As former District 1 Councilmember Nancy Ford moves on from the Arvada City Council, a new frontier awaits; Saratoga, Wyoming, a town of less than 2,000 residents nestled along the Platte River.
Ford — whose term began in 2015 — did not seek reelection this year in anticipation of the move she and her husband Jim are gearing up to make.
“In 2019 we found a house up in Saratoga on the Platte River, and we had been visiting that town for over 20 years and had often thought about living on the river. And this opportunity was very unexpected, and we just couldn’t pass it up. My husband will be retiring June 1, and that was basically the impetus,” said Ford.
“It’s very difficult for me to leave city council because I really love the work and I really love to help my constituents navigate issues that are of concern to them,” Ford continued.
While moving from Arvada to a small town in rural Wyoming might seem like an unorthodox move, Ford was hardly known for adhering to convention during her city council term.
An educator, market researcher and artist, Ford was known for bringing a multi-faceted and unique perspective to council.
“I really appreciate the toughness and enraging attitude you brought to council, unconstrained by convention and orthodoxy. Of all of us up here, you brought that more than anyone else,” said District 3 Councilmember John Marriott.
Ford said the best part of her term was utilizing that perspective to think about the direction Arvada is heading and being able to listen to her constituents.
“I think one of my proudest accomplishment was beginning the discussion of the importance of vision and the necessity of that for cities to understand who they are and where they’re trying to go for the future. I feel that I brought a different perspective to city council than was currently on council, and I felt that was very important,” said Ford.
“I feel like I really took care of my constituents. I tried to educate them on city business; how it works, what was going on. And I feel like I just was concerned and timely in my response to them and really listening to what they’re thinking and saying and feeling about some of the things that are going on in the city,” Ford continued.
Councilmember Bob Fifer said that although he and Ford don’t always agree, he always appreciated her perspective and her commitment to making her constituent’s voices heard.
“You brought the voice of your constituents to the city council and that passion should never be contained,” said Fifer. “Even though we may not always agree, the fact that we can have those thoughtful conversations – I’ll miss them.”
District 2 Councilmember Lauren Simpson said she would miss Ford’s friendly demeanor on council.
“You were never overly formal; you were instantly a friend. Thank you for being my friend, I’ll miss you,” said Simpson.
Ford said that serving on city council was difficult, but she would nonetheless miss working towards the betterment of Arvada — as well as the city as a whole.
“Though governance can be a rough job, the six years I spent on city council were some of the best years of my life so far. The opportunity to collaborate with seven individuals from different backgrounds with a desire to maintain Arvada as a great place to live. I will always reserve a special place in my heart for my colleagues,” Ford said.