The Sweep Report: A look at key indicators, trends and needs in Broomfield, Colorado, USA, is now available online! It’s the first-ever publication of its kind, devoted specifically to the City and County of Broomfield, Colo., and is the fruition of more than a year of interviews, research, writing and editing.
I created The Sweep Report in partnership with co-author, Karen Smith, executive director of The Broomfield Community Foundation, without whose support and encouragement this final version would have been a shadow of its current self, if anything worth sharing at all. Its 68 pages include a initial section on Broomfield’s history, a section on Broomfield’s demographics, environment, housing, economy, education and community life, and a final section on how Broomfield might approach the future in light of its past and present. As we wrote in the introduction:
“We began this project hoping to learn more about the ‘areas of greatest need’ in Broomfield. While the process of creating The Sweep Report has certainly heightened our appreciation for the best Broomfield has to offer, it’s also compelled us to shed light on the relatively few, but vital areas in which we’re not living up to our high standards. These include a lack of affordable and transitional housing, and an inability as a community to fully address the realities faced by our neighbors in need.”
I’ve already had the privilege this year of presenting our findings to several community groups, not as a final word as to the character and unique needs of Broomfield, but as a preliminary word on areas that deserve serious and concerted attention. I look forward to the many collaborative and creative ways our community — represented by local non-profits, government agencies, faith communities, businesses and everyday citizens, alike — will respond to and engage with the issues raised in the report.
After a limited number of printed copies have been distributed to various members of the Broomfield community, interested readers will be able to order additional printed copies of The Sweep Report for a small fee via the Broomfield Foundation’s website. In the meantime, read the report online or download it as a PDF.
