The city will host its annual Spaceport Days event June 19 and 20 according to a grant application approved by the Green River City Council Tuesday.
The event will be the third annual event to bring attention to the city’s airfield south of town. It earned its unique name as a result of a publicity stunt inviting displaced residents from Jupiter to Green River after the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet collided with the planet in 1994. The spaceport has been the subject of renewed interest by both the city and a dedicated group of pilots interested in improving the strip to allow its use for general aviation. A feasibility study for the spaceport was drafted through a combination of public and private funding.
The grant, if approved by the Wyoming Department of Transportation’s Aeronautics Division, would give the city $5,000 without requiring matching funds from the city.
Councilman Gary Killpack was very careful in amending the initial motion to submit the grant to reflect that the grant would not require city funding. Killpack said his motion comes from language in a resolution to create an airport advisory board, which passed its first reading that same night.
The resolution forming the advisory board states that it cannot create a financial obligation for the city. The advisory board is a re-incarnation of the original airport task force that helped with the initial spaceport feasibility study.
Councilman Allan Wilson voiced concerns with Spaceport Days funding, saying he supported the $5,000 grant, but wasn’t sure if the city departments helping set the event up would be paid through overtime or if the time was already budgeted.
“I know in the past the parks department had to set up tents,” Wilson, the former director of the city’s parks and recreation department, said.
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