Boulder County Road of Remembrance

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 26-1022

BY REPRESENTATIVE(S) Brown and Joseph, Bacon, Barron, Boesenecker, Bottoms, Bradfield, Bradley, Caldwell, Camacho, Clifford, Duran, English, Espenoza, Froelich, Garcia, Garcia Sander, Goldstein, Gonzalez R., Hamrick, Hartsook, Jackson, Johnson, Keltie, Lieder, Lindsay, Lukens, Mabrey, Marshall, Martinez, Mauro, McCormick, Nguyen, Paschal, Phillips, Richardson, Rutinel, Sirota, Slaugh, Smith, Stewart K., Stewart R., Story, Suckla, Taggart, Titone, Valdez, Weinberg, Willford, Winter T., Woodrow, Zokaie, McCluskie; also SENATOR(S) Amabile and Wallace, Baisley, Benavidez, Bridges, Bright, Carson, Catlin, Cutter, Daugherty, Exum, Frizell, Gonzales J., Hinrichsen, Jodeh, Kipp, Kirkmeyer, Kolker, Lindstedt, Liston, Marchman, Mullica, Pelton B., PeltonR., Rich, Roberts, Rodriguez, Simpson, Snyder, Sullivan, Weissman, Zamora Wilson, Coleman.

CONCERNING THE DESIGNATION OF ARAPAHOE ROAD FROM THE INTERSECTION OF U.S. ROUTE 36 TO THE INTERSECTION OF U.S. ROUTE 287 AS THE "ROAD OF REMEMBRANCE".

WHEREAS, The Armistice ofNovember 11, 1918, ended the fighting of World War I; and WHEREAS, In the years that immediately followed 1918, civic, veterans, and governmental groups in Boulder County, Colorado, began planning a "Road of Remembrance" to honor veterans from Boulder County who had served in the military during World War I; and WHEREAS, The Road of Remembrance was intended to begin north of Lafayette, Colorado, at the intersection of Arapahoe Road and the then-named Lincoln Highway, which is known today as United States Route 287, and travel west to the City of Boulder; and

WHEREAS, In 1928, with funding raised by the Lions Club of Boulder, work began on the "Gateway" for the Road of Remembrance; and WHEREAS, The Gateway, also known as the "Pillars", featured two large stone pillars on either side of the intersection of Arapahoe Road and United States Route 287; and WHEREAS, The Pillars were intended to serve as a powerful entrance to the Road of Remembrance and featured a plaque from the Lions Club of Boulder honoring local World War I veterans; and WHEREAS, In April 1928, ground was broken for construction of the Pillars, and more than 1,000 people attended the dedication of the Gateway in June 1928; and WHEREAS, Shortly after the dedication of the Gateway, officials built an adjacent park to help beautify the entrance to the Road of Remembrance; and WHEREAS, Although the Pillars remained, the Great Depression and the years that followed halted progress on the Road of Remembrance, and the Road was never formally recognized or completed after initial efforts began following World War I; and WHEREAS, Over time, the Pillars and the surrounding land fell into disrepair, with a lack ofroutine maintenance leading to deterioration; and WHEREAS, For many Boulder County residents, the Gateway still serves as a reminder of the sacrifice of World War I veterans and is a key landmark in the community; and WHEREAS, To maintain the integrity and upkeep of the stone Pillars during ongoing construction projects in Lafayette and to preserve the promise to honor Boulder County veterans, a working group, in conjunction with the Colorado Department of Transportation, is coordinating the relocation of the Pillars to the southwest comer of Arapahoe Road and 95th Street in Lafayette; and

WHEREAS, Although the Road ofRemembrance was never formally recognized as a memorial roadway during the early years of its planning, the spirit of the initial project lives on in the civic, veterans, and governmental organization members who are working, over 100 years later, to safeguard this chapter in history; now, therefore,

Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Seventy-fifth General Assembly ofthe State ofColorado, the Senate concurring herein: (1) That the portion of 007C (Arapahoe Rd.) from U.S. 36 (MM 52.29) to U.S. 287 (MM 60.683) be designated as the "Road of Remembrance"; (2) That the Colorado Department of Transportation may accept and expend gifts, grants, and donations for the purposes of the initial placement of signs to mark the designated section of Arapahoe Road as the "Road of Remembrance"; and (3) That the Colorado Department of Transportation may explore a cooperative agreement with the appropriate authorities of Boulder County for the maintenance of the markings for the "Road of Remembrance".

Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Resolution be sent to the Transportation Commission of Colorado, the Office of Transportation Safety within the Colorado Department of Transportation, and the Boulder Rotary Club.

Julie McCluskie SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

James Rashad Coleman Sr. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE

Vanessa Reilly CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Esther van Mourik SECRETARY OF THE SENATE