While rehabilitation of Evanston's roundhouse complex is the grandest effort, other Wyoming communities also have found new uses for old Union Pacific Railroad buildings.

The former depot in Cheyenne houses the Cheyenne Depot Museum. It includes such businesses as the Cheyenne Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Downtown Development Authority, and the Snake River Pub and Grill, according to the museum Web site.

In Laramie the depot is used for community functions like weddings and parties. Paul Harrison, Laramie's director of parks and recreation, said the building is not open all the time, but "almost every weekend, there's something going on."

Harrison said the land adjacent to the depot has been leased from UP for a city park since the 1960s. The plan is to bring together several pieces of railroad equipment, including a steam locomotive now at LaBonte Park.

Rob Godby, chairman of the Laramie Railroad Depot Association Board, said plans for the future include creating a museum dedicated Laramie's railroad history.

Ownership of the building is being transferred from the parent board at the Laramie Plains Museum to the Depot Board; the building was transferred from UP to the Laramie Plains Museum in 1985.

Godby said the land under the depot is leased to the Depot Board on a 100-year basis for $1 a year on condition that it remains in its current use.

In Rawlins, the renovated depot is used as a community center and as Downtown Development Authority/Main Street office space. UP currently uses the Green River depot as office space.

Business Editor Tom Mast can be reached at tom.mast@trib.com, or call 307-266-0574. Or check out his "Two Bits Worth" blog at tribtown.trib.com/TomMast/blog