Albany County planners weigh wastewater concerns for Range Acres subdivision

Wastewater questions around a proposed 11-lot subdivision at 83 Little Worth Lane put Albany County planners on the spot April 15, as commissioners met in the Courthouse in Laramie to consider whether to send a formal letter to the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality.

The special meeting at 5 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Room was not just another planning calendar item. Along with the letter to WDEQ, the agenda included an executive session under W.S. 16-4-405(a)(ix), signaling that the Range Acres file has moved into a more sensitive and consequential stage of review.

Range Acres, identified in county documents as SD-10-25, would carve 11 lots out of a 131.2-acre parcel in the west half of Section 28, Township 17 North, Range 73 West. The lots would average 11.9 acres each. County planning documents show Lot 11 already has an existing well and septic system, while Lots 1 through 10 would rely on individual wells and on-lot septic systems.

The preliminary plat staff report says Little Worth Lane would be improved to county standards and that a new cul-de-sac road, Range Way, would run about 2,000 feet to serve most of the subdivision. The nearest gas connection is 9,000 feet away, according to the report. Nathan Willis is listed as the applicant and owner.

The county’s wastewater rules require a permit for small wastewater facilities, and septic fields in the Aquifer Protection Overlay Zone must be designed by a Wyoming-licensed professional engineer or professional geologist. Albany County says the overlay exists to prevent degradation of water quality within the Casper Aquifer, and the county updated its standards to reflect the Casper Aquifer Protection Plan adopted July 5, 2023.

That protection effort carries countywide stakes. Albany County Clean Water Advocates says the Casper Aquifer and the Laramie River together supply drinking water for Laramie and surrounding areas, with the aquifer providing about half of Laramie’s water in normal years and up to all of it in drought years. The group says the aquifer is also the sole source for rural residents east of Laramie, affecting about 86% of Albany County’s population.

The Range Acres file has been building for months. In May 2025, county staff said Willis’ zoning change request from Agricultural to Rural Residential generally fit the county comprehensive plan, while the county engineer raised no objections to the zoning change itself but noted Little Worth Lane would matter if a subdivision moved ahead. The Laramie Rivers Conservation District also raised concerns about erosion, soil degradation and irrigation. With the April 15 meeting, commissioners took the wastewater issue into the next round of county decision-making, where development approval, septic capacity and water quality all remain on the table.