CHEYENNE — Three new gaming facilities will likely be coming to Cheyenne after the Laramie County commissioners approved a resolution Tuesday allowing Cowboy Racing, which owns the recently constructed live horse racing track 10 miles east of Cheyenne, to conduct parimutuel wagering on live horse racing, historic horse racing and simulcast events.
The three locations will be at Westby Edge Brewing, at the former Old Chicago restaurant location on Meadowland Drive and at the former Cheyenne Fire Rescue Station #3 at 1720 Cleveland Ave., near the intersection of U.S. Highway 30 and Cleveland Avenue.
While each of the commissioners who spoke on the issue said they were reluctant to support the introduction of more gaming facilities in Cheyenne, they all ultimately approved the requests on the grounds of supporting an open and free business market with little government overreach and the positive economic benefit for the county.
In November, the Wyoming Gaming Commission approved Cowboy Racing’s application to host live horse racing events at its new track, called Thunder Plains, beginning this summer. Because it will have an operational track in the state, the Gaming Commission also approved Cowboy Racing’s application to host live racing and simulcast wagering permits to include wagering on historic horse racing for 2025.
Cowboy Racing officials see the profits from the gaming facilities as the primary revenue source to fund continued developments at the track.
This year, the track will be a bare-bones version of the final vision, with temporary audience stands and attendee amenities at the mile-long racetrack. Eventually, Cowboy Racing hopes it will be a tourist destination complete with a hotel and a sporting complex.
Will Edwards, co-owner of Thunder Plains, said he estimates profits from the gaming facilities will go solely into development at Thunder Plains Park for the next seven years.
Before approval, there were several community members who expressed concern with the 1720 Cleveland Ave. location due to its proximity to schools and a residential neighborhood.
In December, community member Kathy Scigliano made a Facebook post urging other residents to attend Tuesday’s meeting to voice their concerns with the development and the continued influx of gaming facilities in the area.
Ryan Clement, a principal manager of Cowboy Racing and co-owner of Thunder Plains, said he and Edwards met with Scigliano and other community members to hear their concerns.
“It was a very, very positive and fruitful conversation,” Clement said. “We committed to working with (residents) to develop some neighborhood meetings with Sun Valley. I think that just listening to what we were trying to do … we’re local guys, we saw something that we thought could really benefit the state of Wyoming and really elevate our profile in the horse world. This is a horse state. And I think when (Scigliano) heard our reasoning behind all of this … it really hit home.”
Other Sun Valley neighborhood residents attended the meeting to share their concerns with the impact this development would have on traffic and the community’s culture. New Ward 3 Cheyenne City Council member Mark Moody also spoke at the meeting, stating he has heard many concerns about the development from his constituents.
The other two proposed locations were not as controversial and faced little public opposition.
Westby Edge Brewing owner Darin Westby spoke in support of bringing the gaming machines to his facility, which will be in a separate 1,800-square-foot portion of the building and not throughout the rest of the facility.
“We saw this as an opportunity to help us generate some revenue to help finish our project and help finish our vision for the west edge of downtown,” Westby said.
At the former Old Chicago location, at 1734 Meadowland Drive, Clement said the gaming machines would not be throughout the facility, and that Cowboy Racing intends to have a separate room for dining and beverages.
In September, Cheyenne City Council approved the transfer of the liquor license previously held by Old Chicago to 1734 Partners, which operates restaurants in the state of Wyoming under the Old Chicago brand, as well as FireRock Steakhouse, Wyoming Ale Works and J’s Pub and Grill. John Johnson, a 1734 Partners representative, said in September that his company may open one of these locations at the property or lease the property and the liquor license to a separate company.
While it is still unclear which restaurant will operate at the location, Clement said he hopes it will be a top-class dining facility.
“We want to make these entertainment destinations. The food quality for this location … we’re going to rival with the best restaurants in Cheyenne,” Clement said. “We want to become the best restaurant we can.”
Edwards said he hopes to have a kitchen at the former fire station location, as well, but that it is currently cost prohibitive, and he is unsure if that hope will be realized.
In 2022, Edwards acquired the fire station property after a land trade with the city of Cheyenne so that they could construct a new fire station on Converse Avenue, which opened in 2024.
County Commissioner Ty Zwonitzer, in his first meeting as a commissioner, asked Clement if Cowboy Racing had plans to continue to seek more gaming facilities across the county.
Clement did not give a direct answer, but said these three locations are the only locations they are seeking for now, but that they will possibly be back to seek more, depending on how business goes.
“I’m not necessarily a fan of the HHR thing in general. I feel like it’s a loophole that’s been crazy exploited and the floodgates have opened,” Zwonitzer said. “I’m right there with you about, like, ‘What’s the sustainability? When is this going to stop?’ But, I’m also all about less government involvement in the market. … I’m actually pretty ecstatic that it’s a Wyoming-owned business by someone local trying to do better with the community. It still has food, it still has entertainment. It’s not just for the sake of the HHR.”
Commissioner Linda Heath expressed similar concerns but said she would support the resolution because of the potential economic boost it will have for eastern Laramie County.
“… the Edwards family is local. It’s their skin in the game, and it is their reputation as developers that they are putting on the line with this,” Heath said. “I can appreciate that, because they know that if they fail with this, their reputation in the community goes in the tank.”
Don Hollingshead, another new commissioner in his first meeting, said he has read many comments on this issue and does not take it lightly.
“We’re very cognizant of the hot button-ness of this issue, so to speak, and we just want to make a decision that is in the best interest of the community as a whole,” he said.
Concerning the Cleveland Avenue location, Commission Chairman Gunnar Malm said he trusts the city of Cheyenne will make the proper accommodations to protect the community and that neighborhood going forward as the applicant moves through the site plan process.
Heath, Hollingshead, Malm and Zwonitzer voted in favor of approving all three locations, while commissioner Troy Thompson was absent from Tuesday’s meeting.
Cowboy Racing will need approval from the Wyoming Gaming Commission before opening each of these three locations.
The facilities Fire station
* This facility is a retired fire station, once operated by Cheyenne Fire Rescue and constructed in 1981. It was one of the two oldest operating fire stations in the city until the sixth-penny sales tax funded the construction of a new fire station, which opened in 2022.
* This facility is in design stages for a renovation that would utilize the main floor spaces, including the garage floor, as a primary gaming floor, and would renovate the existing back offices to house the centralized control aspects of Cowboy Racing’s operations.
* The simulcast facility will also house up to 115 historic horse racing terminals for authorized use.
* The expected average daily handle through the simulcast operation is approximately $1,000. The expected average daily handle, or amount wagered by bettors, through the HHR operation is $160,000.
* The desired opening date is March 31.
* 1% of HHR handle is shared equally by the city in which the OTB operates and Laramie County. This facility is expected to generate $600,000 annually to be split equally between Cheyenne and Laramie County.
* Cowboy Racing expects to hire 46 people to service this location.
Westby Edge Brewing
* The simulcast facility will also house up to 52 historic horse racing terminals for authorized use.
* The expected average daily handle through the simulcast operation is approximately $1,000. The expected average daily handle through the HHR operation is $106,000.
* The desired opening date is March 31.
* 1% of HHR handle is shared equally by the city in which the OTB operates and Laramie County. This facility is expected to generate $390,000 annually to be split equally between Cheyenne and Laramie County.
Former Old Chicago location
* This restaurant closed operations in April 2024. The owner of the facility is agreeable to the renovation and the reuse of the building for simulcasting and HHR businesses.
* The largest section of the facility, including both the bar and former dining room, will be renovated to accommodate the operation of live simulcasting and HHR machines.
* An outdoor smoking room with 24 HHR units is planned for this facility.
* Live simulcasting will be displayed seven days a week from as many as 10 tracks a day.
* The simulcast facility will also house up to 150 historic horse racing terminals for authorized use.
* The expected average daily handle through the simulcast operation is approximately $1,000. The expected average daily handle through the HHR operation is $240,000.
* The desired opening date is March 15.
* 1% of HHR handle is shared equally by the city in which the OTB operates and Laramie County. This facility is expected to generate $900,000 annually to be split equally between Cheyenne and Laramie County.