By Staff
CHEYENNE – The City of Cheyenne’s Virtual Tour has caught the eye of economic developers at the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) with the announcement of an award at their annual conference earlier this month.
The City of Cheyenne’s Virtual Tour promoting a vision for revitalization of the West Edge District was named a bronze award winner in the category for New Media.
“From localized community projects, to large scale endeavors, economic development efforts have played a vital role in the global economy,” said JoAnn Crary, CEcD, Chair of the International Economic Development Council and President of Saginaw Future Inc. “As we address new and longstanding challenges, these efforts continue to take on even greater importance. The award serves as a salute to pacesetting organizations like the City of Cheyenne for leading the charge.”
According to the City’s application, one key to the ongoing success of the West Edge is vision – demonstrating a place you want to be and using the available technology to let people immerse themselves in the vision. “Our visualization efforts have inspired funders to support the public elements of the project. As we move toward the hand-off to the private sector, we anticipate that the visuals will lead to full-fledged development in the district with the virtual tour serving as our foot in the door,” notes Bob Bradshaw, Special Projects Director for the City. Demonstrating the success of this approach, news broke recently that the Steam Plant, largely abandoned for 40-years, was recently announced to be changing hands to ready the property for redevelopment.
“Our team has taken the best technology has to offer and embraced innovation to take a project that some might call ‘pie-in-the-sky’ and turn it into reality,” says Mayor Rick Kaysen. “This is just one more example of how the West Edge is turning heads and inspiring investment.”
The technology is impressive in the field, and citizens are encouraged to visit the catalyst sites in the West Edge, use a QR Code scanner to access the imagery, and experience the potential. The tour can also be accessed from the comfort of your home by visiting www.cheyennewestedge.com/tour.
