Thumbs down to repeated crashes at the intersection of Avenue E (Lane 9) and Tower Boulevard (Road 10).

The most recent two-car collision occurred Monday morning and sent a car careening through a fence at the southeast corner of the intersection and into the backyard of a home in the Whispering Pines addition. After crashing through the fence, the vehicle hit the corner of the house, where it knocked the natural gas line loose and damaged a bathroom.

It could have been far worse if the accident had happened when family members and their pets had been enjoying the warm weather in their backyard. We’re thankful no people or pets were injured. Still, this serves as a dramatic example of how dangerous this crossroads has become.

Eleven crashes have occurred in the past three years at the intersection (one fourth of the which is in Powell city limits and three fourths in Park County), though not all were due to passing traffic.

It’s time for the city and the county to work together to add two more stop signs and convert this crossroads into a four-way-stop intersection. They also should add a flashing light or flags to call drivers’ attention to the change.

Thumbs up to the enrollment growth in Park County School District No. 1, which shows strong growth in Powell and in the rural area surrounding the city. Student enrollment in Powell schools has increased by almost 10 percent in the past 10 years, while some neighboring school districts have declined in enrollment. 

School District Superintendent Kevin Mitchell said the enrollment increase “indicates that Powell is a viable community.” 

We agree, and we celebrate that. 

Mitchell said he thinks part of that growth was a result of former residents moving back here to raise their families. In addition, he’s heard from some parents who say they moved here because they want their children to attend Powell schools. 

Both of those trends say good things about our community.

However, the enrollment growth puts Powell in a fairly unique position in the Big Horn Basin. While school districts in the Basin generally have downsized or are considering doing so, Park County School District No. 1 is looking for ways to accommodate the district’s growth. That could be by building a larger elementary school to replace Parkside, or it might mean adding a fourth elementary school. Either way, it’s good to know district and state officials are planning to accommodate that growth. 

Thumbs up to Gov. Matt Mead for calling the Wyoming Legislature to task to find a way to make health care more affordable for low-income residents and to reduce the financial burden of uncompensated care for hospitals in the state.

Despite early indications that lawmakers were prepared to deal with Medicaid expansion or to come up with their own solution, those hopes proved fruitless again during the 2015 session, which ended last week.

Three times now, the Legislature has rejected more than $100 million in federal money to expand Medicaid to help cover medical costs for 17,600 low-income adults, citing its distrust of the federal government. But it has not been able to agree with any other method to help state residents or hospitals with health care costs.

We’re still hearing the same thing from legislators that we heard before the session: “It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when.”

But we’d like to know: What’s wrong with now?

Thumbs up to the Northwest College men’s basketball team for its Region IX championship, clinched in an exciting game Saturday at Cabre Gym.

NWC is now headed to the NJCAA Division I Men’s National Basketball Championship as the No. 7 seed. The championship games will play out next week in Hutchinson, Kan.

Congratulations also are due to the Powell High School boys and girls basketball teams, both of which earned the No. 2 West seed for the Class 3A State Tournament .

The boys will play against Buffalo at noon today (Thursday) in Casper; the girls play against Worland at 4:30 p.m. today, also in Casper.

We wish all three teams the best of luck as they play in national and state championships.