EVANSTON — It was a long night for city council members at their work session on Tuesday, March 28, as four main topics of discussion were on the agenda. Evanston Cowboy Days chair Dustin Matthews discussed the upcoming event; treasurer Trudy Lym led a discussion on the forthcoming budget; the city attorney’s proposed rules of conduct led to an intense discussion; and EPD Chief Mike Vranish and Community Development Director Rocco O’Neil broached the possibility of a change in the open container law.

“This is Cowboy Days’ 87th year,” Matthews said. “We are excited to be bringing Chancey Williams, a Wyoming boy, as our headline concert. He performed at the National Finals [Rodeo] and was awarded the 2022 entertainer of the year. His new album is ranked No. 6 on the charts and he has been asked to perform at the Grand Ole Opry.”

The Cowboy Days committee has signed with a new stock contractor, as the one that has been providing stock for the event for 50 years is no longer able to, Matthews said. Costs for everything have gone up and the bids received from stock contractors ranged from $23,000 to $80,000 Matthews said. He said the committee has made arrangements with the county for electricity and for seating if the new bleachers are not completed.

“We would like to increase our amount we receive from the city from $15,000 up to $17,500,” Matthews said. “This is a huge endeavor and all of our costs have increased. Businesses in town really support the event by donations of $250 to $10,000. We would also like to request a weekend liquor license for the entire fairgrounds.”

Mayor Kent Williams said the council would discuss the amount the city puts in the budget for Cowboy Days and the liquor permit.

Treasurer Trudy Lym had begun a discussion on the upcoming new fiscal budget on March 14 at the council work session and continued that discussion on March 28. Lym presented her documents to the council at both meetings and asked they review them and make any suggestions for changes.

She said she will continue to provide the council with copies of the departmental budgets as they are prepared. The complete budget approval will be held at a regular meeting in June.

Evanston Parks and Recreation District Director Scott Ehlers also provided the council with review copies of his proposed budget for the new fiscal year.

Once again, the proposed rules of Procedure and Order (code of conduct) presented by city attorney Amanda Kirby became the major topic of discussion at the work session. The code of conduct had been presented to the council as a resolution at the regular meeting on March 21 and, due to concerns from council member Jen Hegeman and members of the public, the resolution was tabled. As a result, the proposed rules were then discussed at the two work sessions that followed.

At the March 28 work session, Hegeman once again stated her concerns over the proposed code of conduct, as did several members of the public attending.

“A concern that is constantly brought to my attention as a new council member by members of the public is the need for transparency and available information from the council,” Hegeman said. “We need to give the public the information that they need so they can become involved. In the Wyoming Constitution it states that government is ‘of the people, by the people and for the people.’ I think we need to look at that and make improvements to the language in the code. When Kirby and Judge Harris presented this resolution at the March 21 meeting, it was the first time the public had even heard of it.”

Sen. Wendy Schuler, who was in attendance, was asked how the Wyoming legislators provided transparency.

“Once a bill is filed, it should be on the website,” Schuler said. “Our system is better than the city’s but we still don’t know when a bill will be presented and discussed. The public does have access to all bills.”

Council member Jesse Lind asked Hegeman if she had consulted a team of lawyers regarding the code of conduct. She said she had spoken with an attorney from Sheridan and he had agreed with her concerns.

Hegeman said she had concerns with the language in the “code of conduct,” which may be leaving the council vulnerable to lawsuits. She pointed out a rule in the code that stated “speakers must be residents of the city of Evanston.”

Hegeman said that would eliminate many city property owners from speaking if they did not reside in the city.

Rule 4.9.5 states, “In order to preserve the integrity of the decision maker, public input may not be taken on any land use or other application pending before the Council.” Hegeman said that rule would be a violation of Article 6 of the Wyoming Constitution. She also pointed out that the term “closed” in regards to meetings should be changed to “executive” meetings as closed meetings by the council are illegal.

Williams, visibly upset, said, “I hope what I say will be received in the spirit in which I give it. It takes time to learn the nuances and history of this team, my appointment as mayor and the appointment of each council member. Amanda Kirby is our city attorney and is qualified and has done an excellent job. Once elected, the decisions we make are to the best of our judgment. How the public voices their concerns are through elections.”

Williams continued to explain that among all of the council members there is 200 years of combined experience. He said his goal is to protect the community.

“I respect the comments that have been made tonight,” Williams said. “There has never been a covert or secret meeting of this council. We obey the open meeting laws. I’m comfortable with the rules that Kirby has presented. Each council member must base their decision on the information they have. I apologize for getting my dander up; there is always going to be issues we disagree on. I welcome newcomers, but it is important to have respect for where we’ve been and our history.”

The code of conduct rules of procedure and order will be presented as a resolution once again and considered for a vote at the next regular council meeting.

Closing out the meeting was a proposal presented by EPD Chief Mike Vranish and Community Development Director Rocco O’Neill.

Vranish and O’Neill said they had been looking at all of the resolutions concerning open container permits in the downtown area and in city parks. They were suggesting the council consider passing one resolution to cover open containers.

That resolution would allow open containers from noon to 11 p.m. in the downtown area from 11th Street to Center Street and in all city parks, excluding the parks that are adjacent to an elementary school. Exclusions would also include Bear River State Park, the splash pad at Hamblin Park, the playing fields and dugouts at Overthrust Ballpark and any children’s play area.

“There would be no glass containers allowed,” Vranish said. “In the past, Evanston experienced 30 years of open containers and there were not a lot of issues except during the boom period. We understand any concerns, but we need to encourage recreation activities in the city.”

The council will consider the open container proposal and it will be presented at the next regular meeting.

At the March 21 regular meeting of the council, a drawing was held for the winners of the Crimestoppers raffle. The winner of the first prize of $1,000 was Matt Rex; the first $500 winner was Rhonda Vranish and the second $500 winner was a man named Bill with only a phone number and no last name included on his winning ticket. Crimestoppers chair Lexi Lamb thanked the council for participating and said she will contact the winners.