Commission approves man camp permit

EVANSTON — Workforce hub outfit Target Hyper/Scale — a division of previously-reported Target Hospitality — successfully secured its conditional use permit (CUP) during the July 21 commission meeting held at the Uinta County Complex. The permit will allow the company to build a man camp on county-owned land adjacent to the Bear River State Park. “I’ve said before in my public forums and different avenues, these folks will pay their own way and it will be to the benefit of the residents, not the other way around,” Uinta County Commission Chair Mark Anderson said as the commissioners unanimously approved the motion. Following informative presentations by Prometheus Hyperscale founder Trenton Thornock and Target Hospitality CEO Troy Schrenk — both of which have been covered extensively by the Herald — Uinta County Attorney Loretta Howieson Kallas took to the podium to clarify public misconceptions and dispel allegations that commissioners are related to either data center or Target Hospitality personnel and/or received kickbacks in exchange for ‘yes’ votes. “All prior discussions related to both this workforce hub as well as the data center ... have occurred in official work sessions that were advertised,” Kallas said of the open and public proceedings. In response to recent suggestions that ground has already been broken at the site of the workforce hub prior to CUP approval, Kallas informed attendees that such activity is related to the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) trucker parking lot project, which began recently. “There does appear to be approximately a half-acre to a three-quarter acre overlap between the permit that you entered into with [WYDOT] in February of 2026 and this proposed project,” she said, “however, we anticipate that those participants will work well together.” “Pursuant to the Wyoming Ethics and Disclosure Act,” Kallas continued, addressing insinuations of nepotism, “each and every one of you have recurrently spoken to me about family ties and connections, and without my prompting, you have each recused yourself when appropriate.” “None of you have an immediate family member or connection to any person associated with any of these projects, nor do you have a direct or indirect financial benefit or interest in this project or have received any funds related to it,” Kallas said. “Further, none of these projects violate our nepotism or conflict of interest policies pursuant to our personnel manual.” Kallas proceeded to outline 18 conditions of the workforce hub’s CUP, which includes three additional demands beyond the data center’s obligations. Similar to that of the Prometheus Hyperscale CUP, Target Hyper/Scale must commence construction on the workforce hub within five years from the date of approval and will notify the county accordingly at that time. Target Hyper/Scale must adhere to all applicable Wyoming Environmental Quality Standards, including compliance with the Wyoming Industrial Siting Act, and will provide appropriate notification and documentation from “any other agency or department associated with permits mandated for protection of air, water, noise, light, and or land use, federal, state, or local law,” Kallas said. For the receipt and benefit of sales tax, Uinta County will again be assigned as the receiving location for “all new goods, materials, tools, equipment, supplies, and tangible personal property” related to the temporary housing project. The permittee will be responsible for dust abatement during the construction phase. The county will also conduct annual inspections to ensure of compliance of the CUP. Target Hyper/Scale will provide copies of all water and sewer service agreements entered between itself and the City of Evanston to Uinta County within seven days “for inclusion in the official permit file,” Kallas said. The workforce hub will confer with the Bear River Outdoor Recreational Alliance (BRORA) to address “development, maintenance and safety concerns” regarding the 17 miles of Rio Oso bike trails. “I think that you guys are well aware of this concern that there is a desire to preserve and, in fact, potentially expand the Rio Oso trails,” Kallas said. The housing agency will also be responsible for the “upkeep, maintenance and repair” of the Bear River State Park travel center access road, also known as Bear River Drive. Permittee will also be required to perform a baseline condition survey of the road and “shall coordinate with the other industrial users to share any such maintenance upkeep or repair expenses and shall only be responsible for its share,” she said, referring to the ongoing WYDOT parking lot project. Regarding traffic congestion concerns, the permittee will conduct a traffic impact analysis with WYDOT within 60 days to determine what, if any, negative impacts will affect the I-80 exit 6 exchange. “If it is determined that the workforce hub is materially affecting traffic congestion at the location, then committee shall take commercially reasonable actions,” Kallas said, which could include the placement of traffic lights, etc. “All conditions of this conditional use permit are subject to the execution and delivery of the mutually-acceptable lease agreement between you and Uinta County, Wyoming,” Kallas said, asserting that details regarding the value of the lease have not yet been discussed. “None of these conditions go into place until that lease agreement comes into fruition,” she said. Target Hyper/Scale is required to seek the expertise of a qualified engineer to determine the possibility of secondary ingress and egress routes. If not feasible, Target Hyper/Scale will provide written emergency mitigation plans designed for single-access points. The housing agency will work with all local, state and federal agencies to “ensure appropriate fire suppression, abatement, and prevention measures as required,” Kallas said. Similarly to the data center’s CUP, compliance with Dark Sky International standards must be met. “The permittee, when possible and available, will use commercially reasonable standards and practices to retain and employ Wyoming-based contractors, vendors, and suppliers for construction, maintenance, and operation of any facilities associated with the proposed project,” Kallas said, unless a local workforce is otherwise unavailable and is reported to the county as such. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) noise, pollution and abatement standards must be adhered to. Despite the housing hub’s provided on-site security, medical facilities and fire suppression capabilities, they must agree to compensate for emergency services rendered by county agencies. Finally, any required notices must be submitted to the Uinta County Clerk; and the CUP “may be revoked, suspended, or enforced by the county for a material violation” and may be contested via hearing. Gary Stewart, of Evanston, was the first to speak during public comment. “I mean it’s a good story but we’re not for the man camp,” he said. “I’m pro-business. I’d like to see the data center go in, but if it’s a condition to have the man camp, I’m against the data center also.” Stewart refuted the need for up to 3,500 data center construction workers based on its 1.25-gigawatt size in comparison to other incoming data centers throughout the state. “I have talked to three engineers; they cannot come up with 3,500 people for that size project,” Stewart said. “And I’m amazed that the city council at best has provided vague input regarding utilities, emergency services, costs and reimbursements,” he added, encouraging postponement until after the General Election later this year. Brad Fearn, owner of Painter Ranch, said that, as a neighbor of the proposed site, he is concerned about fire potential and the accumulation of debris. “It gets to the point it’s hard to ride a horse through there, unless you want a rodeo,” Fearn said. “The fires, the man camps and the trespassing has got my concern, and I hope you’ll be a good neighbor and figure that out for me.” Eric Mander, of Evanston, said, “I want to make sure on the record this doesn’t end up being an ICE (Immigrations and Customs Enforcement) facility,” he said. He further asserted a lack of transparency. Kallas responded directly to Mander, saying, “For your comfort ... we have already agreed on a stipulation in the lease that this will not be transferred into an ICE facility, a detention facility, or any such type of issue.” Kallas also assured Mander that no dirt work would commence until a lease agreement is reached. Erick Pittman likened the recent sprawl of data centers to “big brother’s watch.” Rocco O’Neill addressed the crowded chambers as a fifth-generation Evanstonian. “For as long as I can remember, Evanston and the rest of Wyoming has been begging our leaders to bring jobs, investment and economic development,” O’Neill said. Presenting numerical data, O’Neill said Uinta County’s population and economy has not kept pace with the state’s. “Adjusted for inflation, the average worker here earns less than they did in 1970,” he said. “We’ve been running in place for a generation. My generation.” Noting the troubling trend of youth outmigration, he said. “We’re losing people and we’re losing the future workforce.” O’Neill said that while residents have rightfully raised legitimate concerns surrounding data centers, such as water and power usage, “all have been answered in the design.” “When a catalyst finally shows up, we owe it to the next generation to take it seriously,” O’Neill concluded. Anderson said he’d been researching the workforce hub agency at length and consulted with “many county commissioners across the country” and received responses about “how engaging Target was in their community, not just initially, but years and years after they were there.” Additionally, each of the commissioners said they had recently toured a Target Hospitality hub in Winnemucca, Nevada. Anderson cited its cleanliness and impressive on-site amenities. “It was very well maintained, very well done and professional,” Commissioner Eric South said. “The people that we met to talk to were all positive about it.” “It’s a first-class situation,” Commissioner Brent Hatch said. “We will make sure that the lease actually benefits Uinta County.”