Commissioners select Pearson as R&B super

by Janet Montgomery

Of 10 applicants and four interviewees, the Sublette County Commissioners selected life-long Bondurant resident Richard Pearson to head up the county road department.

Wednesday, commissioners interviewed the applicants, with Commissioner Bill Cramer making the call notifying Pearson of the commission's selection.

At Thursday's meeting, Pearson was on hand, along with interim foreman Travis Sour, and he told the commissioners: "I didn't expect the wheel to turn so fast ... (and) I appreciated the opportunity to work with the road and bridge (department)."

Pearson has worked for Evans Construction in Jackson for the past 25 years. Tuesday, the 55-year-old said he figured it was probably time to try something different when he opted to apply for the Sublette County position.

"It seemed like it was going to be more of challenge," Pearson said, "and I am finding out that it is. ... I'm the new kid on the block."

Pearson said he is just in the learning phase right now, with the help of Sour, and has a lot to learn.

"I'm excited at the chance to get out and learn about the county that I live in," Pearson said.

The commissioners also opted to give a special thanks to Sour in the form of cash. Cramer called it "a little extra appreciation."

Thursday's discussion moved onto roads, with the Mesa Road soon to open to vehicle traffic. Paradise Road became the topic of discussion with the need for additional road treatment sought by the end of April or beginning of May.

"Last summer isn't anything compared to what this summer is going to be," Sour said of the expected traffic to hit the county road.

Counters last year indicated one-day volumes of as many as 780 vehicles on the south end of Paradise with 590 on the north end.

The commissioners asked Pearson to gather information on costs for the magnesium chloride treatment as well as another treatment mix for other roads that will need treatment, including roads such as Paradise, Middle Piney, Forty Rod and Antelope Trail roads.

From the Sublette County Sheriff's Office, commissioners were asked to sign for grants garnered by Undersheriff Henry Schmidt to the tune of $375,000 from Homeland Security funds.

Schmidt said that the grant monies will fund communications and equipment in Sublette County, including upgrades and portable radios as well as a new communication tower to go in the White Pine area.

The new tower would eliminate dead spots of communication throughout Sublette County.

Schmidt said that in testing with low wattage, "we were able to talk pretty much everywhere in the county," with the exception of a few spots that he could not reach due to snow.

In all, Schmidt said that the department had garnered $528,000 in federal monies, and he had three more grants to apply for sitting on his desk.

In discussion with architect Brad Waters on the Sublette County Courthouse Complex, commissioners were told that the 42-month contract officially ended in February, and that rather than have the county pay an inflated hourly rate, as per the contract, Waters asked if the commission would prefer a 30-day fee or more of a lump sum.

"Everything we do here on out is an additional service charge," he said.

The commissioners asked Waters to present numbers on both monthly and a lump-sum scenario.