Optopolis' Retail News

Foreground: Logo of Michoacan a Pedir de Boca Ice Cream Shop - La Michoacana | Background: Photo of the soon-to-be ice cream shop at the Frontier Mall - Optopolis Cheyenne's Frontier Mall is set to get a new ice cream shop called Michoacan a Pedir de Boca, a chain ice cream shop with locations in the United States and Mexico! A glance at the space's history at the Frontier Mall The space where this new Mexican ice cream shop is setting up its storefront was, as many may recall, a Subway sandwich shop in the 2000s ... although Subway certainly didn't always have a location in the Frontier Mall. In more recent years, multiple cafes have operated out of the space including The Galaxy Cafe (could be seen in 2018 ) and The Enchanted Bean (could be seen in 2019 and early 2020). The Enchanted Bean seen next to the theater in late 2019 - Optopolis Another cafe occupied space #24 at the Frontier Mall in more recent years, but it closed sometime over the last year or so (pre-2024). I

Camp Kitchen Coming Soon sign sits near the southwest entry to the Frontier Mall - Optopolis A brand new business called Camp Kitchen has recently been announced to open at the Frontier Mall. It plans to offer freeze dried and dehydrated foods that can be good on trips! You may already be familiar with the owners of the business as the owners are the same ones that run Current's Custom LLC. History of the space There is a lot of history of this space that could be talked about. Many tenants have occupied the space over the years... And, no, it was not "always a pizza place," as a photo dated pre-2000 confirms that the space was once occupied by Stork & Cradle, a baby furniture store. East Coast Pizza seen as open in January 2020 - Optopolis In the last couple decades however, the space has been occupied by a pizza restaurant. Sbarro closed in the early 2010s, sometime after JoAnn's 2011 comeback. East Coast Pizza opened in 2015 in the former Sbarro, only to

"Sorry Out of Service" cover on a gas pump at the former USA Gasoline - Optopolis As of March 19th, it appears that the USA Gasoline on E Pershing Boulevard had closed. The inside appeared to be emptied of most products, and the gas pumps were marked with Out of order/Not in Service covers. A glimpse at the history The Laramie County Property Assessor GIS map notes that the building where USA Gasoline was present was built in the year 2000. It appears that Albertsons Express (Albertsons' gas station) was the original tenant of the building. A photo of the Albertsons Express taken around the turn of the 2010s - Optopolis USA Gasoline took over the space around the start of the 2010s. There are permits from 2011 in the Cheyenne City Planning Website which address new signage being added to the building for USA Gasoline; the two permits for the signage both submitted at the end of 2011 expired in mid-2012. U Save Automatic (or, as we know it, USA Gasoline) was owned by Tesor

A view of The Wrangler's store front during remodel - Optopolis Starting on February 28th, 2024, Downtown Cheyenne's Boot Barn (called "The Wrangler") has been remodeling the store, and they plan to reopen later this month! A glimpse at The Wrangler, Corral West, and Boot Barn The Wrangler's sign on the east side of their building on Capitol Avenue notes that they are "famous for ranchwear since 1943." The building in which they currently reside is noted to have been built prior to the 1900s, possibly in 1882 (the date noted in the Laramie County Property Assessor's GIS map--note that build dates this old may not be exact). "The Wrangler - Famous for Ranchwear since 1943" - Optopolis A Downtown Walking Tour sign on the side of The Wrangler notes the same build date of 1882, and it is labeled as "The Phoenix Block." The Downtown Walking Tour PDF notes that "this is yet another of Warren's 'Nine', the first hotel i

Ziggi's Coffee "Coming Soon" sign displayed in front of the building - Optopolis Ziggi's Coffee on East Pershing Boulevard has just announced they are opening in four days--Friday, March 8th, 2024--and it features both a walk-up window and two drive-thru windows. Historical Aspect: The new location Starting back around the year 1973 (as noted in the 1973 City Directory), a gas station called Highway Oil Inc was present at the corner of Morrie Avenue and East Pershing Boulevard. Between 1994 and 1995, the city directory listing would change to list HY-WAY Incorporated at the location. Stag Oil Co as seen in street view imagery - Google Maps Street View Sometime between 1997 and 2007, Stag Oil Co would take over and rebrand the station, closing in the early 2010s as noted in a previous article on this topic . It was demolished and sat vacant for many years, occasionally being used by Wyo Snow Co's food truck. In late 2022, the trees, some of the sidewalk, and the pa

Coming Soon: Wyogrown Microgreens and Things sign displayed in front window - Optopolis A new owner has purchased Ruby Juice and has plans to not only keep the ideals from Ruby Juice, but also to expand upon it under the new name, Wyogrown Microgreens and Things. A bit of history and recent events Ruby Juice was originally owned by Jay and Peggy Harnish although in later years (including 2016), Peggy was listed as the only owner according to their BlogSpot page . Ruby Juice opened around the early to mid-2000s. This was quite sometime after the build date of the building--about 1924 as noted in the Laramie County Property Assessor's GIS map. In April 2019 and as noted by the Cheyenne Downtown Development Authority , Kathryn, Tyler, and Warren Child took over the business. According to a worker that worked for Ruby Juice under the Child's family, Tyler was the main person who kept Ruby Juice running through the pandemic, taking advantage of delivery and pickup options. The

"Pickup Parking Available Behind Building" painted sign on former Hallmark - Optopolis A new painted sign at Cheyenne's King Soopers indicates that the curbside pickup area (formerly Click List) has moved to a new location on the property. The old Hallmark Gold Crown is no longer vacant, and you'll have to go to a different part of the property for your curbside service. A little bit of history The plaza where Cheyenne's King Soopers is located was built around the turn of the century with the Laramie County Property Assessor GIS map noting a build date of 2000. The space just east of King Soopers had been occupied by a Hallmark Gold Crown store for a great number of years (since at least the mid-2000s). Hallmark Gold Crown seen in 2018 - Google Maps Street View King Soopers, on the other hand, appears to be original to its space and used to operate twenty-four hours per day, seven days per week. They shifted away from the twenty-four hour model in 2017 , two year

Jersey Mike's Subs sign displayed in the window of their new Cheyenne storefront - Optopolis Their sign is on the building, the construction of the interior is virtually complete, and the restaurant is just about ready to open, and it's slated to open on February 28th! A glimpse at the history There's not too much to say about the space where Jersey Mike's is opening on Prairie Avenue; Lowe's Home Improvement was built in the year 2002 as noted in the Laramie County Property Assessor's GIS map. Fast forward to December 2021, Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers would be actively working on plans to build a location on one of the outlots in front of Lowe's. Freddy's opened to the general public on July 11th, 2023 (video from that day below). By the time the video embedded above was captured, it was already well known that Jersey Mike's Subs would be coming to Cheyenne; permits had already been submitted to the Cheyenne City Planning websit