CENTER – Cole Webb sat in his office on Friday morning, June 28, with a huge welcoming smile. Webb is rightfully smiling, as he has plenty to be excited about. Webb was hired as the new City Manager of Center.
Originally from Ohio, Webb moved to Center with aspirations of helping Center keep its steady focus, and helping the town with growth, and with their economy.
Webb is no stranger to what he calls “public service,” stating that the first time he ran for a position in “public service,” was when he was a teenager.
“When I was 17 years old, I ran for a local public office in my area, as a trustee,” Webb said. “I was elected when I was 18, because legally you have to be 18 to be elected for a public office position in the state of Ohio. I was also fortunate enough to be elected as the youngest state official in the state of Ohio, too.”
Webb was trustee for eight years. Webb didn’t stop there.
“I went on to run for the State Township Association, which is a state organization that is basically over all townships in the state of Ohio. The county had a vote, and I was lucky enough to be elected to that, and I held that position until I came here,” he said.
Webb’s inspiration for wanting to be involved in public service came from someone very special in his life.
“I credit my want to be involved in public service, to my grandpa. He was a justice of the peace and county sheriff, in a neighboring state in West Virigina. I very much looked up to him, and what he did for his town,” Webb said.
Webb said that he has a cousin who was a county commissioner, and he has a cousin who is currently the Speaker of the House in Ohio. Webb feels like he comes from a long line of family members who strongly believe in civil service.
“My family really believes in this and trying to help different communities,” he said.
Webb said that his reason for moving from Ohio was for the job in Center, but he also moved because he loves Colorado.
“Growing up we did vacation at the beach, but we also went to the mountains in Colorado. I always knew that this was the place that I wanted to end up. When the Town Manager job came up, I took the chance and applied for it. I was selected, and now I am just so happy to be here,” he said.
Webb said while it is a big change to move from Ohio to Colorado, he does love Colorado.
“I had the Appalachian Mountains where I was from, but here, I have rolling hills,” he said with a chuckle. “It is very different, this is honestly a very beautiful place though, and I am really excited to live and start my life here.”
Now that he is here, one of Webb’s central focus items for the Town of Center is to work on keeping people in the town.
“I come from a big economic development background. A really big project that is being worked on currently, here in Center, is the North 90 Project. A big focus of mine is really trying to establish this thing.”
Webb said that the project is an important part of keeping people in Center.
“We want to be able to keep our youth here. We don’t want our youth to move to Denver, or anywhere else. A lot of that depends on this project. I want to make it a big focus of what I am doing here,” Webb said.
The North 90 Project began a few years ago, as a patch of raw land, about 90 acres worth, just north of the Town of Center. There is a plan to expand Center’s infrastructure with this project, creating more affordable housing, and helping with the rehabilitation and reconstruction of current unoccupied homes.
Webb said that the ground has been laid to start on the project, by the current economic development coordinator.
“Today is unfortunately his last day here, but he has done a great job on starting the development process on this, so very soon we will see where it goes,” Webb said.
Another thing Webb is looking at for the town, is a senior center. Webb said that the previous Town Manager did a study and found that a lot of people in Center were interested in a senior center.
Webb said that his overall vision for the Town of Center is to help everyone stay rich in their culture and stay strong in their sense of community and beliefs.
“Center is unique. It a very close-knit community. I think that it’s important that we keep that feeling in the town. I work for everybody; I work for the whole community. My overall vision for the community is to keep that hometown feel. We have people in the community who have small local businesses, we have artists. I want people who are coming in to Center to see how great the community is, and what they can offer the Valley. We have some of the friendliest people in the Valley here. I want to keep the culture alive in the Town of Center and help people to embrace their agricultural and cultural beliefs. We need to keep that hometown feel here, that is my vision for Center.”
Webb is excited about his new position and extended his thanks to the community for being so accepting and welcoming to him. He said he would like everyone to know that his door is always open, and he is happy to extend a helping hand to anyone who would like to speak to him about anything.
“I am excited to be here, and help the community grow. I am all about inclusiveness too. Let’s embrace our differences and enjoy our beautiful community together,” Webb said.
