Cheyenne Hitching Post Plaza Is Underway To Replace The Old Hitching Post Inn

Following a decade of neglect the old Cheyenne Hitching Post Inn property will be making a comeback as a new 80-acre development called the "Hitching Post Plaza". The new development will include a hotel, restaurants, retail outlets, and even a residential area. Demolition and environmental remediation is already happening now.

The demolition of the existing property began last week with the help of Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins, Banner Bank CEO and President Richard Petersen and Swagger Construction President Robert Chamberlin at hand to break some of the bricks marking what remains of the old Hitching Post.

Cheyenne City Council President Jeff White, who represents Ward One, stated “We didn’t just lose a building when the Hitching Post burned, we lost a part of our identity, to see this literally rise from the ashes, I’m really happy about it.”

The Cheyenne Hitching Post Inn was first developed in 1927, and shortly thereafter became the place to be during Wyoming’s legislative sessions and Cheyenne Frontier Days. After the property was sold in 2006, it fell into disrepair and was the target of many fires. It was finally condemned in early 2021.

They Cheyenne City Council along with Mayor Patrick Collins made the rehabilitation of the area one of the city's top priorities. Swagger Construction, who purchased the property, will be the developer of the new "Hitching Post Plaza".

Chamberlin said it was important to him to honor the site by keeping the name “Hitching Post” because so many people in the community felt close to the original hotel. To that end, Chamberlin said he was going to save the existing Hitching Post sign. “The goal is to renovate the sign and get it back to its glory days,” he said.

Chamberlin said there are multiple phases to the redevelopment. Right now, work is being done on asbestos abatement and demolition. If weather holds up, he said, that could be done in two months. “The biggest goal now is to knock those buildings down and getting them disposed of before we get too deep into the fall,” he said.  “Then we’re going to go vertical in the spring.”

It is believed that the long term benefit of the new plaza would be in the neighborhood of $40-$50 million according to Richard Petersen, Banner Bank CEO and President.