Casper legislator wants to know more about possible land swap

CASPER–Casper area Representative Mike Gilmore, D, Natrona Co., has asked the Office of State Lands and Investments to provide detailed information regarding a proposed land swap in Natrona County.

At its meeting in Dubois this week, the legislature’s joint interim Agriculture Committee, of which Gilmore is a member, heard from the interim director, Ed Grant and deputy director, Susan Child, confirmation that the state is considering swapping land on Muddy Mountain for land adjacent to the old Glenrock Highway, US Highways 20/26 that is owned by a former Houston area businessman, Russell Gordy.

Gilmore expressed reservations about the proposed swap of 16,000 acres of state-owned land for approximately 18,000 acres of private land. He cited concerns about the comparative value of the land and how the swap might impact public access on Muddy Mountain.

According to Gilmore, the Muddy Mountain parcel includes prime elk hunting habitat that might be closed or restricted to public use as a result of the swap. Meanwhile the land on US 20/26 is largely sage brush flats with limited access to the North Platte river.

Gilmore said that if the area along US 20/26 is prime sage grouse habitat and that if it is or should be included in the governor’s core habitat area that might have an effect on how the land is valued.

Nevertheless Gilmore said that he is “concerned that the state might not be evaluating all of its best alternatives” with the proposed swap and that he wants the OSLI “to report back to the joint committee when it meets again in Buffalo in early October”.

The committee agreed with Gilmore and OSLI has promised to provide more information to legislators.