The City of Westminster is a

home rule municipality Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territories ...

located in Adams and Jefferson

counties A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

, United States. The city population was 116,317 at the

2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

with 71,240 residing in Adams County and 45,077 residing in Jefferson County. Westminster is the eighth most populous city in Colorado. The city is a part of the

Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area Denver is the central city of a conurbation region in the U.S. state of Colorado. The conurbation includes one continuous region consisting of the six central counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson. The Denver r ...

and the Front Range Urban Corridor. The Westminster Municipal Center is located north-northwest of the

Colorado State Capitol The Colorado State Capitol Building, located at 200 East Colfax Avenue in Denver, Colorado, United States, is the home of the Colorado General Assembly and the offices of the Governor of Colorado and Lieutenant Governor of Colorado. History ...

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

History

Gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

discovered in the South Platte River Valley in 1858 brought national attention to the area that would become Westminster, Colorado. The promise of fortune and The Homestead Act of 1862 encouraged many pioneers from the east to settle in

rather than continue on to California. Before the settlements came, wildlife like antelope and buffalo made their homes in the area. There is also evidence of

Arapaho The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. By the 1850s, Arapaho ba ...

Indians near the Crown Point (Gregory Hill) area. Westminsters' first permanent settler was Kentucky farmer Pleasant DeSpain, who built his home in 1870 on 160 acres (near what is now West 76th Avenue and Lowell Street). The area became known as DeSpain Junction and attracted other settlers including Edward Bruce Bowles, who in 1881 constructed a brick

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian ...

house now known as the Bowles House. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. The village of DeSpain Junction grew into a small farming community and continued to attract new settlers despite the difficulty of farming in Colorado's arid climate. Connecticut real estate developer C.J. Harris arrived in DeSpain Junction in 1885 and purchased the DeSpain farm, among others. Harris combined the separate homesteads and divided it into smaller tracts of land, which he sold to fruit farmers. Harris renamed DeSpain Junction with his own name and the area was referred to as Harris, Colorado. In 1890, New Yorker Henry T. Mayham convinced the Denver Presbytery to build a university on land that he owned in Harris. After delays caused by the

depression of 1893 The Panic of 1893 was an Depression (economics), economic depression in the United States that began in 1893 and ended in 1897. It deeply affected every sector of the economy, and produced political upheaval that led to the political realignmen ...

, the school was built from red sandstone quarried in Colorado's

Red Rocks Red Rocks Amphitheatre (also colloquially as simply Red Rocks) is an open-air amphitheatre built into a rock structure in the western United States, near Morrison, Colorado, west of Denver. There is a large, tilted, disc-shaped rock behind th ...

region. The curriculum was patterned after Princeton University and was referred to as the "Princeton of the West". The school was incorporated as Westminster University of Colorado, and classes began in 1908 with one year's tuition costing $50 ($1,411 in 2018). The school ceased operating in 1917, when all students in attendance left to fight in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In the following decade it operated as a church and school. In 1911, Harris voted to incorporate as a city and changed its name to Westminster, in honor of the university which is now on the National Register of Historic Places. In July 2006, it was ranked as the 24th best place to live in the US by ''

Money Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are as ...

'' magazine.

Bell Tower

Westminster City Hall features a 14-story bell tower topped by a pyramid shaped steel mesh structure. The 130-foot spire, which is widely known and referenced as a community landmark, was first conceptualized as a symbolic tie and tribute to the clock tower of

Westminster Palace The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parli ...

in England known as Big Ben. The unveiling of the Bell Tower in 1986 was attended by the then mayor of Westminster, England. An

English Oak ''Quercus robur'', commonly known as common oak, pedunculate oak, European oak or English oak, is a species of flowering plant in the beech and oak family, Fagaceae. It is a large tree, native plant, native to most of Europe west of the Caucasus ...

can be seen on the City Hall property today- a gift to Westminster, Colorado, from Westminster, England.

Geography

Westminster is located in western Adams County and northeastern Jefferson County at (39.862, -105.048). It is bordered to the north by Broomfield, to the northeast by Thornton, to the east by Northglenn and Federal Heights, to the southeast by Sherrelwood, Twin Lakes and Berkley, and to the south by

Arvada Arvada () is a home rule municipality located in Jefferson and Adams counties, Colorado, United States. The city population was 124,402 at the 2020 United States Census, with 121,510 residing in Jefferson County and 2,892 residing in Adams Cou ...

. At the

, the town had a total area of including of water. Regional-map-1-1024x1024

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 100,940 people, 38,343 households, and 26,034 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 3,203.9 people per square mile (1,236.9/km). There were 39,318 housing units at an average density of 1,248.0 per square mile (481.8/km). The racial makeup of the city was 84.19%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 1.23%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.74% Native American, 5.48% Asian, 0.08%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 5.52% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 2.76% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 15.23% of the population. There were 38,343 households, out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.15. In the city, the population was spread out, with 26.9% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 36.0% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 6.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $56,323, and the median income for a family was $63,776. Males had a median income of $41,539 versus $31,568 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $25,482. About 3.1% of families and 4.7% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 5.1% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Westminster is intersected by several state highways:

I-25 Interstate 25 (I-25) is a major Interstate Highway in the western United States. It is primarily a north–south highway, serving as the main route through New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. I-25 stretches from I-10 at Las Cruces, New Mexic ...

US 36 U.S. Route 36 (US 36) is an east–west United States highway that travels approximately from Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado to Uhrichsville, Ohio. The highway's western terminus is at Deer Ridge Junction, an intersection i ...

US 287 U.S. Route 287 (US 287) is a north–south (physically northwest–southeast) United States highway. At long, it is the second longest three-digit U.S. Route, behind US 281. It serves as the major truck route between Fort Worth and A ...

, SH 95, SH 121, and SH 128. The Denver

Regional Transportation District The Regional Transportation District, more commonly referred to as RTD, is the regional agency operating public transit services in eight out of the twelve counties in the Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area in the U.S. state of Col ...

(RTD) provides bus service to Westminster connecting it to Boulder and Denver via

The Flatiron Flyer ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

, a bus rapid transit service that travels in the US 36 express lanes. The Westminster Center park-n-Ride operated by the RTD is located on both sides of U.S. 36 and is immediately across Sheridan Boulevard from the site. Approximately 1,546 people per weekday board at this facility, with approximately 498 buses per day serving this park-n-Ride. RTD opened th
B Line
to the public in 2016 which brings commuter rail service between downtown Denver and Westminster Station. The 6 miles of commuter rail transports riders from the historic center of Westminster to the dynamic Union Station Transit Center where they can connect to the C/D, E, and W light rail lines, the University of Colorado A Line to Denver International Airport, as well as Local and Regional buses, and the FreeMallRide and FreeMetroRide downtown shuttles. Westminster is served by Denver International Airport and nearby Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport.

Economy

Companies based in Westminster include

DigitalGlobe DigitalGlobe is an American commercial vendor of space imagery and geospatial content, and operator of civilian remote sensing spacecraft. The company went public on the New York Stock Exchange on 14 May 2009, selling 14.7 million shares at US ...

and the

Western Fuels Association The Western Fuels Association is a $400 million consortium of coal suppliers and coal-fired utilities based in Westminster, Colorado. Western Fuels Association supplies coal and transportation services to consumer-owned electric utilities in t ...

Top employers

Westminsters' top employers represent leading companies in high-tech, medical, energy, and other expanding fields. In 2019 the top ten primary employers in Westminster, ranked by number of employees included:

Education

High schools in or near Westminster include the Academy of Charter Schools, Hidden Lake High School, Jefferson Academy High School, Legacy High School, Mountain Range High School, Northglenn High School, Pomona High School, Standley Lake High School, and Westminster High School. In 2010

Adams County School District 50 Westminster Public Schools is a public school district located in extreme southwestern Adams County, Colorado, United States. The district serves the southeastern portion of the City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a city and bor ...

opened a new Westminster High School replacing both the existing Westminster High School and

Ranum High School Iver C. Ranum High School was a Public school (government funded), public secondary school operated by Adams County School District 50 near Westminster, Colorado, Westminster, Colorado, United States, from 1961 to 2010. The high school was locate ...

, which graduated its last class that year. Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran School is a pre-k3 through 8th grade Christian school of the

Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), also referred to simply as the Wisconsin Synod, is an American Confessional Lutheran denomination of Christianity. Characterized as theologically conservative, it was founded in 1850 in Milwauke ...

in Westminster.

Open space

Westminster has an extensive trail network and open space system. The highlight of the trail system is the Big Dry Creek Trail which extends approximately from the eastern boundary of the city to Standley Lake. Other trails parallel the Farmers' High Line Canal, Walnut Creek, and Little Dry Creek. Westminster began preserving open spaces in 1985 when voters first approved a sales tax specifically earmarked to acquire and maintain open space. The city now owns more than 3,000 acres in all parts of Westminster. The city has preserved large expanses of land in th
Standley Lake Regional Park
and the Westminster Hills area, among others. Westminster City Park
City Park Recreation Center
and many other neighborhood and community parks provide various recreation facilities. Westminster has several golf courses, including Legacy Ridge Golf Course, The Heritage Golf Course at Westmoor, Walnut Creek Golf Course and the Hyland Hills golf course. Downtown Westminster intersects directly with the new U.S. 36 Bikeway linking the largest trail system in the Front Range with over 145 miles.https://www.westminstereconomicdevelopment.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/CombinedInfographic_022619.pdf

Shopping

Westminster is home to The Orchard Town Center, an outdoor mall featuring over 90 speciality retailers, dining and entertainment located at the intersection of I-25 and 144th Avenue The Orchard Town Center mall is anchored by an AMC theatre, JC Penney, and

Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...

The city's major mall had been the Westminster Mall, demolished in 2012 to make way for the Downtown Westminster development.

Downtown Westminster

Downtown Westminster is a 105-acre site almost equidistant between downtown Denver and Boulder. The new downtown will feature 18 acres of parks and public space. It integrates

Smart City A smart city is a technologically modern urban area that uses different types of electronic methods and sensors to collect specific data. Information gained from that data is used to manage assets, resources and services efficiently; in retur ...

functionality to reduce consumption of water and energy and will have smart streetlights, parking garages, and meters. Development began with the completion of over 300 housing units, including 118 affordable housing units. Downtown Westminster features a now-open

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is an American cinema chain founded in 1997 in Austin, Texas, which is famous for serving dinner and drinks during the movie, as well as its strict policy of requiring its audiences to maintain proper cinema-going etiq ...

and a 125-room boutique hotel, th
Origin Hotel
with an opening, slated , to be possibly July 2020. The Origin Hotel will offer corner suites overlooking Downtown Westminster, a fully equipped fitness center, an independent restaurant concept and 3,000 square feet of meeting space. Downtown Westminster is planned to house 300 hotel rooms, 2,300 multi-family, condo and townhouse residential units, 2 million square feet of collaborative and class A office space, and 750,000 square feet of retail space.

Notable people

Notable individuals who were born in or have lived in Westminster include figure skater Mariah Bell,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

newspaper publisher

Frank Willis Mayborn Frank Willis Mayborn (December 7, 1903May 16, 1987) was an American philanthropist, soldier, newspapers editor, publisher and broadcaster. He is best known for the crucial role he played in Bell County, Texas, Bell County and Temple, Texas, Templ ...

, silent film actor Pete Morrison.

References

External links

City of Westminster official websiteCDOT map of WestminsterWestminster Historical Society
{{authority control Populated places established in 1859 Cities in Colorado Cities in Jefferson County, Colorado Cities in Adams County, Colorado 1859 establishments in Kansas Territory