Following a public hearing Tuesday, the Park County Commission granted final approval for a special use permit for a temporary dining facility on a vacant area on the Northwest College campus. 

The facility will provide a dining area for students during the construction of a new student center, which will require the demolition of the DeWitt Student Center, where the current dining facilities are located. Once the new student center is complete — along with new, permanent dining facilities — the college intends to repurpose the building for locker rooms for soccer athletes and offices for soccer coaches. 

Lying just north of the Yellowstone Building, the land on which the facility will be constructed is just on the other side of the Powell city limits within an area of Park County that is zoned residential. The county defines this type of facility as a “major community use,” which is a building the community uses that will be 5,000 square feet or more. While the dining facility building will be only 3,360 square feet, the property on which it is constructed will be more than one acre. This also falls under the major community use definition. 

This type of facility is permitted in a residential zone, so long as the county grants a special use permit. 

The building will be a 22-foot tall, single-story, metal-clad “shell” structure occupying about 1.5 acres of a 13-acre parcel sitting north of Eighth Street and west of Division Street.

Conditions 

In July, the Park County Planning and Zoning Commission held a public hearing and voted to approve the college’s special use application, a decision that functioned as a recommendation to the Park County Commission. The planning and zoning commission received no public input during the hearing, nor were there any public comments during the Park County Commission hearing Tuesday. 

The planning commission’s recommendation for approval of the SUP was on the condition that the project be in compliance with all county regulations, such as those regarding lighting, confirmation of sound erosion control, confirmation from the City of Powell and the Montana-Dakota Utilities Company on power and gas capacity, and a response from the Shoshone Irrigation District. 

Since that recommendation was made, the City of Powell had responded to the county planning and zoning department’s inquiry, stating that there were no concerns about the project.

Montana-Dakota Utilities had also responded to the county, explaining that the company provides a metered connection to the college, which manages gas distribution to facilities on campus. 

Planning and zoning was still recommending approval on Tuesday, on the condition that the facility comply with noise and lighting nuisance regulations, receive permission from the state fire marshal, and that the college receive building permits from the county for the building and septic system. 

The planning and zoning department also wanted a specific response from the Shoshone Irrigation District on a buried tile drain that will run about 120 feet south of where the building is constructed.

Utility services

At the July planning and zoning commission hearing, Planning and Zoning Department Director Joy Hill asked college representatives why these properties, which are proposed for future growth of the college, haven’t been annexed into the city. The explanation from the representatives was that tapping into city services would have been cost prohibitive. 

At Tuesday’s hearing, Commissioner Scott Mangold asked for specifics on the difference in cost between what the college is paying to provide utilities to the facility and what it would have cost to connect those services to the city. 

Erik Wachoba, engineer with Engineering Associates, said EA engineers had drawn up a preliminary design that considered the cost of satisfying the requirements for annexation. The estimate was over $600,000 just for utilities, which wouldn’t include the cost of constructing curb and gutter improvements that are in compliance with the American with Disabilities Act. 

Wachoba said the college was saving about $450,000 by not connecting to city services. 

All food preparation will be done at a separate location, likely at the Park County Fairgrounds, and the food will then be transported to the temporary dining facility. Mangold also asked if the college would be able to obtain any necessary permits from the state health inspectors. 

Northwest College President Lisa Watson explained that the college’s food service is currently inspected by the state. The college has long provided catering services, Watson said, so it already has the equipment needed to safely transport food to the dining facility. 

According to the college’s SUP application, 250 to 300 meals per day will be served daily at the location.

The temporary dining building project has been part of the college’s master plan. When college planners were considering temporary dining facilities to be used during the construction of a new student center, they incorporated into the plans the ability to convert the temporary dining facilities into a permanent building to the college’s soccer program. 

Funding

Following Gov. Mark Gordon’s recommendation, the Wyoming Legislature approved in the last session half the funding for $21 million for the college’s new student center, which will replace the aging DeWitt Student Center. The 50-year-old building is nearing the end of its lifespan and has a number of health and safety issues, including being out of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

The college must match the state’s funding. The matching funds are expected to come from a mix of private funding from the NWC Foundation, financing, college reserves and student fees.