Mayor's Corner

SUMMER 2023

A couple of weeks ago an anonymous caller left a message complaining about the BNSF railroad crossing on the west end of Ranchester. Apparently, the caller was perturbed by all the train whistles at night and why can’t the town make it a quiet zone? Over the last 20 years the town has looked at making the crossing a quiet zone. There were four options that we looked at:

1. A gated crossing that uses 4 cross arms to block both lanes of travel. At the time there were funds available from WYDOT to finance the installation, but the matching cost and upkeep were too expensive.
2. Lane barriers like the First and Fifth Street crossings in Sheridan, but the distance from HWY 345 to the railroad tracks is too short for farm equipment and large trucks to make the turn without knocking over the barriers. Once the barriers are knocked over the quite zone is void and trains are allowed to sound their whistles.
3. A wayside horn that warns of approaching trains and is directed towards traffic. This eliminates the need for the trains to blow their whistles as they go through town when approaching the crossing. We looked seriously at this solution since it would only affect the residences adjacent to the crossing. (I would be one of those residents). The cost and ongoing upkeep were too much for the town at the time.
4. Close the crossing. This is what the Railroad would do. BNSF hates at-grade crossings because of safety concerns.  Closing the crossing would certainly stop the train whistles but it would also close the only other access to town over the railroad tracks. This crossing is very important as an egress point during emergencies and has been an important detour during the bridge construction.

The sound of the train whistles is a reminder of why Ranchester is here. The town was platted as a railroad town and the whistles (Two longs, a short and a long whistle before each crossing) have been the background sound of my home for nearly thirty years.

We will continue to evaluate the Railroad Crossing and may in the future we will be able to make it a quiet zone.

SUMMER 2022

According to the 1980 Ranchester Community Survey, Ranchester’s population was predicated to be 1,768 in 1990, but the 1990 US Census reported Ranchester’s population was 676. Further, according to the survey, major growth was to occur between the years 1983- 1985. None of this happened, just showing how hard it is to predict the future.

The 1980 survey noted: “What is presently a bedroom community for the city of Sheridan will become a minor service center for the area, as residents find it more convenient to go to Ranchester for necessary goods and services than into Sheridan.” Ranchester is still challenged by being a bedroom community to the city of Sheridan and we are still working on becoming a minor service center for the area. We do have a new dollar store and a microbrewery is in the works.

What Ranchester did get out of the 1980 Community Survey was a Water Treatment System and a Waste Water Treatment System that could serve a population of 2503 for “when growth does occur, a few decisions have to be made for various types of facilities.” Which was a good thing since Ranchester’s population is 1,064 and growing and could be just over 1,100.

Managing growth is a good thing.

There are only three things town governments manage: Maintain and develop infrastructure, promote economic development and improve the quality of life.

Infrastructure:  Ranchester is applying for a Level I Water Study to update our 20-year-old Water Study. We have applied for a Transportation Master Plan Study through WYDOT. Ranchester has never done one. Ranchester’s growth is limited somewhat by the BNSF Railroad, the Tongue River and large lot county subdivisions. A traffic study will help us plan our future growth. We continue to work with the county to improve Gillette Street/Wolf Creek Road in Ranchester and County Road 120A Ranchester-Five Mile Extension.

Economic development: Ranchester is investigating installing an Electric Multi-Vehicle Charging Station and converting our Caboose into an Air BNB. We are working with a developer to design a new six-five lot subdivision with various types of housing to address the shortage of workforce housing for Sheridan County. Natural Gas and Fiber Optic continue to expand in Ranchester adding to the attractiveness of relocating here.

Quality of life: Ranchester continues to look at ways to enhance our Town’s parks and promote Connor Battlefield State Historic Site. Ranchester is working with WYDOT, Dayton, TRVCC and a citizens committee to build a paved pathway from Ranchester to Dayton adjacent to US HWY 14—a project that has been talked about for20 years and is now going into the planning stage.

Finally, Ranchester hosted its most successful 4^th of July ever and we are looking at ways to make it even better next year.