Residents press council on fire‑station funding and a volunteer camera registry; candidate’s campaign pitch draws rebuke

Several members of the public used the council’s comment period on Feb. 17 to press city leaders on capital funding and public‑safety ideas, and to outline campaign priorities — prompting councilors to describe next steps and to criticize use of the forum for campaign messaging.

At the start of public comment, a resident identified as Mr. Shriffman said Casper voters in November 2024 approved increasing the sales tax from 5% to 6% to fund four projects, and asked what the plan is to finance the remaining $16.6 million for a $21 million Fire Station No. 1 project. He said he had written the council and had not received an answer and said "the public deserves an answer." The vice mayor later told Mr. Shriffman the city will address capital funding during upcoming capital budget discussions and noted that design and land‑allocation funded by the ballot differ from construction funding; the vice mayor suggested options including use of additional 1¢ reserve funds and asked Mr. Shriffman to stay tuned as the council develops the capital agenda.

Reverend Wesley D. Daniel, who introduced himself during public comment, described a no‑cost approach he said other communities use: a voluntary webpage where homeowners register that they own private security cameras and provide contact information so police can call to request footage after an incident. Daniel said the program requires no access to private cameras, only voluntary contact details and that officers then call registrants for help. The vice mayor said the suggestion merits a quick look by the police chief and invited staff to discuss it at a future work session.

Reid Raisner, who identified himself as a Casper businessman running for U.S. Congress, used his comment period to pitch infrastructure priorities and proposed renaming federal and local facilities to honor Donald J. Trump. Vice Mayor and other councilors criticized use of the nonpartisan public‑comment forum as a venue for partisan campaigning and said the chamber deserves residents who are present to engage constructively with city business.

Councilors said they will follow up with staff where appropriate — most notably asking the police chief to research the voluntary camera‑registry concept and noting that capital funding for Fire Station No. 1 will be discussed in upcoming capital budget sessions. No formal council action was taken during the public‑comment period other than the directive to staff to investigate the camera registry.