By David Skuodas, Mile High Flood District

I want to share a story that challenges a tired stereotype and offers a hopeful, practical alternative. It’s a story about government. But not the kind you usually hear about.

This isn’t a story about red tape, inefficiency, or bureaucracy. It’s a story about trust. About relationships. About how a local government agency and a group of small, family-owned businesses built something bigger together. Something that’s still growing, still evolving, and still making a difference in people’s lives.

The following article is based on interviews I conducted with several family-owned businesses who work with the Mile High Flood District (District) to protect, improve, and maintain the Denver region’s waterways. 

Every business origin story I heard began with a leap of faith. Some started with a borrowed chainsaw. Others left stable careers to chase a vision. What they shared was a willingness to bet on themselves and a belief that their work could make a difference.

A Different Kind of Government

Let’s start with the stereotype. We’ve all heard it: government is slow, bloated, wasteful. It’s a punchline in sitcoms, a scapegoat in politics, and a source of frustration for many.

But in the Denver metro area, a different kind of government story has been unfolding. One that’s quiet, consistent, and deeply human. Equal parts public service and entrepreneurship. Instead of rigid procurement systems and impersonal processes, the District has chosen flexibility, responsiveness, and long-term relationships. Project managers have the autonomy to match the right people to the right work. That flexibility has made all the difference.

Daniel and Elysa Loewen, founders of Loewen Engineering, launched their firm in 2018. Elysa was still working her day job and pregnant with their second child when they got their first small contract. “Without the District,” she said, “we likely would’ve had to keep our day jobs and potentially work two jobs to realistically get started as a business.”

Their first projects were small, but meaningful. Over time, they earned the trust to take on larger design projects and became a go-to partner for quick-turnaround design work. “It’s cool to see how our projects have grown over time,” Daniel said. “Seeing that growth in trust has been very meaningful”.

The District’s flexibility – allowing project managers to select and manage consultants without excessive red tape – was key. “For most other clients, we’d have to be on a list and wait for an opportunity,” Elysa explained. “With the District, we could get started right away. That made all the difference”.

Loewen’s work with other agencies also grew thanks to the District’s reputation. “The District exposed us to other municipalities like Broomfield, SEMSWA, Littleton, and Lakewood,” Elysa said.

The Power of Trust

Matt Ursetta of ICON Engineering tells a similar story. In the late 1990s, he and his partners were working for a large corporate firm. Frustrated by inefficiencies and disconnected leadership, they decided to buy out their Denver office and go independent.

It was a bold move, and it could have failed if not for public agency clients like the District.

“The District really went out of their way to support us,” Matt recalled. “They even made it a point to give us additional work to help us get started. They told us, ‘We work with you, not the name on the building.”

At the time, 70% of ICON’s work came from the District. Today, they’ve grown to 42 employees, and the District remains their largest client. But more than that, Matt says, “We’ve learned a lot from each other. The District pushes innovation, and that makes us want to innovate too.”

This is not a transactional relationship. It’s a partnership. A symbiosis.

The Work Is the Reward

What was striking in all these stories was how rarely anyone talked about profit. Instead, they spoke about purpose.

Rick Kurth of Arrowhead Landscaping started his business after years of managing land management and reclamation crews for other construction companies. “If I’m going to run everybody else’s adult daycare,” he joked, “I’m going to run my own.”

He initially worked exclusively for a wealthy landowner who needed help managing hundreds of acres of mountain property. But when the wealthy landowner passed away, the contract disappeared and left Rick looking for a more sustainable source of work.

He started with revegetation work for the District along Boulder Creek and quickly earned a reputation for quality. The consistent source of work not only sustained his business but created a sense of pride as well.

One of his proudest moments came after installing vegetated soil lifts (a form of stream bank protection) on Big Dry Creek. That summer brought unusually high flows right after construction, but when the water receded, the lifts were still standing. “Just like the day we put them in,” Rick said. “It gives you goosebumps. It’s that rewarding.”

In 2008, Joe Cordova and his wife Tami lost their jobs during the recession. With no prospects and no equipment, Joe borrowed a chainsaw and started knocking on doors in Parker and Elizabeth, Colorado looking for forestry management work. “I was chasing $25 branches,” he recalled. “I had no plan. Just a truck and a borrowed saw.”

His first major opportunity came after a tornado hit Windsor, Colorado. Joe drove up, talked his way past the National Guard checkpoint, and offered his services. That job for the Town of Windsor launched their new company, ArborForce, and was a springboard to opportunities with other local agencies like the District. Their long-term forestry management work along the region’s waterways has led not only to financial stability but also meaning.

As Joe put it, “The satisfaction at the end of the job, to look at what we started—where you couldn’t even see through the trees—and then see people walking their dogs there, saying thank you… that’s what it’s all about.”

Joe and Tami’s company now employs over 30 people. They partner with programs like Ready to Work to help individuals recovering from addiction and homelessness find meaningful employment. “We’re in homeless camps every day,” Joe said. “To see someone go from that to full-time employment—it’s huge.”

Relationships Over Transactions

In a world obsessed with scale and speed, the District has chosen depth. It invests in long-term relationships with its contractors—many of whom have worked with the agency for decades.

These aren’t just vendors. They’re collaborators. Co-creators. Partners.

For Jerry Naranjo of Naranjo Civil Constructors, the journey began with a $150,000 bridge project for the South Suburban Parks and Recreation District. At the time, he didn’t fully understand bonding or insurance requirements, and they’d never done any earthwork. He rented an excavator and hired an experienced operator. He figured it out and delivered.

The project was along Little Dry Creek and introduced them to District staff. Jerry’s team showed a willingness to help the District with the smallest, dirtiest work, anything from fishing shopping carts out of the river to cleaning muck off pond intake screens.

Now the company brings in $70 million in annual revenue. 

The workload growth didn’t just happen one day; it grew as the District’s trust in Jerry’s company grew.  “The 25-year relationship with the District enabled us to take on larger projects and build trust,” he said. The consistency of public agency work was also a huge factor: “Municipal contracts gave us the stability to grow and withstand market volatility.”

Jerry’s proudest achievement isn’t the revenue—it’s the employee ownership program he created after merging with Western States Reclamation and Ecological Resource Consultants. “I felt I owed a debt to the people who helped grow the company,” he said. “Now they’re part of the ownership. That’s been the most meaningful part of all.”

The Valles family story is equally compelling. After being laid off while recovering from illness, Juan Valles started their company with a single truck – a 1988 Dodge pickup – and a loan from a family member. They rented equipment, took small jobs, and slowly built their reputation as stream restoration and maintenance specialists.

The District’s support was life changing to the Valles family. “We started with nothing,” Juan said. “Just one truck, knocking on doors and chasing small jobs on Craig’s List. But the District gave us a chance. Now we have 18 workers in the summer and our own equipment. Everything we have is because of the work we’ve done with the District,” Juan said. “It’s a family business now. My kids are taking over.”

From Vision to Reality

For Jesse Clark, founder of Stream Landscape Architecture+Planning (Stream), the journey to start his own firm was shaped by a mix of personal conviction and professional friction. After years working in landscape architecture, Jesse realized he wanted to focus on infrastructure – especially stormwater, drainage, and landform. He knew if he continued working for someone else, he may not get to choose that path. “I rarely go after a park project that doesn’t have some component where I can integrate stormwater,” he said. “That kind of work just really gets me excited.”

Jesse launched Stream in 2010 during a down economy, winning a spot on an on-call contract with Denver Parks and Recreation. “It wasn’t guaranteed work, but it gave me a foothold,” he said. His other early clients included Civitas and Muller Engineering Company (Muller), who supported his leap into entrepreneurship. “They were asking themselves why I hadn’t already started my own thing.”

Stream developed a relationship with the District that deepened over time through their work with Denver and as a subconsultant to Muller. A turning point came with the Tanglewood Creek project, where Jesse’s team helped shift the design from a hardened, boulder-lined channel to something more natural and resilient. “That was when the District started to see that a landscape architect could have a big influence on the outcome of a project,” Jesse said.

Today, 98% of Stream’s work is for public sector clients, and Jesse sees that as a strength. “The employees who are attracted to Stream want to do meaningful work for the people, not just an individual person,” he said. “We make people’s lives better. We give them better water, better air, better places to be. That’s a really cool thing to do.”

A Community of Practice

Mary Powell, who worked with the District for decades as an environmental consultant, described the ecosystem that has grown around the agency.

“There’s almost a brotherhood,” she said. “Dozens of companies, consultants, contractors, nurseries, seed suppliers – we all know each other. We’ve all grown together because of the District.”

She added, “I wouldn’t have the same warm fuzzies if my main client had been a commercial developer. The District cares about quality, about the environment, about doing things right. They don’t just see the land as property to be bought and sold like a stock.”

Jesse Clark echoed that sentiment. “The District has been the most transformational client for our business,” he said. “It’s not just about the work; it’s about the culture. They value what we do and create an environment that empowers us to be successful.”

That care extends to the way the District pays its contractors – promptly and reliably. Jerry Naranjo said, “That kind of consistency allowed us to grow while weathering volatility in other markets.”

Meaning Beyond the Job

For these entrepreneurs and their teams, the work isn’t just a job. It’s a calling. They talk about the pride of seeing a project through from start to finish.

Matt Ursetta spoke fondly of the projects he worked on in Adams County. “The longevity of the relationships and the projects over time, especially projects that helped the community, were really fulfilling to me.”

At Loewen Engineering, Daniel and Elysa have built a company where work and family life are deeply intertwined. “We love taking our kids to our projects,” Elysa said. “Recently they got to test out a playground we helped build.”

Mary Powell shared a story about a restoration and trail project along Cherry Creek that created a better connection from the neighborhood to a small coffee shop. “The coffee shop owner told me that after the project, people started walking and biking there. It totally changed his business. That’s the kind of ripple effect our work can create.”

And for Joe Cordova, the meaning is in the transformation. “We’re not just cutting trees. We’re creating access. We’re restoring ecosystems. We’re making places better.”

That sense of purpose is shared across firms. Whether it’s removing invasive species, restoring habitat, or building resilient infrastructure, these teams know their work matters and they take pride in doing it well.

A Model Worth Noticing

These stories aren’t just feel-good anecdotes. They’re a model. A model for how local government and small businesses, when they work together with trust and purpose, can unlock each other’s potential – not just to build things, but to build lives, families, and communities.

The District didn’t just help these businesses grow. It helped them find greater purpose in their work.

And in return, these businesses have given the District something that can’t be measured: loyalty, innovation, and a shared sense of mission.

As Joe Cordova put it, “We know we’re stewards of public funding. We take that seriously. The work and the relationships, that’s the reward.”