News & Information
4/9/2024, 9:15pm
9
BWR Improvement & Service District
You will find all the information on the ISD and the well project (current and historical) and meeting materials from all the ISD's public meetings on the BWR ISD web page linked in the lefthand navigation column.
April 2024:
* Legal issues have been worked out, a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed, and the test well drilling is tentatively scheduled for 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. Meeting materials are available on the BWR ISD web page. We are planning to drill the test well in the fall.
May 2023:
* Weather and other factors precluded drilling in May and our driller's schedule was already full for later months. We should be able to drill in late summer/early fall, assuming no supply issues arise.
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 soon.
Also, we got the loan portion of our funding extended to the same timeframe as the WWDO grant (to Nov. 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 should 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. Visit the BWR ISD page to download the ad. 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. NOTE: The June 2021 estimated timeline for the project is, unfortunately, no longer valid.
* 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).
General News and Information
Basic Cost Information: The annual dues for BWR POA are $800, due in full each February (dues are mainly used for road maintenance); water is $50 per tap per month and may increase or decrease when water meters are installed and actual usage is measured; $450 per lot per year is assessed through the BWR Improvement & Service District and will be a part of your property taxes. Garbage removal and driveway snow removal are each owner's individual responsibility. Also, each home has its own septic system; it is recommended that you have your septic system pumped out every 2 to 5 years to avoid problems, such as sewage backup into your house.
No Trailers on the Wheel in the Winter: Due to the constant problems of trailers getting stuck on our roads in the winter months, all our roads are posted as TRAILERS PROHIBITED IN WINTER (Nov. - Apr.). We ask the vacation homeowners to please relay this information to all their winter renters. It has been suggested that renters can park their snowmobile trailers at the McCoy Creek parking area in the winter (assuming the State is not using that area for highway construction staging in the winter).
Firewise Programs: For those home/land owners wanting to learn more about being firewise, the NFPA has online programs which can be found here.
Power Washing/Outdoor Water Use: Many of our owners are concerned about power washing and outdoor water use happening on the Wheel. Because of our finite water situation, it is currently not allowed. As stated in the covenants, water is to be used for culinary purposes only. The well upgrade project will solve this problem, but it will be 2 to 3 years before we are there. Many thanks to those of our owners who use cistern water for their outdoor water needs! Please use the well water judiciously.
Dogs Left to Run Loose on the Wheel: Thank you to our owners for their cooperation on this issue. Please do not let your dog(s) run loose; they could get hit on the roads, they could follow walkers or bicylcists out of the subdivision onto the highway, they could cause damage to a member's property and/or pets, and/or they could innocently incite other members' dogs on the Wheel to bark and/or misbehave. Covenant #22 states:
For the safety of others and their pets, and for the respect of all members’ property and privacy, pets owned or cared for by a member are the explicit responsibility of the member. At all times the member or caretaker is required to contain such pets on the member’s property by whatever method so long as it is effective. All pets exercised beyond the confines of the member’s property are to be under supervision and effective control by leash, so that the rights of others are preserved.
Building on The Wheel. Please follow the Protective Covenants and Servitudes requirements for building, and submit any building plans to the Architechual Committee (see below for list of committee members) before finalizing your building plans.
What to do When the Power Goes Out. From time to time, the power in our area can go out; sometimes for just a moment and sometimes for an hour or more. In the case of a longer outage (hour or more), we ask that during the time the power is out you refrain from using water as much as possible. When the power is out, the well pump is not operating so the well water is not being replenished and any water used is not being replaced. Please keep this in mind when we have power outages. Thank you!
WATER PAYMENTS TO BWR POA versus BWR ISD
This is a reminder to all BWR owners that BWR POA and BWR ISD are two separate entities and cannot co-mingle funds. When you pay your dues, you are paying BWR POA. When you pay your water bills, you are paying BWR ISD.
BWR POA is the property owners' association and is responsible for the roads and the CCRs. BWR ISD is the improvement and service district (a legal taxing authority of Lincoln County) and is responsible for the well/water system.
Please do not pay the incorrect entity when paying dues (BWR POA) or water bills (BWR ISD). Thanks!
Each BWR POA owner with a home on their land receives an emailed bill monthly for $50 for water from BWR ISD. As a condition of our Wyoming SLIB/SRF loan, each homeowner must now pay per month for water use. Once water meters are installed actual water usage will be metered and the monthly bill will be the base fee (currently $50) plus $0.05/gallon for all usage over 10,000 gallons per month (this will be adjusted after we have a few months' history of use via water meters). You can pay your bill via ETF through your bank to the ISD's bank, or you can mail a check to BWR ISD, PO Box 3573, Alpine, WY 83128, or drop it by the Austin or Butterfield homes. You cannot, however, ignore the water bill and not pay it. The loan is predicated on the monthly water billing and the yearly tax assessment, which must be paid in a timely manner. Please pay your monthly water bill promptly. Nonpayment over several months may result in your water being shut off.
Also, please be aware that any outstanding bills on your property (water or dues) will cause problems should you wish to sell your property. All obligations to the POA and the ISD must be paid in full for the title of a property to be free and clear.
Motorized Vehicle Use
As stated in the Protective Covenants, "Use of the roads by all motorized vehicles, including motorcycles, snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), are restricted to only entry and exit, as the roads are not to be used as recreational tracks or trails."
Water Usage (this will be valid until such time as the new well is fully functional)
All property owners are asked to be especially mindful of their water use during the compacted time frame of the summer months. Our Protective Covenants state that "All water for culinary purposes shall be drawn from the Association well or from individually drilled wells. ...No water from Broken Wheel Ranch water system may be used for irrigation of lawn grass." (Emphasis supplied.) As lawn irrigation or power washing of decks, house siding, or cars are not considered to be "culinary purposes" and can draw down the well storage tank and potentially cause problems for homeowners - especially when more than one household uses the well water in such ways in the same time frame, do not use the water for such purposes. Please use our well water judiciously, and remember it is a finite resource. (Note: "Culinary purposes" refers to in-home use of water.)
For outdoor water use (for flowers/yards/gardens/greenhouses), and/or for power washing, you could install your own cistern to capture rainwater and use it for outdoor purposes. A cistern would benefit you by giving you a source for outdoor water and benefit the BWR homeowners by putting less of a strain on the well system. Possible local resources for cisterns are Falls Plumbing Supply in Idaho Falls, Cal-Ranch in Idaho Falls, Tractor Supply in Afton, and the Big R Store in Jackson.
BWR POA Board
President & Board Member: Mark Mosgeller (2-year term expires in August 2024)
Vice President & Board Member: Nick Cummings (2-year term expires in August 2024)
Treasurer & Board Member: Ada Austin (2-year term expires in August 2023)
Secretary: Dawn Manfredi (1-year continuing appointment)
Email:BWRPOA@gmail.com
BWR POA Committees
Roads Administration: Nick Cummings, Mark Mosgeller
Architectural: Dave Penning, Peggy Gwin, Juline Christofferson
Website built and maintained by: ~DKBB~ Web Sites and More
Print 