The Cody Wyoming Temple is now open to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but residents of the northwest Wyoming town are still divided over the controversial building.
Cody resident Colin Pitet, whose property borders the temple property, said that his original concerns about the building's 77-foot-high steeple and brightly lit outdoor lights have only been confirmed.
“I’m disappointed but not surprised,” he said.
The temple opened its doors to the public for a few weeks in the early fall, which gave members of the general public a time-limited look inside of the 9,950-square-foot building.
Elder Clark G. Gilbert, a member of the church’s Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, dedicated the new temple Oct. 25.
The temple began offering ordinances Tuesday. Now, only church members with a current temple recommend are allowed inside.
But the outside of the building is still visible from many points around town and a significant fixture in the Cody skyline with its location on a bluff overlooking the downtown area. Pitet said he believes the building “sticks out like a sore thumb.”
He was vocally opposed to the temple during its approval process. He and many other members of the Protect Our Cody Neighborhoods group that fought construction argued they had no problem with the temple being built somewhere in Cody, but simply opposed its chosen location.
The temple was built on undeveloped land donated by a member of the church, and is within a rural-residential neighborhood. Pitet and others said it should have been constructed in a commercial district.
“Our opposition to this project has nothing to do with what goes on inside the building,” Pitet said. “It has nothing to do with the religion itself, it’s the physical edifice that is causing the offense.”
Lights A 'Constant Battle'
The Protect Our Cody Neighborhoods group also cited problems with the building’s 100-foot, 11-inch height, plans for it to be lit at night and increased traffic.
Sarah Frances McClure lives near the temple and is the mother of newborn triplets. Part of the reason she bought her home in Cody was because of the darkness of the nighttime sky.
Like Pitet, McClure says her concerns about the temple have only been confirmed since it opened.
“The lights are a constant battle — physical and emotional,” she said. “Many times I have been able to change baby diapers and walk around the home without turning on lights despite blinds drawn.”
McClure said the light keeps her babies awake. The headlights strobing from the parking lot are no better, shining directly at eye level when they're seated in their living room.
Other disturbances are caused by an archway light in the temple and the parking lot lights, which she says operate on a motion sensor and are activated by a simple gust of wind.
“There is truly never peace,” McClure said.
Amy Dansie, the church’s Cody Stake communications director, said 18,572 people visited the temple during its three-week open house, which included 15 Christian pastors, Gov. Mark Gordon, Republican gubernatorial nominee Eric Barlow, U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman, and many local Cody elected officials.
“The temple open house was a wonderful reminder that, even when our beliefs and faith traditions differ, we can come together in mutual respect, serve our neighbors, and stand united in protecting the freedom of every person to worship according to their conscience,” Dansie said.
Dansie hosted many of these tours and said numerous guests expressed gratitude about getting to see the inside of the building, saying they gained an increased appreciation for her religion.
“Those words meant so much to us and reminded us of the importance of opening our doors, building understanding, and strengthening relationships within our community,” she said.
Points of Contention
Pitet said he believes the temple is lit up to an “obnoxious” level. It has already hindered his ability to sleep and look at the stars outside, he said.
Lisa Hullinger, the area relations manager with the LDS Church, confirmed to Cowboy State Daily in August the temple’s building lights will turn on a half-hour before sunset and remain off from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.
McClure said the temple’s early morning lights were disrupting her babies, but that problem has been alleviated since the temple was told by Cody City Manager Tony Tolstedy that it can’t turn the lights on until 6:15 a.m.
The parking lot lights, Pitet said, are a different story and remain on all night. This particularly affects his home, which sits slightly below the temple in elevation.
Even the sign outside the temple is illuminated 24 hours of the day, a light pollution Pitet said also enters his home.
He’s also surprised about how much traffic the temple has generated. During the approval process, representatives of the church vowed that there would be no noticeable uptick in traffic due to the facility. Pitet calls this “patently false.”
In addition to the six to 12 of the same vehicles parked outside the temple daily, he also sees tourists taking photos every day, too.
Pitet remains hopeful these issues can be resolved and admitted he hasn’t reached out to anyone with the church about them yet.
As a whole, he believes most Cody residents who opposed the project are tired of talking about it and would rather pretend it doesn’t exist. Pitet doesn’t have that option.
“I am reminded every day that it is there,” he said.
Elected Officials’ Perspective
Cody City Council member Don Shreve said he knocked on around 1,000 doors during his re-election campaign this summer and said he heard not a single complaint about the building, which he takes as a sign most people have moved on from their concerns. He said he believes the church has been amicable and good neighbors to the residents of Cody.
Shreve had just been elected to the council for his first term during the height of the temple controversy. One of the biggest issues of contention was that the council had no real say over approving the temple because of the way code was written. This has since changed.
“We changed the conditions to make sure the council gets a say,” Shreve said.
When contacted by Cowboy State Daily about the temple, Cody Mayor Lee Ann Reiter had little to say besides confirming that it hosted open houses and is now open.
City Council member Emily Swett, who represents the Ward 3 part of town where the temple is located, declined to comment. She is not running for re-election.
Joseph Burrell, who is running to replace Swett, did not respond to a request for comment.
Even Pitet commended the landscaping work done on the property and expressed gratitude that some of the planted trees might block some of the building’s light from emanating onto his property.
“That’s the only positive thing I have to say,” he said.
A Deseret News story published on Monday covering the dedication ceremony included members of the church discussing the need to be “peacemakers” with those who strongly oppose the temple.
Others spoke of a conversion that happened among certain opponents of the temple who now accept it.
Dansie said a similar controversy existed when an LDS temple was built in Billings, Montana, in 1999.
Anecdotal evidence exists that neighborhood property values increased because of this temple, and multiple sources told Cowboy State Daily in 2023 that opposition to the building no longer exists.
