By the Numbers: Broomfield’s Winter and Holiday Services

By Kristen Beckman

The City and County of Broomfield provides a variety of services to help residents celebrate and enjoy the holiday season and stay safe on the roads each winter. Following is a behind-the-scenes and by-the-numbers look at how Broomfield is working for you this winter.

Photos by Pat Eichner

14 Snow Clearing Machines

This winter, you can count on Sleetwood Mac, Sled Zeppelin, and Buzz Iceclear to help keep you safe and mobile on Broomfield’s roads. Those are the names of three of Broomfield’s 14 snow plows named during a community contest earlier this year. From nearly 500 suggested names, 14 were chosen, including Catch My Drift, Edward Blizzardhands, and Han Snowlow.

Though the names are lighthearted, their job is a serious one - clearing driving lanes of snow and ice during snowstorms. Statistically, Broomfield averages about 18 storms per year, said Geoff Wells, superintendent of Broomfield Street Services. The past two winters have been above average, with 23 storms during the 2019-2020 season and 21 storms during the 2020-2021 winter season. Broomfield’s snow plow drivers average between 35,000 and 75,000 miles of driving per season, Wells said.

Photos by Pat Eichner

If you’ve ever wondered why certain streets are plowed while others aren’t, it’s because there is a priority system and certain criteria that the city uses, which you can read about on its website. For instance, snow is only cleared from residential streets if there is four inches or more of accumulation on roads.

There are a few things residents can do to ensure their own safety around the plows and help snow clearing operations get done efficiently. First and foremost, said Wells, stay off roads unless it’s an emergency during snowstorms, especially severe ones, and try to avoid leaving cars parked on roadways during storms. If you must drive, give plows a wide berth and don’t assume the driver can see you, said Wells.

127,500 Festive Lights

Months before Christmas, the city begins preparing for its holiday festivities, including its annual Holiday Tree Lighting, which is scheduled to take place December 3 this year. Kay Gazaway, the city’s Community Events Coordinator, said planning the event includes:

Photos by Pat Eichner

• Coordinating with the North Pole to arrange Santa’s visit to Broomfield

• Working with North Metro Fire Department to give Santa a fire truck ride to the event

• Ordering 700 freshly baked ice box cookies from Enchanted Oven Bakery to give away

• Coordinating with elementary music teachers across Broomfield for musical performances

• Hiring professional carolers to lead group caroling

• Partnering with the Parks Department to arrange hay wagon rides

• Coordinating with City Hall, Broomfield Police, and the city’s Streets, Facilities and Parks and Recreation teams to create the event.

In addition to the tree lighting ceremony, the city also decorates the Broomfield Community Center, the library, the Bay, the Health and Human Services building, the Depot Museum, the Paul Derda Rec Center, Midway Park, Hobo Park, Community Park, Brunner House, the police department, courts and detention center buildings, and mall bridges. Lighting work begins at the end of October when crews begin checking lights and installation starts early in November.

About 40 staff members spend 2,000 hours and use three aerial lifts to install and remove approximately 5,100 strands of lights - or about 127,500 bulbs, 27 free-standing decorations, and 32 wall washers that shine on the side of the HHS building.

8 Tree Recycling Drop Offs

When the holiday festivities are over and it’s time to take down decorations, the city will recycle your Christmas tree. There are eight drop-off locations for holiday trees that will be open from December 18 through January 9, said Chuck Gehringer, arborist/forester for the City of Broomfield. The drop-off locations are at Bronco Park, Broadlands Park West, Lac Amora Park, Community Park Ball Fields, Broomfield Recycling Center, Meridian Park, Anthem Community Park and the Tree Branch Recycling Facility.

Crews make several sweeps among the sites, each collecting about 200 cubic yards of chip during the holiday season. The city will collect any live holiday trees for recycling and asks residents to remove stands, lights, and ornaments before dropping their tree off. Wreaths, garland, and yard waste are not accepted at the drop-off sites.

The holiday recycling program is part of a year-round service the city provides to residents that allows them to bring tree branches, leaves, and other materials in for recycling. The Forestry Department performs two grinds per year, producing three types of mulch for the city and residents to use in their gardening and landscaping projects, Gehringer said. Throughout the year, the city takes in more than 22,500 cubic yards of material that it converts to usable mulch, some of which is distributed at shrub beds and around trees throughout the city.