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Big Boy's Colorado adventure

The world's largest operating steam locomotive will stop in Strasburg for the final leg of its coast-to-coast America 250 tour.

America at 250

The train that &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="makes grown men cry" data-vars-click-url="https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/a-locomotive-named-big-boy-is-making-grown-men-cry-0f965e12" data-vars-content-id="808257a3-77b3-48cb-92e5-c70a4e03333d" data-vars-headline="Big Boy&#x27;s Colorado adventure" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/a-locomotive-named-big-boy-is-making-grown-men-cry-0f965e12" target="_blank">makes grown men cry</a>&quot; rolls into Arapahoe County on Monday afternoon.Driving the news: Union Pacific&#x27;s Big Boy No. 4014 stops at Strasburg&#x27;s Main Street crossing from 3:45-4:15pm for the final leg of its <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="coast-to-coast" data-vars-click-url="https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/track" data-vars-content-id="808257a3-77b3-48cb-92e5-c70a4e03333d" data-vars-headline="Big Boy&#x27;s Colorado adventure" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/track" target="_blank">coast-to-coast</a> America 250 <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="tour" data-vars-click-url="https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/schedule" data-vars-content-id="808257a3-77b3-48cb-92e5-c70a4e03333d" data-vars-headline="Big Boy&#x27;s Colorado adventure" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.up.com/about-us/history/steam/schedule" target="_blank">tour</a>.

Inside Zyn's $1.2B Colorado bet

The new campus grows manufacturing jobs as debate over nicotine pouches continues.

Business

Philip Morris International ramps up production at its planned $1.2 billion Zyn campus in Aurora on Monday, cementing Colorado&#x27;s role at the center of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="booming" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/06/business/zyn-nicotine-pouches-tobacco.html" data-vars-content-id="fa4b3586-1dbd-43d0-9448-2b0d8033175c" data-vars-headline="Inside Zyn&#x27;s $1.2B Colorado bet" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/06/business/zyn-nicotine-pouches-tobacco.html" target="_blank">booming</a> nicotine pouch business.Why it matters: The tobacco giant&#x27;s first U.S. <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="greenfield" data-vars-click-url="https://www.archistar.ai/blog/what-is-a-greenfield-development/" data-vars-content-id="fa4b3586-1dbd-43d0-9448-2b0d8033175c" data-vars-headline="Inside Zyn&#x27;s $1.2B Colorado bet" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.archistar.ai/blog/what-is-a-greenfield-development/" target="_blank">greenfield</a> manufacturing complex is being pitched as a boon to Aurora&#x27;s economy, but critics say Colorado is backing a product that could addict young users.

Colorado's golden beginnings

I found Colorado gold, but the story's worth far more.

Culture

Colorado&#x27;s 150th birthday is next month, but I don&#x27;t need a beard or a pickaxe to connect with stories that helped put our Centennial State on the map.Flashback: An 1858 <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="gold discovery" data-vars-click-url="https://www.the-old-west.com/articles/pike-s-peak-gold-rush" data-vars-content-id="9c95c7d2-1ee0-4ba1-b69d-67baa69d3041" data-vars-headline="Colorado&#x27;s golden beginnings" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.the-old-west.com/articles/pike-s-peak-gold-rush" target="_blank">gold discovery</a> near Arapahoe County&#x27;s South Platte River and Little Dry Creek confluence was a major moment in the rush that drew fortune-seekers West.

Aurora mulls data center limits

Data centers have become a national flashpoint.

Climate

Aurora is poised for a wider debate over data center rules, as Councilmember Amy Wiles explores new regulations and residents question whether the city is ready for AI-fueled growth.The big picture: Aurora is the latest Colorado city grappling with data centers as communities statewide weigh the infrastructure needed to support cloud services, businesses and artificial intelligence.

County Lines: Aurora's fracking fight leader

Environment

Randy Willard dedicated three years to fighting a battle he suspected he would lose.Why it matters: The 63-year-old retired IT specialist became the unlikely leader of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Save the Aurora Reservoir (STAR)" data-vars-click-url="https://savetheaurorareservoir.org/" data-vars-content-id="3e35ef64-fbff-4ba7-b867-ca6986947503" data-vars-headline="County Lines: Aurora&#x27;s fracking fight leader" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://savetheaurorareservoir.org/" target="_blank">Save the Aurora Reservoir (STAR)</a>, a grassroots group that fought a residential fracking operation near a major drinking water source in southeast Aurora.

Neighbors react to nuclear plan at Buckley Space Force base

Some neighbors support a proposed microreactor, but concerns remain.

Aerospace

Aurora residents soon could be living near a nuclear microreactor.The big picture: Neighbors in the shadows of Buckley Space Force Base say the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="April announcement" data-vars-click-url="https://www.ans.org/news/article-7930/colorado-montana-bases-selected-for-dod-microreactor-program/" data-vars-content-id="cfc0df60-54ec-420a-bf05-da85d52f72f2" data-vars-headline="Neighbors react to nuclear plan at Buckley Space Force base" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.ans.org/news/article-7930/colorado-montana-bases-selected-for-dod-microreactor-program/" target="_blank">April announcement</a> naming the base a preferred site for a nuclear project came without warning.

Aurora water restrictions: What you need to know

New rules limit watering days and add fines as Aurora faces low snowpack.

News

The City of Aurora is formally curbing water use in response to historically <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="low snowpack" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2026/01/13/colorado-snowpack-drought-record-levels" data-vars-content-id="5c2d21d6-826d-430c-93c1-de7c13753702" data-vars-headline="Aurora water restrictions: What you need to know" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/denver/2026/01/13/colorado-snowpack-drought-record-levels" target="_self">low snowpack</a> and amid growing water shortage concerns ahead of warming weather.Why it matters: Aurora Water wants a 20% reduction in water use, affecting everything from lawn watering to development, as the city tries to stretch limited supplies.

Environment

Colorado's golden beginnings

CU study challenges Colorado's moose origin story

Aurora mulls data center limits

How one company plans to put a nuclear microreactor at Buckley

County Lines: Aurora's fracking fight leader