Don’t plow “the plug.” The quaintness of Cooke City will disappear forever. The plug has never been plowed. It’s part of what makes Cooke City special.
There are some people who want to commercialize Cooke City and turn it into another West Yellowstone with more chain hotels, fast-food restaurants, and in other words, “Xanterra-ize” it. Cooke City does not have the infrastructure to support this. There is no cell coverage in any of this area.
In addition, who is going to pay for the plowing? The businesses profiting from it or will this be another burden for tax payers to pick up the tab?
If they want to plow “the plug,” then we may as well start plowing the Beartooth highway too! What about the additional need for law enforcement and EMS personnel in this area? There are a multitude of questions and public safety concerns that need to be answered before any plowing could ever begin.
What is wrong with leaving it as you found it? There are very few places left in our beautiful state with the uniqueness of Cooke City. Do we really want to open it up to Xanterra tours and bus loads of tourists in the winter? We sincerely hope this is not the future for Cooke City. We need to treasure these special places that we have left and not continue to develop them for the profit of a few.
— Tom and Stacey Etchart, Bozeman
