Casper Star-Tribune from Casper, Wyoming • 13

star Wyoming Bl -Sunday, September 9, 1990 Star-Tribune, Casper, Wyo. Natrona Republicans to fill vacancy again I True said. "He has become the authority in the Senate on all these mineral valuation issues. That's a real loss." True said he asked Sullivan to delay resigning until the Joint Revenue Committee finished its interim work. Rep.

Cynthia Lummis, R-Laramie, chairman of the House Revenue Committee, is equally qualified but is busy this year working on Republican gubernatorial candidate Mary Mead's campaign. True noted. "1 thought it was appropriate that he would announce early that he intended to resign," True said. "1 think it is appropriate that as he made this decision he let the public know." "I don't think the timing had anything to do with politics," True said. True said there was no discussion of the mechanism of succession at the meeting Friday morning.

When Sen. Tom Stroock, R-Natrona, resigned to become ambassador to Rep. Gail Zimmerman, R-Natrona, was appointed to fill his seat. Republican Peter Wold then was appointed by the Natrona County GOP Central Committee to replace Zimmerman in the House. When Rep.

Craig Thomas was elected to Congress in April, 1989, he was replaced by Bruce Hinchey. True said he understood Sullivan will be involved in public By JOAN BARRON Star-Tribune correspondent I CHEYENNE The resignation of Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Natrona, will again set in motion in Natrona County the mechanism to fill the Senate seat for the two years remaining in Sullivan's elected term of office. Sullivan announced Friday he will resign his Wyoming Senate seat in mid-November because he a new consulting venture conflict with his legislative role. Within 10 days after receiving official notification of the vacancy the county commissioners, Natrona County Republican Committee will select the names of three candidates for the Senate seat.

The list will be submitted to the Natrona County Commissioner will make the final appointment within five days. There is nothing in the state's election laws that would preclude state representatives from Natrona County from seeking the Senate seat. If Sullivan waits until mid-November to formally resign, it will be after the Nov. 6 general election. 'i Senate Majority Leader Diemer 'True, R-Natrona, said Sullivan called a meeting of the Natrona legislative delegation Friday morning and announced Sullivan's plans to resign.

"I was just really disappointed" I VII A Elizabethan fare i Firefighters engage blaze in Black Hills Forest 'II i Laramie's annual Elizabethan Faire was held Thursday through Saturday. Queen Elizabeth at left, is more attractive than the original, perhaps explaining the watchful severity of one of her guardsmen, above. A minstrel provides the entertainment, and verily, a good time was had by all. 1 SUNDANCE (AP) Firefighters worked Saturday to control a blaze in the Black Hills National Forest, which wasn't detected until two days after it was sparked by lighting. Some 60 firefighters, including a volunteer crew from Crook Coun ty, dug a containment line around the fire on Friday and hoped to have it controlled by Saturday afternoon.

The fire, which started Wednesday on private property in Crook County about 1 5 miles southeast of Devils Tower National Monument, was fanned by winds Friday and quickly spread over grass and timber Photos by Ginger Gobel-Nipps lands to the national forest. "It probably started on Wednesday but maybe the humidity was high enough so it was not detected until 1 p.m. Friday," forest spokesman Todd Phillipe said Saturday morning. The fire did little damage to the private property in Crook County, but burned some 50 acres in the forest, he said. The number of firefighters on the blaze was reduced to 30 on Saturday, he said.

"Now the fire is laying low and not presenting any problems," he said. Utah town entices Cody doctor with free office, no-interest loan HYRUM, Utah (AP) The City Council in this northern Utah Weston, Crook hire independent auditor to investigate federal accounting process Counties hoping for answers in wake of mineral royalty overpayments community has voted unanimously to give a Cody physician free use of an office for one year and has given him a $30,000 interest-free loan to set up a family practice. The council's vote Thursday to accept the offer of Dr. Corey B. Johnson, a former Hyrum resident now practicing in Cody, came over protests from local residents who objected to the plan.

Councilwoman K.aren eterson saia a committee was iormea aoout 15 months ago to attract a second physician to Hyrum. Currently, the town's only physician is Dr. Charles J. Graham, who has a family practice in Hyrum and practices surgery in Logan Regional Hospital 7 miles away. Some local business owners said the council should not set a prece By PENNY BONNAR Star-Tribune correspondent NEWCASTLE Weston and Crook counties have contracted with Wyoming Royalties of Cheyenne, an independent auditing firm, to investigate the federal government's accounting procedures and distribution of Bankhead Jones money which is derived from coal production on The Thunder Basin National Grasslands.

According to Converse County Commission Chairman John Pexton, the counties hope to get some answers to questions they still have on $8.7 million in overpayments they were asked to return. Five Wyoming counties were asked to return the bulk of the money they received over the last two years. Weston and Campbell returned their 1989 Bankshead Jones distribution, but declined to return the 1988 money saying it was already spent. Crook and Niobrara counties repaid both the 1988 and 1989 payments, according to their county treasurers. Converse, said Pexton, has not repaid any money yet, partly because of some confusion over the amount owed.

He said the county has received a number of different figures from Minerals Management Service, the accounting arm of the Department of Interior, and has not gotten any satisfactory answers to questions about the coal lease from which the revenue is derived. According to the Department of Interior, the coal lease in question was reclassified from public domain land land which has always belonged to the federal government to acquired land in error, resulting in mistaken windfall payments to the counties. Pexton said Converse County officials questioned the size of the 1 989 payment "about four times" when it was first received in January, but was told there was no mistake until much later. Randy Fctterhoff of Wyoming Royalties said he will be looking over MMS books Thursday and Friday this week and he hoped to have some answers for the counties Monday. He said the firm will also be checking into the status of the lease to determine if its classification as public domain is correct.

Revenues from coal production on publi domain lands are distributed on a 50-50 basis the state and the federal government. Revenues from production on acquired lands are distributed on a 25-75 basis with 25 percent going to the counties and 75 percent to the federal government. According to Pexton, the counties agreed to pay Wyoming Royalties up to $2,500 on an hourly basis. dent of subsidizing private enterprise. Dr.

Dave Jorgensen, a Hyrum dentist, said when he set up business he was not offered help "but I didn't expect it." David Griffith, a speech pathologist and hearing specialist prac ticing in Hyrum, told the council "I just may have a request of my own at the next meeting." Milton Burrell asked the council "what if you pay all this money and he sees greener pastures somewhere else?" Mayor Ralph Haycock encouraged the council to write a green pasture clause into tne contract to ensure immediate repayment of the loan if the physician ever leaves town Jackson real estate market not as hot as thought NorwestWNB merger approved CHEYENNE (AP) Wyoming National Bancorporation stock holders have approved a merger with the Norwest Corporation of Minneapolis, but officials say the merger should have no effect on services volume has declined 1 1 percent. The average sale price of residential lots has increased 35 percent to 1 54,872. Sale volume has. declined 27 percent. The average sale price of vacant land lots (35-plus acres) has decreased 72 percent to $378,333.

Sales volume has decreased by 25 percent, according to the MLS JACKSON (AP) Jackson Hole real estate is pricing itself out of the market, real estate figures show. "The slowdown is about greed," said Eugene Hoffman of Hoffman Associates. "There is a decline in interest. This will take some time to cure itself. When the expectations (for a higher price) are there, it takes time for people to realize that (the buyers) are not there," he said.

The latest Multiple Listing Service figures the monthly listings of properties for sale shows a drop from last year in completed sales in almost all categories, including single family homes, residential lots, condominiums and vacant land. Although the price of vacant land in the Jackson area has dropped 72 percent and multi-family homes have dropped 3 percent since 1989, the average price for single family homes, condos and residential lots has increased between 14 and 35 percent.The MLS figures show that in the last year: The average sale price of a single family home has increased 14 percent to $2 1 5,380, while sales by the bank's six Wyoming offices. Donald Drummer, senior vice president and chief financial officer of WNB, said if the merger is approved by federal regulators, it could be completed before the end of the year..