Coming soon: The Wellington

The owners of the monthly North Forty News, Mike and JoAn Bjarko, will launch a Wellington-only newspaper in August.

The new paper will take the name The Wellington, after the first weekly bulletin that started up in the town 102 years ago. The Wellington made its debut July 1, 1905, and continued to publish under that name until 1909, when it became The Wellington Sun.

Wellington has seen a number of newspapers and newsletters come and go over the years, with some produced entirely by volunteers. In 1993, the North Forty News started as a Wellington and Waverly newspaper and grew to encompass all of northern Larimer County by adding rural Fort Collins, LaPorte, Bellvue, Livermore, Red Feather Lakes and Carr.

Appearing three times a month, The Wellington will complement the publishing schedule of the North Forty News, which will continue as a monthly regional newspaper.

The Wellington will be exactly what the name implies--a newspaper for and about Wellington. It will be free and mailed to every Wellington address. Subscriptions will be available for those living outside the area.

"We felt there is a need for a weekly newspaper in Wellington," said publisher Mike Bjarko, adding that the formation of the Wellington Area Chamber of Commerce was the impetus to get him thinking about it. "Being a free newspaper, we had to look at the advertising potential as well as the population."

The 1-year-old chamber of commerce has about 80 members. The greater Wellington area has about 8,000 residents, and Poudre School District is building a second elementary school in town.

"Our purpose is to focus on local news," Bjarko said. "We want to build a community paper that Wellington residents can call their own."