LDS Church is suing Cody, Wyoming

[Silver Pie]

Is the area this completely desolate 360d? If it were downtown, I could understand... Are the deer and rabbits complaining of lights and tall steeples?

Exactly. That photo has me nonplussed. It doesn't match the complaints even a tiny bit.

[Silver Pie]

They should just relocate the temple down the road to Lovell that’s where all the memberships is anyway and I bet no one there would object even if it was in the middle of town.

That's an excellent idea! Put it where people love and appreciate it - and believe the symbolism it has (or at least used to have).

[Silver Pie]

This plot of land is located at the end of a residential street. There are homes on both sides of the street, including one that will be right next door to the temple. This location means that the temple will block this wilderness view from the residents there, and there will also be much more traffic than normal on their narrow street, with no sidewalks, all day, 5 days a week.

If you google Skyline Dr Cody Wyoming, you can pull up a terrain map. The temple plot is at the end of Skyline, where it intersects with Cody Canal. The photo above is misleading, as it only shows the vacant land, not the residential area leading to it.

Ah, that makes sense. As I read your post, I looked up at the photo. It does leave out what's to the right, as well as what is behind us.

Perhaps the Church thought that would be a good place, as it's on the edge of town - perhaps out of the way, they thought.

[Silver Pie]

Well they'll be damned if they get their wilderness view obstructed.

Yeah, people are like that.

I see both sides.

So do I, now.

I would probably err on the side of not pissing off the locals.

Me, too - especially if I hoped to convert them.

There's probably some anti-Mormon sentiment involved, sure. And this will probably exacerbate that. Which really isn't in the Church's ultimate interests as far as I can tell.

That reddit thread has a lot of anti-Mormon sentiment, which definitely exacerbates the issue. So much, that I almost didn't create this thread - but there are some who don't have that sentiment: they just want the Church to follow the same rules everyone else (including businesses) have to follow in Cody.

[Silver Pie]

What were the neighbours going to do when the day came that someone wanted to subdivide the land and build more houses?

Probably b*tch and complain like others who have had their views obstructed.

[Silver Pie]

There is a golf course, dozens of houses, houses lining the street all the way to the end, which is where the temple plot is. In the photo, if the cameraman turned around, you’d see the street and homes on both sides. It’s a fully occupied residential street.

Thanks for that info. It gives a much clearer picture than the photo, alone.

[Silver Pie]

When has the church ever built a temple out in the middle of nowhere next to nothing?

Excellent point, because the answer is never - according to what I've seen.

[Niemand]

They should just relocate the temple down the road to Lovell that’s where all the memberships is anyway and I bet no one there would object even if it was in the middle of town.

That would be more logical. I saw Cody only has 10,000 people in it.

[Silver Pie]

Like they did in Snowflake, Arizona which only had a couple cows and chickens.

Okay, this is hyperbole. I lived in Show Low before a temple was ever announced for Snowflake. It was a real town. Next (south) was Bellybutton (an informal name, called that because it was between Snowflake and Taylor). Then Taylor. Snowflake and Show Low were maybe 18 miles apart in those days. My roommate was from Snowflake, so we were there a lot, visiting her family. Now, her family did live out in the boonies - just west of Snowflake.

[Silver Pie]

Why God hasn't fired these unprofitable servants already is beyond me?

I'm quite sure he has, but they don't realize it yet. I'm quite sure that he walked out before Nelson took over - because the fruits just keep getting worse and worse.

[Silver Pie]

This is the satellite view showing what I believe to be the proposed site of the temple.

If you use Google Street View from the corner of Skyline and Canal, you can recreate the photo posted earlier.

This is the Zillow map of the area showing house values.

If I lived in that area, I wouldn't care if a temple was built there - though a hundred foot steeple is really weird (though it isn't going to be quite that tall, according to a previous post - sorry, been reading a lot of posts so don't recall who said it).

[Silver Pie]

I was simply answering your question about when have they ever built a temple in the middle of nowhere? I gave an answer. Snowflake, AZ. It was extremely profitable and here they have the opportunity to do it again.

To be completely honest, I don't know if the Snowflake temple was built outside of town or in it. It has been too long since I first heard about it, and now I don't pay much attention to temples unless Moroni's face gets blown off by lightning, or throws his trumpet on a temple's roof in an earthquake.

[Fred]

I was simply answering your question about when have they ever built a temple in the middle of nowhere? I gave an answer. Snowflake, AZ. It was extremely profitable and here they have the opportunity to do it again.

To be completely honest, I don't know if the Snowflake temple was built outside of town or in it. It has been too long since I first heard about it, and now I don't pay much attention to temples unless Moroni's face gets blown off by lightning, or throws his trumpet on a temple's roof in an earthquake.

It was outside. It is now surrounded by hundreds of homes. I've been there. Went to the temple during construction. Been to Show Low, too. Even St. Johns. Temple sites can be big money for developers. Snowflake was.

[Silver Pie]

Maybe historically, something like that happened as Mormons tried to settle in places already settled… they took over, silenced speech, bullied etc?

What’s the vibe like in WY usually and generally, regarding the church? Is it just Cody having issues? Are people generally more tolerant of religious differences without being imposing?

You’d think corporations would have to go by rules that require only residents in residential areas - no businesses.

I understand that the settlers in Missouri felt resentful against the pioneers, felt like they were taking over.

I honestly don't know what the vibe is like. The only person I've talked to about the Church or Book of Mormon is my neighbor, who is a member who left several years ago (but still believes the Book of Mormon, and hasn't got an ounce of anti-Mormon in her - but she, like me, moved here from another state).

They absolutely should go by the same rules others have to go by.

If they turn off temple lights at night and build a nice road, that would be enough for me to let it go.

[Silver Pie]

It was outside. It is now surrounded by hundreds of homes. I've been there. Went to the temple during construction. Been to Show Low, too. Even St. Johns. Temple sites can be big money for developers. Snowflake was.

Thanks for the correction. I didn't remember that.

I've been to St. Johns, but I didn't go from Show Low. I came from Graham County, up past Morenci. Horrible road. They had improved it some the next time I was on it, but the first time I went, it was actually terrifying with the narrowness and the curves.

[Lizzy60]

The Church doesn’t want to move the temple to somewhere else in Cody, or to another town, because the land for the temple was donated to them by a wealthy Cody Mormon. He still owns acreage next to the plot for the temple, cause it has been reported that he is illegally storing the huge containers that hold the “Lego pieces” that were built somewhere else, and will be assembled for the temple. I don’t know how much acreage he owns, and what his (or the church’s) plans are for his land.

Unless the Church and this member have some contractural deals for the land, it would be very easy for the church to choose a new site. They haven’t had to pay for this one. They would just need to find something appropriate and dip into the slush fund. Heck, the Lego bricks could still be used, and they could pay Rich Mormon for storing them.

[Lizzy60]

As the Kirton-McConkie lawyer said (in effect) the church has enough money to do as they darn well please.
It seems they are okay with very disgruntled neighbors, as long as Rich Mormon is happy.

[JohnnyL]

Cody residents don't like that the temple is in a residential area, that the spire will be 70 feet high, or that the LDS Church started moving materials to the site before it was approved. I read that in an online Wyoming newspaper.

The reddit post below is very angry. Not sure how much of their perspective is true about the LDS individuals in Cody, but the Corp suing them? That's a satanic thing for a Christ-claiming Church to do, imo.
https://www.reddit.com/r/wyoming/commen ... n_of_cody/

Maybe historically, something like that happened as Mormons tried to settle in places already settled… they took over, silenced speech, bullied etc?

What’s the vibe like in WY usually and generally, regarding the church? Is it just Cody having issues? Are people generally more tolerant of religious differences without being imposing?

You’d think corporations would have to go by rules that require only residents in residential areas - no businesses.

There were no such issues in Casper, the largest city in the state and located in central Wyoming. Also no issues in the Star Valley in far western Wyoming which has a mostly Mormon population.

This whole matter could be simply addressed by relocating the temple to the nearby LDS communities in the Big Horn Basin of Powell or Lovell where such a building would not face any opposition.

Have Cody buy the land, and be done with it. Then 20 years from now when Cody is whining that somewhere else's growth is positive and economy is better, tell them... sorry!

[HVDC]

Cody residents don't like that the temple is in a residential area, that the spire will be 70 feet high, or that the LDS Church started moving materials to the site before it was approved. I read that in an online Wyoming newspaper.

The reddit post below is very angry. Not sure how much of their perspective is true about the LDS individuals in Cody, but the Corp suing them? That's a satanic thing for a Christ-claiming Church to do, imo.
https://www.reddit.com/r/wyoming/commen ... n_of_cody/

Maybe historically, something like that happened as Mormons tried to settle in places already settled… they took over, silenced speech, bullied etc?

What’s the vibe like in WY usually and generally, regarding the church? Is it just Cody having issues? Are people generally more tolerant of religious differences without being imposing?

You’d think corporations would have to go by rules that require only residents in residential areas - no businesses.

There were no such issues in Casper, the largest city in the state and located in central Wyoming. Also no issues in the Star Valley in far western Wyoming which has a mostly Mormon population.

This whole matter could be simply addressed by relocating the temple to the nearby LDS communities in the Big Horn Basin of Powell or Lovell where such a building would not face any opposition.

But.

But.

Think of the money God would lose by not taking advantage of this location.

God wants the Temple here.

Right now.

His plans have been finalized.

Think of the dead.

They are counting on us to choose this spot.

Sir H thinks they should just follow the rules and be Good Citizens, wherever they build it.

[JohnnyL]

The Church doesn’t want to move the temple to somewhere else in Cody, or to another town, because the land for the temple was donated to them by a wealthy Cody Mormon. He still owns acreage next to the plot for the temple, cause it has been reported that he is illegally storing the huge containers that hold the “Lego pieces” that were built somewhere else, and will be assembled for the temple. I don’t know how much acreage he owns, and what his (or the church’s) plans are for his land.

Unless the Church and this member have some contractural deals for the land, it would be very easy for the church to choose a new site. They haven’t had to pay for this one. They would just need to find something appropriate and dip into the slush fund. Heck, the Lego bricks could still be used, and they could pay Rich Mormon for storing them.

How can you illegally store something like that on your own land?

[Silver Pie]

How can you illegally store something like that on your own land?

I was wondering the same thing.

[JohnnyL]

I went to the article, looked around a little, etc.; somewhat complicated story... There's a lot more than what has been mentioned here/ very incomplete, for both sides, and who knows what is true. The Church sued about the law about a majority and to get clear if a decision had been voted on and if it was binding, as it seems it had passed and then they reneged on it. There's a law about dark nights. The Church lowered the steeple and would turn the lights out from 11pm-5am. An organization is the main opponent. And after writing all that, this is the best summary of so far: https://www.codyenterprise.com/news/loc ... ce708.html .
All the stalling and finagling is holding up time and money, so the Church is planning to pull the offers if they win. The opponents (not the community!) say the Church can't give straight answers. It seems like possibly both sides are kind of making a mess of it, knowingly or not. But serious??: "Building a dome that high would be okay, but not a steeple." How is a dome better than a steeple??!!

///
Comment after the article:
Kata Jojo Jul 25, 2023 2:34pm
Good for them!! Discrimination is discrimination. The law is the law. Sad the leaders of this town don't understand their own laws. Well, when small town folks don't understand the statutes, a judge will decide. Just seems too often in these Western towns that they do what they want until you force their hand and give them an education in the law. I'm sooooo glad this church is doing this. I'm rooting for you LDS!!!

[~ternal-tummim]

Site location of the Cody, Wyoming temple

Are you for real? Come on, now, ma’am.
You check Goog Maps? Boy. What a scam.
Now there ARE sites like this picture tries to be-sham:
Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds and hundreds
And hundreds and hundreds and hundreds and hundreds
Of FULL-ON SQUARE MILES of plain empty terrain.
Light er up then with strobes. Ain’t nobody’d complain.

[TwochurchesOnly]

Maybe historically, something like that happened as Mormons tried to settle in places already settled… they took over, silenced speech, bullied etc?

What’s the vibe like in WY usually and generally, regarding the church? Is it just Cody having issues? Are people generally more tolerant of religious differences without being imposing?

You’d think corporations would have to go by rules that require only residents in residential areas - no businesses.

There were no such issues in Casper, the largest city in the state and located in central Wyoming. Also no issues in the Star Valley in far western Wyoming which has a mostly Mormon population.

This whole matter could be simply addressed by relocating the temple to the nearby LDS communities in the Big Horn Basin of Powell or Lovell where such a building would not face any opposition.

But.

But.

Think of the money God would lose by not taking advantage of this location.

God wants the Temple here.

Right now.

His plans have been finalized.

Think of the dead.

They are counting on us to choose this spot.

Sir H thinks they should just follow the rules and be Good Citizens, wherever they build it.

Lol
His plans are final, alright

[Teancum1]

https://www.wyohistory.org/encyclopedia ... horn-basin

Lovell is the obvious choice. The LDS church has been in and around Lovell and have had a presence there for over 100 years. The people in Lovell want the temple there. Lovell has 2300 people and 5 wards. Powell has 6500 and 4 wards. Cody is 10,000 and currently has 4 wards. The general population of Cody does not want the temple in the location the church has chosen.

Cody does not have this history. Over thirty years ago the church first completed the only stake center in Cody. Prior to completion an arsonist burned it to the ground. There appears to be an underlying negative perception of the church within the Cody community.

The church has a large presence in Park County, with 5 wards in Lovell and 2 wards in Cowley(5 minutes from Lovell) and Byron with one ward and about 10 mins from Lovell. Powell is 20 mins or so from Lovell and has 4 wards.
That is 12 wards within 20 mins of each other between Lovell and Powell. Lovell (edit)is a solid 45 minute drive to Cody.
Cody has bounced back and forth between 3 and 4 wards. It currently has 4 wards. Cody is a more desirable place to live as far as prestige, retirement, property values and tourism traffic.

My opinion is that the church has other options for building a temple in Park County Wyoming than building in Cody. Suing a small town in Wyoming to get what you want may be legal and justifiable. However it seems very arrogant and prideful to bully your way into town against the overwhelming opposition.

How does this bullying help the missionaries who have to serve in this community?