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A few suggestions:

You will be looking for commercial space, which can be pretty spendy. Especially considering the perceived dangers around the hot work that we do. Look for properties in an industrial or agricultural area. Those areas typically have the widest range of allowed uses in local ordinances.

Do you belong to a local blacksmith group? You could check out their local newsletter to see if anyone has space in their shop to rent, or at least put an ad in the newsletter letting people know that you are looking. You may be able to find other folks in a similar situation that are willing to share the rental space and the costs.

When you move, look to rent a small house. You might be able to find one with an outbuilding or a garage that you can set up shop in. Let the landlord know what you are doing up front, so there are no surprises. Look outside of town in a more rural area. You might find a place that has everything you need to live and set up shop in one location.

Landlords can be pretty specific in their leases about what activities are prohibited on their properties. Be prepared to purchase additional renter's insurance that would cover your shop activities.

Another thought:

Get yourself enrolled in whichever school you decide you are going to pursue. There you will meet other students and teachers who can help you out. 

You might be able to find a storage unit that has power. I've taken a class at a storage unit and seen some with craftsman. Not sure how you would look for it. 

Kevin Stinson,

Since you have left the garage I think it will come down to a question of disposable income / disposable time. If you have enough disposable income that you can buy a small shipping container that will give you 4 walls but it will be cold. I took a look at your city and it looks like a rural area surrounded by some industrial options. If you can put a purchased container on someone's excess property you know or are related to, that is ideal.

The next idea is to find a few local fabrication shops: Sparkey's welding, and Valley Fabrication near you. Maybe asking if they would be open to apprenticeship would be good for both you and them.

The other option is work/space trade. The positive side of the situation is that people are desperate for help right now. If you go down to a local gravel mining location, a pumpkin patch/ranch, or even a grain elevator company and offer trade of services for some space they may offer you some space at barter for a small job. Offering to pick up trash on the site for 2 hours, etc.; they may allow you to work there and plug into power. Otherwise you may need to purchase a small generator on FB marketplace to have some limited power for small tools. If you can only have access to a truck, a cheap generator then you can maybe keep basic tools in a tarp in the back of the truck and drive to a site for hot work. Then do your finishing work wherever you are staying permanently on a back porch. It looks there is a Mills Creek gun range near you, in some cases a membership to the range and a talk with the guy in charge will leave you with access to a portion of overhang and a storage shed if you pick up brass for them at the range. Short answer is how bad do you want it.

I am sorry to hear about your surgery, and I hope it helps!