The Sheridan City Council on Nov. 4 approved a $353,000 professional-services award to Morrison-Maierle (with Jacobs and Terracon) to analyze the feasibility of building the West Corridor through Gillespie Draw.

Public Works Director Hans Mercer told council the firm’s scope includes focused survey work, geotechnical borings (two to 100 feet and two to 40 feet), preliminary slope-stability analyses, an environmental/NEPA-aligned public process, hydrology (H&H) and a 30%-level conceptual design that staff said would produce a defensible cost estimate for funding applications.

The proposal followed four prior planning and feasibility reports dating to 1982 and later studies in 2004–08, Mercer said. He said the recommended team was selected because it matched the level of engineering, environmental and public-engagement work needed to answer residents’ specific questions about slope stability, retaining structures and likely project cost.

Why it matters: Gillespie Draw is the most technically uncertain segment of the West Corridor that the city has been reserving right of way for in recent years. A focused feasibility study is intended to produce more reliable cost and design information for future funding applications and to determine whether the corridor can be constructed within acceptable technical and fiscal limits.

Public concern: Several members of the public urged the council to reject or scale back the study. "This $353,000 is criminal," said Maggie Vishnevski during public comment, citing a wide disparity between the lowest and highest proposal prices and noting multiple earlier studies. Other speakers asked whether the city should re-issue the request so all proposers bid on the same scope.

Mercer and councilors uniformly said earlier reports were higher-level and that the recommended proposal includes the specific fieldwork (borings, geotech) and NEPA-aligned public engagement YDOT and federal grant programs expect. Mercer said the intent is to avoid later rework that would undermine future federal grant applications.

Council action and next steps: Council approved the award by voice vote after discussion about the difference in proposals and scope. One councilor announced a recusal from voting; another abstention was noted during the roll. Staff said it will negotiate final scope details with the firm and begin locational and field work, including geotechnical borings and public outreach. If the study shows constructability and a favorable benefit–cost profile, staff said the city would be better positioned to pursue federal funding programs such as BUILD or RAISE in future cycles.

Quotes: "This proposal will get us to that 30% mark, which will give us the most accurate cost estimate to provide for funding," Public Works Director Hans Mercer told council.

Ending: The study is intended to answer specific technical questions — slope stability, structure type and hydrology — before the city advances design or applies for major construction grants. Staff estimated the initial fieldwork and public-engagement phases could start within weeks of contract approval.