In the aftermath of a tragic 2024 accident that claimed his wife’s life, Gerry Goldberg tirelessly campaigned for a traffic light at the intersection of East Belleview Avenue and South Franklin Street, where the tragedy unfolded. Despite his efforts, some neighbors resisted, arguing that a light would not only be unnecessary but would also increase traffic in the area.
Tragically, on Monday, Goldberg himself became a victim of the same intersection’s dangers. The 82-year-old passed away in a two-vehicle crash at the very location he had fought to make safer.
Goldberg was en route to meet his cousin for lunch at the New York Deli News in south Denver when the accident occurred. Known for his punctuality, his absence was immediately concerning.
“He wasn’t there,” explained his cousin, Gloria, who preferred to withhold her last name. “I tried to call him. I tried to text him. No answer. No answer at all.”
Normally, he’s always early for their meetings.
“He wasn’t there,” said his cousin, Gloria, who asked that her last name not be used. “I tried to call him. I tried to text him. No answer. No answer at all.”
After a while, she left, wondering where he was.
“He never showed,” she said. “I went home with a very empty feeling that something was askew because that was not like him.”
Her worst fears were confirmed later in the day when Goldberg’s sister called her to tell her he’d been in a crash and had died.
It was May 2024 that Goldberg’s wife, Andie, died at the same intersection. That morning, the two of them had gone out to exercise – he jumped on his bike, and she headed out for a run on a different route.
A car hit her, and after her death, Goldberg launched a petition to get a traffic light erected at the intersection.
Nearly two years later, the issue remains unresolved. Some neighbors have argued against it, contending it’s not needed and that adding a light would lead to increased traffic on residential streets.
The intersection is in both Cherry Hills Village and Greenwood Village.
Greenwood Village spokeswoman Megan Copenhaver said the two cities continue to evaluate the proposal, which has the blessing of the Colorado Department of Transportation. In the meantime, she said Greenwood Village has increase police patrols and traffic enforcement in the area and is “reviewing potential longer-term solutions in coordination with these partner agencies.”
Messages left with Cherry Hills Village administrators were not returned on Monday or Tuesday.
In an interview last fall with 9NEWS, Goldberg said that he was motivated by the goal of making sure what happened to his wife never happened again.
“It would give me a great deal of resolve for closure in the loss of my wife,” he said in that interview. “That she didn’t die for no reason, that something good has come out of this.”
Gloria was stunned to learn Goldberg had died at the same intersection where his wife lost her life.
“I don’t know what to tell you about that, whether it’s a spiritual thing or exactly just what happened because to have it happen in exactly the same place to me it’s just – it’s almost like science fiction.”
