Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Dale Steenbergen says he is hoping the Cheyenne Sears and JC Penney retail outlets will continue to operate.

Both retailers have been losing money nationally, and Sears last week announced it would be closing some of it's stores. Steenbergen says both chains have "been at risk" for quite some time, but notes that store closures in recent years by the chains have so far not included their Cheyenne outlets. But he goes on to say "that doesn't mean it won't happen".

But Steenbergen says even if one or both chains were to close their stores in Cheyenne's Frontier Mall, he is confident the areas they occupy in the mall would soon be rented by other businesses. He says that's because the local economy is doing well enough to attract other retailers.

Steenbergen says the local oil industry in particular has been boosting the Laramie County economy, a trend he expects to continue.

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