Northwest Colorado Cultural Heritage Program

Background Statement

From the beginning, the NWCCHP initiative has been a grass roots effort. In the fall of 2004, a group of citizens with an exuberant passion for heritage and historic preservation, as well as a keen perspective of "community," began their journey to assess the potential of cultural heritage tourism in Northwest Colorado. The Yampa Valley Economic Development Council worked with Judy Walden, a specialist in heritage tourism from Walden Mills Inc. Ms. Walden made an on-site visit to each of the ten communities and found that "The region is rich in all asset categories for tourism-- historic, cultural, natural, recreational, archaeological and scenic." Further Ms. Walden noted in her that the region has "rich assets which provide two essentials of cultural heritage tourism - authenticity and experience."

In 2008 Colorado Tourism Office and History Colorado provided reginal funding to formalize cultural heritage tourism programs. Colorado’s Northwest region was position to advance this compelling imitative. The first two years were use to develop a comprehensive master plan and produce a marketing product that exemplified the intent of the stakeholders to share the stories of people and place of the region. In 2010 the program expanded to include Garfield County along with Routt, Moffat, Rio Blanco and Jackson Seventeen communities continued to benefit from the leadership and technical assistance provided by the NWCOCHP program and its lead coordinator. A new regional brochure was produced – individual community story cards and a community gateway signage project for all of the communities were initiated. This led the stakeholder group to realize the 100% complete of the original master plan goals. After more than five years of fiscal agency through the Community Agricultural Alliance, Northwest Colorado Cultural Heritage Program formed an independent nonprofit organization.

The past 10 years have yielded incredible success in several key areas of programming.

1- Interpretive signage for the region has been the fastest growing program. within 6 months, NWCOCHP completed the research, content development and fabrication of 75% of the communities gateway signs for the region. More work needs to be done to meet the 100% goal.

Partnering with area heritage organizations, site-specific interpretive signs have been developed: Moffat Avenue in Yampa, honoring the Hotel Egeria which had recently burned , - Hahns Peak Fire Tower - Steamboat (More) Barn the Arnold Barn, Spring Creek Park, Borrows Chair lift at Howelsen Hill and the Historic Steamboat Depot sign. NWCOCHP has also facilitated the team to replace damaged interpretive signs for the new Camp Hale Continental Divide National Monument on the Top of the Rockies Scenic Byway - CO HWY 24 near Leadville.

2- Film was an important part of our 2019 programming. NWCOCHP spearheaded the digitization of the original Film of Dawson Ranch - now known as the Carpenter Ranch. Copies of the digitized film were gifted to Hayden Heritage Center, The Nature Conservancy, Historic Routt County and the Tread of Pioneers Museum.

The NWCOCHP Short Video program lagged behind a bit but the trailer for "Energy in Northwest Colorado" was completed.

3- Partnership in historic preservation has been a keen effort of NWCOCHP. First, working closely with a citizens group from the town of Yampa, an interpretive brief to fulfill the desire to have direction on developing an interpretive/visitor center at the newly restored Crossan's Market. Secondly Pro-Brono services were provided to complete a grant application for a State Historical Fund Historic Structure Assessment grant for the subsequent rehabilitation project for St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Steamboat Springs’ Old Stone Church. In Garfield county, a partnership with the Roraing Fork School District was formed to assist in the facilitation and grant management for the rehabilitation of the Historic Canyon Creek School House

4 – In 2020, as was the case with so many nonprofits, funding dried up for program projects. It was intended that the NWCOCHP would lead the working group for the new region to identify linkages of cultural, recreational and natural resources in an expanded region that now includes communities in Grand County. AS COVID ravaged the country and programs struggle, the Colorado Tourism Office adjusted priorities and worked diligently to provide consultation and economic recover funding for these regional efforts. This allowed NWCOCHP to focus on a single project; facilitate the update of the over 20 year old corridor management plan for the Flat Tops Trail Scenic Byway. NWCOCHP leadership applied for a University of Colorado Master in Environment Capstone Project team to execute the research and development of the plan. The application was successful, and a team was formed to initiate the work. After nearly a year of work, the plan was completed in late 2022. Since the plan was complete, difficulties with personnel to implement were encountered. Now, in 2024, the process to develop an organizational structure and stakeholder group to review and implement the plan is finally initiated. This along with a recent photo shoot of the Byway at the height of one of the most beautiful falls in recent memory will allow for reinvigorated public education and marketing product development for the Flat Tops Trail Scenic Byway!