The Mayor’s Minute from Mayor Patrick Collins – May 1, 2026

Published on May 01, 2026

I want to thank City Council for writing the Council Corner last week while I was on a short vacation fishing for largemouth bass in Louisiana. I love being on the water – it is so relaxing. My brother-in-law and I try to get away and find a great lake to fish for bass. Watching bald eagles, alligators, and huge snapping turtles on Toledo Bend reservoir is a great way to spend a few days and catching a few fish makes it perfect.

I got home in time for City Council’s meeting on Monday evening. The annexation of part of the Cox ranch for a future business park was a hotly discussed topic. I would like to clear up one aspect of the discussion – people seem to think the City is responsible for this annexation action. The fact is the owner of the property, the William S Cox Revocable Trust, petitioned the City to have their property annexed. Once they submit the petition, state law has a procedure the City must follow. It includes a public hearing that we held on April 13, and then the law requires the City to consider the annexation ordinance, and we did that Monday evening. I appreciate that many of the people that spoke at the meeting may be opposed to the land being annexed into the city and a business park being built there. But the fact is the City is not responsible for the annexation action currently being discussed. We are following state law at the request of the owner of the property who asked for their property to become part of the city.

The Legislature’s Joint Minerals Committee met this week. I joined many of my peers from cities around the state and economic development professionals to talk about the future of the Wyoming Business Council and how the State of Wyoming should be involved in economic development. I think the model we have in Laramie County is a great example of how to successfully promote economic development. LEADS has been a steady, consistent influence for over 40 years and constant attention to the process has led to the creation of thousands of primary jobs and billions of dollars in private investments. Wyoming’s GDP has lagged behind our neighboring states, and I don’t think this is the time to stop our statewide economic development efforts. I hope this interim effort will help strengthen our economic development strategy and our state will invest the necessary resources to bring the jobs we need to keep our kids and grandkids here in the state.

I meet on a regular basis with the directors from all our City departments. It is an opportunity to share information on what is going on in each of our departments and give our teams another opportunity to collaborate. Highlights include:

• BOPU shared that this winter was the worst water year in the Colorado River Drainage since the 1920s.
• The fire department shared we had six grass fires just last Friday. The dry weather is causing fire conditions that put the community at risk, and the fire department is asking everyone to be careful to prevent additional fires. Our recent addition of wildland firefighting capability is allowing Cheyenne Fire Rescue to have the tools and training to fight grass fires.
• On July 1, state law will change, giving local governments the authority to regulate the location of Historic Horse Racing facilities. Our planning department shared they are bringing forward an ordinance to help City Council manage the location of future Historic Horse Racing facilities. 
• Community Recreation & Events shared that they have completed the construction of new facilities and renovations at Dunbar Field, Dutcher Field, and the Depot. Ribbon cuttings are scheduled starting this Saturday at 6 p.m. The nice winter weather let the department get ahead on the construction schedule.

We have a great group of directors and employees serving the residents of Cheyenne.

I was honored to speak with the lunch Rotary Club this week and give them an update on the state of the city. A highlight for me was our district attorney teasing me about what song she should sing. She has a great voice, and I love her sense of humor. I appreciate the invitation and the opportunity to share what is happening in the city.

I am a geek when it comes to learning about the technology being used in different industries here in Cheyenne. This week I met with the team from American Electric Power (AEP). They are providing the fuel cells that will be the first electricity source for a new business park currently being built south of town. I asked for the meeting to understand what a fuel cell is and how it works. They explained the fuel cell uses technology provided by Bloom Energy that converts natural gas into electricity. It seems like magic to me; electricity being produced without burning natural gas and the process leaving behind only water vapor and CO2. Sequestering CO2 means the only byproduct is water vapor. I love how technology is stepping up to provide the power necessary to fuel our developing industries.

Brian Deurloo started a company in Wyoming named Frog Creek Partners. They make a system that goes into our storm drainage inlets and captures trash before it can flow into the creek. The whole system is made in Wyoming. A partnership with Rotary, Microsoft, Meta, and the Conservation District led to 307 of the Gutter Bins system being installed to protect Crow Creek. We held a ribbon cutting on Wednesday afternoon to celebrate the installation and thank the partners who made it happen. Installing the Gutter Bins and paying for 10 years of cleaning and maintaining the collection bags is a tremendous gift for Cheyenne and the health of Crow Creek.

Greg Selin started working for the City 25 years ago and has spent his career as an inspector making sure the work in our right of way is done correctly. He shared the thing that has changed in his career - today everything is done by computer, and he also shared how much road maintenance costs have increased. I appreciate Greg and the employees who have made a career serving the residents of Cheyenne. Their institutional knowledge and mentorship make a difference.

Our house seems so quiet this evening as I write the Minute. We have had our grandkids visit this week while our daughter-in-law did some nursing school events at LCCC. They left this evening. Judy has played grandma and is worn out but filled with love. I wish I could bottle their energy. They sure are beautiful.