12 I The Lovell Chronicle I January 19, 2012
Cowley seeks $1 mil. grant for log gym;
BHCSD One partnership a possibility
BY BOB RODRIGUEZ
During their first meet-
ing of 2012, trustees of Big
Horn County School Dis-
trict One dealt in near-
record time with matters
including a possible part-
nership with the Town of
Cowley for use of the histor-
ic log gymnasium (now the
Cowley Community Cen-
ter) for which the town is in
the running for a $1 million
grant for renovation that
would include additional
recreational facilities.
All seven trustees and
seven district staffers, but
no patrons, attended the
meeting at the Burlington
Schools library on Tuesday
night, Jan. 10. The board
gathering lasted approxi-
mately 32 minutes. Admin-
istrative Assistant Gene-
vieve Mann said later that
she "believes that there was
one meeting years ago that
lasted 25 minutes, but this
one was close" to that re-
cord for all-time meeting
brevity.
The public assembly of
the district trustees marked
the first in approximately
five years that an execu-
tive session, closed to the
public and press, was not
held. Supt. Shon Hocker
said during the December
meeting that such nonpub-
lic sessions would be held
only when necessary from
that point.
The regular meeting
was preceded by a four-min-
ute get-together of the five
trustees who serve as offi-
cers of the Big Horn County
Recreation District. The rec
board voted 5-0 to re-elect
current officers: Koleen
Sponsel as chairman, Ed
Riding as vice chairman
and Paul Rasmussen as
secretary/treasurer. Non-
officer members are Dave
Monk and Joan Zier. The
rec district distributes fund-
ing for Cowley, Frannie,
Deaver, Byron, Burlington
and Otto.
Cowley Mayor Joel Pe-
terson said last week that
some $8 million in state
funds for preservation of
qualifying historical sites is
available. Cowley is in line
for $1 million of that, as
preliminary steps already
have been taken and the
outlook appears positive.
The town has gone through
a due diligence process and
a walk-through by state ar-
chitectural aides, Peterson
said. "They liked what they
saw," he added. It's possi-
ble that an award could be
announced a bit later this
year.
The mayor continued
that under the planned re-
modeling, "We're hoping for
a super-major project" that
would result in a complete
revamping with modern im-
provements while retaining
the integrity and appear-
ance of the original struc-
ture. The building, made of
lodgepole pine, contains ap-
proximately 9,000 square
feet of space and was erect-
ed in 1936 by the Works
Program Administration.
The site is on the U.S. Na-
tional Register of Historic
Places.
Peterson said that the
town would like to have the
school district as a partner
in connection with paying
rent for use of the remod-
eled community center.
Hocker, who noted that
family memberships might
be available, also asked the
board if it would be inter-
ested in pursuing such an
arrangement for the dis-
trict and trustees indicated
their agreement. Hacker's
presentation was solely for
discussion; no vote was tak-
en. With the district show-
ing the possibility of such
an agreement, the town
would be in a better posi-
tion to show the state his-
torical preservation group
that it could maintain the
site without much difficul-
ty. Other organizations also
could be involved in such
partnerships, it was indi-
cated, thus giving the town
even more backing.
Hocker told the board
that there are "some gran-
diose ideas, some big plans"
for the renovation, but that
the district is not obligat-
ed for any use funding at
this time. Perhaps $5,000
to $5,600 per year might
eventually be involved for
using the facility, he said.
The cost could be negotiat-
ed based on usage, tie stat-
ed. But he stressed that
he would not obligate the
district without board ap-
proval. "If we're not obligat-
ed, then why not?" stated
Trustee Brett Crosby. Hav-
ing additional space could
mean that early morning
and some evening sports
practices and other activity
sessions could be eliminat-
ed, making it easier on stu-
dents in many ways, said
Zier.
"It's worth pursuing,"
observed Monk, chairman
of the school district board.
In other matters trust-
ees:
*Unanimously accept-
ed with indications of re-
gret the resignation of San-
dy Harrison as part-time
school nurse at Burlington
Schools; and approved em-
ployment of Mike Higgins
as assistant girls basketball
coach at RMMS, and Car-
ol S. McIntosh as an aide
for the English Language
Learners program for two
hours per day at Burlington
for the current school year
in what Hocker called "kind
of a pilot program."
*Voted 7-0 for Business
Manager Richard Parker
to retain as district deposi-
tories the Bank of Lovell
and Security State Bank in
Basin, plus Columbus Bank
& Trust Co. in Atlanta, Ga.,
the latter in connection
with a district insurance
plan.
*Learned from Hock-
er that a 2012-2013 calen-
dar will be presented to the
board for approval during
the Feb. 13 board meeting
in Cowley, and the board
tentatively scheduled a
special phone conference
meeting during the next
week or two to approve
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