GOSHEN COUNTY – The Goshen County Commissioners named May 7 through May 11 as Economic Development Week in the county during their regular meeting last week.

Ashley Harpstreith, executive director of the Goshen County Economic Development Corporation, presented an overview of the group’s activities over the past year, leading up to and including the proclaimed observation.

“It’s also Tourism Week as well” in Wyoming, Harpstreith said. “That whole week, we’ll be promoting all the good work of economic development and tourism. We’re trying to really show people we’re transparent, making a difference in every community.”

The county has received a Wyoming Office of Tourism signage grant, to be used to better highlight attractions and other areas of interest throughout the county, Harpstrieth said. A specific tourism sign, slated for placement in Torrington, will feature a map of the town with literature dispensers.

Also, she said, Goshen County was selected as one of six Wyoming counties to be featured in a state-wide “Welcome To Wyoming” tourism promotional video. 

But the major event of the summer for tourism in Goshen County happens later this month, with the upcoming 150th anniversary of the signing of the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868. 

“There’s supposed to be about 5,000 members of different (Native American) tribes in the area during that time,” Harpstreith said. “The hotels and bed-and-breakfasts are at near capacity already.”

On the economic development side, Harpstreith said her group was pleased with the outcome of the recently-concluded session of the Wyoming
Legislature. 

“There are big things going on,” she said. “Legislatively, we got everything we asked for.”

That includes about $40 million for support of Gov. Matt Mead’s ENDOW (Economically Needed Diversity Options for Wyoming) initiatives, including approximately $12 million for improved broadband internet service to the state, including Goshen County, Harpstreith said. Other legislative victories included funding for agriculture diversity programs and re-investment into the state’s business council and workforce initiatives.

Harpstreith also noted the GCEDC was close to closing the deal on a new hotel project for the community, as well as preliminary work on an assisted living facility for the Torrington area. Too many local senior residents are leaving the community for assisted living house options because of limited space locally, which the project should address.

“The assisted living facility is the next monster project we’ll be working on,” she said. “We’re trying to figure out home many beds we can build for, what we can afford.

“It’s not shocking, that so many people have to leave, given the demographics of our populations,” Harpstreith said. “We believe so many people wouldn’t leave (the Goshen County area) if they had that option.”