LARAMIE — A packed house at the Laramie City Council meeting late Tuesday erupted in cheers and applause after the council voted 6-3 to ditch plans for a five-story apartment building in the heart of the Gem City’s historic downtown.
Just before the vote was called, local business owner Ryan Hershey admonished the council to follow the will of more than 30 people who had just testified against the proposed five-story, 88-unit Landmark Square apartment building. A host of others also sent emails or messages to the council and city officials opposing the development.
“You’ve heard from us. You represent us. So, please, represent us,” he told the council.
Laramie City Council meetings are usually relatively quiet with plenty of available seating.
But the proposal for the Landmark building in the Bolton lot, which runs along 1st Street behind the Coal Creek Coffee Co. coffee house and Coal Creek Tap brewery, stirred up the community’s ire.
During the lengthy public comment session, tempers occasionally flared in the council chambers. No seats were empty, and many people had to stand throughout the meeting. Some people opted to sit in an isolated overflow room in the city hall’s basement, watching the proceedings on video monitors.
Great Idea, Terrible Location
The council’s vote nipped the apartment building proposal in its earliest stages.
The decision was whether to agree to cut short a lease the city has on a section of the Bolton lot by about 20 years, ending it this year. That would have paved the way for the Souix Falls, South Dakota-based Stencil Group development company to strike a deal with the lot’s private owners to build the apartments.
The council’s vote means that the city will leave the lease as-is, thus squashing the project’s chances of moving forward.
The Stencil Group has built residential units in other Wyoming communities. Some who testified noted that the company has a sterling reputation for the quality of its work.
But it was repeatedly stated that this time, the city and the company had picked “the wrong place” to build apartments.
Given the company’s reputation and the city’s pressing need for housing, a Stencil Group apartment project would likely be welcome just about anywhere else in Laramie, people said. But not where it could totally change the character of one of the most iconic historic Western downtowns in Wyoming.
Business owners and residents reiterated worries that the proposed building would have eaten up already-sparce parking in the downtown business district and ruin the area’s historic vibe.
Some Laramie residents worry that a proposed five-story, 88-unit apartment building in this parking lot in the heart of downtown would take up too much space, block views of murals and hurt the historic aesthetic. (Mark Heinz, Cowboy State Daily) 
It was standing room only at the Laramie City Council meeting late Tuesday, when residents and business owners turned out to testify against a proposed apartment building in the heart of downtown. (Mark Heinz, Cowboy State Daily) 
Laramie Police Chief Brian Browne stands outside a packed city council chamber late Tuesday. Residents and business owners showed up to speak against a proposed downtown apartment building. (Mark Heinz, Cowboy State Daily) 
The Stencil Group, a Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based contractor, is proposing a five-story, 88-unit apartment building in downtown Laramie. This is a rough draft image of the project; the final design will likely be changed to better fit the historic downtown aesthetic. (Courtesy City of Laramie)
No Need To Postpone
The council also voted down a proposal to postpone consideration of the project.
Along with many others, business owner Klause Halbsgut urged the county to make a final decision on the project’s fate Tuesday, rather than prolonging the process.
“You’ve had, by my count, 33 people get up and tell you not to end this lease (and allow the project to go forward),” he told the council, while speaking over Zoom.
Stencil Group representative Nathan Stencil, also appearing over Zoom, prompted a ripple of angry murmurs thought the crowd when he stated that a postponement had already been agreed upon.
After the crowd’s reaction, he clarified that his understanding was based upon previous discussions with city planning staff, and he wasn’t trying to dictate the council’s decision.
Never Really Had A Chance
Even early on in the meeting, it was apparent that the apartment complex proposal didn’t have much of a chance.
Laramie Mayor Brian Harrington took an informal “straw poll” of council members just before opening up public testimony to get a general feel of which direction the council might be leaning in.
The public had already flooded social media and council members’ emails and messages with opposition to the project since word about it got out last month.
“I have read 400 comments on Facebook,” councilman Brandon Newman said. “My inbox has been on fire since this started.”
“I’m a definite ‘no’ on this,” councilman Pat Gabriel said. “We’ve heard from the public. I would be run out of town or I would have to hide if I voted for this.”
Contact Mark Heinz at mark@cowboystatedaily.com
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
