and construct a new facility two blocks north.
In 2022, the SCWEMS Joint Powers Board received a $50,000 American Rescue Plan Act grant from the Wyoming State Loan and Investment Board to cover design and survey work for the new ambulance garage. The board hired a local engineering firm to complete the preliminary work, but when the project went out for bid, two contractors submitted quotes for more than $700,000 and $1 million, far beyond what the organization could afford.
The plan was put on hold while the SCWEMS Board considered the next steps.
Carbon County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Yvonne Johnson stepped in to help SCWEMS find an existing building that could serve as an ambulance barn, including the shuttered Hanna Recreation Center, which has sat vacant for nearly two years.
Speaking at the April 20th SCWEMS Joint Powers Board meeting, Board Chairman Morgan Irene clarified that the service does not want to purchase the recreation center and prefers to continue working with the original site. Irene, who also serves as mayor of Elk Mountain, said he contacted North Fork engineer Jon Nelson to review the existing plans.
The former elementary school had an indoor pool that was buried when the structure was demolished. The SCWEMS Board was concerned that the pool would interfere with the planned garage. North Fork engineer Jon Nelson said school records show that the pool was filled in with concrete.
Nelson said he overlaid the school’s records onto the original plans for the ambulance garage. Although he was working from someone else’s designs, Nelson said he believes the buried pool will not interfere with the structure.
Nelson said there may be other buried features, but the pool should not present a problem during construction.
With those findings, SCWEMS Board Chairman Morgan Irene asked Nelson if the service was ready to begin seeking funding for the garage construction. The North Fork engineer said yes but noted that the previous bids came in higher than expected and that revising the plans would add to the cost.
Irene said the SCWEMS Board does not want to change the designs or the proposed location. Nelson said he can help move the project forward but cannot use the existing plans because they were produced by another engineering firm.
Chairman Irene said the SCWEMS Board chose to use prefabricated buildings to limit design costs. However, after receiving higher‑than‑expected bids, the board decided not to continue working with the original engineering firm.
Nelson asked if the SCWEMS Board could renew its relationship with the previous company. The board said it was not possible. In that case, Nelson said he would need to restart the design process for liability reasons. The North Fork engineer estimated that redoing the site, grading, and utility plans would cost between $20,000 and $30,000, adding that the board would still need architectural designs.
Alternatively, Nelson said the board could pursue a construction manager‑at‑risk contract. The engineer said the approach allows SCWEMS to work with a contractor on the plans, potentially getting the process started faster. However, Nelson cautioned that the arrangement may limit the service’s ability to secure federal grant funding for the project.
With the design work incomplete and no firm willing to finish it, Chairman Morgan Irene asked Nelson to draft a proposal from North Fork Engineering for the SCWEMS Board’s consideration. Board Vice Chairman Carl Bickel asked if they should consider two alternative properties, the Char‑Ka Apartments at 406 Front Street and a former car wash at the corner of Jade Drive and 2nd Street, before making a decision.
Nelson was asked if remodeling an existing structure would be less expensive than building new. The engineer said that in some cases a remodel would cost less, noting that utilities are a major expense and would already be in place in an existing building. He pointed to North Fork’s Saratoga office, which is housed in an existing structure. By contrast, purchasing a building that requires extensive work would increase the cost.
The SCWEMS Board voted to have Nelson draft a proposal for North Fork Engineering to restart the design process on the ambulance garage. With finished plans, board members can begin seeking funding for the project. In the meantime, Vice Chairman Carl Bickel will meet with Yvonne Johnson of the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation to continue discussing the possibility of purchasing an existing building.
