Triceratops, Two Rivers and the top accomplishments of 2023

Pops the Triceratops returns home

After more than two years being studied and restored, Pops the Triceratops returned home to the Weld County Administration Building in April.

The return of Pops was made official with a “Weld” come home party that drew interest from the community as well as local media and featured dinosaur-themed cupcakes, many other dinosaur-themed items and the unveiling of the new and improved pops.

“Not every county is fortunate enough to have its own fossil,” said Weld County Commissioner Chair Mike Freeman. “The gift of the fossil from the Mappelli family to the residents of Weld County is truly unique.”

Two Rivers Parkway officially reopens

Two Rivers Parkway reopened in July after numerous maintenance improvements were made to the road, which has an average daily traffic rate of more than 9,000 vehicles.

The Weld County Department of Public Works worked to strengthen the five-mile road, by replacing culverts and rebuilding the driving surface. This involved rebuilding the north and side of the road from its base with a higher-grade asphalt, which is designed to help a driving surface last 25 years before major maintenance is needed. Bridge improvements were also part of the project and were completed in September.

County pushes for transparency, data in ozone policies

In March, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis submitted a troubling letter directing state agencies to impose further regulations on the oil and gas sector to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides, or NOx, a precursor to ozone. Regrettably, Gov. Polis’s letter misleads state agencies and the public by incorrectly asserting, “it is estimated that oil and gas extraction activities are responsible for almost half of total ozone in the Denver metro area.” Governor Polis’s claims run contrary to publicly available data from the Regional Air Quality Council (RAQC) — data specifically developed by experts using state-of-the-art modeling tools to evaluate how much each source contributes to ozone.

The Governor’s letter came not long after Colorado’s Air Pollution Control Division (APCD) and the RAQC reinitiated stakeholder meetings to address ozone in the North Front Range (NFR) in January 2023. Weld County has actively engaged with the RAQC and participated in their Control Strategy Committee and working group meetings since their inception in September 2021 and has provided concrete suggestions at the APCD’s listening sessions last year. As a vested partner, Weld County also submitted a letter to the RAQC and APCD in January providing specific, actionable recommendations to optimize ozone control strategy development in 2023.

“Weld County strongly recommends that any data being used to inform the development of control strategies — particularly data used for public-facing communications — be provided to stakeholders for review and verification prior to making decisions about control strategy needs, or worse, proceeding without an understanding of the efficacy of the controls,” said Dr. Annareli Morales. Weld County Environmental Health Specialist, during a RAQC board meeting in April.

A new, improved CodeRED webpage

Ahead of a May 9 all-call testing the CodeRED emergency alert system throughout Weld County, a new CodeRED webpage was launched, aimed at better explaining the benefits of the service and answering many frequently asked questions about it.

“This webpage will serve as a tremendous resource in helping people register for CodeRED and in helping them understand how it works and in what situations they’ll be alerted,” said Roy Rudisill, Director of the Weld County Office of Emergency Management.

The webpage features information about how the service works and its importance, detailed instructions on registering and a widget allowing visitors to see details of recent CodeRED alerts issued. Learn more at www.weld.gov/go/CodeRED.

Small Business Incentive Program reaches milestone 

In January, the Weld County Board of Commissioners awarded funds to K-9cation, making it the 25th small business to receive money from the county’s Small Business Incentive Program since its inception in 2014.

K9cation, a dog boarding, training and daycare facility was awarded $20,000 to help offset permitting and land use application fees.

To qualify for the program, businesses must be located in unincorporated Weld County and 50% of staff must reside in Weld County for a period of one year. Program funding is used to help small businesses offset permitting and land use applications. Funding amounts are based on a three-tier system with $40,000 being the maximum amount a business can receive. To date, more than $400,000 has been awarded to small businesses throughout the county.

“The program’s goal is to support the entrepreneurial nature of small businesses,” Weld County Commissioner Mike Freeman said. “Helping them save money related to land use, building permit and impact fees is enormously helpful as it allows capital assets to go directly into the business, not fees. We’re happy the program continues to be successful, and we encourage more small businesses who want to locate in unincorporated Weld County to take advantage of it.”

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! William A. Cannon knew that very well. He was Greeley’s electrician in the 1950s and ’60s. He also oversaw lighting city buildings each Christmas. Read more at https://history.weldgov.com/County-150/Your-Stories/William-A.-Cannon.  

In 2023, County Roots broke the 5,000-subscriber mark! Thank you to everyone who reads and/or subscribes to this newsletter. We look forward to telling many more great stories in 2024!