Justin Delap

By Will Cornelius
The Surveyor

Justin Delap grew up in tiny a town in central Wyoming with a population of less than 500 people. “Very, very small town,” says Delap, a native of Baggs, Wyo. which is 41 miles north of Craig, Colo. across the state border.

Since then, he has moved around Wyoming, Arizona and Colorado before settling in Berthoud with his family. Delap calls the town a “hidden gem” and says he was drawn to Berthoud because of its small-town feel.

After attending the University of Wyoming, Delap began a career in the oil and gas industry where he is now a Surface Leader for Houston-based Occidental Petroleum.

A newcomer to the political scene, Delap believes the skills he has learned in the private sector will appeal to voters. He says his leadership expertise and ability to get the most out of people are key to his approach. “Being able to listen to your people and bring them in,” is vital according to Delap. “It’s knowing how to handle it and still be fair and just and diverse and not basically trying to exclude anybody.”

Delap says he approves of the job current Mayor Will Karspeck has done as well as the town’s direction in general. “He’s been doing a really good job,” Delap says about Karspeck’s tenure.

Delap explains that he sees the role of mayor as not just another town board seat, but as someone who brings people in and works in collaboration with other trustees. However, he thinks he has something to offer too and is, “Wondering if I could bring in something a little different.”

Asked why he did not consider running for a Board of Trustee spot or try to get on another municipal body, like the town’s planning commission, Delap says “I feel the mayor can have the biggest influence to make changes.”

According to Delap, the biggest challenges facing Berthoud are water quality, keeping crosswalks safe, preserving open spaces and of course—managing growth.

“Growth keeps things alive, but it also needs to be watched,” Delap explains. He says it is a challenge, “Anywhere in the Front Range is really,” with the question boiling down to, “How should Berthoud manage growth?”

For Delap he says the focus needs to be on the long term and ensuring that infrastructure and services are being built, not just new homes. “Say you want to put this development in—well, this road is going to have heavier traffic so you need to mitigate it. Why should the city have to eat the costs because you wanted to develop 30 acres? You need to be able to look at the plans and be able to handle it.”

One specific area Delap wants to address is improving the crosswalks in Berthoud, particularly on Mountain Avenue. “The thing I think we could really do is add more signage,” Delap states. For him, it is a part of keeping small-town connectivity alive. He would like to see more crosswalks with lights, like the one adjacent to Hays Market.

Improving the viability of crosswalks is also a safety issue he says. Delap worries about the safety of kids crossing Mountain Avenue and says he would implement KPIs (key performance indicators) to measure the success of any policy to improve crosswalks in Berthoud.

Delap thinks that Berthoud is primed for businesses to move in, but admits that is easier said than done. “You got to be able to try to help incentivize them to come in, it’s really hard to do and that’s something I really want to dig into and really put my teeth into a lot harder is really trying to what more can we do? What more can we offer? What’s going to make sense that’s not going to cost the people here money but helps them benefit?”

Pitching his leadership style and capacity to analyze and oversee multiple projects, Delap says he brings a new approach to being mayor. “The main part is, someone new, someone coming in and bringing in new fresh ideas,” Delap summarizes.