Mayor’s Minute: Data centers, wind farms and a possible new sister city in Brazil | Guest Column

Data centers continue to be a big topic in our community. I don’t mind, as the discussion is important, and giving good information is what we should do.

City Council held a work session to give the developers of the proposed data center on a section of the Cox ranch, ViaWest and Skybox, an opportunity to present their project, describe the work they have been doing over the past four months and answer questions posed by City Council members. I appreciate the effort by everyone in the community that is engaging in this conversation and working to make sure development in Cheyenne is done in the most responsible manner.

One of the great parts of being mayor is the interesting people you get to meet. This week, Sen. Mike Gierau and his wife, Patty, stopped by to propose a sister city relationship with Jaguariúna, São Paulo, Brazil. Patty was born in Brazil and enjoyed the rodeo and agricultural life in Jaguariúna. She sees so many similarities with our Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo and the agricultural lifestyle she sees in Cheyenne and around Wyoming.

This could be a great opportunity to create a pipeline of tourism between our two states and communities. Having CFD, Visit Cheyenne and state tourism officials in the room to begin the conversation was important. We agreed to begin the process, and I hope we will have something official to announce in the next year. It would be interesting to see a Brazilian rodeo!

The Industrial Siting Council met this week at LCCC to discuss the proposed Laramie Range wind power project. The ISC was charged with deciding if the project should get a permit to construct the wind farm, and if they did approve the permit, to determine what funding should be awarded to the local governments in the area due to the impacts created by the construction of the project.

I spent 11 hours watching the council take testimony and ask questions regarding the project before approving the permit. The project will bring skilled workers to construct the wind farm, and it is estimated the average over the project will be around 107 workers over 24 months of actual construction. The ISC awarded Cheyenne $844,288 to help the city deal with the projected impacts of the additional population we expect the project to bring to the city. The Laramie Range Wind Project will bring 139 additional wind turbines to an area about 20 miles northwest of Cheyenne.

Another first for me this week was an Ethiopian food experience. I received an email from Addisalem, who is from Ethiopia, and offered to cook our office a traditional Ethiopian meal. I have heard how wonderful Ethiopian food is and gratefully accepted. Addisalem and her husband, Kenneth, cooked and served an amazing meal. We sat in a circle and used the traditional flatbread called injera to scoop up the food. I can’t tell you the name of all the dishes, but it lived up to everything I had heard — delicious! She ended the meal by roasting coffee beans from her native country and brewing coffee with a bit of cloves. I enjoyed learning more about her country and being introduced to a cuisine that I will definitely try again.

In 2013, the Wyoming Legislature authorized Historic Horse Racing (HHR). It was designed to support and develop Wyoming’s horse racing and breeding industries. Both had essentially disappeared before the law was amended. Cheyenne is going to play a big part in that effort with the October opening of the horse-racing track just east of town.

Affie Ellis took me for a tour of Bally’s new racetrack, and I was impressed with the 1-mile track that has been constructed and the barns that will hold up to 400 horses. The Legislature’s idea was that a portion of the bets placed at HHR casinos would be allocated to encourage people to breed, keep and race horses in Wyoming. These incentives have encouraged more Wyoming-bred horses and have jumpstarted the live horse racing scene in our state. I am looking forward to attending my first horse race early next month.

Housing is a challenge in every community in our state, and, I think, our nation. This week, a group of legislators joined the Wyoming Association of Municipalities, the Wyoming Economic Development Association, the Wyoming Business Alliance, the Wyoming Community Development Authority and a few municipal leaders to discuss what tools are needed to increase housing availability in our state.

I am proud of the work our city council and planning department have done in the housing area to reduce regulatory restrictions. Unfortunately, our state’s housing market is very inelastic. It means even though demand is high, new housing starts are not keeping up with demand. Our rural nature means we don’t have the builders and workforce to build enough homes to meet the need. I am encouraged by the ideas that were discussed and look forward to the upcoming housing summit in Casper on Oct. 1.

I know many of you are excited about fall, as it means hunting season is starting. For me, the excitement is all about football season and watching the Wyoming Cowboys, Nebraska Cornhuskers and Denver Broncos. It is also the start of college volleyball and watching the Cornhusker volleyball team is some of the best television available. Hoping for a warm and wonderful fall this year, with our teams playing well.

Patrick Collins is the mayor of Cheyenne.