Broomfield undergoes a year of change in 2021

Dec. 26—2021 was a busy year in Broomfield. From mayoral and City Council elections to the police chief announcing his retirement and a replacement being named, the past 12 months not only shaped the year that was but also saw a glimpse of what's ahead in 2022.

Here is a look at 10 stories — plus a few more — that marked the year 2021:

Castriotta elected mayor, progressive council voted in

Guyleen Castriotta was elected Broomfield's mayor in November, almost six months after she took hold of the seat on an interim basis after the resignation of outgoing mayor Patrick Quinn.

Castriotta received 12,334 votes (52.3%) from the voters compared to 11,262 votes (47.7%) for fellow councilmember Kimberly Groom.

That wasn't all, however.

Constituents also voted in an entirely progressive City Council with James Marsh-Holschen (Ward 1), Austin Ward (Ward 2), incumbent Devin Shaff (Ward 3), Bruce Leslie (Ward 4) and incumbent Todd Cohen (Ward 5) being elected. Cohen had previously been voted onto the board to fill the vacancy left when Castriotta was chosen by the City Council to fill the mayoral vacancy.

Mayor Quinn resigns

Patrick Quinn unexpectedly resigned as Broomfield's mayor in May, six months before his term was scheduled to end.

Quinn, who was in his second tenure as mayor as he previously had been elected in 2007 and served three terms, called the decision the right choice for his family, according to a news release from the City and County of Broomfield.

"I took on more than I anticipated with COVID. It just came down to I was tired, and I just wanted to move on to the next phase of my life," Quinn told the Enterprise in May.

Quinn, who has a bachelor of science degree in accounting from Colorado State University, spent almost four decades serving Broomfield, be it on the City Council or as mayor. He was elected mayor for the second time in 2019.

Broomfield — the county that is — turns 20

On Nov. 15, 2001, Broomfield became more than just a city. It became a county as well.

Founded in 1877 and incorporated 60 years ago, Broomfield took the next step toward more independence for its 70,000-plus residents.

It became the 64th county in the state and the first since Alamosa County was formed in 1913.

And in the past 20 years, growth in Broomfield has been hard to ignore, from transportation on U.S. 36 to housing developments galore from Interlocken to Arista to points in between to the more than 4,000 businesses that call Broomfield home.

Broomfield, as a city and county, may have only 34 square miles, but with development in the past two decades, such as the opening of FlatIron Mall in 2000 among others, it is growing by leaps and bounds.

Broomfield police chief announces retirement, replacement named

Gary Creager, who has served as Broomfield's police chief since 2014, announced his retirement in June after 40 years in law enforcement.

He will step down Jan. 11.

"For the past seven years, I have worked alongside my team to ensure a strong foundation for the Broomfield Police Department, both culturally and operationally," Creager told the Enterprise in June. "It was always my goal to leave this team in the best place possible to ensure continued high-level service for the Broomfield community."

Creager, a Colorado native, came to Broomfield after previously working for the Arvada Police Department.

In mid-December, Antonella "Enea" Hempelmann, Broomfield's deputy chief of operations, was chosen out of three finalists to replace Creager. A 25-year law enforcement veteran, Hempelmann will start Jan. 12 with a swearing-in ceremony scheduled for the following week.

Plane parts shower over Broomfield

A Boeing 777-200 airliner headed to Honolulu from Denver International Airport in February experienced engine failure, leading to loud booms and plane parts scattering from the sky over Broomfield.

The plane was able to make an emergency landing at DIA but not before the United Airlines aircraft dropped portions of its engine into people's yards, on vehicles and into Broomfield County Commons Park, where area soccer teams were practicing at the time.

The National Transportation Safety Board in early March stated that the plane's right engine caught fire and two blades were fractured.

"It rained down for minutes. We were looking to see where the plane crashed. We didn't have a clue," Broomfield resident Kirby Klements told the Enterprise days after the incident. "It was a good 20 or 30 minutes before we found out the plane was headed back to DIA."

No injuries were reported.

The plane was carrying 241 passengers and crew members.

Two fatal Broomfield shootings within a month

Twice in a month, Broomfield was the scene of a pair of fatal shootings.

On Sept. 25, 19-year-old Trevor Woodruff was arrested in connection with a shooting outside a Walgreens that left one person dead and two others injured. Authorities later confirmed that Javier Garcia Jr., 19, was shot in the chest and head and died later at a local hospital.

Woodruff was charged with first-degree murder, two counts of attempted first-degree murder and two counts of assault.

On Aug. 26, 22-year-old Joseph Maestas-Sanchez was arrested on suspicion of two counts of first-degree murder, aggravated motor vehicle theft and other charges in connection with the shooting death of 71-year-old Michael Lewis in the Sunridge neighborhood.

Investigators said Lewis interrupted Maestas-Sanchez as he was trying to enter unlocked vehicles in the area.

Business marijuana licenses a no-go

Getting a business license to sell cannabis in Broomfield remains a no-go.

The Broomfield Marijuana Licensing Authority has extended a pause in the licensing process through Jan. 24.

The Broomfield City Council initially approved the sale of retail and medical marijuana in March with the licensing process beginning in May. Applications were then accepted over the summer. However, the city paused the process in October to give staff time to reassess applications following "considerable feedback about the process," according to a news release from the city.

Terrapin Care Station filed a lawsuit against Broomfield's city and county clerk, along with 16 of 25 applicants in September after the city didn't disqualify several entities from the licensing process who submitted multiple applications.

A public hearing and second reading of revised ordinance No. 2170 are scheduled for Jan. 11 with the Broomfield City Council.

Broomfield addresses COVID concerns and a return to some normalcy

The battle against COVID-19 was a continuous one in Broomfield during 2021, but the community was among one of the most prevalent in battling the pandemic.

Broomfield ranked among the top 10 counties in the state in getting individuals 12 and older vaccinated. Of those residents 65 or older, Broomfield paved the way in Colorado with almost 100% of residents being vaccinated.

That success rate in itself played a major role in Broomfield returning to a sense of normalcy in the past year with the return of Broomfield Days, the Fourth of July celebration at Broomfield County Commons Park and other activities.

And though Broomfield followed several other communities in the metro area in requiring masks or proof of vaccine to enter city and county buildings, the county didn't mandate it in all indoor public spaces, such as businesses.

The health order requiring masks or showing proof of vaccination in city and county buildings ends at the end of the year.

Broomfield copes with homelessness

Tents spotted in Broomfield open space earlier this year led to City Council and the community to discuss how to respond to such encampment and to find ways to help individuals who are homeless in the area.

During the summer, Broomfield staff started to develop an approach to tackling homelessness in the community that would include "a Broomfield-centric strategic framework, capitalizing on regional partnerships, community engagement, a focus on proactive prevention, wraparound services, access to affordable/attainable housing" and more, according to a city memo read during an early September study session.

The Broomfield Housing Authority, which seeks "to progress affordable housing projects and policies," is expected to begin work early next month.

144th, Dillon Road project completed

Sept. 30 marked a milestone day 15 years in the making for Broomfield. The Dillon Road and 144th Avenue project was completed.

Finally.

Master planning for the project began in 2006, but city staff, on the final day of September, was able to finally celebrate the project's finished product with a ribbon-cutting.

From bike lanes to turn lanes at intersections and center medians, the project finalized a four-lane arterial roadway section on Dillon Road and West 144th Avenue from U.S. 287 to Zuni Street. It also led to the creation of a 10-foot multi-use path from Sheridan Boulevard to U.S. 287. New traffic signals, landscape and waterline and storm draining improvements were also part of the long, drawn-out process.

Three more for a baker's dozen

As if those 10 stories weren't enough, here are three more that shaped Broomfield in 2021:

— In October, the Broomfield City Council approved redevelopment of a portion of FlatIron Crossing Mall that would take 34 acres of underutilized space to develop office space, multi-family residential developments, a hotel, restaurants and structured parking.

— Broomfield voters approved ranked-choice voting during the November election. The ballot issue passed with 52% of voters in favor. The new process will allow voters to rank candidates. The candidate with the fewest votes will be eliminated with the process continuing until one candidate has the majority of votes. It will be implemented in time for the November 2023 municipal election.

— What a year for high school sports. Broomfield High School's girls soccer and gymnastics teams won 5A state championships, while at Holy Family, its girls soccer and softball teams took home trophies in 4A.