City to begin Bridge Street widening project in early August

City o cials kicked o a long anticpated widening project on Bridge Street July 27, working to create a four-lane roadway between 22nd Avenue and 42nd Avenue.

e $19.5 million project is expected to be complete by Spring 2025.

Bridge Street is one of the City of Brighton’s most traveled corridors, accommodating an average of 20,000 vehicles per day, according to a city statement. e current single through-lane road will be expanded to two through-lanes of travel in both directions.

In addition to widening opera- tions, crews will be installing raised medians and turn lanes, implementing new curbs and gutters, replacing four tra c signals, making Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant curb ramps and sidewalk improvements, and upgrading utilities. ese improvements are expected to reduce tra c congestion, create safer and more accessible travel paths for multimodal users, and enhance the functionality of several intersection locations.

“Improving the Bridge Street corridor is something that has been in the works for many years,” said City Manager Michael Martinez. “I am pleased to be here with you today as we o cially kick o a project that will pave the way to a brighter, more accessible future for our residents and commuters.”

Project Schedule

e project timeline is dependent on weather and resource availability and is subject to change. Normal working hours will be from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Crews may work on weekends as needed throughout the duration of the project. Work will be broken into three phases over the course of the project.

In the rst phase, crews will remove old pavement and work to widen the roads and make upgrades to utility lines.

e second phase will see work, bution center on Bromley Lane. e 775,000-square-foot building would be home to 332 net new jobs in Brighton with an average annual wage of $68,516. e Colorado O ce of Economic Development and International Trade announced in June that VSK Energy Inc. would expand into Brighton, bringing as many as 900 new jobs to the area. e company makes solar photovoltaic modules for energy-collecting solar panels. e company plans to move into the 76 Commerce Center, a row of warehouses along Interstate 76 just north of Brighton’s 160th Avenue, in 2024. ose two new projects join Vestas Blades’ manufacturing plant just north of the city. Danish-based manufacturer Vestas-American Wind Technology announced in 2021 plans to layo 280 workers at the East Crown Prince Boulevard location.

“ is company has faced a lot of

Our Family Helping Your Family

Don was born January 27, 1931 in either Trinidad or Branson, CO, depending on which document you read. He was the eldest of 3 brothers, Leo and James and his parents were James and Mabel Cummins. He grew up in Branson, where his Dad was postmaster and his Mother was homemaker and later a teacher. ey moved to Hoehne, CO in his junior year. He graduated from Hoehne High School while also working as a cowboy on the Box Ranch.

Don started college at Colorado A&M (now CSU) in 1948 as an Agriculture major, specializing in soils and geology. He joined Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity where he helped put himself through school by working in the frat house. It was at Colorado A&M in 1949 that he met his beloved wife, Dorothy Dexter in a chemistry class. ey were married for 23,096 days before she passed away in 2014. Don passed away on July 21, 2023 in Greeley, CO.

After Don and Dorothy married in 1950, Don worked as an oil eld seismologist for 8 years during which time they moved 25 times (CO, ND, MT, WY, NE, SD) before Don went back to school at Colorado State College (now UNC), graduating with a Social Studies degree (minor in Science) in 1959.

eir 26th and nal move was to Fort Lupton in 1959. He interviewed with Mr. Butler, superintendent of the Ft. Lupton Schools and his rst position was as a 7th grade teacher. In his second year he moved into the business services administrator for 20 years, managing the facilities, grounds, buses, food services, and special programs such as summer school for the migrant farmworkers’ children, the BOCES program and collaborated with Greeley’s Aims Community College to provide uncertainty over the years as Washington has kind of gone back and forth on incentives,” Sen. Bennet said. “But now it’s going to spend $40 million to upgrade its Windsor and Brighton factories where it manu- needed courses in the Fort Lupton area.

In 1980 Don joined the sta of Aims Community College and helped establish their South Campus in Ft. Lupton, overseeing the building of the campus facilities east of town. He was Dean of the Fort Lupton campus from 1981 until he retired in 1992.

When Don and his family settled in Fort Lupton, he became more and more engaged in the great community they called home. A man of many hats, literally and guratively. Literally as Don made numerous humorous presentations to organizations and, to the delight of his grandkids, at school classes telling stories and wearing the hats he collected over the years. Figuratively as Don (or “Mr. C” as he was known throughout the area) was an active participant in community and civic organizations.

Don and Dorothy were members of the First United Methodist Church of Ft. Lupton and served many roles in the church. Don was part of a group that created a summertime recreation program for the city, initially bringing opportunities for swimming, rollerskating, baseball, arts & crafts and trips to the movies for community youths, running it until the city took over in 1991. He worked with the Ft. Lupton Housing Authority for 28 years and was chairman for 24 of those years. He served on the Ft Lupton Community Education Council, the Ft. Lupton Chamber of Commerce working with the Ft. Lupton City Council and Ft. Lupton Development Corporation to bring in more jobs to the city. He was also Mayor of Ft. Lupton from

1983-1987, working with the city government to improve city services and the lives of its citizens. In 2017 he was awarded the Quiet Disciple Award by the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church in recognition of his service to Ft. Lupton and the Ft. Lupton Methodist Church.

Don served on the Ft Lupton Planning Commission that developed the rst Comprehensive Plan as well as assisting in community improvements such as the Coyote Creek golf course, two re stations and raised money for the Jane DeDecker bronze statue at Ft. Lupton Public & School Library. He served on the Fort Lupton boards of the Japanese American Citizens League, e American GI Forum, the Fire Protection District (he was a radioman for the re department for 8 years) and the Arts Council as well as a member of the Rotary, Optimist, Kiwanis, and Lions Clubs. He was a long-time regular at the Friday morning Men’s Prayer Breakfast.

Don helped with the “One Fund” (now the United Way of Weld County) and led the establishment of Centennial Developmental Services, Inc (now Envision). He served on the Weld Crime Stoppers and Victims Assistance group, the Weld Energy Impact Team and Weld Private Industry Council. He was on the board of directors for United Power for 10 years and the board of directors for the Greeley Hospital (now Banner North Colorado)

Above all, rst and foremost, Don was a family man whose greatest joy was his wife, kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids as well as his extended family as Uncle Don. His hobbies included reading, watching TV sports (his favorite was women’s college basketball), attending the sports and activities of his kids, grandkids and great-grandkids, playing family card games and pulling weeds in his ower garden. Don was also known for his outstanding collection of socks. e Cummins family thanks the Fairacres Manor of Greeley, CO, Accent Home Care and Hospice Care and Dr. Martin McDermott and sta for their professional care and treatment of our Dad, Grandpa and GreatGrandpa over the last few years”.

Don is survived by his 5 children and spouses, 11 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren - Cheryl (Cummins) and Jerry Peden, Sarah, Crystal; Jim and Christie Cummins, Justin and Hilary Cummins (Walden, Arthur), Tyler Cummins and Adam Yates; Mark and Chris Cummins, Amber and Jody Irsik (Nevaeh, Olsen), Nathan and Jennifer Cummins, Devin Cummins, Spencer and Jen Cummins (Ellie); Jill (Cummins) and Joe Bailey, JoJo and Kris Grano (Owen, Nora), Jana and Mike Baguskis (Dexter, Andee), Jacki Bailey; Polly Cummins.

Celebration Of Life

Saturday

August 12, 2023

11:00 AM to 12:00 PM Fort Lupton High School 530 Reynolds St. Ft. Lupton, CO 80621

In lieu of owers or gifts, please consider donating to the Cummins Care Scholarship fund, administered through the Weld Community Foundation (website, www.weldcommunityfoundation.org)