County buys hotel

Natrona County paid $1.23 million for the former Townsend Hotel on Friday, County Attorney Eric Nelson said. The county had already paid $30,000 bringing the total cost for the hotel to $1.26 million.

The decision to buy the hotel came in a special meeting of the commissioners on Thursday. Current project ideas include renovating the building for a county courthouse expansion.

Because of its lot size and its downtown location across Center Street from the current 1930s county courthouse, the commission has been keeping an eye on the building for more than three years.

The once-ritzy hotel was built during an early energy boom and finally closed in 1982. Since then it has been bought and sold several times over.

The most recent owner was the Townsend Properties LLC composed of various Casper businessmen.

Flood damages Poison Spider

Summer school will be relocated for 30 students after Poison Spider Elementary School was damaged in Wednesday night's storm.

The students will meet at Mountain View Elementary School Monday because the water damaged 14,000 square feet of the school when flooding broke through a nearby irrigation dam, according to the Natrona County School District.

The district is working to dry and replace carpeting, replace parts of the gymnasium floor, and clean the school, the district said.

Construction on a new Poison Spider school was set to begin this fall and will continue as planned. Meanwhile, school at the current building should open on time. Aug. 20 is the first day of school for students. The school houses about 185 students in kindergarten through eighth grade.