Your Town Workshop
Platte County, Wyoming
June 22-24, 2009

		Platte County, north of Cheyenne, is emblematic of the High Plains. Its sweeping hills and open grasslands, mountain views, wind, and wide skies have a special beauty and history.
		Platte County boasts wagon ruts on the Oregon Trail – clearly visible indentations in the stone where thousands of wheels crossed, and Register Cliff, where pioneers etched their names.
		The Wheatland Irrigation District in Platte County was one of the first in the U.S. Platte County was part of the Swann Land and Cattle Company, a ranching empire along the Front Range. Over the course of the 20th century Platte County steadily lost population, historic buildings, and businesses. Today the county (pop. 8,294) is poised to grow again, as expansion of a National Guard camp, wind farm development, and internet-based businesses contribute to the local economy. Platte County wants to grow in a way that is compatible with its small-town character and is relying on the state’s Main Street Program and heritage tourism development to guide that growth. Platte County’s five towns – Wheatland, Guernsey, Glendo, Chugwater and Hartville – are participating in a new program funded by Wyoming Main Street. The towns are hoping to revitalize their downtown economies through streetscape improvement, historic preservation, and a vigorous countywide heritage tourism program. The Your Town workshop in Wheatland focused on these very issues. The workshop brought Ed McMahon, Senior Fellow at the Urban Land Institute, as keynote speaker. Ed’s message to the workshop participants was a set of positive guidelines for building better communities and capitalizing on heritage assets.
		Other key workshop speakers included Scott Day, with Urban Development Services in San Antonio; Jerry Myers, an architect from Pocatello, Idaho; and Judy Walden, a heritage tourism specialist from Denver. Several design problems focused on gateway and downtown design. Scott Day led participants on a walking tour of downtown Wheatland, where there is substantial potential to build on existing assets.
		Wheatland features several murals, where local artists have taken advantage of empty building facades.
		Its historic courthouse is a local landmark.
		Workshop participants recognized rehabilitation and design opportunities in each of the county’s towns and acknowledged substantial economic development opportunities in catering to heritage tourists. Restaurants, bed and breakfast inns, and coffee shops would all be welcome additions to existing local businesses. One of the most rewarding design problems involved building a heritage tourism program for Platte County. One of the most positive aspects of the workshop was recognizing all the county’s assets that can contribute to heritage tourism. These include not just the wagon ruts, Register Cliff, and downtown Wheatland, but also Guernsey State Park.
		Guernsey State Park is a beautiful, expansive park surrounding a reservoir in the North Platte River. This park provides the finest examples of Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) work in the Rocky Mountain area. The Guernsey Museum and the Castle are prominent features. The museum is perched on a high cliff overlooking the water. The CCC-constructed building is made of hand-hewn timbers and hand forged iron. The floors were formed by pieces of smooth flagstone. The Castle, with its enormous fireplace and winding steps, leads to an observation area for a spectacular view of the park. There are about 10 miles of CCC trails throughout the park as well.
		Chugwater, a small town right off I-25, boasts several unique stops on a heritage tour, including Chugwater Chili and an old-fashioned soda fountain.
		The workshop resulted in many exciting ideas about the potential for economic revitalization and design applications throughout Platte County. More important, perhaps, the workshop forged new partnerships among the participants, and the towns now share a common understanding of what the future of the county can hold.
		The Your Town workshop in Platte County, Wyoming, was sponsored by the Wyoming Main Street Program in cooperation with the Wyoming Rural Development Council and the Wyoming Community Network. Evan Medley, State Program Manager for Wyoming Main Street, coordinated the workshop. For more information, see: www.plattecountywyoming.com www.wyomingmainstreet.org