Jo Co Road & Bridge Gives Mikesell-Potts Numbers for 2022

Johnson County Road & Bridge has reported on the numbers of users, where they came from, and the amount of revenue created from the visitors to the county-owned Mikesell-Potts Recreation Area at Lake DeSmet.

Road & Bridge Supervisor Scott Pehringer gave a brief history of the area and the development there, before Ashlea Bassett gave the year-end numbers.

Bassett said the county charges $15 per night for a non-electric campsite, and $20 per night for the limited number of electrical sites.

Gross camp fees for 2022 were $71,000 netting the county about $63,000 after taxes.

The county sold 21 non-electrical multi-day passes compared to four in 2021, and 31 total multi-day passes including the electrical sites.

There were about 7,200 people that stayed just over 4,200 nights at the recreation area in 2022, with about 15% coming from Johnson County, 24% from Sheridan County, and 12% from Campbell County followed by Natrona and Cook Counties.

Thirty-eight percent of visitors are from out-of-state, including Montana, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, and South Dakota.

The recreation area saw visitors in 2022 from every state in the Union except Connecticut, Kentucky and Mississippi.

Pehringer added that Road & Bridge budgets $38 to $40,000 each year for upkeep on the site, with the revenue generated going to maintain the amenities there, and for new projects added to the recreation area.