Broomfield

The municipality of Broomfield was incorporated in 1961 in the southeastern corner of Boulder County. While it is unsure how it received its name, most researchers guess it’s from the broomcorn grown in the area, a tall sorghum that farmers sold for use as brooms and whisk brooms.

Over the next three decades, the city grew through annexations, many of which crossed the county line into three adjacent counties: Adams, Jefferson and Weld. In the 1990s, city leaders began to push for the creation of a separate county to avoid the inefficiencies of dealing with four separate court districts, four different county seats, and four separate county sales tax bases. It also had longstanding political differences with Boulder County which impelled it to separate. Broomfield reasoned that it could provide services more responsively under its own county government, and sought an amendment to the Colorado State Constitution to create a new county. The amendment was passed in 1998, after which a three-year transition period followed. On November 15, 2001, Broomfield County became the 64th, newest, and smallest county of Colorado. It is also the newest county in the United States.

Broomfield is located at 39°55′55″N 105°3′57″W (39.931817, -105.065919).

The elevation in Broomfield ranges from 5,096 to 5,856 feet. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 34 square miles (88 km2), of which 33 square miles (85 km2) is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2) (1.7%) is water. It is the smallest county by area in Colorado and the 5th smallest in the United States. Broomfield is the second most densely populated county in Colorado behind Denver.

Broomfield has a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk). The city seems to have a unique microclimate within the metro area. Of the 54 days each year that Broomfield reaches 90 °F (32 °C) or higher, approximately 8 of those days are 100 °F (38 °C) or warmer. In comparison, Denver sees just 31 days of 90 °F (32 °C) temperatures. Broomfield also experiences 8 fewer days of weather below 32 °F (0 °C) than Denver each year. The USDA lists Broomfield as a city within the 6a plant hardiness zone.

In the 1990s, Broomfield and other area suburbs experienced tremendous economic growth, much of it focused in technology.

The Flatiron Crossing Mall is a large shopping and entertainment center, anchored by Nordstrom, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Macy’s, and Best Buy.

The Broomfield Enterprise is the local newspaper.

Level 3 Communications, Ball, Vail Resorts, MWH Global, Webroot, Noodles & Company, WhiteWave Foods and Mrs. Fields are headquartered in Broomfield.

Since Broomfield used to be divided among four counties, students living in the city were served by the separate school districts for their county. While the city is now united within one county, the city is still separated among multiple school districts.

There are five school districts that overlap Broomfield, but the two largest school districts in Broomfield are Adams Twelve Five Star Schools and Boulder Valley School District.

Broomfield features two large public high schools (Broomfield High School, which underwent significant renovations from 2009 to 2010, and Legacy High), two public middle schools and eight public elementary schools. There are three private schools: Broomfield Academy, with an academic preschool, an elementary school and a middle school; Holy Family, a Catholic high school; and Nativity of Our Lord Parish, a Catholic elementary school. Broomfield also contains two K-12 charter schools, Prospect Ridge Academy, and Front Range Academy, which has two Broomfield campuses.

Notable individuals who were born in or have lived in Broomfield or both include:

Mark Boslough, physicist
Drew Brown, musician, guitarist in the bands OneRepublic and Debate Team
Dianne Primavera (1950), Colorado state legislator
Anna Prins (1991), basketball center
Vince Russo (1961), pro wrestler
Steve Schmuhl (1993), swimmer
Dennis Taylor (1953), journalist, author, radio personality
Mike Wilpolt (1968), football wide receiver, defensive back, coach
Cat Zingano (1982), bantamweight MMA fighter