Commerce City officials broke ground recently on the new North Range Police Substation, which is expected to open in early 2028. Among those celebrating was Mayor Steve Douglas, who voted against funding it at nearly every opportunity.
“This substation is an investment in that future,” Douglas told the crowd, adding that it will bring officers closer to the city’s northern neighborhoods, which currently sit nearly 8 miles from police headquarters at the Civic Center.
It was a fine sentiment–just wasn’t the one he expressed in 2025, when the council approved a $16.3 million appropriation from the city’s general fund in a string of 5 to 4 votes, ending with final passage of Ordinance 2723 on Nov. 3, 2025. Douglas voted no each time, as did Mayor Pro Tem Susan Noble and then-Council members Renée Chacon and Kristi Douglas. Had one of the five yes votes wavered, Thursday’s ceremony would have been a groundbreaking for nothing at all, and Commerce City’s northern neighborhoods would still be waiting on officers driving in from 8 miles away.
City Manager Jason Rogers thanked the City Council for its leadership on the project, a compliment that should only have applied to five council members, including Charles Dukes, Rocky Teter, Craig Kim, Oscar Madera and Sean Ford.
Apparently Douglas did come around eventually. In April 2026, once the money was secured and the outcome was no longer in doubt, he joined a unanimous vote to rezone the site.