annexed by the City of Cheyenne<\/a> and he and his family have decided to move, he said he has an idea that would fit into the city\u2019s recent pattern of business development.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKniseley noted to Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that Cheyenne keeps building hotels, banks, coffee shops and car washes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He envisions a hybrid incorporating all of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou could build a six-story hotel with the first floor turned into a drive-thru,\u201d Kniseley said. \u201cYou could make your bank deposit, order your coffee, wash your car, and pick up your coffee and drive off.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kniseley said he offers the proposal \u201conly partially tongue-in-cheek.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf anyone wants to partner with me, we’ll provide the property if they can provide the cash,\u201d he added. \u201cThat\u2019s a real offer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Monday, the Cheyenne City Council voted 8-2 to approve the annexation of the Kniseley’s WY Fresh Farm, plus larger properties owned by others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was a move Kniseley and his wife, Tommie, have vehemently opposed for nearly a year. But the couple recently decided to stop fighting the city and sell what they had considered \u201cour forever place\u201d since they bought it in 2007.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ultimately the family asked the council to approve the annexation because \u201ctheoretically it makes the property more valuable.\u201d Still, Kniseley is worried the city will find a reason to block any buyer from developing the property unless it perfectly fits Cheyenne\u2019s plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that he wants to be paid a fair price, not the “predatory offers” he’s already received that have been between one-third and one-fourth of its value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In addition to its own produce, the property \u2014 under the name \u201cWY fresh\u201d \u2014 has operated the Food Stand, where up to 50 local farmers have sold dairy, meat, eggs, garden and other produce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kathy Scigliano, a Cheyenne Realtor, said she first learned about the Kniseleys\u2019 plight when she attended a city council meeting in February. She started following their Facebook page to keep up, and later testified at a city council hearing on the proposed annexation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy biggest concern is the treatment of this family and what this situation says about how our city council values local businesses,\u201d Scigliano told Cowboy State Daily. \u201cThe city council regularly talks about supporting small businesses, but I think situations like this tell a different story. Those words need to be backed up by action.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nDavid Kniseley, owner of Wy Fresh, speaks about the annexation of their property at the Cheyenne City Council Meeting in Cheyenne on Monday, November 9. (Matt Idler for Cowboy State Daily)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\u2018The City of Cheyenne Is For Sale\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n In a separate interview Kniseley was more blunt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe City of Cheyenne is for sale,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re open for business for their cronies; it\u2019s crony capitalism. It’s not that you have an idea that\u2019s innovative and doesn\u2019t fit their mold. They don\u2019t believe in freedom. ,They believe they should regulate for what they envision. And it\u2019s especially good for those who have connections to them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Councilman Mark Rinne said he \u201ccategorically disagrees\u201d with the accusation that Cheyenne is for sale, or that cronyism has played a part in any council decision. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI guess if you don\u2019t want to see growth and you don\u2019t want to see economic development and you don\u2019t want to see more jobs and better paying jobs come to Cheyenne, maybe you could think that we\u2019re for sale,\u201d Rinne told Cowboy State Daily. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said this isn\u2019t the first time Kniseley has accused city officials of being corrupt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWith this group of council members, there\u2019s never been any corruption or graft,\u201d he said. \u201cSo one, it\u2019s inaccurate, and two, it\u2019s probably a bit of obvious unhappiness and disappointment on their part.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rinne said the majority of the council is pro-growth and economic development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf Cheyenne doesn\u2019t grow, we\u2019re going to stagnate,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have an opportunity to not only bring more jobs and different jobs to Cheyenne, I think in a couple of years \u2014 if people are patient with us \u2014 we\u2019re going to see that the city\u2019s budget will be healthier and they\u2019ll see more amenities and quality-of-life improvements.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kniseley said he learned about the proposed annexation last December. A certified letter notifying the farmers that a meeting was scheduled didn\u2019t arrive, and the family didn\u2019t know about it until receiving an email from the city planning office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Kniseleys asked to postpone the meeting for two weeks, but were told state law only requires that a certified letter be sent, not received, and the meeting could not be rescheduled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The couple told the city that it had read the city\u2019s voluminous codes \u201cthat would make it hard or impossible to farm,\u201d and they had questions. Asked to put them in writing, the Kniseleys came up with 147 queries, most of which David said were never answered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He cited some examples: How would the city address predator control, given he has to shoot coyotes that harass their sheep, and the state doesn\u2019t manage the animals?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLivestock dogs bark, which is contrary to the city’s nuisance code,\u201d Kniseley noted. \u201cThe city has a cat leash law; we have barnyard cats that protect our greenhouses.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When they asked the city about various issues, including acceptable noise levels and the smell of livestock, he said they were given answers one day and contradictory replies the next day.<\/p>\n\n\n\nCheyenne City Council Member Mark Moody during the Cheyenne City Council Meeting in Cheyenne on Monday, November 9. (Matt Idler for Cowboy State Daily)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nEight Essential Questions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n Eventually WY Fresh Farm pared its list to eight essential questions, but Kniseley said the city only came up with two answers. When a decision on the annexation was scheduled March 9, about 50 people showed up to testify on behalf of the urban farm owners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The city postponed the session until Nov. 9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe expected to work it out,\u201d Kniseley said. \u201cBut the next day, the City-County Health Department, which has City Councilwoman Kathy Emmons as its director, turned in a complaint to the Wyoming Department of Agriculture about WY Fresh selling meat, even though we were well within bounds of the law.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Scigliano said she wasn\u2019t able to go to the Farm Stand last Saturday, the final day it was open. Kniseley said there were a lot of customers who spent a long time \u201chugging and talking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think one of my biggest concerns moving forward is that we’ve lost another place where local producers and community members had an opportunity to connect,\u201d Scigliano said. \u201cIt’s not just about losing a place to purchase fresh produce. It’s about losing an opportunity for local agriculture and small businesses to have a place in our community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Scigliano senses a growing frustration among residents that the city seems more focused on attracting large corporations and major developments than being mindful of the people and businesses that have already invested in and helped build the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI, along with many others, feel that data centers and large-scale development are receiving more attention than the local families, small businesses, and everyday people who make Cheyenne what it is,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Realtor said growth isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of the people who are already in Cheyenne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe need to be asking ourselves what kind of community we want to build and whether we’re doing enough to protect the people and businesses that give this community its character,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wave Of The Future?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n Kniseley said American farmers only receive between 5 to 8 cents of every dollar that is spent at supermarkets. Producers who sell at the Farm Stand, he said, earn between 80 to 90 cents per dollar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis should be the wave of the future. People have said we don\u2019t want to annex because we don\u2019t want to change, but that\u2019s not remotely the way it is,\u201d Kniseley said. \u201cWe don\u2019t want to be annexed because we want<\/em> to change. And we don\u2019t want to have to go to the city council and say we want to plant carrots here, and they say no.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\nKniseley said under the county\u2019s control, \u201cit\u2019s all been good government \u2014 it\u2019s been invisible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey mowed the ditch and they graded the shoulder on Walterscheid and they left us alone,\u201d he added. \u201cWhen we built the Farm Stand, Laramie County Planning\u2019s approach was, \u2018How can we find a way so you can do what you want to do?\u2019 It wasn\u2019t, \u2018No, you can\u2019t do what you want to do.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
David Kniseley pretty much hit the high points, and Councilman Mark Rinne exposes himself as one of the corrupt pay to play members. Consequently, we used to buy raw milk and meat from the stand coming from ranchers down towards the southeastern corner of the state, and not enough is being said about how this […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-wyoming"],"featured_image_src":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"Jason","author_link":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/author\/jturning\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19421"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19421\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19422,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19421\/revisions\/19422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jasonsblog.ddns.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Wy](\"https:\/\/cowboystatedaily.imgix.net\/wy-farm-fresh-kniseley-david-11-11-26.jpg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&q=75&auto=format%2Ccompress\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"David](\"https:\/\/cowboystatedaily.imgix.net\/farm-fresh-1-11-9-26.jpg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&q=75&auto=format%2Ccompress\")
![\"Cheyenne](\"https:\/\/cowboystatedaily.imgix.net\/20261109_chey_city_0438.jpg?ixlib=js-3.8.0&q=75&auto=format%2Ccompress\")