Wigwam worries

[TransitJohn]

Jeffrey's a friend of mine, he's really bummed.


By Micah Sturr
Boomerang Staff Writer

The gate before the path that leads to Jeffery Archer’s home has a sign on it that reads, “Enter with good intention.” In his home near his bookshelf, he has a plaque that his grandfather gave him with a faded nature scene and the quote by Shakespeare, “One touch of nature makes the whole world one.”

These are ordinary accessories for a Laramie residence. It is the residence that is extraordinary. Archer lives in a self-made mud, willow and reed hut near the Laramie River in Optimist Park.

The structure, and Archer’s residence and construction of it, violate several city ordinances and will be dismantled. Archer is scheduled to be evicted on Wednesday.

“It’s unfortunate, but I just don’t have any other options,” Parks and Recreation Director Paul Harrison said. “It’s our duty and responsibility to enforce the municipal codes of the city of Laramie. I can’t close my eyes and say it’s not there.”

What is there, hidden from the view from the jogging path in the park, is a 7-foot tall domed wigwam complete with a mud-and-rock cooking stove that Archer began constructing at the end of summer. The official ordinances that Archer has violated in building the structure, according to a notice delivered on Tuesday, include damaging vegetation, damaging park facilities, building without a construction permit and sleeping overnight in city parks. Harrison said that, beyond these legal infractions, he is concerned about children and the fire hazard that the publicly accessible structure poses, as well as the lack of sewage disposal and potable water at the site.

“If a 10- or a 12-year-old gets in there and isn’t as careful as Jeff with the fire pit, we could kill someone. It’s on public property, it’s unprotected and Jeff can’t assure me, and I can’t assure, that a youth or somebody else unbeknownst to Jeff get, in there and put themselves at risk,” Harrison said. “We also have a concern of where he’s obtaining drinking water and where he’s depositing human waste, whether it’s in the Laramie River or within the park.”

more

http://www.laramieboomerang.com/news/more.asp?StoryID=102420

[Vanje]

1. SW Idaho

I've got room for a wigwam here in SW Idaho. I would welcome your friend.

[e-mail]

(remove "nospam" to reach me)