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Woods cuts ribbon for Flat Tops Bridge

Heidi Rice
Citizen Telegram Editor
(Left to right) Gregg Rippy with Garfield County Federal Mineral Lease District, which helped to fund New Castle’s new bridge, Garfield County Commissioner John Martin, Apple Tree Park resident Glenn Woods and Mark Gould, president of Gould Construction and contractor on the bridge project, cut the ribbon and officially opened the Flat Tops Bridge and the Talbott Trail on Saturday afternoon. The trail now connects the north and south ends of town and provides increased safety for pedestrians.
Heidi Rice / Citizen Telegram |

NEW CASTLE — For nearly 18 years, Glenn Woods has been walking from his home in the Apple Tree Mobile Home Park along County Road 335 and crossing the bridge over the Colorado River and Interstate 70 to get to his job at City Market.

So it was only fitting that Woods lead the charge Saturday afternoon for the official ribbon cutting and dedication ceremonies of the new Flat Tops Bridge and Talbott Trail.

“This is a joyous date. Today will be the first day I walk across the new bridge,” Woods said. “Sometimes I get a ride, but if not, it can take me an hour to get from my house to work and then from work back home.”



But he wasn’t complaining.

“The one good thing about it is that it’s good exercise for your legs and for cardio,” he said with a smile.



But he does think the new bridge and trail will make his trek safe.

Mayor Bob Gordon kicked off the ceremony, thanking the numerous people — from the Garfield County Commissioners to the Federal Mineral Lease District, town council and many others who were involved in helping to bring the project to fruition. There were more than 200 people at the event.

“This is a great event for the town and for the safety of the people of our community,” Gordon said. “Over 1,800 people cross this bridge and it’s going to be a great connection.”

The bridge, which was built by Gould Construction, is named “Flat Tops Bridge” after the area’s most prominent geological feature and the trail name is “Talbott Trail,” honoring the Talbott family who owns Apple Tree Mobile Home Park. The Talbott family have made significant contributions to the community, including letting a portion of the trail cross their property.

Greg Russi, a former longtime town councilor was instrumental in organizing the bridge project, as was former mayor and now town councilor, Frank Breslin.

“What is a bridge?” said Commissioner Mike Samson. “It’s more than something that gets people from point A to point B. It’s friendship, communication and understanding. There are a lot of people who came together to make this happen.”

Russi thanked everyone who contributed funding for the more than $2 million project and joked about asking all the different agencies for money.

“You must have felt like we thought you were Santa Claus,” he said with a laugh. “We did think you were Santa Claus. But this bridge is a way for us to meet that other side half way. We are all bridge builders. Some of these connections that we will make are just as strong as the cement that was poured.”


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