CODY (WNE) — Officials with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints conducted a groundbreaking ceremony for the Cody temple at its controversial site off Skyline Drive during a small, private ceremony blocked from public view on Sept. 27.

Elder Steven Bangerter of Salt Lake City asked a blessing on those who live near the location in his dedicatory prayer, according to an LDS news release.

‘“We ask that they may feel a spirit of peace wash over them, granting them comfort and assurance that the presence of this temple will bring added joy, prosperity, beauty and unity to their lives and their community,’” he said.

Plans call for a single-story structure of approximately 9,950 square feet with a 101-foot tower.

The groundbreaking occurred almost a month after District Judge John Perry ruled in favor of the LDS church and about two weeks after the opponents appealed his decision to the Wyoming Supreme Court.

A group called Preserve Our Cody Neighborhoods, which objects to the temple’s location in an area zoned rural residential, had filed lawsuits last summer against the city of Cody and its Planning and Zoning Board about the process for handling the issue. The city issued a building permit for the temple in August 2023.

LDS also filed lawsuits and voluntarily delayed construction until the court acted.

This temple will join two others in Wyoming, one in Casper and the other in Star Valley.

One in every nine residents of Wyoming, or about 68,000 people, claim membership in the LDS church, according to the news release.

Requests for information about when construction will begin and end were submitted Saturday and not answered before press time.