Trustees ask county counsel to revise Casper Mountain grooming agreement after budget cut to $10,000

Natrona County Parks Board of Trustees reviewed a draft grooming agreement with the Casper Mountain Biathlon Club on Saturday and directed staff to incorporate several changes before the trustees vote on the contract at their next regular meeting.

Director Michael Brown said the county’s budget review reduced the grooming line from $30,000 to $10,000, and the draft before the board reflects that change. "I reduced the contract, the grooming contract from the $30,000 to the $10,000 within our budget," Brown said during the discussion. The draft preserves the club’s established hourly rate of $150 but updates other provisions: the county’s legal office asked that the minimum general-liability insurance requirement be raised to $2,000,000, and staff proposed adding photo documentation requirements to invoices so the county can verify start/stop times and hour‑meter readings.

Representatives of the Casper Mountain Biathlon Club said $10,000 will make it difficult to maintain the same grooming frequency. Robert Rosser, representing the club, said the group previously received about $25,000 and that the lower allocation will force the club to prioritize immediate stadium and race-course loops over tertiary trails. "We can't do as much as we were previously... we're not gonna be able to do all the trails as frequently as we previously did," Rosser said.

Club counsel Pat Holster urged clearer breach-notice and delivery language to avoid disputes; he recommended email notice with read receipts and copies to both county and club counsel. Trustees asked legal to spell out a cure period and whether it should be a fixed number of days (trustees discussed 10–14 days as examples) and whether notice by email with delivery/read confirmation would satisfy the requirement.

Trustees and public commenters emphasized grooming’s economic and safety role. Bruce Lamberson of Mountain Sports told the board that grooming is “the product this county is selling” and urged continued investment so service quality — and pass sales — do not decline. Several users and coaches also urged improved coordination so school teams and regional events can be accommodated.

On next steps, Brown said county attorneys will incorporate the Board’s edits and return a revised draft for the trustees to consider at the next regular meeting (the second Thursday in December). The board’s direction included adding photo‑evidence language to invoicing, clarifying notice/delivery and cure-period procedures, and updating the insurance clause to the county’s current $2,000,000 requirement.

The trustees did not take a final vote on the grooming agreement at Saturday’s meeting; they directed staff to revise the draft and bring it back for formal approval at the December meeting.