October 20, 2023 |
PHOTO – Rawlins baseball fields – Bigfoot99 file photo
The Rawlins city council has narrowed down the list of possibilities of what it will fund with this year’s grant from Wyoming Community Gas.
Every year, Wyoming Community Gas donates a portion of its profits back to member municipalities. The money is to be used for projects that benefit the residents of those towns.
In the past, the city of Rawlins has used the grant money to build a dog park and pay for improvements to the city’s Little League baseball fields.
At the October 3rd city council meeting, Parks and Recreation Director Jason Sehon suggested the council use the funding to continue improving the Little League fields in anticipation of a 2026 state-wide tournament. Mayor Terry Weickum said he would like to use the money to upgrade Bolton Park.
During Tuesday’s Rawlins city council meeting, Mayor Weickum said the $11,322.90 Wyoming Community Gas grant wouldn’t cover many improvements to Bolton Park. The mayor retracted his suggestion.
Mayor Weickum said he didn’t think that small improvements to Bolton Park meet the criteria set forth by Wyoming Community Gas.
At the October 3rd meeting, Councilman Chris Weisenburg suggested using the grant money to purchase a new lighted scoreboard for the Rawlins Generals Baseball fields at the city’s sports complex.
During Tuesday’s city council meeting, Mayor Weickum said the $11,000 Wyoming Community Gas grant wouldn’t cover the cost of a new scoreboard. The mayor said Councilman Weisenburg proposed saving the money and combining it with next year’s grant. Mayor Weickum said he likes the idea.
Councilwoman Tonya Lewman recalled that Rec Director Sehon wanted to use the money to improve the ball fields at the VFW. Councilwoman Lewman said she thinks Wyoming Community Gas would rather have the city buy a scoreboard. Mayor Weickum said after much consideration, he supports getting the scoreboard for the sports complex.
Parks and Rec Director Sehon was not present during Tuesday’s city council meeting.
At the October 3rd meeting, Sehon said he used the previous year’s community gas money as a match for a larger grant. The bigger grant was used to upgrade three of the four baseball fields at the VFW. The remaining funding was used on the Generals fields.
Speaking at Tuesday’s city council meeting, Councilman Weisenburg said he, personally, feels like the council should have ensured that the entire grant was used on the VFW fields.
Councilwoman Jacquelin Wells asked where the rest of the money was spent. Councilman Weisenburg said the entirety of last year’s Wyoming Community Gas grant was used on the VFW fields, but a portion of the larger grant was spent on the Generals field. Weisenburg said the council should have instructed Sehon to use all the grant money at the VFW fields.
Councilman Weisenburg said the scoreboard at the Generals ball field has been irreparably damaged for a long time. The councilman said he strongly supports replacing the scoreboard.
Councilman Weisenburg said like the previous year, he wants the Wyoming Community Gas money to be used as a match for a larger grant. However, Weisenburg said the council needs to make sure all the money is spent at the Generals ball fields.
Vice Mayor Steve Sanger said he supports the idea of using the Wyoming Community Gas grant on a new scoreboard. Vice Mayor Sanger said the city still has time to get the Little League fields at the VFW ready for the proposed state-wide tournament in 2026.
The council said they will be ready to vote on where to use the Wyoming Community Gas grant by the next meeting on November 7th. Mayor Weickum said he’ll add the vote to the meeting agenda.
