 - The Lander City Council passed a resolution last week approving the municipal budget for 2025-2026 - with two council members voting "no."){kind=link}
(Lander, WY) – The Lander City Council passed a resolution last week approving the municipal budget for 2025-2026 – with two council members voting “no.”
Councilmember Julia Stuble, who voted in favor of the resolution, said the budget shows that the city is “being deeply prudent” and “saving for the future” while also “investing in our infrastructure” and providing cost of living increases for local staff members.
“I think we’re being really careful stewards here,” she said during last week’s meeting. “I’m pleased.”
Councilmember Dan Hahn shared a different perspective, however, questioning the amount of money the city has allocated to things like outside consultants.
“I personally think that we waste a lot of money within the city,” he said. “We hire consultants for everything, (and) it is adding up. … I think we need to do better.”
Hahn voted against last week’s budget resolution, as did Councilmember Josh Hahn.
Salaries
Josh Hahn voted against a resolution amending the salary structure for municipal staff last week, too.
The updated salary structure provides a 4.7 percent cost of living increase for all employees, Treasurer Charri Lara said – but Dan Hahn said that kind of “blanket raise … bothers me.”
“If you’re making $20,000 or if you’re making $150,000 … everybody gets the same raise,” he said. “I’ve never understood that.”
Josh Hahn added that the cost of living adjustments are funded by local taxpayers, who don’t “get raises like this” and “don’t make (as) much” money as most municipal officials.
“I think there’s a difference between (being) competitive with other cities, and greed,” he said. “I don’t feel good about it. I don’t like taking money out of hardworking people’s pockets and putting it into somebody else’s. I don’t feel comfortable with that.”
Councilmember Chad Cassady agreed with Dan Hahn that the salary adjustments “should be more targeted,” suggesting that the city could discuss “retention raises” at some point in the future.
He also echoed Josh Hahn’s comments about using public funds to provide cost of living adjustments.
“The public that’s paying these, some of them, perhaps many of them, rely on Social Security to pay that, or they’re on fixed incomes,” Cassady said. “So 4.7 (percent) to me seems a bit high.”
Utility rates
Josh Hahn was also the only council member to vote against a resolution increasing local water and wastewater utility rates last week.
“It doesn’t seem to end,” he said, asking whether utility rates ever “go backwards” and decrease. “It’s kind of like the raise thing. … You guys keep raising everything.”
Public Works Director Lance Hopkin said the utility rate increase would help fund local infrastructure projects that have risen in cost due to inflation.
“This is us paying our way to replace the infrastructure that is badly aged and is in poor service,” Stuble said. “If we want to have a Lander in 20 to 30 years with good water quality, with roads being paved and not full of potholes – to look different, frankly, than it has the last couple years … then this is our investment now.”
Master plan
The council unanimously approved an updated municipal fee schedule last week, but they were split on a decision to modify the city’s proposed master plan to reflect the desire of local firefighters to keep their drill field in place at Lander City Park.
Stuble voted against that amendment, pointing out that, while she takes “very seriously the fire department’s disagreement with moving the drill field,” master plan documents are only “conceptual.”
“The city is not bound to this,” she said. “(This) is a guideline. … It is something that we’re saying, ‘Interesting, let’s look into it more. Let’s make decisions down the road.’”
After the amendment passed, Stuble voted in favor of the revised master plan, along with the rest of the council.
Stuble was also the only council member to support a three-month probationary period for the Grizzly Bar and Grill last week.
The City of Lander had alleged that the business was operating its bar and grill license contrary to state statute by failing to cease sales of alcoholic and malt beverages at the time food sales and services cease.
But when Stuble proposed imposing a three-month probationary period on the Grizzly Bar, none of the other council members offered to second her motion.
Instead, they decided that last week’s hearing with the Grizzly Bar would serve as a formal warning.
For more information, call the City of Lander at (307) 332-2870.