BWR Improvement & Service District
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Per Resolution 2021-3 (see below), we increased water rates to $50 per month beginning in July 2021 (increasing Operation & Maintenance fees from $12 to $30 to help cover potentional water hauling costs between now and completion of the well project). Also, we have created a registry for folks to let us know how many people will be in their houses (over 6 persons for 3 consecutive days); until such registry is up and running, please email this information to bwr.isd@gmail.com. Thank you!
Temporary increase in water fees (increase of $18 dollars for operation & maintenance fee - from $12 to $30).
Resolution2021-3.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [449.4 KB]
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Well Project Status and History
Since we are still relying on our old well, the water restrictions in the POA covenants continue. No outside water use, please!
(NOTE: The tax assessments each property owner is paying will be used for not only repaying the loan, but also to help create the maintenance/replacement fund required by the State of Wyoming granting and loan authorities.)
April 2024:
Legal issues have been worked out, a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed, and the test well drilling portion of the well project is scheduled to begin May 6, 2024.
September 2023:
Due to ongoing legal delays and our driller's need to fill his schedule this Fall, the drilling has been rescheduled to Spring 2024. At that time all easements should be in place, and drilling should be able to commenced unencumbered.
June 2023:
A public meeting was held June 29 to set the FY24 tax assessment (which will remain at $450 per lot) and adopt the FY24 Proposed Budget.
May 2023:
Weather and other factors precluded drilling in May and our driller's schedule was already full for later months. We plan to be able to drill the test well in late summer/early fall.
April 2023:
We received the signed ARPA grant papers back from the State. We will be meeting with the well driller and WWDO soon to get things figured out re: drilling the test well and moving forward.
January 2023:
We received the official grant papers for our $450,000 ARPA grant. They have been signed and returned to the State; we expect to receive a copy of the fully-signed ARPA grant in February. The State Revolving Fund department, which the loan portion of our funding is through, has granted us an extension on the loan to match the extension on the state grant (November 2024).
November 2022: Our request to extend the timeline of our project by 24 months was approved by the Wyoming Water Development Commission at their November meeting.
October 2022: Our request for $450,000 in ARPA grant funding was approved by the Wyoming State Lands & Investments Board on Oct. 27. These additional funds will aid us greatly in getting our project completed in the coming year(s).
September 2022: A "Notice of Award" was issued to Atnip Well & Pump Services, Inc., for the drilling of the test/permanent well. Work will start in Spring 2023.
August 2022: Three bids were presented at the bid-opening meeting on Aug. 3. Those bids will be reviewed by our engineers and they will present to us their recommendations. In addition, we have applied for an ARPA grant in the amount of $450,000 and are asking the WWDC to amend our project by adding an additional 24 months to the timeline and adding $300,000 to the grant.
Because the land MtnX is on is for sale, we have filed an affidavit with the county to attach our well site to the land so the next owner will have to honor the agreement we initially made with Jason Stroh.
July 2022: At the pre-bid meeting for the well project on July 20, we discussed the need to apply for ARPA monies and for a Level III grant from WWDO. On July 21 we adopted two resolutions to that end and will be moving forward with both of those applications as the cost of the project has increased significantly since we started, especially with the current supply chain issues.
June 2022: A public meeting was held June 2 to set the FY23 tax assessment (which will remain at $450 per lot) and adopt the FY23 Proposed Budget. Meeting materials are available on the BWR ISD page.
On June 29, 2022, BWR ISD placed an advertisement in the local newspaper (Star Valley Independent) for the re-bid of Broken Wheel Ranch ISD Well #1 Project. The pre-bid meeting will be held at the Don Wooden Center in Alpine on July 20, 2022, at 1pm. The bid opening meeting will be held at that same location on August 3, 2022, at 1pm.
April 2022: The BWR ISD Board met in an executive session on April 2 to discuss the one bid received and how to proceed. Given the unexpectedly high bid, it was decided to reject the bid and explore how to move forward. Notes from this meeting can be found via the BWR ISD page. In the coming weeeks, the Board will be actively pursuing all options for the continuation of the project.
A teleconference was held on April 14 with State, Federal, Board, and Engineer representatives in attendance to discuss how to proceed. The project will be re-bid in late June with a tentative bid-open date of Aug. 4. Notes from this meeting can be found via the BWR ISD page.
March 2022: The pre-bid meeting was held on March 14; you can access notes from the meeting via the BWR ISD page. The bid opening meeting will be March 28, 1pm, at the Don Wooden Center in Alpine.
The bid-opening meeting was held on March 28; you can access notes from that meeting on the BWR ISD page.
February 2022: Bidding for drilling of the test well began Feb. 23; the bid will run in the Legal Notices section of the Star Valley Independent newspaper for the next 4 editions. You can access the bid document via the BWR ISD page. It is our hope that the actual drilling of the test well will happen in late spring/early summer.
December 2021: BWR ISD is the new owner of Lot 1 (where the existing well is); we now have the land we need for the additional storage tank and the pump house. A HUGE "Thank You!" to the former owner of Lot 1 for working with us and making this possible!
We are still awaiting final permission from WWDC to drill the test well; the test well will be drilled in 2022 (hopefully in early 2022).
June 2021: We have an estimated timeline for the test well/permanent well construction. You can find it on the BWR ISD page. (Dec. update: this timeline is out the window now, because of the slowness of getting permissions and permits from DEQ and WWDC.)
Per Resolution 2021-3, we are temporarily increasing water rates to $50 per month beginning in July 2021 (increasing Operation & Maintenance fees from $12 to $30 to help cover potentional water hauling costs between now and completion of the well project).
May 2021: We finally have received permission from the WWDO to move forward with the test drilling of the well. The well will be on Mountain X, LLC, land (which is adjacent to BWR on the south side). IF the test well meets State specifications, we will then be able to drill the permanent well. We already have agreements from the property owners where we will run the distribution lines. We will keep you posted on the progress of the project. Here's hoping for a successful test well!
September 2020: We are still working on securing land nearby on which to drill a well - as always, patience is paramount. We have recently heard from the federal government about the status of the project and the funds they granted us several years ago; after being apprised of the project's status, they again assured us our federal grant monies are safe.
August 2020: Our multi-year work with LT, LLC, ended this spring when LT decided they did not want to be a part of our district. They then offered to sell us land outright for our well, but the price was significantly beyond what the grant would allow us to pay or what we would have been able to secure via outside funding. We are now working with MTNX, who has graciously offered to help us. We are in the planning stages of testing their existing well and, assuming all tests come back in the positive, we will negotiatie the purchase of land or easement to site the well and any land needed to run the pipeline on. We are very hopeful that we may finally be able to put an end to the hunt and get the project truly moving forward. As always, everything we do must be done with the full involvement and approval of the WWDO. Our grants (WWDO and USDA Rural Development) and loan (Wyoming SRF funding) are in good standing and we are in no danger of losing that funding.
May 28, 2020: A public meeting was held to approve the FY21 tax assessment (which will remain at $450 per lot) and budget. An update on the well project was shared: We have made a informal offer to LT to purchase the land/easement we need for a well, as LT decided they do not want to be a part of our ISD or to purchase water from us, but did state they were willing to sell us land for our well. We are awaiting their response to our offer.
February 6, 2020 NOTE: The annexation plan has been scrapped, and we are negoiating an agreement for well placement and distibution line placement on LT land. Such agreement will have to be approved by the WWDO before we can proceed.
June 20, 2019: A public meeting was held to approve the tax assessment and the budget for FY20. The tax assessment of $450 per lot for BWR landowners will remain the same in the coming fiscal year. The budget was approved and is available here. An thumbnail update of the project, from Kevin Martin of Sunrise Eningeering, was shared with those in attendance; here is the text of that update:
Project is currently working on the Agreement to annex LT property and Longview Ranch into the BWR ISD in exchange for property and easements for a well and utility lines. Once the District and LT come to terms, the Agreement will be reviewed by both funding agencies prior to signing the Agreement. Once they have given approval, SEI and Weston Engineering will coordinate on providing a detailed design and specifications for the construction of the well. The plans and specifications will be reviewed by DEQ and possibly the State Engineers Office. This process can take up to 45 days once they are submitted. As soon as the permit to construct is issued, we can begin the advertisement for the drilling of the well and select a Contractor (based on low bid). Construction will begin soon thereafter (the bidding and selection process can take up to 30 days). At this point, the test well will be drilled to determine the water quantity. This will be completed by performing a pump test that will run for at least 24 hours to determine how much water is available. Once the testing is complete, the bigger production well will replace the test well. I envision that the construction and testing portion will not be more than a couple of weeks. This will be narrowed down when we get closer to that point.
Assuming this all goes to plan, we will then begin the design of the transmission line from the well to the storage tanks.
The Board is currently in negotiations with the LT property owners and as soon as an agreement is finalized, and approved by the State, we will move forward.
August 21, 2018: BWR ISD board members met with Kevin Martin and Robert Hood of Sunrise Engineering, Ben Jordan of Weston Engineering, Lincoln County Commissioners Jerry Harmon and Robert King, and Representative Evan Simpson to discuss our well project journey to date and to map out where and how to proceed now. We have located 4 possible well sites to date, and had 3 of them not work out due to landowers' unwillingness to sell us land either at all or at a reasonable price (land purchase price must be approved by the state granting authority, the WWDC). We all came away from the meeting feeling more optimistic about things and with a plan of action and a contingency plan. It is too early to go into details, but please know that we are moving forward (albeit at what seems a snail's pace).
June 14, 2018: A public meeting was held on Thursday, June 14, 6pm, at 188 Chokecherry Drive (the Butterfields) to discuss the 2019 Proposed Budget. A final version of the budget was approved. Click here to see the 2019 Proposed Budget.
February 8, 2018: A public meeting was held to discuss the tax assessment and adopt a resolution to meet the county's and state's requirements. A similar resolution was passed early last year to meet the WWDC grant requirements. The tax assessment amount set last year, $450 per lot, will NOT change with this resolution. This is just a bureaucratic hoop we need to jump through. However, that the tax assessment will not be payable until May 2019 (although it is for the 2018 property tax year).
NOTE: A part of the SRF loan requirement is that we have $12,000 on hand in a reserve account by December 31, 2018. If we are short of that amount by the third quarter of 2018, we will need to meet to decide how best to come up with the monies needed by the deadline. A lot of this will depend on how much of the loan monies we actually wind up using for the project.
April 6, 2017: Dorrene attended the state SLIB SRF loan meeting where our loan application for $386,437 (with 11.66% forgiveness) was approved.
Upcoming public meetings involving BWR ISD and the well project will be announced at the top of this page.
A preliminary plan of improvements, cost estimates, and the funding plan can also be reviewed at Sunrise Engineering, 47 E. 4th Avenue, Afton, WY. Contact Kevin Martin at 307-885-8500.
Based on current cost estimates, BWR ISD plans to borrow $386,437 from the Wyoming Drinking Water State Revolving Fund administered by the Wyoming Office of State Lands and Investments. BWR ISD has requested 25% principal forgiveness for the loan portion of the project but were given only 11.66% forgiveness, which means the BWR ISD will be required to repay $341,385.41 plus interest amortized over the 30-year loan term. Water user fees and ISD tax assessments will repay the loan. For those lots with well taps, the water user rate fee will be $20/month for up to 10,000 gallons and $0.002 per gallon for all usage above 10,000 gallons. The yearly BWR ISD tax assessment (previously set at $419.97, but which will be updated per SRF requirements at May 15 meeting) will begin in 2018 and will be levied on each lot per year. Loan terms are 2.5% interest rate and 30 years.
There will be monthly public meetings as the project begins and progresses . It is anticipated that the well will be in place and operational by late fall/early winter. However, the entire project will not be completed in full until 2018.
All existing homes in BWR will get water meters installed as a part of the project. New construction will have to install water meters at their own cost (there will be specs available for new construction soon).
More Well/Water System History
Update October 2018: Finding land to purchase on which to drill a new well has proven to be quite an ordeal; none of the land
within BWR boundaries, or even into the meadow or on the downhill side of the entrance road, is viable as a water source that will meet the requirements of the Wyoming Water Development Office (the
new well must net at least 30 gallons per minute; our current well nets 4 gallons per minute).
We are currently pursuing land across the highway from BWR; it has proven to be a very slow process, and we have
unfortunately met resistance from a lot of the landowners that do have land for sale but do not wish to have us buy it for a well. Patience seems to be the main requirement for all of us at this
point. We will notify everyone when we finally secure land for the well.
Update May 2018: We are still trying to secure land for the well...it has proven to be an arduious process.
Update August 2017: Both the State of WY and the (federal) Rural Development Commission have finally fully approved our grants/loans and we have been given the official "go ahead"! We are hoping to be able to drill the well yet this year, but are unsure about how much else we will be able to accomplish before winter sets in.
Update July 2017: We are ever closer to the beginning of the project. Dale Anderson, Construction Manager for WWDC, visited with the engineers and the ISD board members on Wed., July 12, and explained how things will progress. Papers were signed to officially execute the Project. We are, however, still awaiting the final loan papers from the SRF loan, and we are waiting for the Rural Development Commission to act on our grant application. Once the SRF loan papers are signed, the Project can begin; the first step will be to locate the well and secure the land.
Update May 2017: The SRF loan application will be "officially" submitted in early June. Monies from that loan and the WWDC grant will become available in July. The RDC grant (also known as an RUS grant) application will be submitted in early June. Much preliminary work has begun and more will be started as the money becomes available, but the process to even get to the drilling stage is long (lots of permits and notifications are required before "shovel to earth" can happen). The well project cannot possibly be fully completed in one year, but it is our hope to have the well in and some sort of distribution line running by the end of the year.
Update April 2017: Our SRF loan as been approved and we hope to apply for a $100,000 grant from the Rural Development Commission. Preliminary work is beginnging now, but shovels-to-the-ground won't happen for a while yet.
Update February 2017: See BWR ISD information above.
Update January 2017: We have submitted an application for a State Revolving Fund loan (and partial loan forgiveness) for our share of the Level III costs. There will be a hearing in Cheyenne on April 6, Dorrene will attend. Also, we will be applying for a $100,000 grant from the Rural Development Commission that will help cover costs not covered by the WWDC program and/or help pay down the loan a bit.
Update December 2016: Our Level II grant was upgraded to a Level III by the WWDC so that new well construction can begin next summer. The well is having trouble recharging, so we are shutting it down at night as needed to keep the storage tanks full and avoid having to haul water as much as possible.
Update November 12, 2016: Our application for a Level II grant has been recommended for funding. It will be included in the 2017 omnibus water bill from the WWDC to the Legislature. Also, Senator Dockstader has indicated that he will sponsor a bill for us to cover the costs for the infrastructure that will be needed for the new well the Level II grant will pay for. We will keep you posted on the progress of all of this.
Update November 10, 2016: The well casing was scrubbed and the pump was lowered 10 feet. We are already seeing an increase in water into the well.
Update October 4, 2016: The final Level I report is now available. The short Executive Summary can be found here. The 115-page Level I report is available in hard copy at 188 Chokecherry Drive (We have two copies we can loan out, but we do need at least one of them back for our permanent files.)
Update September 29, 2016: The Level II application to the WWDC has been mailed. The hearing will be on Nov. 10-11 at the WWDC meeting in Casper, WY; Dorrene plans to attend and plead our case for continued funding for a new well.
September 8, 2016: We lost all water in our storage tanks and the well stopped producing; a great deal of work has been done from Sept. 8 to the present to get things back to a level that can support us through the winter. Water has been (and will be) hauled in as needed. Costs are mounting and a special assessment of our owners may have to be considered.
Update August 8, 2016: An update on the project was given by Evan Simpson of Sunrise Engineering prior to the 2016 annual meeting on Aug. 6. He presented results of the Phase I study and the tasks that need to be done to meet EPA requirements, such tasks being necessary but outside the realm of the WWDC program. A great deal of discussion was had on the well project during the business meeting, and it was decided by unanimous vote to ask Sunrise to pursue further study (Phase II) which would look at drilling a new well. While this may delay the project by a year or more, it would result in a much better outcome by getting BWR a new well and setting up our well system to better face growth and changes in the coming decades. Updates on this will be posted here as they occur.
Update June 24, 2016: The draft report by Sunrise Engineering was sent to the WWDC on June 23. The WWDC will review it and make recommendations, then return the report to Sunrise for the final draft. The final report will include information on how we address our EPA out-of-compliance issues with water pressure as well as how to improve the well system to better serve our needs. We will keep you posted on this as things progress.
Update November 19, 2015: An informational meeting was held at the Donn Wooden Civic Center in Alpine. Sunrise Engineering told us what they discovered during the October testing (click here for a synopsis of their information; click here for the map showing the lots with too-low water pressure [psi]).
The low psi has caused us to be out of compliance with the EPA (they did their annual inspection in Sept. 2014 and we got the results in Sept. 2015). They have given us a waiver until 2018 to get into compliance re the psi issue; the well project should allow us to meet that deadline.
The "20 Tasks" that Sunrise Engineering must complete per their contract with the WWDC for our well system study can be found in this document.
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Bylaws of the Broken Wheel Ranch Improvement and Service District
BylawsBWRISD.pdf
Adobe Acrobat document [473.1 KB]
LincolnCountyResolutionCreatingBWRISD.pd[...]
Adobe Acrobat document [583.8 KB]
BWR Improvement and Service District Board Members
Peggy Gwin, President (2-year term expires in January 2025)
Bob Austin, Treasurer (2-year term expires in January 2025)
Dorrene BrownButterfield, Secretary (4-year term expires in January 2025)
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