Pocket Park Planned For 'The Hole' In Downtown Cheyenne

An official with the Cheyenne Downtown Development Authority says that while some of the exact details have yet to be worked out, a pocket park is planned to be built next year in the downtown Cheyenne property commonly known as "the hole."

The property is located on Lincolnway in downtown Cheyenne, down the block from the corner of Lincolnway and Capitol Avenue, across the street from the Historic Atlas Theater.

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''The hole" was once home to a bakery that burned down in 2004 in what authorities said was a case of arson. No one was ever convicted in connection with the fire, and the property has sat vacant ever since. It is widely considered an eyesore although a large decorative fence in front of the property has made it somewhat less visible than it once was. Over the years, a number of proposals have been put forward to fill the property, including a proposed children's museum.

But so far, none of those ideas has come to fruition, and the property has continued to sit empty in a highly visible stretch of downtown Cheyenne along Lincolnway. A fence was put up by the city some years ago to mitigate the negative visual impacts of the property.

But Cheyenne DDA Assistant Director Haylee Chenchar says work on a pocket park in the property should get underway next spring, with the project hopefully completed by the fall of 2022. We spoke with Chenchar on Wednesday morning about the park and where the project stands right now. You can hear that interview below.