Planning director outlines budget and projects; council presses for clearer data on data centers and Cox Ranch annexation
May 15, 2026 | Cheyenne, Laramie County, Wyoming
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Charles Blum, the City of Cheyenne’s Planning and Development director, led a review of the department’s FY27 budget on May 15 and highlighted both near-term projects and areas where council members want more information.
Blum told the council the department anticipates a budget reduction from FY26 to FY27 largely because a $240,000 one-time expense for the Plan Cheyenne update is encumbered and will be rolled into next year’s reappropriation. He said the Plan Cheyenne consulting contract is in the RFP/response stage, with a consultant expected by July 1 and an adoption timeline of roughly 12–18 months.
Blum added that personnel costs make up roughly 93.1% of the department’s budget, funding 16 positions across planning, MPO and DDA functions. He noted small line items including professional development ($15,000), local meeting expenses ($1,000) and a $20,000 core fee waiver program for downtown permit refunds. The department reported operational wins in FY25, including UDC amendments, the Belvoir Ranch master plan update and migration of permit/payment workflows to the OpenGov platform.
Blum also reviewed Metropolitan Planning Organization activity and funding: the MPO receives slightly over 90% federal funds (passed through WYDOT) with a city–county match of about 9.51% split evenly. Upcoming MPO work includes the Parsley Boulevard/Wallach Road evaluation, Henderson–Cahill greenway connection, a Kiwanis Park wetlands/drainage project, and the federally funded Safe Streets for All safety-action plan with a 20% local match.
Councilmember Mark Wolf and others used the budget session to press staff about information access tied to major development topics. Wolf said the department has “an incredible amount of in-depth knowledge” and criticized what he called a “siloed” approach, asking whether planning maintains data on data-center inquiries and how much time staff has spent on the Urban Farmer annexation. Blum responded that the department manages applications and public pre-application meetings, but that much early-stage marketing and business‑recruitment activity is handled by other development organizations and that the office does not “broadcast” pre-application meetings that do not come to fruition.
The exchange became more pointed when members raised the Cox Ranch annexation and the format by which annexation materials were presented; several members requested a separate, smaller meeting to review personnel, annexation and data‑center information in more depth. City staff agreed to set that follow-up meeting.
No formal budget votes were taken during the session; staff said they will return with requested documentation and schedule the additional meeting.
Blum told the council the department anticipates a budget reduction from FY26 to FY27 largely because a $240,000 one-time expense for the Plan Cheyenne update is encumbered and will be rolled into next year’s reappropriation. He said the Plan Cheyenne consulting contract is in the RFP/response stage, with a consultant expected by July 1 and an adoption timeline of roughly 12–18 months.
Blum added that personnel costs make up roughly 93.1% of the department’s budget, funding 16 positions across planning, MPO and DDA functions. He noted small line items including professional development ($15,000), local meeting expenses ($1,000) and a $20,000 core fee waiver program for downtown permit refunds. The department reported operational wins in FY25, including UDC amendments, the Belvoir Ranch master plan update and migration of permit/payment workflows to the OpenGov platform.
Blum also reviewed Metropolitan Planning Organization activity and funding: the MPO receives slightly over 90% federal funds (passed through WYDOT) with a city–county match of about 9.51% split evenly. Upcoming MPO work includes the Parsley Boulevard/Wallach Road evaluation, Henderson–Cahill greenway connection, a Kiwanis Park wetlands/drainage project, and the federally funded Safe Streets for All safety-action plan with a 20% local match.
Councilmember Mark Wolf and others used the budget session to press staff about information access tied to major development topics. Wolf said the department has “an incredible amount of in-depth knowledge” and criticized what he called a “siloed” approach, asking whether planning maintains data on data-center inquiries and how much time staff has spent on the Urban Farmer annexation. Blum responded that the department manages applications and public pre-application meetings, but that much early-stage marketing and business‑recruitment activity is handled by other development organizations and that the office does not “broadcast” pre-application meetings that do not come to fruition.
The exchange became more pointed when members raised the Cox Ranch annexation and the format by which annexation materials were presented; several members requested a separate, smaller meeting to review personnel, annexation and data‑center information in more depth. City staff agreed to set that follow-up meeting.
No formal budget votes were taken during the session; staff said they will return with requested documentation and schedule the additional meeting.
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