Business and Tourism Reporter

Renée Jean

Renée Jean is the business and tourism reporter for Cowboy State Daily and is based in Cheyenne. Previously, Renée spent seven years covering energy and agriculture in North Dakota and Montana. She has won many writing awards over a 30-year career, and has written magazine articles for Guideposts.

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Latest from Renée Jean

Everyone in the Bunkhouse stops whatever they're doing to sing along with "The Star Spangled Banner."

Real America: The Bunkhouse Has Great Food But National Anthem Is First On Menu

About 10 miles west of Cheyenne is the Bunkhouse Bar & Grill where every weekend patrons start the evening by singing the national anthem. “It’s a way for us to respect our country and all those who have served for us,” the owner says.

Renée JeanDecember 03, 2023

Tim Kellogg, aka the Meeteetse Chocolatier, outside his Wyoming shop.

Meeteetse Chocolatier Takes Annual International Safari For Unique Confections

Every year, Meeteetse Chocolatier Tim Kellogg heads to Europe’s vibrant chocolate scene for a peek at the latest trends. He brings them back to the U.S. a year, and sometimes even two years, before they would normally make it here.

Renée JeanDecember 02, 2023

The net zero house has a modern look with materials and design that fit well with Wyoming and a rural landscape.

$1.1 Million Wyoming Home Is So Energy Efficient It Costs Nothing To Power

A new model home near Lander lists for $1.1 million and is so energy efficient and self-sufficient it costs nothing to power, making it a model of what a modern net-zero house can be.

Renée JeanDecember 02, 2023

Students in Wyoming's only college program for power line training spend a lot of time on poles.

Willing to Climb High? Electrical Linemen Can Make $200,000+ Their First Year

The demand for electrical linemen has been climbing almost as high as the 180-foot power poles they service — and so have their salaries. Linemen willing to travel can make $200,000+ and Wyoming grads are signing up.

Renée JeanDecember 02, 2023

A satellite plat at Uranium Energy Corp's Christensen Ranch site in Wyoming. TerraPower's new nuclear plant planned for Kemmerer could run on Wyoming uranium.

Kemmerer Nuclear Plant Might Be Powered By Wyoming Uranium

TerraPower and Uranium Energy Corp announced Thursday an agreement that may mean Wyoming uranium could power a planned nuclear plant in Kemmerer.

Renée JeanDecember 01, 2023

Mike Thiessen takes questions about Accel Entertainment's plan to run live horse racing at the Cheyenne Frontier Days facilities after the rodeo shuts down in the fall.

Cheyenne Frontier Days Neighbors Fear Live Horse Racing Will Ruin Their Summer

At a public meeting on Wednesday, people who live near the Cheyenne Frontier Days grounds told a company that wants to host live horse racing at the arena that they did not want it and it would ruin the neighborhood.

Renée JeanNovember 30, 2023

Hageman and Rocky Mountain Power 11 29 23

Hageman Says Rocky Mountain Power Will Only Get About Half The Hike It Wants

Harriet Hageman praised the Wyoming Public Service Commission on Wednesday for cutting Rocky Mountain Power’s proposed rate hike in half, but the commission says no figures are yet available.

Renée JeanNovember 30, 2023

Blockchain Companies Already Creating Test Wyoming Stable Tokens

A blockchain company recently told top Wyoming officials that it’s already tested a Wyoming digital stable token at least 150,000 times.

Renée JeanNovember 29, 2023

Members of the Wyoming Public Service Commission listen to testimony about the proposed Rocky Mountain Power rate hikes in November 2023.

Get Ready To Pay More For Electricity; PSC Ends Deliberations On Tuesday

As the Public Service Commission ended deliberations on Tuesday, one thing is for certain: customers of Rocky Mountain Power are going to pay more for their electricity come Jan 1.

Renée JeanNovember 29, 2023

Ramaco's coal mine in northern Wyoming is revealing potential to be a huge rare earths deposit. The company has assets all over the country, like this mine in the Eastern U.S.

$37 Billion Rare Earths Bonanza May Only Be The Beginning For Wyoming Coal Mine

Ramaco Resources in northern Wyoming says it’s discovered the largest unconventional rare earths deposit in the United States, a $37 billion bonanza that can make the Cowboy State ground zero for domestic production of the stuff.

Renée JeanNovember 26, 2023

An experience at one of Jerry Zhang's restaurants, like the Ichiban in Riverton, is entertaining as well as delicious.

Meet The Hong Kong Chef Behind Rural Wyoming’s Fast-Growing Japanese Restaurants

Jerry Zhang, a Hong Kong native and trained chef who came to the U.S. legally, said he moved here to realize the American dream. He now owns five Ichiban and Sapporo restaurants in Gillette, Evanston, Rock Springs, Riverton, and Sheridan.

Renée JeanNovember 25, 2023

The space shuttle on a 747 at Ellington Field in Houston, Texas.

Wyoming People: Larry LaRose Never Went To Space, But He Flew The Space Shuttle

Larry LaRose never went into space, but his lucky number 13 draft position in the Vietnam War led to a career as a military flight engineer, including flying 747 jets to taxi space shuttles around the United States.

Renée JeanNovember 24, 2023

Other Authors

The vintage 1907-08 asbestos curtain was restored when Cheyenne's Capitol dome was restored by the same team. It cost $30,000 to restore. The scene is from Venice. The businesses around it were the sponsors of the time. Of them, only the Tivoli still survives.

Cheyenne’s Atlas Theatre Curtain A Throwback To A Fast-Disappearing History

One of the more interesting relics of a bygone era at the Atlas Theatre in Cheyenne is its old-fashioned ad-drop curtain which is still in use in the theater today. Of the 18 advertisements painted around the scene, only the Tivoli today survives. But the names of the other businesses alone are quite interesting.

Renée JeanNovember 23, 2023

Several processing facilities are working at one time to produce finished products, including baking soda, which will get shipped all over the country.

Going Underground In One Of Wyoming's Trona Mines

Wyoming has the world’s largest deposit of trona and supplies 90% of the nation’s soda ash. It's Wyoming’s top export and is shipped to markets around the globe. Cowboy State Daily's Renee Jean toured the Genesis Alkali trona plant to explore the vast underground world.

Renée JeanNovember 23, 2023

Laramie County commissioners meet Tuesday to hear a pair of proposals for live horse racing, including one that was tabled that would have had live racing at Cheyenne Frontier Days.

Big Push For Horse Racing In Cheyenne, Including Cheyenne Frontier Days

Horse racing advocates on Tuesday made a big push to bring the sport to Cheyenne. Laramie County Commissioners tabled a proposal for horse racing at Cheyenne Frontier Days, while a second proposal that would create the state’s first full-size track, if realized, was given the go-ahead.

Renée JeanNovember 22, 2023

Wyoming-Based Custodia Brings Secure Bitcoin Storage To Wyoming, Other States

Bitcoin will never die. That’s the bet Caitlin Long is making with her Wyoming-based digital asset bank, which has just announced that it can now safely store bitcoin assets.

Renée JeanNovember 21, 2023

Little America Wyoming presents a classic American facade that sets a tone for more than a hotel, it's a small city of its own, complete with a ZIP code.

Little America: The Middle-Of-Nowhere Hotel On I-80 That's Also Its Own Town

Little America, Wyoming, is truly in the middle of nowhere on I-80 in Sweetwater County. Started after its founder was stuck in a raging blizzard which reminded him of Antarctica, the hotel is also a town, with its own ZIP code, where workers live.

Renée JeanNovember 19, 2023

The ExxonMobil plant in La Barge, Wyoming, not only is a world leader in carbon capture, it also produces about 20% of the world's helium.

Wyoming Already Produces 20% Of The World’s Helium, And Likely Has A Lot More

There are three locations in the world where helium can be sourced. One is Qatar, another is in Texas and the third is right here in Wyoming. And a recent report says there's a lot more here in the Cowboy State.

Renée JeanNovember 19, 2023

Since she almost beat Food Network superstar Bobby Flay on his own competition show, Cheyenne chef Petrina Peart has become a regular on the network. For Thanksgiving, she shares some family tips and a scrumptious pie she discovered in Dubois, Wyoming.,

Wyoming Celebrity Chef Puts A Jamaican Twist On Her Classic Thanksgiving

Wyoming celebrity chef Petrina Peart talks turkey, including a family favorite Jamaican jerk seasoning for her Thanksgiving bird, as well as a sour cream and raisin pie she discovered in Dubois.

Renée JeanNovember 19, 2023

Wyoming Grocery Worker Lobbies FTC Chief To Deny Huge $29.5 Billion Merger

A Cheyenne grocery store worker lobbied FTC Chairwoman Lina Kahn during a recent hearing in Colorado to deny the huge proposed $29.5 billion merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons.

Renée JeanNovember 17, 2023

The Rare Element Resources demonstration processing plant will repurpose an existing industrial site near Upton, Wyoming.

Potential Game-Changing Wyoming Rare Earths Processing Plant Gets Federal OK

Rare Element Resources is preparing to build its potentially game-changing rare earths processing plant in Upton, Wyoming, which company officials tout as a pioneering method that’s better than anywhere else on the planet.

Renée JeanNovember 16, 2023

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