The Mayor’s Minute from Mayor Patrick Collins – July 31, 2026

Published on July 31, 2026

One of the best things about Frontier Days is family coming to visit. Our son Sean’s wife, Kaili, loves rodeo and country music, so they spend part of each CFD with us. I learned he has been practicing chess because he beat me for the first time. Hard not to be proud of him, but it still is hard to finally lose. Did you know there are chess apps where you can play each other long distance? I signed up and am looking forward to getting even. It is great to have family home!

As mayor, I enjoy that I get to meet so many interesting people. David Wolfe is the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, responsible for the 665,000 men and women who serve our nation’s Air Force. He held an All Call – an open invitation for airmen to hear him speak and ask questions. He spoke about expectations and how his career started right here in Cheyenne as a defender in the 321st Missile Security Squadron. It was nice to meet him and welcome him back to the Mighty 90. He really enjoyed his CFD experience.

The Industrial Siting Council (ISC) has been part of recent data center discussions. The ISC was established in 1973 during a boom time in our state when massive coal mines, power plants, trona operations, and other industrial facilities were being proposed, many in rural areas that lacked the infrastructure to absorb the new work force and their families. The Council reviews large industrial facilities before construction, ensures projects minimize socioeconomic impacts, helps communities from being overwhelmed by rapid growth, and coordinates reviews among numerous state agencies.

The ISC is a division of DEQ. We met with the deputy director of DEQ to talk about the ISC process and what state agency reviews are required for projects exempted from the ISC process because they are located in a qualified industrial park. The data centers currently in the city of Cheyenne are exempted because of their location in these qualified parks. Nancy shared that before a data center in a qualified park is permitted, 19 agencies must review the plans and sign off, the same as in an ISC proceeding. I appreciate the time they spent explaining the different processes and look forward to the next opportunity to learn more.

July 4 was an amazing day of celebrating America’s 250th birthday. It was spoiled for me when the commanding officer from the base called the next morning to share that a 5-year-old girl was struck in the head by a bullet while watching the fireworks. We held a press conference on Tuesday to ask the community for their help in finding out what happened. Col. Holmes shared that the little girl is recovering at home and seems to be doing well. I asked our residents to think back to the 4th and if they saw anything that might be related to the incident to call the Laramie County Sheriff’s Office. I also gave a reminder about the responsibility of gun ownership and that there is never a time where celebrating by shooting a gun into the sky is safe or appropriate. It breaks my heart that a family stationed at the base and serving our country had their daughter injured in this way. Please keep them in your prayers.

Our affordable housing project is under construction. This week, the City closed on the property and signed the lease with the developer. The lease payments will repay the cost of the land and give us the opportunity to fund future affordable housing projects. I love that the amazing gift from Related Digital that made this project happen will not only fund this development but live on in the future projects. It is our hope the first of eight buildings of housing will be delivered in early spring, with another building each month after.

We met with Meta this week to talk about their next development phase. I wanted to share our expectations regarding water use and discuss where their future power would come from. I appreciate the opportunity to share how the decisions made by developers affect our community. I have high expectations for the companies making large developments here and look forward to seeing the quality-of-life investments they make in Cheyenne.

The 6th Penny sales tax has a history of making significant impacts in all the jurisdictions in our county. I spent time with a reporter doing an in-depth interview on the City’s proposed 6th Penny projects. The polls are open and people are voting at the County Courthouse every day now. One thing I like about the 6th Penny process is that we have to show the voters how we have handled past projects they have approved and then ask permission to do the next group of projects. It holds us accountable and I believe it is a great way to fund projects we couldn’t do without the optional 6th Penny. You can get more information on the City’s proposed projects at www.cheyennecity.org/6thpenny, or you can come to the library on Monday for an open house from 5 to 7 p.m. where project representatives will be available to answer questions.

City Council sets goals every January. They did so this past January and we met this week to review the progress made at the halfway point in the year. It was nice to get away from the Municipal Building and meet in the Historic Depot in the second-floor meeting room. Council set goals to educate the voters on our important 6th Penny projects, add to our communication efforts to improve delivery of information to our residents, and develop a project tracking system so residents can see the progress on projects the City is undertaking. Council also prioritized completing the ongoing goals from past years. Some of those are the Reed Avenue Corridor and the 15th Street Railroad Experience.

Significant progress on those goals has been made. Rail cars are now on 15th Street, and we have an agreement with the BNSF to do the long-awaited project on Reed Avenue. Robust education on the 6th Penny is happening all over the county. We have hired a digital communication specialist to improve our communication with residents where they are. Connect Cheyenne is being developed to keep our residents informed about the important projects underway. We have five more months to continue making progress on the goals.

It is 4:30 in the morning and I am doing the prep for a Friday colonoscopy. It is my fourth one as we have a family history of colon cancer. Drinking the medicine is no fun, but being this hungry is even worse. While uncomfortable, it is so important to do the important medical tests. While I hate going through this, the alternative of not doing it could be so much worse. Looking forward to eating a great lunch!