Poll: Proposal To Build New Apartments In Downtown Laramie

The Laramie City Council is slated to take up a proposal to pave the way for a new apartment complex at its May 7 meeting.

The proposal pertains to the Ist Street parking lot. The lease for the lot was signed in 1994 and amended in 1997 and 2008 to revise the public/private parking amount to establish the First Street Plaza. The lease runs for 50 years.

The proposal is from the Stencil Group, a Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based contractor. If built, the apartment complex would include 88 units. According to the Stencil Group, they envision the apartments as housing a mix of college-age tenants and people over the age of 50 years, and that has been the trend with similar projects they have built in the past.

A workshop was held on the issue last week. You can watch the video recording of that meeting here.

Arguments in favor of the proposal include that it will help address housing in the city and that it will be helpful to downtown businesses by generating more foot traffic. Some supporters say adding housing can only help Laramie grow over the long term.

Opponents say that getting rid of parking space in the downtown area is not a good idea and worry that the apartments will not fit in with the appearance of downtown Laramie.

Some opponents say that while they like the idea of creating housing, the 1st Street parking lot is not a good location. At last week's workshop, the idea of working out something to allow for new apartments on North Fourth Street was mentioned as a possible alternative.

Give Us Your Opinion!

So what do you think? Is the proposed apartment complex a good idea? Take our poll and give us your opinion!