Welby, Colorado

Welby is a CDP in Adams County, Colorado, United States. It is not an incorporated town. However, it is included in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colorado MSA. According to the 2010 United States Census, 14,846 people lived in the Welby CDP. The area is serviced by the Denver Post Office 80229.

General Welby, a railroad official, inspired the town’s moniker.

With a total land area of 2,432 acres (9.841 km2), the Welby CDP also includes 60 acres (0.244 km2) of water.

The United States Census Bureau first established the Welby CDP in 1970.

WELBY — Restoring the historic and mysterious Welby Manor on 77th Avenue and York Street is a labor of love for Melissa LaRusso and her family, third- and fourth-generation Welby settlers.

The pink brick two-story home has lain empty for decades. But, since its construction in 1890, it has had many owners.

We knew the house was a landmark in Welby when we bought it,” LaRusso said. “It’s been here for a very long time, and anyone familiar with the neighborhood will immediately think of the old house on York Street, but they won’t know much about it.”

LaRusso, along with her parents, husband, brother, and sister, is involved in the commercial land development business started by her grandparents in the 1950s under Center Land Company. Center Land purchased Welby Manor and the adjoining 11 acres of unused farmland in June 2014. Don’t forget to learn about Wheat Ridge, Colorado here too.

LaRusso and the other members of the Welby Heritage Foundation (established in 2012) are researching the manor’s history in the hopes of opening it as a museum dedicated to the town of Welby.

The foundation’s Robin O’Dorisio described the situation as “a bit of a mystery.” After doing some research, we learned that the house was constructed in what is now Arapahoe County. We’re still looking into the origin tale and want to locate people willing to contribute as much as they know about it.

Welby Business Park, a campus of four 30,000-square-foot industrial and distribution warehouse buildings, will occupy the remaining portion of the land and is available for lease as construction continues. In May, we expect to see the completion of the first two structures.

However, Welby Manor’s renovation is the project’s central focus.

Even though “whole new modern buildings” are being built, LaRusso emphasized the need to highlight the front house. We want the house to reflect the intense feeling of community that permeates the neighborhood.

The Welby Heritage Foundation claims that the railroad established the community in unincorporated Adams County around the turn of the century, making it 120 years old. After Arthur E. Welby, the first vice president of the Denver, Laramie, and Northwestern Railroad Company, the town was named Welby in 1909.

Until 1960, Welby was the primary vegetable-growing location in Adams County, populated by Italian immigrants and farmers. Its current boundaries are roughly four square miles, located north of Interstate 76, east of Interstate 25, south of 88th Avenue, and west of the South Platte River.

The manor house at Center Land’s headquarters was repaired a few weeks ago. Workers on the project have already fixed the roof’s crown molding and removed the wooden shack attached to the original kitchen. However, funding for interior renovations is now being sought through grants and donations, and no plans for renovations are in place for at least two years.

Adams County commissioners approved a subarea plan for the Welby hamlet in May 2014, outlining expansion opportunities and infrastructure upgrades that the 15,000-person town could handle.

According to Adams County’s director of long-range and strategic planning, Abel Montoya, the proposed “Welby Business Park” is consistent with the subarea plan because it also seeks to rejuvenate the area by bringing in new jobs through industrial uses. In addition, they hope to preserve Welby’s past by turning the old schoolhouse into a community center.

As for how much money will be needed to fix up the manor, that number has yet to be discovered, but according to Montoya, the county may be able to look into other funding options.

As LaRusso put it, “the manor is the heart of Welby, and we want to preserve that as the foundation and use it to bring the community back and commemorate the community that has passed away.”

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