Wyoming
That Time A Wyoming House Was Covered In 6 Tons Of Pepper Jack Cheese
Many artists say their work is not meant to be seen, but experienced. For two months in 2001, Powell, Wyoming, residents experienced the overwhelming smell of art.
For two months, the quiet serenity of Powell was shredded by the vision of an avant-garde artist who turned an abandoned Wyoming home into one that would make the Muensters blush with its eccentricity.
Cosimo Cavallaro is an Italian Canadian artist who’s built a career out of “sculpting with perishables.”
“I don’t see it as a career,” he told Cowboy State Daily about his art. “To me, it’s been my life.”
While he continues making more traditional art pieces, “sculpting with perishables” has become Cavallaro’s trademark.
He’s covered beds with sliced ham and chairs with candy, but Cavallaro’s most common perishable medium is cheese.
It started modestly enough in 1998 when he covered a chair with cheese for an art exhibition in New York City. In 1999, he covered an entire room at The Washington Jefferson Hotel in NYC with Swiss cheese.
But Cavallaro had a more ambitious project in mind. He decided to “trust the voice in (his) heart” and pursue his grandest artistic cheese-centric vision. And he knew where he needed to go to accomplish it.
“I was looking to go deeper into the process of covering things using cheese, and to follow a voice that played in my mind, which kept saying Wyoming,” he said. “Then it came to me that there would be a house there that I could cover in cheese.”
The result put tiny Powell in the international spotlight and the house Cavallaro covered — inside and out — with more than 6 tons of cheese. Government-surplus pepper jack, because the type of cheese matters.
The Big Cheese
To cover a house with cheese, Cavallaro first had to find a house. Having already selected Wyoming for his pungent piece, he started making calls around the Cowboy State looking for a home sweet home that would soon become a home smelly home.
“I started to look for contractors that had or knew of a house that was going to be demolished,” he said. “l then called the mayor of Powell, and I told him what I wanted to do with the house in question.”
That mayor was James Milburn, who served two terms from 1997 to 2005.
Cavallaro said he braced himself for rejection after explaining his artistic vision to Mayor Milburn.
“There was a pause,” he said. “I thought he had hung up the phone, which always happened, just before I heard a ‘yes.’ The timing could not have been better. He was retiring, and he couldn’t think of a better way to exit his office of mayor.”
Milburn called Sharon Earhart, director of the Powell Chamber of Commerce at the time, to help Cavallaro realize his vision. Earhart eagerly accepted the cheesy challenge.
“When I was hired, my board asked me to plan activities, events and things that would bring people to town,” Earhart said. “When that one happened at our doorstep, it was like, ‘Well, this sounds like a good idea.’ So, we went with it.”
With the mayor and the Powell City Council’s support, Cavallaro found a soon-to-be-demolished house on North Street that was perfect. The small, single-story house would soon be covered with nearly 13,000 pounds of cheese.
The medium for Cavallaro’s creation was government-surplus pepper jack — and a lot of it.
Then in October 2001, he set to work covering the Powell home.
Along with all the cheese, he said he needed some other equipment to make it happen, like “a large container to melt the cheese and pumps to pump it out.”
He credits much of his success to the late Jeff McCoy, a Powell resident and unorthodox ally who helped manage the logistics of Cavallaro’s vision.
“Without the help of Jeff, it could not have happened,” he said. “Jeff had to get his church community to accept it, and his son, Treg, helped convince his father to help me — and God. I was getting closer to God and didn’t know it.”
Pungent Powell
Once the home was smothered in cheese — outside and in — people were invited to step inside and experience it for themselves. The finished effect was a modest American home, with furniture and some personal effects, with a layer of foamy cheese on every inch.
“He had covered the furniture in different parts of the house,” Earhart said. “The inside and the outside. It was just an interesting item to check out.”
Park County Commissioner Scott Mangold took a tour with his family. He recalled a distinctly Western touch Cavallaro included inside the home.
“I was one of many people that went over there to check out cheese house because it had drawn a lot of attention,” he said. “There was a pair of cowboy boots that were covered in cheese that was inside.”
However, the most enduring memory most people have of Cavallaro’s cheese house is the smell. Mangold remembers that more than anything else.
“Once you got inside, the smell was so bad that you had to get out of there,” he said. “I took my young kids there, and they fought to get out of there quickly. That’s one of my fond memories of the cheese house: a very short trip to go inside it.”
Earhart didn’t think the smell was that bad, but concedes it was probably best that it happened in the cool autumn weather of October. The stink of summer wouldn’t have been very gouda.
“It wasn’t really bad because it was cooler weather,” she said. “Some guy wrote to me and said it was the worst smell he’d ever smelled. I guess it’s everybody to their own likes and dislikes.”
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An abandoned house in Powell, Wyoming, was covered in nearly 13,000 pounds of pepper jack cheese by artist Cosimo Cavallero in October 2001. (Courtesy Cosimo Cavallaro)
How It Began
Cavallaro worked as a traditional painter and director for television commercials before he had a life-changing experience on the streets of New York City. He said he was “born again” as an artist after an old man entered his painting studio and offered a hands-on critique of his work.
“The man, with a full head of white hair, looks at the painting and then at me and says, ‘What are you doing?’ ‘Painting,’ I answer. He clamps his hands around my neck and squeezes, choking me, and says, ‘This is what it’s supposed to do.’ He lets go and exits my studio. I understood perfectly what he meant. I scraped the painting,” Cavallaro said.
Heeding the old man’s artistic advice, Cavallaro covered his naked body with white and black paint and rolled across a canvas. Once he “stopped myself from making it look good,” he found a new perspective for his career.
Powell Gets Cheesy
When there’s a cheese-covered house in your community, you capitalize on it. Earhart promptly did just that.
“We incorporated a Cheese Fest at the same time we do Oktoberfest,” she said. “We had a parade where we crowned the King and Queen of Cheese Fest.”
In its mission to collect and chronicle the strange and unusual, Ripley’s Believe It Or Not visited Powell and included Cheese Fest in its feature on the cheese house. It was one of several national media outlets that came to Powell to cover the cheese-covered house.
Earhart’s cheesy memories are pungently positive, but not everyone shares those fond feelings for the quirky creation. Many asked, “O queso, what’s the point?”
“There were some people that thought it was kind of foolish,” she said. “Some people didn’t understand the significance of it. And I possibly didn’t either. But we got a little bit of national attention, and so I found that it turned out OK.”
Mangold recalls some community controversy once Powell residents learned more about Cavallaro’s artistic career.
“It was very controversial artwork that he had put together,” he said. “People were just not happy with some of the visuals they got when they saw some of his other artwork.”
The One And Only
The Powell Cheese House remains a one-of-a-kind piece of art. But it only stood briefly.
“It took a lifetime,” Cavallaro said, adding that it only stood for a short time.
The house selected for Cavallaro’s use was already slated for demolition before it was covered in pepper jack, and the locals weren’t sorry to see it go when it was demolished after a few weeks.
“I think the people who lived in that area were glad when they tore the house down,” Mangold said. “It was the smell that caught your attention, not as much the artwork.”
There is nothing in Powell today referencing the brief existence of the cheese house for visitors. That’s a natural consequence of sculpting with perishables. Eventually, they perish.
Earhart has no regrets. She still remembers the moment fondly and always with a cheesy chuckle.
“At Mayor Milburn’s funeral, they asked us if we had any comments we wanted to make,” she said. “I stood up and said how I enjoyed working on (the cheese house) with him. We decided to take a chance on something that turned out pretty good.”
If there was ever a goal in mind by allowing the art project, Earhart thinks they accomplished it. For those weeks, Powell became a national destination for curious cheeseheads.
“People would stop in at the chamber office and ask us to point them in the direction of the cheese house,” she said. “One lady said she liked to take odd vacations. And when you bring people to town, they spend money in your community.”
It remains the cheesiest thing in the careers of everyone associated with it. And if that smell of success has stuck around more than 20 years later, nobody’s complaining about it. Earhart certainly isn’t.
“We went with it,” she said. “And we’re glad we did.”
As for Cavallaro, he continues to make a permanent mark on the artistic community with his perishable sculptures. The cheese house was as much an experience for him as it was for Powell, and he doesn’t trouble himself over how well-aged its story has become.
“It’s the only cheese house in the world,” he said. “As for its legacy, only time will tell.”
From the perspective of those who had to briefly live with it, the Powell Cheese House is aging much better as local folklore than it did for those pungent weeks in 2001.
Andrew Rossi can be reached at: ARossi@CowboyStateDaily.com
Wyoming
Hoping to draw Colorado interest, construction begins at $80M betting facility in Laramie County
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Foundation work is beginning this week on Wyoming’s next horse betting and gaming house.
The $80 million Wyoming Downs facility in Laramie County, one of two the company is investing in over the next couple of years, is poised to be one of the largest facilities of its kind in the state. The company is aiming for a spring 2027 opening.
The facility will host upwards of 600 historic horse racing machines, Wyoming’s largest TV wall, multiple dining options and more across 58,000 square feet. More land was bought for future hotel development. Commuters driving between Cheyenne and the Colorado border can see clearly from Interstate 25 the expansive development.
That placement along the travel corridor is purposeful, Wyoming Downs and 307 Horse Racing President Kyle Ridgeway said.
“I think that the targeted consumer for this is from Colorado or from the Front Range,” Ridgeway said. “I anticipate we’re going to have plenty of people from Cheyenne come down here to play and enjoy the amenities, but when you look at 600,000 people within a 30-minute drive, that’s what justifies this investment and brings all that tax revenue in from another state, which is fantastic.
“We don’t get the opportunity to do that in Wyoming very often.”
There is still plenty to offer Cheyenne residents besides the facility’s amenities. Ridgeway said in a speech to attendees at the project’s groundbreaking Tuesday, June 2, that more than 150 permanent jobs will be supported by the facility on top of the dozens supported by the companies’ corporate offices and the 400-plus involved in the project’s construction.
Groathouse Construction, a Wyoming business, is the project’s general contractor. Wyoming Downs said it believes putting the project in local hands also helps keep the project uniquely Wyoming-focused.
Ridgeway added the facilities have already proven themselves to be effective tax revenue generators for the local governments. The Wyoming Gaming Commission’s 2025 report, released in late May, shows bettors wagered $2.49 billion on historic horse racing machines last year, a jump from the $2.11 billion wagered in 2024.
Wyoming Downs facilities generate roughly $25 million in taxes annually across the state, and Ridgeway estimated after the ceremony that the upcoming $80 million facility alone will generate an additional $3 million for Laramie County once the property has been in operation for a few years.
Horse betting sites have been increasingly popping up across Wyoming this decade. The Wyoming Downs location will be Cheyenne’s second large-scale horse betting facility since 2024, when the 30,000-square-foot Horse Palace at Swan Ranch opened. Ridgeway said Wyoming Downs is still offering something fresh for tourists and residents.
“This’ll have amenities that Swan Ranch doesn’t have, including the largest TV wall in Wyoming and a pretty super-cool sports viewing area with a restaurant and just a level of finish and class that I don’t think Wyoming has quite seen yet with these types of properties,” he said.
Ridgeway said he thinks resident fatigue with these facilities isn’t as strong as it appears, especially given the tourism benefits of off-track betting.
“Wyoming’s been built on mineral extraction and tourism, and what this is is a touristic facility. I’m not aware of any particular pushback about this specific facility outside of — you see random social media comments where people say, ‘Oh, another gambling facility.’ But where this is located, I think people in Cheyenne have generally been supportive of,” he said.
The Laramie County facility will be just one part of a larger project Wyoming Downs is working on over the next few years. Construction will begin in early 2027 on a similar facility in Evanston looking to draw in Utah and western Colorado crowds.
Some of the company’s current facilities, notably in Casper, Cheyenne and Rock Springs, will see millions poured into renovations as well. New smaller-scale parlors will also go up in Gillette and Green River this year, according to an information packet provided by the company.
More details will come as the construction process develops, Ridgeway said. Details about amenities, such as what the complex’s dining options will look like, remain undisclosed, though Ridgeway promised that options will be “excellent.”
“We haven’t made final selections on what the options are, but we have a number of different options on the table that we’re considering for what we want to offer for the customers,” Ridgeway said. “You have to have something that’s high quality for where this is located. If somebody’s going to drive 25 or 35, or even 45 minutes to come here, they got to be able to sit down and have a quality meal.”
For more information as it becomes available and to learn more about Wyoming Downs facilities and 307 Horse Racing‘s events and offerings, see the companies’ websites. Renderings for the upcoming Cheyenne facility commissioned by the company are available for viewing below.
Related
GILLETTE, Wyo. — Two of the Republican candidates for Wyoming governor, Megan Degenfelder and Brent Bien, went head to head in Campbell County this evening. They both highlighted differences in some areas but agreed on energy, public lands, government oversight, abortion and election security.
Degenfelder, Wyoming’s superintendent of public instruction, introduced herself as “a Wyoming ranch kid whose parents clawed their way into the middle class” and said she believes Wyoming is “worth fighting for” because she believes the Wyoming people’s lives are at stake.
Bien, a retired Marine Corps colonel and combat veteran, pointed to his military career and leadership experience.
“My whole adult life has been about leadership, about principled conservative leadership,” he said. “My objective is to restore principled conservative leadership, accountability and discipline to Cheyenne.”
Nuclear energy
Both candidates supported Wyoming’s role in energy production but opposed bringing outside nuclear waste into the state.
“I do not want Wyoming to be … the permanent repository for spent nuclear fuel. I will not allow that to happen on my watch,” Bien said.
Degenfelder said Wyoming should consider nuclear power as part of its energy future but added, “If it works for us to be able to have nuclear as part of the portfolio, then it has to be right for Wyoming and that is ensuring that we do not accept anyone else’s waste, period.”
Public lands
The candidates also opposed privatization of public lands.
“No one loves public lands more than I do,” Degenfelder said. “You start selling that to the highest bidder, Wyoming loses who we are.”
Bien said he is “absolutely opposed” to federal lands being sold to private interests.
“If they do decide to dispose of it, then we as the state of Wyoming should get first-right refusal at no cost,” he said.
Attorney general and judicial appointments
When asked what each would be looking for in an attorney general and judicial appointment, both candidates called for conservative leadership.
Bien said he would seek an attorney general from outside state government.
“I want a clean set of eyes to look at what everything’s been that’s been going on,” he said. “I want someone who will put people first and it will put Wyoming first.”
Degenfelder said she wants stronger advocacy from state agencies.
“I want a bulldog in not just the attorney general’s office, but in all state agencies,” she said. “I want an attorney general that is so aligned to my mission and vision and what I believe that there’s an amicus brief on my desk the next morning after an action takes place.”
Immigration
Both candidates supported stronger immigration enforcement.
Bien explained he wanted to cooperate with ICE “to the fullest extent possible” and to make sure immigrants who are not in the United States legally would be sent out of the state.
Degenfelder said illegal immigration is already affecting communities in Wyoming.
“If you’re here legally, you got nothing to worry about. If you aren’t, it’s time to go home,” she said.
Energy development and green energy
Energy policy generated some of the sharpest comments of the night.
Degenfelder argued renewable energy projects should compete without government support.
“I’m also an economist and so I’ll tell you the way that you kill these green energy, you make them play on the same playing field,” she said. “No more tax subsidies, no more handouts, ensuring the regulatory environment is just as equal.”
Bien took a firmer stance against renewable development.
“Folks, there’s no place in Wyoming for this green energy,” he said. “I want these things bonded up front and where we’re not paying for these like we did all the gas wells. The answer for me is absolutely, unequivocally no.”
Economic development
Degenfelder argued government should focus on infrastructure such as water and sewer systems rather than directing economic development.
“Government does not create jobs. Private business does,” she said.
Bien echoed that sentiment.
“The only business that government has in business is simply to get out of the way. It’s to cut taxes. It’s to deregulate,” he said. “Right now, we’re turning into state capitalism where we have our own state government picking winners and losers.”
Government audits
Both candidates supported increased auditing of state government.
“This state has not done a full-blown budgetary audit since 1989,” Bien said. “Whoever’s belly-aching loudest is going to get audited first.”
Degenfelder agreed.
“We should be auditing every single state agency, every single budget line all the time,” she said. “Government is a beast, and you need someone in there who can tame it and who knows how to do it.”
Abortion
Abortion was another topic where both candidates expressed strong opposition.
“Life starts at conception and there are no exceptions,” Degenfelder said. “We are now one of the most openly abortion states in the country because of that ruling by the Supreme Court. We’re working against the devil here.”
Bien also opposed abortion.
“Folks, for me, there are no exceptions. Life does begin at conception,” he said.
Election integrity
Bien advocated for hand-counting ballots.
“I am very much a proponent of hand tabulation being the primary method of counting all cast paper ballots and I will push that way,” he said.
Degenfelder called for paper ballots statewide.
“Every single ballot should be a paper ballot,” she said, adding that she supports “banning dropboxes.”
Republican platform
Both candidates pledged support for the Wyoming Republican Party platform.
“80% is a no-brainer, and we need to require that out of our elected officials,” Degenfelder said.
Bien said he expects to be held to “100%” of the platform.
“The party’s been co-opted. You have to have an ‘R’ behind your name to win in this state,” he said.
Candidate priorities
During a segment where candidates selected their own discussion topics, Degenfelder highlighted school choice, career and technical education, removing pornography from school libraries and protecting Wyoming’s water rights.
Bien focused on education and agriculture, criticizing student proficiency rates and proposing policies aimed at strengthening Wyoming’s agricultural industry, including declaring agriculture critical infrastructure and reducing regulations on small butcheries.
Technology and education
Although technology and its place within education was not discussed during the debate, County 17 asked both Degenfelder and Bien their thoughts regarding student technology in schools.
Bien said technology is being used too much in classrooms and is making it harder for students to think on their own.
“What it’s doing is it’s dumbing down our kids,” Bien said. “Our kids aren’t learning how to critically think anymore. They go straight to one of the AI things and it generates an answer for them.”
Degenfelder said she backed a bill to ban cellphones during instruction time.
“I supported a bill that came through the legislature a couple of years ago that actually would ban cell use during instructional time, and I stand by that,” Degenfelder said. “I think that it’s appropriate to take cellphones out of classrooms, and what we find is that kids thrive.”
Closing statements
In closing remarks, Bien emphasized his experience as an outsider candidate.
“I am the only outsider in this race, but I am the only one who’s got an inordinate amount of leadership experience,” he said. “Folks, you deserve a government that you can trust.”
Degenfelder pointed to her endorsements from President Donald Trump and U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman.
“I get asked a lot, ‘How did you get the Trump endorsement?’” Degenfelder said. “The answer is really simple. I earned it.”
Alongside other candidates, Bien and Degenfelder will be competing for support in Wyoming’s Republican gubernatorial primary Aug. 18.
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