Directors of a water district at Hyattville have put off condemnation of private property until after a Nov. 3 district election that could end the eminent domain efforts.
The board of the Nowood Watershed Improvement District agreed Saturday to postpone condemnation until voters elect three board members, a majority of the district’s leadership. The condemnation of easements would enable construction of a controversial dam that’s been estimated to cost up to $113 million.
Incumbent directors John Joyce, Martin Mercer and Mitch Vigil face challengers Tom Shirran, Todd Jones and Doug Hamilton. Should all the incumbents lose, the new leadership might not choose to condemn the private property.
“If they vote John, Mitch, and myself off …I don’t know what that [new] board will do with it,” Mercer said of the condemnation plan. “In other words, the eminent domain’s not going to be put on the table until after the election.”
The board notified the owners of five properties in September that the district was making a final offer to buy options for permanent and temporary easements on their properties. If the offers weren’t accepted, the district “will reluctantly initiate eminent domain proceedings,” the letters read.
The offers were addressed to Paul and Kathy Hughes, Keith Hamilton of the Hamilton Ranch, Tom Shirran, Thomas Searfoss and Gene and Kris Robertson of the Diamond S Ranch, according to letters WyoFile obtained through a public records request.
None of the landowners had signed the options by the time of Saturday’s meeting, according to those attending the gathering.
Water developers estimated the dam and reservoir would cost $20 million in the early stages of the project, which was conceived in 2007. Since then, estimates have ranged as high as $113 million.
The 100-foot high earthen embankment dam would be almost a half-mile long and impound a reservoir of between 132 and 312 acres. The reservoir would deliver a little more than 5,000 acre-feet of water in eight out of 10 years, earmarked for late-season irrigation for about 33 irrigators.
“The eminent domain’s not going to be put on the table until after the election.”
Martin Mercer
Water developers face an end-of-year deadline imposed by Cheyenne lawmakers, some of whom are skeptical about the project’s worthiness and frustrated by the planning process. The Wyoming Water Development Office and commission have come under criticism for spending money — more than $5 million — without first securing options for the necessary private property easements.
“It is the intent of the legislature that no further time extensions shall be authorized for this project,” a bill passed earlier this year reads. “Beginning January 1, 2027, funds from the appropriation made in this paragraph shall not be expended or used to exercise eminent domain for the purposes of this project.”
Critical landowners have objected to impacts to their ranch land for a project that is downstream from their property. Dam backers say upstream lands can benefit through an exchange.
Saturday’s meeting of the irrigation district lasted about an hour and a half during which landowners raised numerous questions, including how many members of the district are eligible to vote.
Landowner Tim Gardiner has accused district directors of a conflict of interest, charges they reject.
“This project is of marginal benefit to the state as a whole,” he said Saturday. “From its inception, this proposed dam has been tarnished by massive conflicts of interest. The project’s promoters stand to gain financially should the dam become a reality.”
Mercer disagrees. “We followed all the rules,” he has said. “Everything was voted on by our peers. It’s been transparent. It’s been democratic. I don’t know there’s any conflict of interest.”
The project is beneficial, Mercer said Saturday.
“The only reason [we’re] talking about this is they’re about to take their money and leave,” he said of the state and its funding. “We have an opportunity, and the state’s willing to invest money in helping everybody in this room.”
