A bit of good news. Judy and I have made it through our COVID experience and are finally back to work. Judy’s case was a bit more intense than my experience, but with Paxlovid, she has recovered very well. Although I’m back at work, I find myself really fatigued most days. Nonetheless, we would like to thank all the folks who have kept us in their prayers; it is much appreciated.
We have all seen the commercials for 811 and the importance of calling before your dig. I met Stacie and Laurie and learned that this is a problem in our community. Too many companies have cut utility lines on homes and businesses, causing safety issues while digging. The question is, what should we do about the non-compliance and the requirements of calling before you dig? One utility company I spoke with told me that 30 percent of their third-party strikes did not call for a location. It is a question I am struggling with, but why should we continue allowing companies to operate if we know they are doing so in an unsafe manner?
My sons grew up playing soccer in Cheyenne. I remember high school games played on less than half the width of the field due to high winds and shoveling the stands in the spring due to snow. However, having an indoor facility would make it so nice to play out of the elements. We met with the Cheyenne Soccer Club and learned about their vision to create an indoor facility for their members and our community. We have multiple groups interested in building an indoor facility. I am so excited to see one or more of these groups be successful. It would be great for our kids to have this type of facility to play in, but it would also fill hotel rooms and restaurants with teams coming to Cheyenne because of the indoor opportunity. It sure would be nice for our families to stay home rather than travel to Colorado and elsewhere to play.
Now that the 127th Frontier Days is behind us, it is time to focus on where next year’s visitors will park for the Daddy of ‘Em All. Our current off-site parking area will hopefully be under construction next year with a housing project for the base and community along with a substantial commercial development. We simply can’t have shows at CFD like we did this year without a place for folks to park. That puts so much pressure on our efforts to create a parking lot on the recently closed golf course on base. So, we met again to review requirements like the National Environmental Policy Act, Air Force lease, funding, etc. We have 11 months to get this all done and begin construction. Whew!
When you have a city our size, there are a lot of rules and regulations for employees to follow. One regulation that all companies have is clocking in and out of work. When an employee in the city forgets or is working in a remote area where they can’t clock out, we do what is called a punch change. This takes time for the manager to approve the manual clock in or out by the employee. I had no idea how much time was spent on this process. On average, there are over 2,000 punch changes a month. This means hours are wasted making these changes, and now that this issue is on my radar, something needs to be done. I met with our HR and payroll teams to discuss what should be expected and how can we get there… We will get there.
We have spoken about the state hiring the Harvard Growth Lab to help us understand why Wyoming’s economy has lagged behind the states that border us. The Harvard team has quickly discovered that the lack of housing statewide is preventing the growth of existing businesses and preventing others from choosing to move to Wyoming. I met with the team from Harvard, the Business Council, and members from the Governor’s office to acquire what they have learned and to discuss the efforts we are making in Cheyenne. They are finding that the regulatory environment across the state is holding back the housing market. Density requirements, zoning, landscape requirements, timelines, etc., are conspiring to slow down and make housing expensive. I find these discussions so interesting and invigorating. It has caused me to be very introspective and look at how we do business to see where we can improve our process.
We have regularly scheduled meetings with LEADS to discuss projects and updates on the Hynds building. This week’s meeting was short, as we had little to share. I really appreciate the regular meetings so I can keep up with the economic activities in our community.
We had another employee come to the office that has had an epic career with our city. Lynn Sherman has worked for our police department for 35 years. I think she has worked for seven mayors and seven police chiefs. She has also worked in three different police buildings and loves the new public safety center. The experience and knowledge Lynn brings to the job help the chief and department members run a well-to-do police department. I teased her that she trains the chief, and I am not sure I was too far off. I am proud of our employees and very thankful for the ones who make working here their career. Thanks, Lynn.
I have been meeting with a group of employees to implement a wellness program. Today we had a demonstration of an app that employees could use to help manage their wellness experience. Wyoming Health Fairs runs the application, and our group liked the ease of using it. First, we will try it within our focus group to ensure we want to add it to our wellness program. Helping our employees have a healthy life is so important to me. A good wellness program will give them the information they need to make good health decisions.
The last meeting of the day was with our planning department. I wanted to review the PowerPoint from the Harvard group with our team. It was fun talking with Charles, Seth, and Lonnie about building requirements, zoning, and the philosophy of what we need to do to encourage growth while ensuring we live in a beautiful community. I took many pages of notes and look forward to following up with the Harvard team. I hope you all will see changes coming to our Unified Development Code over the next few months as we respond to suggestions and best practices. In the future, City Council meetings will be busy.
I am excited to tee it up for the city’s employee golf tournament on Saturday. I have not hit many golf balls this year, but I look forward to hanging out with the guys and gals I work with daily.
If you have a question or comment for me, please email media@cheyennecity.org. I’ll continue to answer your questions or concerns in the following Mayor’s Minute column.
