Riverton dissolves city-established rec center committee so new ‘grassroots’ community-based group can ‘take the lead’

(Riverton, WY) – The Riverton City Council voted this week to dissolve the committee it formed in 2025 to explore potential funding options for a multi-sport recreation facility in town.

The move came after city officials learned that a separate, community-based group has since been formed with a “similar mission – to advance the development of a recreation facility in Riverton,” City Administrator Kyle Butterfield reported during a council meeting Tuesday. 

The community group is “actively working towards many of the same objectives originally assigned to the city’s committee, including community engagement, planning, and fundraising efforts,” Butterfield said, and “maintaining two committees with overlapping purposes creates redundancy and dilutes community efforts and resources.”

“Dissolving the city-established committee allows this community-based initiative to move forward with a unified focus while still aligning with the city’s broader goals of enhancing recreational opportunities,” he concluded.

Mayor Tim Hancock noted that the city created the Rendezvous Activity Center Committee last year in part because a “grassroots, community” effort had not yet emerged at that point to pursue a recreation center in town.

But now that a community-based committee has formed, Hancock said, “I don’t want to be in a situation where we’re competing.”

Councilmember Karen Johnson agreed that “combining resources is much better than working against each other.”

“I’m just thankful that there’s community members out there willing to form a committee and work hard on it,” she said. “I’m all about it.”

Councilmember Eric Carr said he was “heartened that there’s community movement on the issue,” but he also asked whether the members of the city-established committee were in favor of dissolution and whether they would be invited to join the community-based group.

“Yes,” Hancock replied. “Some of those people will likely be members of this new committee. … The group had been willing to welcome (a) few of the members that we had had.”

Building a recreation center in Riverton “is going to be a lot of work,” Councilmember Mike Bailey pointed out, “so there’s more than enough room for a lot of people to get (involved) and be productive in the process.”

That includes the city, he added, predicting that eventually “there will be a place for the City of Riverton to participate in some areas where the city would be helpful to the overall process.”

Regardless of the role the city may play in the future, however, Hancock said, “at this point it makes sense for us to step back and let another group take the lead.”