ROCK SPRINGS — A $2 million earmark for the city’s ongoing work on the Bitter Creek project is coming to Rock Springs courtesy of Rep. Harriet Hageman and the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee.

The city received correspondence from Merchant McIntyre Associates announcing a $2 million earmark recommended by Hageman was recently approved by the U.S. House of Representatives Appropriations Committee. The funds will be used for the second phase of the Bitter Creek Reconstruction Project. 

The company is a lobbying firm located in Washington, D.C. that works with nonprofits and local governments. The city has worked with the group for the past three years and eight months and, according to their letter, will likely see a 22:1 return on investment between how much the city pays the firm and how much it is receiving in federal funds.

“That is a huge win for Rock Springs and we are certainly very appreciative, not only of Merchant McIntyre’s work but particularly of Representative Hageman’s willingness to show up for our community,” Mayor Max Mickelson said.

Funding successes listed in the letter amount to $4.7 million, $4 million of which is for the Bitter Creek project. Priority projects being worked on by the company include water and sewer system improvements to the Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport, the Bitter Creek restoration, mental health programs for first responders, cybersecurity, parks and trails, and combined communications equipment. 

The Bitter Creek work is an ongoing project initiated by the city to mitigate flooding while creating a trail system and restoring the creek’s natural ecosystem.