PINEDALE – The Pinedale Town Council passed the second reading of its “food truck” ordinance at its regular meeting Monday night, clearing the path for the third and final reading at its Aug. 14 meeting – just in time for the much-anticipated solar eclipse and the associated crowds on Aug. 21.

“Did anybody find anything you want to fine-tune?” asked Pinedale mayor Bob Jones to start the discussion.

Council members brought up some of the complaints they’ve received since the council’s July 10 meeting from business owners in town, particularly those with restaurants, who are concerned that food trucks could get by without the same financial burden.

“These town people that have a café, they have to pay taxes; they have to pay all this stuff and food trucks don’t have to,” said councilwoman Nylla Kunard of what she’s been hearing.

“They thought that a reasonable compromise would be to set the permitting aspect of it, where we allow them to do it, have that fee be something reasonable with property taxes,” said councilman Tyler Swafford, later adding that “I feel we’re really giving an advantage to these people over our business people if we don’t charge.”

The council opted to amend the ordinance, saying that a permit and associated fee will be required and set by resolution. No fee amount, however, was established.

“We should put a daily fee and a monthly fee,” Jones said.

The council also discussed what language should be added to ensure food-truck operators are responsible for not blocking parking and for picking up after themselves. The issue of operations on public versus private property was also discussed, with permission from either entity being the primary concern.

They also talked about whether food vendors operating at American Legion Park for events – like the upcoming Eclipse Festival being put on by the Pinedale Fine Arts Council – would also need to get permit to operate.

“If they’re not associated with the festival, they’d need a permit,” said town attorney Ed Wood.

The council voted unanimously to pass the second reading of Ordinance 628 “with amendments.”

In other news from the meeting:

• Sublette County Unified Fire Chief Shad Cooper approached the council about hiring an outside pyrotechnic firm to perform next year’s fireworks show.

“We’re happy to support the events,” Cooper said. “But lets’ bring in a professional pyrotech company to do the ignition and displays.”

Initial cost estimates were between $1,500 to $2,000 to hire a firm. This year’s budget for Fourth of July fireworks was $10,000.

“So that’d be about $12,000,” said Murdock.

• Public Works staffer Josh Wilson asked for the council’s blessing to pursue bids “for the crackseal project for the entire town.”

“Instead of doing a large chipseal project, (we’d like) to move forward with getting all the streets in town cracksealed,” Wilson said.

The council agreed to the cheaper option.

• The council voted unanimously to waive fees for use of American Legion Park for the Suicide Prevention Walk and Vigil on Aug. 8.
• The council unanimously agreed to provide a street closure for the homecoming parade on Pine Street on Sept. 29.
• The council gave its blessing to Rio Verde Engineering, representing the property owners, to combine a sewer connection for two lots in Trails Creek Subdivision. In addition, the council said they could tap into the nearby 10-inch water line for water service.
• The council voted unanimously to approve the building permit for an addition on the southwest side of St. Andrew’s in the Pines Episcopal Church in Pinedale.
• The council agreed to give a temporary-use permit to PFAC for a road closure during the Eclipse Festival on North Madison Avenue by American Legion Park. The council also waived the associated fees.
• The council voted, 4-1, with Kunard opposed, to approve the town’s annual contract with accountant Robin Sims.

Kunard took issue with the 33-percent increase in Sims’ hourly fees – from $90 to $120 per hour.

“I’ve seen it too much,” Kunard said. “They jack us up and I just don’t think it’s necessary, especially if our (bookkeeping) system is going good, why should she be charging us more?”

• The council voted to approve its annual contract with auditing firm MH&P in the amount of $29,000.
• The council voted unanimously to turn down the request from the Wyoming Water Development Office to help pay for cloud seeding.
• Councilman Jim Brost wondered why Jackson Avenue Park has so many unaddressed weeds after seeing that somebody with the town was able to weedeat around the town’s old shop site near Pine Creek.

“The weeds need to be taken care of on that rock pile so that it doesn’t look like crap,” he said. “I’m sure we can get some good Samaritan.”

“I’ll loan you a weedeater,” Jones said.

Brost also wondered why nothing was being watered at the park, including the hydroseeding that proved unsuccessful.

“There wasn’t enough water put on it,” Brost said. “And it wasn’t going to work anyway because of the (rocky) material it was put on.”

Jones added that the grasy camping area on the north side of the park is up to the camp manager “to do any watering he wanted to do on the grass,” not the town.

• The council approved a bill “not to exceed $3,000” for engineering firm JVA to address “about 30 comments” from the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) about the town’s effort to switch its corrosion control treatment for water over to soda ash.

“The DEQ wants those responses to come back from the engineer of record,” explained town engineer Hayley Ryckman. “So we have been working on those responses ourselves but we have to work with (JVA) to get the permit.”

• The council once again voted to table Ordinance 615, which addresses the town’s requirements for subdivision development.

Local engineers voiced concerns about some of the language and requirements in the proposed ordinance, saying it shifts unnecessary and unclear power to the town. They have since been involved in helping shape the proposed ordinance but more work is needed.