Auto change

A City Council member who owns an auto repair shop has withdrawn a plan to seek state funds to purchase and upgrade a vacant building that would have been used as a training facility for repair technicians.Charles Cloud, owner of Technical Cowboy and a Ward council member, told a group of Cody auto shop owners on Wednesday that he "saw something that could benefit the community" when he conceived of the program.But the response from some shop owners had "been nothing but nasty," he told the group, adding that "I've never treated anybody in this room with disrespect."But there has been quite a lot of personal stuff. So, as far as I'm concerned, forget it," he said.Cloud said other factors influenced his decision, including a building use agreement with the Forward Cody economic development group that would mandate up to $350,000 in structural improvements not necessary for his venture, and that would allow him no equity stake in the property until after auto change years.Cloud said he initially approached Forward Cody President James Klessens for help in finding funds to train auto technicians who wanted additional instruction, and for those employed as trainers.I went down to ask James, 'How does that training money work?' And James said, 'Let me tell you a good idea to have this grant thing to buy a building,' " Cloud said.Under the original proposal, the city of Cody would have applied to the Wyoming Business Council for at least million in public funds to purchase an foot building on Big Horn Avenue that was most recently used as an animal shelter.The city would transfer the building to Forward Cody, which would lease it at substantially below market rates to Cloud, using the rental income to fund future economic development ventures.But the council tabled a May 19 vote on the application, citing a lack of information when Klessens and Cloud first shared details of the proposal. Cloud did not vote on the issue.Critics of the proposal said backers had provided only a one-page project summary and did not present a completed grant application, business plan, training curriculum, accreditation plan, building purchase agreement with current owners or building use agreement with Cloud.Reaction from the nearly two dozen local auto shop owners was swift, vocal and almost unanimously opposed to the idea. Cloud's competitors voiced their opposition on talk radio, in letters to the editor and at City Council meetings.Ron DeBerg, owner of Ron's Exxon, questioned how Cloud's proposed training facility would differ from the local shops that provide workers with on job training.That's an unfair business advantage. I don't care what you call it. It's still going to be an automotive shop that's still going to be in business against everybody that's sitting in this room," DeBerg said Wednesday.DeBerg said at least three repair shops had closed in the past two years for lack of business, adding that bringing additional mechanics to Cody would put more technicians out of work.A study by the University of Wyoming's Market Research Center showed that demand for auto technicians in Park County is likely to shrink by more than percent between commissioned the study in May; it was not completed until last week.It forecasts that Park County shops will hire technicians per year between, but it is unclear how many of those hired would be replacing employees lost to attrition.Klessens said the study also found that "Cody sits right dead in the middle" when compared with a dozen other Rocky Mountain resort towns its size based on gross receipts and per-capita income for each shop, adding that local demand for new mechanics was "thinner" than he had expected.Shop owners said the study shows there is not a strong policy or market reason to warrant publicly subsidizing an auto technician training facility in Cody.During a meeting last week, Morgan criticized Klessens for commissioning a study of auto shops in surrounding states without first seeking input from at least auto repair shops in Cody.The phone lines do work both ways," Klessens told Morgan.Cloud said he would probably still seek to expand his business using private funds, adding that he was unsure what his next step would be.It is not clear what Cloud's decision will mean to efforts by Forward Cody to finance its operations through the state-funded purchase of buildings to be used as incentives for relocating or expanding businesses.Klessens said that at least three other Cody businesses have expressed an interest in establishing training programs like the one proposed by Cloud.Cloud, who pays employees based on a commission, said better training would allow technicians to earn more by teaching them a wide range of high-level skills, making it more likely that they could find good jobs in Wyoming.Morgan said that creating good jobs starts with employers, adding that she retains top technicians by paying them a high hourly wage, providing full medical benefits and making matching contributions to workers' retirement plans.