www. LovellChronicle.com
March 25, 2010 I The Lovell Chronicle I 7
BY DAVID PECK
Town officials from
Lovell and Cowley listened
to a presentation about the
recent Housing Needs As-
sessment for the two com-
munities Tuesday, and now
it's the public's turn.
Billie Kirkham of
Kirkham & Associates of
Riverton gave a PowerPoint
presentation to members
of the Lovell Town Coun-
cil, Town Administrator
Bart Grant, Mayor Bruce
Morrison and Cowley May-
or Roland Simmons at the
Lovell Town Hall Tuesday
at noon. Lovell Inc. Direc-
tor Sue Taylor was also on
hand for the meeting.
A similar presentation
for the public, followed by
individual meetings with
industry-specific groups,
will be conducted on Mon-
day and Tuesday, April 5-6,
at the L0vell Community
Center.
During the hour and a
half presentation, Kirkham
said that "decent rental
housing" was the number
one need in the Lovell-Cow-
ley area.
"Affordable housing
"isn't the issue, decent and
desirable is the issue,"
Kirkham said.
Specifically, she said,
there is a lack of three-
bedroom apartments in
the area, with Lovell hav-
ing only six of the larger
apartments, Cowley none.
She said rental housing is
needed for teachers, nurses
and and a variety of profes-
sional workers who want to
rent when they first move
to'the community to take
a job. If they can't find a
place to rent in north Big
Horn County, they will like-
ly rent in Powell while com-
muting to Lovell and even-
tually buy and settle their
families in Powell.
Kirkham said over-
all housing is affordable in
Lovell and Cowley compared
. to the rest of Ws, ming and
based on the median house-
hold income for the area
and the weekly wage rate.
The "affordable" tag can be
affixed to rental housing,
home sales and new con-
struction, she said, adding,
"So what's the issue? Desir-
ability, and the availabil-
ity of three-bedroom apart-
ments and above. There's
an inadequate stock."
POWERPOINT
Kirkham said that the
economy in north Big Horn
County is "reasonably sta-
ble," with the demand for
sugar and bentonite prod-
ucts, agriculture, tourism,
healthcare and education
expected to remain steady.
She said the area is not sub-
ject to the "highs and lows"
: of the rest of Wyoming.
She also said Lovell and
Cowley had demonstrated a
stronger household growth
: pattern than the rest of the
:: county. While the county
is estimated to have a mi-
nus-l.2 percent population
decrease from 2000 through
2008, Lovell and Cowley
have continued to grow,
Cowley by 9.6 percent.
While Lovell experienced
a slight decrease in popu-
lation (0.2 percent) from
2000-2008, the town did
show an estimated 9.8 per-
cent increase in the number
of homeowner households
from 2000-2010.
Rental apartments in
north Big Horn County are
affordable but not always
desirable, and while both
Lovell and Cowley have
seen a decrease in the num-
ber of rental households
during the past decade and
a corresponding increase
in homeowner households,
it does not mean there is a
declining need for rentals,
Kirkham said.
"The appearance of a
decrease in renting house-
holds does not mean there
is not a need for these com-
munities to have additional
nice rental units available,"
Kirkham wrote in her ex-
ecutive summary. "The cur-
rent situation is problem-
atic, and it will continue
to force potential new resi-
dents to locate in Powell.
"The trend is toward ho-
meownership in Lovell and
Cowley. It appears there is
a shift away from rentals.
The initial analysis of the
area's demographics does
not indicate a need for addi-
tional units, and it appears
that the rental market has
reached equilibrium. How-
ever, this does not identify
or discuss the desirability
or livability of existing rent-
al properties."
Kirham said a physi-
cal inventory and survey
of Lovell rentals indicates
a need for new units to re-
place those that need to be
demolished, noting, "The
higher vacancy rates for
these units support this."
Kirkham said one real-
tor told her that he or she
has had to turn away po-
tential Lovell and Cowley
tenants because there is a
lack of "available and desir-
able units" for workers with
moderate incomes, new
workers relocating who are
willing to pay $700 to $850
for a "nice rental unit that
will fit the needs of their
household."
The lack of rental units
then compels new workers
to seek rental housing in
Powell, and once a work-
er's household is settled in
a different community, oth-
er factors come into play:
children enrolled in school,
community activities and
relationships and the fact
that the worker's spouse
may find work in that other
community.
"The worker's new
sense of community and be-
longing will be compared to
the upheaval and cost of re-
locating one's household to
the town of employment,"
Kirkham wrote. "If these
quality of life factors are
not equal or better in the
community of employment,
typically the worker will
remain in the community
where they are renting and
purchase a home there
There is no benefit to Lovell
or Cowley when their work-
ers live in Powell. This will
have a long-range adverse
effect on Lovell and Cow-
ley."
Other points made by
Kirkham include the fact
that housing is affordable
in Big Horn County - 75
percent of the average cost
in the rest of the state; av-
erage home sale prices are
higher in Lovell ($120,000
in 2009) and in Cowley
($174,000 in 2009) than in
Big Horn County as a whole
($109,295), but still low-
er than most of the rest of
the state; and both rental
and new sale housing is aF-
fordable based on commu-
nity average income. She
also said building costs are
lower in Big Horn County
than in the rest of the state
and she found local contrac-
tors to be responsive to the
needs of the community.
REHABILITATION
Kirkham said a Wyo-
ming Community Develop-
ment Authority study in-
dicates that the average
age of housing stock in Big
Horn County is the second
highest in Wyoming, so the
potential for a housing re-
habilitation program in the
region is good, with many
homes and rentals older
than 20 years not having
been updated.
"Lovell and Cowley
need to have some of their
older homes rehabilitated
to provide adequate living
conditions. Neither com-
munity has a rehabilita-
tion program," Kirkham
wrote. "During the physical
inventory of Lovell's hous-
ing stock, 107 houses and
11 mobile l mes were iden-
tified (to in poor condi-
tion, indicating a need for
UX]I::0:N S
LOCATION:
.2 Miles East of Cowley on Lane 8
TRACTORS & TRUCKS
JD 4020 tractor, diesel, Poweshift trans Year
A Round cab, 1606 hmr 15.5-38 rubber,
wide front, 3 pt 3 remotes, 540 pto
JD 3020 tractor, diesel, ONE OWNER, 7324
hmr 13.6-38 rubber, single front, 3 pt 2
remotes, 540 pto
1975 Dodge 600 truck, V8, side dump,
wooden box
1971 International Loadstar 1800 truck, V8,
side dump
ANTIQUE EQUIPMENT
TILLAGE AND HARVESTING
NH 718 corn chopper, cutting & pickup heads
Dump Chief dump wagon
Farmhand F45A manure spreader
JD 930 land leveler
NH 283 Hayliner baler
JD side delivery rake
JD cultivator, 6 row, 3 pt.
JD corn planter, 6 row, booms, 3 pt.
NH 1100 swather
Sagebrush defoliator
Pull type ditcher
IH 3 bottom turn over plow
Misc. antique equipment: wooden wheels, Case grain drill, 6 row
solid steel wheels, slip scraper, 1 row horse Roller Harrow
drawn beet digger, dump rake, manure Eversman tandem disk, 10'
Tandem disk
improvements.
"Thirteen houses and
eight mobile homes were
classified as a critical hous-
ing situation and merit fur-
ther inspection since they
may need to be demolished.
Lovell residents need ac-
cess to an owner rehabilita-
tion program."
Lovell Inc. may play a
major role in housing devel-
opment in the Lovell area,
Kirkham said, but the first
step is to work with "stake-
holders" and other interest-
ed parties during the April
5-6 meetings, which will
lead to the development of a
housing action plan for the
community to follow. Issues
touched on Tuesday includ-
ed finding places within
Lovell's zoning regulations
for new apartment housing
and the possibility that new
rental units may be need-
ed in Cowley once the new
school is finished.
Other recommenda-
tions in Kirkham's report
include establishing a re-
gional housing organiza-
tion, evaluating the identi-
fied substandard housing
stock in Lovell, modifying
building permit applica-
tions to provide information
on manufactured homes,
promoting and delivering
local consumer education
programs, involving em-
ployers in housing issues,
supporting local contrac-
tors and developers who
are willing to build specu-
lative homes and rental
uni.ts, looking into obtain-
ing Geographic Information
System software and devel-
oping a USDA Rural De-
velopment 502 home loan
application center in north
Big Horn County for low-in-
come housing.
The first steps are the
community meetings and
developing the housing ac-
tion plan.
'%Ve want to get as
much public input as we
can and create a dialogue to
craft a housing action plan,"
Kirkham said.
Liberty Bates throws a dart during the 4H
Carnival Saturday at the county fairgrounds.
Good times at the
4H Carnival
KARLA POMEROY PHOTOS
Burl Twitchell was one of many kids who had
a good time at the 4H Carnival. Twitchell is
pictured at the fishing pond event.
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Neither rain, nor snow,
nor dead of night
Why should mailmen have all the fun?
Safety - both yours and ours - is our number one priority. When storms hit
or unexpected power outages happen, we're on the job no matter the time
or the weather to restore electricity quickly and safely. If you experience a
power outage, we want to know right away. Call us tolIJree at 1-877-548-3768
(I-877-LITESOUT). To learn more and find all of our storm-ready answers,
go to rockymountainpower.net/outage.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN
POWER
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Let's turn the answerson.
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