Laramie Urban Renewal Agency Advances West Side Redevelopment Plan for Review

The Laramie Urban Renewal Agency voted unanimously to advance a draft West Side Urban Renewal Plan and Project, sending it to the city's Planning Commission for review in a procedural step that moves the area closer to potential tax increment financing and new residential development.

The proposed plan covers roughly 32 acres bounded by Snowy Range Road to the west, northwest and north, and West Garfield Street to the south. The site has been identified for redevelopment due to blight, property ownership patterns and existing redevelopment opportunities. The city recently rezoned the area from industrial to R-3 urban residential, a change that City Manager Todd Feezer said expands what can be built there considerably. "That allows for all housing stocks to be built in that area," Feezer said. "So it could be apartments, could be single-family, could be multi-family residential."

Feezer was careful to frame the URA action as exploratory. "What we're talking about today is if this would be an appropriate place for all for tax increment financing," he said. "As it is, different projects have been contemplated for this property, however, no development completion agreement or discussion around tax increment financing." Under TIF, future increases in property tax revenue within the designated area would fund redevelopment costs, with any unused funds returned to taxing authorities once project expenses are reimbursed.

Developers currently envision two apartment complexes on the site, one senior and one market-rate, with no fewer than 42 units each, for a minimum of 84 total units. Feezer has referenced a slightly rounded figure of 80 West Side units when discussing the city's broader housing pipeline, noting that if LaBonte Square also proceeds with its projected 120 units, Laramie could add 200 units combined. "And I don't want to downplay the importance of apartments in my design," Feezer said, "because if we can get more college kids to live in an apartment, maybe we can free up some single-family homes that have been converted to apartments."

That pipeline matters in a city that builds roughly 60 homes per year while remaining several thousand units short of what experts say is needed to meet demand by 2030. The shortage has left low-income families overextended, blocked university graduates from settling locally, and made it harder for employers and early-career professionals to put down roots.

Public outreach included an open house at the Lincoln Community Center on January 13, where residents reviewed display boards on the proposed plan. Feedback has centered on environmental protection and flood resilience, alongside support for affordable housing, green space, walkability and investment in existing neighborhoods. One resident, identified in session notes as Mister Henderson, urged the city to use clearer language and fewer acronyms in public communications, pressed for direct drainage improvements to prevent flooding near Pine Street, and flagged the Fox Run sewer-cost estimate as a significant barrier to connecting that neighborhood to city services. Councilors asked staff to follow up on drainage design, traffic impacts and utility capacity.

Councilor Will Bowling expressed confidence in the direction, despite acknowledging the road ahead won't be smooth. "We're in a position — Laramie is in a position, Albany County is in a position — to really start to lead on this issue," he said. "I know that there will be stumbles, and there will be roadblocks, but the progress is reassuring."

The city also flagged several funding avenues tied to the project, including the Wyoming Business Council's Business Ready Community Grant and Loan Program, a $5 million housing pool set aside by the Laramie City Council, and a state unmet housing-needs grant with a January 31 application deadline. Staff were directed to solicit proposals for the city's housing infrastructure fund and to advertise an executive-director position for the Albany County Housing Land Trust. With the draft plan now in the Planning Commission's hands, the next formal URA session was scheduled for March 5 at the Laramie Municipal Operations Center on North 3rd Street.