Human remains found in dumpster; police investigating

Commerce City police detectives are investigating after what appeared to be human remains were found in a dumpster in the 7000 block of 88th Avenue.

Joanna Small, the police department’s public information officer, told the Post Thursday morning that there were no new updates as the investigation remains ongoing.

Small said a flea market employee discovered the remains on Tuesday, prompting officers to immediately search all of the dumpsters at the site.

The remains were “pretty significantly decomposed” when they were found.

The police department said in a social media post Tuesday afternoon that an update will be posted as more information about the investigation becomes available.

— Jessica Alvarado Gamez, The Denver Post

Council may end two-hour free parking in Old Town

A proposal to abolish free two-hour parking and institute paid metered parking in Old Town Fort Collins is sparking spirited public reaction.

City Council members will discuss the issue at an Aug. 11 work session during which public comments aren’t permitted.

The city seems to be leaning toward transitioning from free on-street and surface-lot parking, a policy that has been in force in Old Town for more than 60 years, to paid metered parking in 2027 or 2028.

— Dallas Heltzell, BizWest

Longmont resident has West Nile virus

Boulder County health officials announced Tuesday that a Longmont resident was infected with the West Nile virus after being exposed to an infected mosquito. The case is the county’s first confirmed in a human this year.

The person likely was exposed to an infected mosquito at a Longmont home and has recovered, according to a Boulder County Public Health news release.

Just two other people have been affected by the virus in Colorado, one in Larimer County and another in Jefferson County, according to the state health department data, which was last updated Wednesday.

— Celia Frazier, Daily Camera

City has broken ground on new police building

With a groundbreaking ceremony that took place this week, Broomfield’s new police department building is has a budget of about $85 million and is slated for completion at the end of March 2028.

The new space, at the southeast corner of DesCombes Drive and East Third Avenue, is expected to be a two-story, 85,000-square-foot building for the Broomfield Police Department, according to a July 14 City Council meeting.

Currently, the police department shares its main building with Broomfield’s court facilities.

— Corbett Stevenson, Broomfield Enterprise

Fire restrictions extended through early September

Larimer County commissioners voted Tuesday to extend fire restrictions through the rest of the summer as continued drought conditions and high temperatures pose risks of wildfires.

The decision further extends restrictions put in place in early May and extended later that month.

The restrictions, which limit campfires and backyard fire pits and grills, as well as activities like smoking or welding near vegetation, apply to unincorporated areas of Larimer County. The current restrictions were due to expire at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday and were extended unchanged until Sept. 8.

The decision comes after a bone-dry June and early July, which have seen less than half an inch of total precipitation in the county.

— Will Costello, Reporter-Herald