Wyoming
Wyoming Supreme Court rules that controversial Cody Temple construction can move forward
CHEYENNE, Wyoming (ABC4) — In an opinion by the Wyoming Supreme Court released Friday, the Court ruled in favor of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the City of Cody Planning, Zoning, and Adjustment Board with regards to the construction of the Cody Temple.
The Court upheld the District Court ruling that Preserve Our Cody Neighborhoods (POCN) did not petition review of the temple permit’s approval within 30 days, so the Court did not have jurisdiction to hear their petition.
POCN is an unincorporated organization of Cody landowners against the construction of the Cody Temple, according to the Court decision.
The Church broke ground on the Cody Temple in September of last year after Wyoming District Court made their ruling that POCN filed their petition too late. Construction has continued since then.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: LDS Church breaks ground on controversial Cody Wyoming Temple after extensive legal battle
An in-depth history of the Cody Temple’s legal battles
The Cody Temple was announced in the October 2021 general conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It will be the third temple in the state, with others in Casper and Star Valley, Wyoming.
According to the Wyoming Supreme Court opinion, the Church chose a 4.69-acre parcel of land that it owned in Cody to build the temple, and in May 2023, it requested a special exemption to the height restriction of city ordinances. In addition, it also requested approval for the site plan and a conditional use permit (CUP).
The height restriction for residential zoning according to Cody city ordinance is 30 feet. The roof height for the proposed temple was 24 feet, but the spire would be 76 feet 11 inches.
The Cody City Planner argued that the Church did not need the special exemption because the roof height of the church was below the height restriction. Building height, as defined under Cody ordinance, “refers to the vertical distance between the average finished grade and the
highest point of the coping of a flat roof,” so under that definition, the proposed temple, with its flat roof (other than the spire), was not violating any ordinances.
In June 2023, the Cody Planning, Zoning, and Adjustment Board (the board) met to review the Church’s proposals. They allowed “extensive comment” from members of the public, including members of POCN and its attorneys.
Five of the seven board members were present at the meeting. There, they tabled the Church’s request for a special exemption. Three board members voted in favor (3-2) of the Church’s site plan for the temple. The motion to grant the CUP was passed 4-1, based on the recommendation of the city planner.
The Board said that the motion to approve the site plan failed and voted to table it, but the Church filed a petition for review on the site plans in district court. It argued that the board made a mistake “as a matter of law” when it ruled that the motion failed, because the motion did in fact have a majority vote in favor.
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The board held several other meetings to review the Church’s proposals in June and July of 2023. In the June meeting, the board discussed their acceptance of the Church’s CUP. One board member said that they had “a little bit of a hiccup in the procedural side of things.” He said that they did not intend to accept the city planner’s interpretation of the height restriction, but by accepting his recommendation, they had inadvertently done exactly that.
They made a motion to reconsider the acceptance of the CUP and once again tabled the site plan and the request for a special exemption, as no agreement was reached.
The Church then filed its second appeal with the district court, claiming that the board did not have the authority to reconsider the acceptance of the CUP at that meeting. It also alleged that they did not have the authority to reconsider and table the site plan after it was already approved at the June meeting.
In July, the Church withdrew its request for a special exemption. During the board meeting, they amended their findings of the CUP, and it remained approved.
The POCN made their first petition for review with the district court on August 21, 2023. They alleged that the board’s approval of the CUP during the July 25 meeting “was arbitrary and capricious, contrary to the law, and unsupported by substantial evidence,” according to the Supreme Court opinion. The Church then filed a cross-petition for review.
In August 2023, the board held another meeting, where they approved the Church’s site plan. On August 24, POCN filed their second petition for review, alleging that the board’s approval of the site plan was also arbitrary, capricious, contrary to law, and unsupported by evidence.
The district court combined the petitions, and it found that the site plan and the CUP were approved on the June 15, and therefore POCN had not filed their petitions within the 30-day time limit.
Ultimately, the Wyoming Supreme Court upheld the district court decision, siding with the Church and the board, and the Cody Temple can continue construction.
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The expansion would open the spigot for 550,000 barrels per day of crude, the company says. Although the crude would mostly pass through eastern Wyoming, the venture opens opportunities for Wyoming oil producers in the region for more transportation access to U.S. refineries and shipping ports, according to Bridger and local industry officials.“It would be the biggest project in our history, if it comes to fruition,” Bridger Pipeline spokesperson Bill Salvin told WyoFile on Friday. “We are, however, in the really early stages of the project. But we’re very excited about it.”Industry trade groups speculate the Bridger Pipeline Expansion is part of a competitive scramble to fill a gap left by TC Energy’s Keystone XL project. That company, in 2021, abandoned the controversial project in the face of major opposition and protests. It would have transported Canadian tar-sands oil into the U.S. market via a route extending through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. Among many challenges for Keystone XL was acquiring new rights-of-way easements. Though the Bridger Pipeline Expansion proposal requires some new rights-of-way, that’s not the case for the 210-mile Wyoming segment, according to Salvin.“All of that distance is within, or parallel to, existing pipeline corridors,” Salvin said.
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The Wyoming segment would pass through Crook, Weston, Niobrara, Goshen and Platte counties.Bridger Pipeline, a subsidiary of Casper-based True Companies, submitted a notice of intent to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality in January and noted it will formally initiate environmental applications to the agency. Salvin told WyoFile he’s uncertain about the full spectrum of regulatory requirements in Wyoming.However, the company regards the Cowboy State as a great fit for the project, he said. “This [project proposal] just highlights how important the region is and how Wyoming is a very good place for energy projects like this.”Reached for comment, the Petroleum Association of Wyoming said the proposed pipeline only stands to benefit Wyoming producers and the state.“Investments like these, along with continued growth in areas like the Powder River Basin, show Wyoming will continue to play an important role in the nation’s energy markets,” PAW Vice President and Director of Communications Ryan McConnaughey told WyoFile. “Connecting in Guernsey allows product to be transported to refining hubs like Cushing, Oklahoma.” WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.
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LARAMIE — Nasir Meyer converted a three-point play with 35 seconds remaining to give Wyoming Cowboys men’s basketball the lead for good, and Wyoming held Air Force Falcons men’s basketball scoreless over the final two minutes to secure a 66-62 victory Saturday night.
The win marked the 13th home victory of the season for Wyoming, which improved to 16-13 overall and 7-11 in conference play.
“Air Force deserves all the credit and let’s talk about a team that has every reason not to fight, but thats why they are Air Force and the cadets and I have a lot of respect for them,” Wyoming coach Sundance Wicks said. “They were not going to quit, and I didn’t drive that message home enough and hats off to Air Force because they deserved to win. We snuck away with a win. Adam Harakow showed when we need him and he was massive for us. Simm-Marten was made big plays and Naz was clutch for us late.”
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Wyoming shot 35% from the field and went 7 of 28 from 3-point range, making just two from beyond the arc in the second half. Air Force shot 49% overall and 44% from 3, hitting eight shots from long distance. The Cowboys made 13 of 16 free throws (81%) and scored 22 points off 15 Air Force turnovers while holding a 39-36 edge in rebounding.
Damarion Dennis led Wyoming with 16 points and three assists, going 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. Meyer finished with 14 points and tied a career best with eight rebounds. Adam Harakow added 14 points off the bench on 5-of-6 shooting, his first double-figure scoring game since the first meeting with Air Force. Simm-Marten Saadi had nine points in 13 minutes, and Kiani Saxon grabbed seven rebounds.
Air Force opened with back-to-back 3-pointers to take a 6-0 lead. Meyer scored Wyoming’s first basket, and Leland Walker added a 3-pointer to make it 8-5 with 16 minutes left in the first half.
Wyoming responded with a 9-0 run over nearly four minutes, with Saadi and Harakow each connecting from beyond the arc to give the Cowboys an 11-8 lead with under 14 minutes remaining. Air Force regained a 12-11 advantage as Wyoming went scoreless for more than two minutes.
Harakow’s second 3-pointer pushed the lead to 22-16 with nine minutes left in the half, and Wyoming used a 6-0 run while holding the Falcons without a field goal for more than four minutes to build a 28-18 lead with six minutes remaining. The Cowboys closed the half on a defensive stand, keeping Air Force scoreless for the final two minutes to take a 35-25 lead into the break. Wyoming scored 15 first-half points off turnovers.
The teams traded 3-pointers early in the second half, and Air Force cut the deficit to 40-31 with under 17 minutes left before trimming it to seven 90 seconds later. Walker answered with a 3-pointer to make it 43-33 with 15 minutes to go.
Air Force used a 9-0 run during a stretch in which Wyoming went more than 3 1/2 minutes without a point to pull within one with nine minutes left. The Falcons later tied the game at 51-51 with 5:30 remaining after forcing six straight missed shots.
A pair of free throws by Meyer and a basket from Saadi gave Wyoming a 57-53 lead with under four minutes to play. Air Force answered with three consecutive 3-pointers from Kam Sanders to take a 62-59 lead with two minutes left.
Meyer scored with 90 seconds remaining to cut the deficit to one. On the next trip, he converted an and-one to give Wyoming a 64-62 lead with 35 seconds left. The Cowboys added late free throws to close out the 66-62 win.
Sanders led Air Force with 16 points and nine rebounds, going 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Eli Robinson added 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting.
Wyoming closes its home schedule Tuesday against Nevada Wolf Pack men’s basketball at 8 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the Cowgirls.
The 2-time defending champ Tongue River girls, along with both teams from Big Horn will represent Sheridan County in the small school version of March Madness.
Click here to see results from the regional tournaments.
2A Boys:
First Round:
Thursday, March 5th: (All games played at Casper College)
(#2E) Big Horn vs. (#3W) Shoshoni – Noon
(#1W) Thermopolis vs. (#4E) Sundance – 1:30pm
(#2W) Wyoming Indian vs. (#3E) Wright – 6:30pm
(#1E) Pine Bluffs vs. (#4W) Rocky Mountain – 8pm
Friday, March 6th: (All games played at Ford Wyoming Center)
Consolation Round:
Big Horn/Shoshoni loser vs. Thermopolis/Sundance loser – Noon LOSER OUT!
Wyoming Indian/Wright loser vs. Pine Bluffs/Rocky Mountain loser – 1:30pm LOSER OUT!
Semi-Finals:
Big Horn/Shoshoni winner vs. Thermopolis/Sundance winner – 6:30pm
Wyoming Indian/Wright winner vs. Pine Bluffs/Rocky Mountain winner – 8pm
Saturday, March 7th:
Friday Noon winner vs. Friday 1:30pm – Noon at Ford Wyoming Center Consolation Championship
Friday 6:30pm loser vs. Friday 8pm loser – 3pm at Natrona County High School 3rd Place
Friday 6:30pm winner vs. Friday 8pm winner – 7pm at Ford Wyoming Center Championship
2A Girls:
First Round:
Thursday, March 5th: (All games played at Casper College)
(#2W) Wyoming Indian vs. (#3E) Big Horn – 9am
(#1E) Sundance vs. (#4W) Shoshoni – 10:30am
(#2E) Tongue River vs. (#3W) Greybull – 3:30pm
(#1W) Thermopolis vs. (#4E) Pine Bluffs – 5pm
Friday, March 6th: (All games played at Ford Wyoming Center)
Consolation Round:
Wyoming Indian/Big Horn loser vs. Sundance/Shoshoni loser – 9am LOSER OUT!
Tongue River/Greybull loser vs. Thermopolis/Pine Bluffs loser – 10:30am LOSER OUT!
Semi-Finals:
Wyoming Indian/Big Horn winner vs. Sundance/Shoshoni winner – 3:30pm
Tongue River/Greybull loser vs. Thermopolis/Pine Bluffs loser – 5pm
Saturday, March 7th:
Friday 9am winner vs. Friday 10:30am winner – 9am at Ford Wyoming Center Consolation Championship
Friday 3:30pm loser vs. Friday 5pm loser – 10:30am at Ford Wyoming Center 3rd Place
Friday 3:30pm winner vs. Friday 5pm winner – 5:30pm at Ford Wyoming Center Championship
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