For the past 15 years, two billboards have stood on the city limits of Flagler, Colorado, waiting to greet those who may be looking for a place to land. From 10 feet in the air overlooking I-70 and Flagler, the two signs deliver their proclamatory message: “Got Land! Got Water! All we need is you.”
Flagler is a rarity in the West — it’s offering land without a price tag to someone willing to stake a future in the town.
Situated in eastern Colorado, this small town is an agricultural community — akin more to the tilled-and-planted Midwest than the Rocky Mountain reveries most envision upon hearing “Colorado.” The ground is flat, and most houses are separated by a mile or two of grain fields and grassland for cattle. The two main employers in town are a grain co-op and bird seed factory. It’s the kind of small, blue-collar town that residents are quick to compare to Mayberry — the idyllic and sleepy setting of “The Andy Griffith Show” in the 1960s. A trip to the post office turns into an impromptu social event, and shopkeepers know their customers by name. The business district spans one block, and none of the stucco buildings stand higher than two stories tall (with the exception of the grain silos). In Flagler, you don’t only know everyone in town — you also know who everyone’s grandparents were.