A Wyoming Supreme Court decision has resolved a nearly two-year struggle between a citizens group in Cody and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints over a planned nearly 101 foot tall temple.
The state’s high court said the district court was correct in ruling the Preserve Our Cody Neighborhoods (POCN) group missed the deadline to file a petition for review. POCN is a group of landowners that formed to advocate for the temple to be built in a different location.
“POCN had 30 days from June 15, 2023, to file its petition for review … It did not file it until August 24, 2023. The district court correctly determined it lacked jurisdiction over POCN’s petition for review challenging the site plan because it was untimely,” the decision reads.
The courts say the city’s approval of the site plan about two years ago was final, despite confusion over what was decided at a June 15, 2023 planning and zoning meeting.
“Even if some Board members may have intended to reserve the height issue for future action and mistakenly believed that they had done so, these assumptions do not override the clear language of the motion and are not grounds for the Board to modify a previously approved CUP,” the decision reads.
Terry Skinner lives near the temple that will be just over a hundred feet tall after the steeple is built. The temple is in a residential neighborhood near the town’s golf course.
”We don't have any regrets in what we stood for as far as our position. Again, that was simply to relocate the temple. We did everything we could and then some,” Skinner said. He’s a member of POCN.
Construction at the site has been underway since last fall. A visit to the site showed that the steeple is starting to take shape as well as parts of the exterior facade.
A spokesperson for the church did not provide a timeline for when it will open. In a statement, a local church leader said the Supreme Court’s decision is a step towards being able to worship locally and shows the approval process followed the law.
“For local members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it is a significant day and another step forward to the completion of the temple where we can practice our faith in a House of the Lord in this area. The Church follows the law, and this Wyoming Supreme Court decision reaffirmed a previous ruling which demonstrates the approval process for the Cody Wyoming Temple followed the law,” wrote Andy Jacobsen.
The Cody location is the LDS Church’s third temple in Wyoming. Other LDS temples are located in Casper and Star Valley.
