City Council, Supporting Coyotes, and What Preceded the Railroad Museum

February 23, 2021

Golden Eye Candy – Robert Saieg – Cold Golden Night – click to enlarge

COVID Updates

19.8%

% of Jeffco residents (16+) who have received the first shot – source

Appointments to Get the COVID Vaccine (Eligibility)
State of Colorado’s Find Out Where You Can Get Vaccinated page
Safeway | King Soopers | Lutheran Medical Center | JCPH Clinic in Arvada (70+ only)

State Hotline to answer questions, including location of vaccine providers: 1-877-268-2926. It is staffed 24 hours a day.

Golden Testing Sites
Mines COVID Testing | Jeffco Fairgrounds COVID Testing

Dial-Level-Yellow

Jefferson County is at Level Yellow. Learn more….

Jefferson County Case Summary:
Cases in Jeffco – Fri: 36,437| Mon: 36,688 (+51)
Deaths in Jeffco –
Fri: 738 | Mon: 746 (+8)
Currently Hospitalized in Jeffco –
Fri: 43| Mon: 42 (-1)
Known Cases in Golden –
Thurs: 1478 | Mon: 1488 (+10)
Recovered –
Fri: 34,772 | Mon: 35,066 (+294)

More Public Health References
School of Mines COVID-19 case page. | Sign up for exposure notifications | CDC | Colorado | Jefferson County | City of Golden


Virtual Events

Backcountry Film Festival Runs Feb 15-March 1

7:30-8:30AM Coffee Connections with the Chamber – Tree Care!
10:15AM Toddler Time with the Library
6-7PM Recursos Digitales
6:30PM City Council Regular Business Meeting
City Council will meet early, at 5:30, to provide the annual review of the municipal court judge. This is an executive session and done off-camera. The regular business meeting will begin at 6:30.

The consent agenda includes items that will be approved without discussion unless one of the councilors ask that an item be discussed. Tonight’s consent agenda includes a request to change a public works employee from part time to full time; approval of the annual concrete replacement contract ($900,000), and approval of a contract to create a design to make West Colfax a “complete street” (more pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly) at a cost of $1.4 million. This last item is being matched with a grant from the state for $5.6 million.

They will read a proclamation naming March 1st as COVID-19 Memorial Day, in honor of the victims and survivors of the pandemic.

They will hear a staff briefing regarding the possibility of allowing retail marijuana in Golden. Citizens rejected allowing marijuana sales in 2014, but the issue continues to be discussed in board and commission meetings because such sales would generate sales tax revenue.

They will review the City’s Special Events Policy as well as the policy for permitting downtown businesses to use sidewalks and parking lanes as extensions of their businesses.

The business meeting will be followed by another executive session, this time to review the City Attorney.


Real World Golden

11AM Chow Down For the Coyotes!
The Buffalo Rose is hosting a fund-raiser for Shelton Elementary. Enjoy a meal today–either dining in or take-out–from 11AM-9PM. Either way, the Buffalo Rose will donate 15% to Shelton Elementary PTSA. View the menu.


Golden History Moment


Rocky Mountain Railroad Club on the final run of the Denver & Northwestern from Denver to Golden – Golden History Museum collection – click to enlarge

The Rocky Mountain Railroad Club was formed in the late 1930s. As the narrow gauge mountain railways were closing down, this group made a point of riding them one last time. They even bought some of the rolling stock from the dying railroads.

They did the same thing when the interurban railways ended service in 1950. They were there for the final trips, and they bought one of the cars.

The club hoped to found a railroad museum, so the history of Colorado’s railroads would be preserved and interpreted.


Contributors to Lions Park – click to enlarge

During the 1950s, several clubs in Golden were working to fix up the area on the north side of Clear Creek (now Lions Park). The Kiwanis Club built the camp ground. The Optimists built a playground. The Lions installed baseball diamonds, The DAR installed picnic tables. The City built a swimming pool.

This seemed like the ideal time and place to build a railroad museum. It’s common to see locomotives or railroad cars in city parks. The Rocky Mountain Railroad Club had several prime specimens that they offered to contribute to Golden’s new park: “an engine, a railroad car, a caboose, and a street car” with more to follow (Colorado Transcript – October 2, 1952). The Club brought the idea to City Council, and council was very supportive.


Early photograph of Bob Richardson’s railroad museum (now the Rocky Mountain Railroad Museum) – Golden History Museum collection – click to enlarge

Meanwhile, in Alamosa Colorado, Bob Richardson had a similar goal. He too was acquiring retired railroad equipment and was building a museum. In 1958 he decided to relocate to Golden. He purchased property on 44th Street and moved his rolling stock and priceless railroad artifacts from Alamosa to Golden.


Advertisement from the May 4, 1961 Colorado Transcript – click to enlarge

This was a welcome event for the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club. They abandoned thoughts of trying to build their own museum and instead helped Richardson with his. The members helped lay track and set to work refurbishing the old cars and engines. Over time, they donated several pieces of railroad equipment to the museum. The Colorado Railroad Museum recently celebrated 60 years in Golden.


Many thanks to the Golden History Museum for providing the online cache of historic Transcripts and to the Golden Transcript for documenting our history since 1866!