John Kearney's "Alligator" sculpture is scheduled to be installed Downtown on Wednesday, July 30th.

Kearney's "Alligator" will be placed at the corner of 4th and Grand, on the lawn of the City Hall Annex building. Kearney is a Chicago sculptor known for his fanciful animals constructed from welded car bumpers.

The exhibition of this piece, and others throughout the community, is coordinated with the temporary exhibition of sculpture on the UW campus during the Art Museum's renovation. The exhibition runs from August, 2008 through July, 2009 (some pieces have already been installed; others are scheduled for installation this summer).

To learn more about the artists, their work, and the exhibition itself, read the Museum's blog. This project is being funded in part by a Wyoming Art's Council Community Arts Partners Grant, of which Main Street is a partner.

[Posted 07/21/08]

The Farmer's Market is happening every Friday in Downtown Laramie, but the rising cost of fuel affects everyone who comes from out of town - especially the vendors in the market.

Because of this, the Wyoming Business Council (WBC) has created the Farmers' Market Fuel Reimbursement Grant to help Wyoming producers offset transportation costs associated with participating in the state's numerous farmers' markets.

Producers travelling 60 miles or more one way can be awarded up to half the federal mileage rate to a maximum of $1,000 per year. Visit the WBC's website for more information. To request an application, call Kim Porter at (307) 777-6319 or email her at kim.porter@wybusiness.org.

[Posted 07/21/08]

Laramie Main Street contracted with an architectural firm to assess the state of the Fox Theater building. The report recommends abating and deconstructing the Fox Theater as soon as feasibly possible.

The consultant team was led by SlaterPaull Architects, an architectural firm that specializes in historic preservation. The team also included JVA Engineers, a structural engineering firm, and RLH Engineers, an environmental engineering firm. Main Street selected this team for their expertise in historic building projects.

The team presented their findings to the city council on Tuesday June 24th at a city council work session open to the public. Main Street and city staff also shared these findings with property and business owners and residents in the area immediately surrounding the Fox.

The city is now working to find ways to fund and implement the report's findings. To learn more about the report's findings, check out the summary report here.

[Posted 07/21/08]

Laramie Main Street has developed a self-guided walking tour of Historic Downtown Laramie. This illustrated brochure will be available for free at Albany County Tourism at 2nd and Custer. If you'd like copies to distribute -- or to take the tour yourself -- please let us know by email at mainstreet@laramiewy.org and we will let you know when they are available.

Other self-guided tours and brochures with information about attractions throughout the county are also being produced. Thank you to the Albany County Tourism Board and Albany County Historic Preservation Board for funding and coordination.

[Posted 07/21/08]

Revisions to the regulations on development in Downtown Laramie are being considered.

Currently, Downtown Laramie development is regulated with the same regulations (originally written in the 1960s) that govern development out along east Grand and other commercial districts in town. Revising these regulations for Downtown is meant to make it easier to develop in keeping with Downtown's current historic and pedestrian-friendly character, and harder to develop in a more suburban form that would detract from that character and history. If revised regulations are adopted, current uses and buildings would be grandfathered in.

The city's Community Development Department presented an early draft of the revised regulations at the Railroad Depot on July 2, as well as at that week's Downtown Laramie Business Association (DLBA) meeting.

This revision of the downtown zoning is part of a larger project to update the entire city's zoning code; this is meant to implement the city's Comprehensive Plan, adopted last summer.

You can find more information on the update and links to current and draft revisions on the city's website by clicking here.

[Posted 07/21/08]

Laramie Main Street has posted a list of local engineering, construction and restoration firms on our website in order to provide a resource for property owners downtown. The list is available for download here (147K PDF). This document will be permanently posted in our resources section. For more information, please contact Laramie Main Street at 742-2212.

[Posted 06/02/08]

Laramie Main Street is once again organizing a trip to Destination Business BootCamp where business owners will learn how to make their business a destination and common retail mistakes to avoid. Last year six businesses attended to their great satisfaction. There are three dates open this year: May 20-22, July 19-21, and September 24-26. This 2.5 day training is led by Jon Schallert, who has been called "the first consultant to care about what can make each of the attendees a success, and give us the tools to effectively share our visions in a concrete way."

Funding is available from Wyoming Workforce to help cover the cost of the BootCamp. Businesses may apply for a grant that helps fund training for: 1) existing and new positions, 2) direct training costs, including tuition, registration, class fees and materials, and 3) travel expenses directly related to the training event.

The Laramie Main Street Program will help put together applications for those downtown businesses who are interested. The grant may cover up to 60% of the costs (including tuition and other expenses); making the total cost for each business about $800 per person who attends. If at least 6 businesses send someone, then a community coordinator could attend for free and Jon Schallert would visit Laramie for an open-to-the-public presentation.

If you are interested in attending, please contact Cara Griffin at mainstreet@laramiewy.org or 742-2212.

[Posted 02/15/08]