Request for Proposal For Hot Springs State Park Concessionaries to Be Released Soon

The Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources will be releasing a Request for Proposal for management of the concessionaires at Hot Springs State Park in Thermopolis.

There are two concessionaries in the Park – the Star Plunge thermal pool and the Days Inn hotel, which have month-to-month leases with the State. The same families have managed the properties for several decades – Star Plunge is currently run by a 3^rd generation owner. But standards have slipped and the managers strongly resist making upgrades and efforts to conserve the hot springs and State Park for future generations.

Darin Westby, the Director of the Department, says that an RFP is currently being drafted and will be publicly released soon. Westby says the state is required to release an RFP by law, and hope to increase the standards in line with their master plan for the park.

Any person or organization is welcome to submit a proposal, including the current facility mangers. The goal, he says, is to find an organization with the best vision for the park – an entity who will sustainably manage the facilities, make the needed improvements, and work towards fulfilling the potential that Hot Springs State Park has always had. Westby hopes to make Hot Springs State Park “the crown jewel” of the Wyoming state park system.

The RFP will be publicly available before the end of 2019, but Westby hopes to have it ready as early as next week. This is the first time in almost 50 years that new, enthusiastic people have a chance to submit their vision for Wyoming’s most visited state park.