ROCK SPRINGS — The city will be adopting a new flag, with the discussion leading to the vote becoming another chapter in the conflict between the city’s mayor and an outspoken Rock Springs City Council representative.

The Council voted to adopt a new city flag with Councilor Rick Milonas being the lone dissenting vote. The flag was designed by high school student Brandon Swigart, utilizing a design that incorporated the city’s 56 nationalities and Pilot Butte. Councilwoman Jeannie Demas said the colors used in the flag came from the city’s logo.

Prior to the vote, multiple Council members spoke about discussing the issue with constituents while discussing their activities prior to the meeting. Milonas said a video he posted about the flag got more than 7,600 views. That video, titled “Rock Springs, Somalia,” had gathered 49 responses, 78 comments, and 17 shares by the time the Council meeting took place. The video and how Milonas presented his views on the flag quickly became a flashpoint for another confrontation between the embattled Milonas and other members of the Council.

Mayor Max Mickelson said he wanted to include the city’s K-12 students in an activity that showed them they mattered to the city. 

“When we live in a community where two out of the three children born, educated, and raised here leave the state forever, that is an existential threat to the future of our community,” Mickelson said. 

He said the Council and his office has worked hard to recognize the city’s youth. He said the contest was well publicized, saying the children entering it put hours of time into their designs because they felt they were being asked to participate in the community. He said a committee was brought together to look at submissions and select a flag that best represented what they were trying to do.

“I went to the high school and surprised this child in his class and the amount of pride and joy that he felt and that his peers felt, and that the community felt to see young people engaged and caring about our community was huge,” Mickelson said.

He said Milonas’ video misrepresented all of the steps involved in the process and led to the work being ripped apart online. He said when adults see another adult harming a child, it’s their job to step in and say it’s wrong, saying it falls below the standard of conduct the Council set for itself.

“On behalf of the city, I would like to apologize to the young man, his family, the (flag) committee, and all of the children who felt like they were being genuinely asked to participate,” Mickelson said. “And I have had a slew of people contact me who are so angry that a child was treated that way.”

The rest of the eight up here can behave like adults, apparently you cannot.

Rock Springs City Councilor David Thompson to Councilor Rick Milonas

Mickelson said he also heard from people who said they didn’t think the flag was right for Rock Springs, which he said was “absolutely fine,” saying there was still a way to honor Swigart’s work.

“It is just a shame that something that should have been a very positive moment for the youth of our community was treated so poorly,” Mickelson said.

Councilors Rob Zotti, Larry Hickerson, and David Thompson voiced disapproval of Milonas’ actions, with Thompson calling Milonas out for snickering during Mickelson’s comments.

“The rest of the eight up here can behave like adults, apparently you cannot,” Thompson said to Milonas. 

Milonas alleged Mickelson of “spinning around” the situation in his response to Mickelson and other Council members.

“You’re saying I’m attacking a high school kid, I’m not attacking no high school kid, I’m attacking that ugly flag,” Milonas said.

“But who made the flag,” Demas immediately responded.

Milonas said if someone is going to be an artist, they should be ready for criticism, with further discussion devolving into an argument between Milonas and Mickelson as MIlonas attempted to question the mayor about how the flag represented the community.

“Councilor Milonas, once again I will point out to you that you are misrepresenting the facts and if we cannot operate on a common understanding of reality, there’s no point in discussion, this being the perfect example,” Mickelson said refusing to answer Milonas’ question about the flag. “I’m not going to engage in discussion with someone who is not tethered to the facts.”

Milonas reiterated he was attacking the flag and said his video’s viewer count was evidence people don’t like the design. He expressed concern about pledging allegiance to the city flag and questioned where Mickelson was taking the city while motioning to the recently painted dark blue wall behind the Council.

“This is very disturbing to me. Where are you taking us, all this black stuff and all this stuff,” Milonas said.