Old Stoney gets funding nod

The Wyoming Business Council (WBC) has approved a grant of just under $3 million that will be used to finish the top floor of Old Stoney and restore its original purpose as an auditorium.

According to Mayor Paul Brooks, a team of four attended the most recent WBC meeting to ensure that every member was on board.

That team included the mayor, Senator Ogden Driskill and two members of the Crook County Museum Board, Andrea Wood and Amy Goodson.

“Driskill wanted the business council to give unanimous consent. he was concerned that, if it wasn’t, then when it went to SLIB they would have the opportunity to say, ‘All these projects are good because they are unanimous but let’s talk about this one that’s not’,” Brooks says.

“We twisted some arms and made some compelling arguments and we came out of there with unanimous consent of the business council to move forward.”

The funding must still get through the State Loans and Investments Board (SLIB), but Brooks is hoping that the board will follow the recommendations of its council.

“It’s fairly promising – it’s the closest we’ve been, that’s for sure,” he says, referring to a failed attempt to secure a grant in 2022 due to changes in the WBC’s criteria.

Following that attempt, Senator Driskill became involved, working with the WBC and Joint Appropriations Committee to come up with a new program called the Community Facility Rehabilitation Grant Program, with a $2.8 million appropriation.

The SLIB vote that is expected to confirm the grant is expected at the beginning of October and Brooks is hoping that work can then begin at the start of next year.

In the light of bids for the city’s current water project coming in $850,000 above the $1.2 million estimate, he does have some concerns that inflation will have moved the needle upwards on the original estimate.

The building’s place on the historic register also means that the work must be done using materials that are as close to the original as possible.

“The ‘historically accurate’ portion does cost a lot at times,” he says.

Brooks has expressed relief that the final phase of the rejuvenation will see the roof insulated, which he believes will significantly impact the cost of heating and cooling the building.

The work is also expected to see the auditorium restored and introduce features including a catering kitchen, bathroom and large and small meeting rooms. From indoor weddings to meetings of various state and nonprofit agencies, to movie showings and plays, Brooks says the possibilities for its use as a civic building are endless.

Completing Old Stoney is also necessary, he says. While he understands that there are some within the community who would rather have seen it demolished, this was not on the list of choices.

“I understand there are a lot of community people that are unhappy about the fact they didn’t tear it down, but once it was on the National Registry of Historic Places, tearing it down was no longer an option and our hands were somewhat tied at that point. We had to go forward, because we didn’t have any other choice,” he says.

“Well, I guess we did – we could have let it fall into disarray and collapse in town, but 25 years of eyesore isn’t my idea of good leadership or good government.”

Restoring it was always going to take assistance at the state level, he says, despite many years of faithful fundraising within the community.

“When that building got put on the National Historic Register, to get it repaired was going to fall on somebody other than the city, the museum district and the county – it’s just too much money,” he says.

“You can’t bake sale your way through this thing.”

Brooks expresses his gratitude for the work of Senator Driskill in making the funding available and to Goodson and Wood for their assistance at the WBC meeting.

“My hat is off to all the energy of the museum district board and to Senator Driskill for going above and beyond on this project,” he says.