Remote work has made it possible for many people to moonlight multiple jobs at once, but it can backfire sometimes even when one is open about it — if one of those employers feels blindsided.
That’s what happened in the case of the new town administrator for Greybull, Wyoming, Dawn Norton, who was also working as the chief financial officer for the town of Wilton, Connecticut.
A story in CT Insider, a Connecticut newspaper, reported Wednesday that Norton had resigned from her finance position after Wilton’s human resources director discovered she was also listed as Greybull’s city administrator.
Norton made $210,108 as Wilton’s CFO, according to opengovpay.com. The site doesn’t list 2025 figures yet, but Greybull’s highest salary in 2024 was listed as $86,657, which was for the position of administrator.
Norton was appointed Greybull’s new town administrator in May.
Greybull Mayor Myles Foley told Cowboy State Daily, as he sees it, there’s no wrongdoing involved.
He was fully aware that Norton was still employed by Wilton.
“I can’t say anything beyond that,” he said. “It’s a personnel matter.”
Norton indicated to Cowboy State Daily that the situation was a miscommunication. Her contract with Wilton did allow her to seek outside employment if she notified the town’s first selectman, which is similar to a mayor.
Norton said she did everything her contract required when she sought the second position in Greybull, including that notification. She also said her supervisors were aware she was moving to Wyoming full-time.
“That was always the plan,” she told Cowboy State Daily. “My only (other) comment about it is that whatever Wilton’s issue is, is Wilton’s issue. It has nothing to do with Greybull.”
Norton added she feels some of the publicity about it has been unfair.
“It seems like there are people out there who are creating waves without any information behind it,” she said. “I think people around here seem to love social media.”
Focused On Water Issues Right Now
Norton has been on the job in Wyoming for three full months so far, she told Cowboy State Daily. She’s focused on sorting out a water main break that’s led to boil water orders in the past week.
The water supply outage began July 27 with a broken 14-inch pipe. The leak was hard to find, because no water was showing up on the surface, and the unusual size of some of the replacement parts caused delays in making the repair.
That’s led to heated posts on the Town’s Facebook page, with people questioning the length of time the repairs took.
“It’s been an interesting week,” Norton said. “One of the main focuses we have right now is that we’re applying for a loan to replace the (water) transmission line.”
The project has three phases and will include replacement of the town’s water tank as well. That will ensure better water services going forward, Norton indicated.
It’s also important long-term because water is a crucial element to any new economic development.
“Fingers crossed that we can get some good grant money to start our projects,” she added.
Dinosaur Museum Another Focus
The other project that Norton is focusing on is one that will bring some of Greybull’s dinosaurs home.
“I’m just starting to get my fingers dabbled in that,” she said. “But I have partnered up with a bunch of professionals around town who are dealing with that.”
Norton has been told how fossils from Greybull, which is adjacent to an exceptionally rich cache of dinosaur fossils, are shipped all over the world, where they appear in museum displays. But Greybull doesn’t yet have its own museum to display any of those bones.
There is a $250,000 capital campaign underway in Greybull to build a museum, and some of the fundraising sounds pretty fun. Like the chance to buy prehistoric dinosaur hunting licenses, as well as a fun THAGOMIZER cocktail. Thagomizer refers to the bony cluster of spikes on the back of dinosaurs like Stegosaurus. It was originally inspired by a 1982 Far Side cartoon.
A promotional film is planned soon, which will be produced and written by Jesse Green, who is a four-time Emmy Award winning director.
An economic development study has looked at the potential tourism impact of setting up such a museum, Norton said, and so that’s another project she’s excited to be part of in Greybull.
“I’m no expert on that,” she said. “But it’s just something that I’m learning a lot about.”
Greybull has been friendly and welcoming, Norton added, and so far, she has no regrets about moving to the Cowboy State.
“Some people don’t like outsiders,” she said. “But for the most part, it’s a very welcoming town, it’s a small quaint town with wonderful stores and a restaurant. Most people are really, really nice.”
Everyone’s entitled to their feelings and opinions, Norton added.
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
