Public Comments

I am asking the Commissioners to keep Broomfield whole. The reasoning given on the Coleman V1 map for splitting Broomfield is, “Add a portion of Broomfield to CD7 and a portion to CD8. This is mostly due to population balancing, but the eastern leg is very characteristic of the CD8 rapidly expanding growth and the challenges with oil and natural gas extraction.” The fallacy of this reasoning is that the map puts our neighborhoods that are most heavily impacted by oil and gas in CD-7 not in CD-8. I understand that the Commission is under extreme pressure to decide on a final map but that pressure cannot result in such a contradiction between your stated reasoning and final product. 2021 is the 20th anniversary of Broomfield becoming a city-county. Before that we straddled 4 different counties none of which provided adequate services here. Broomfield residents coming together to win a statewide election to further our community’s common interests by creating a county tells the story of Broomfield that continues today. Broomfield is a smaller city in Colorado. In population we are between Castle Rock and Grand Junction. Splitting us up would make our voice in two congressional districts insignificant just as it was before we formed our own county. Where does Broomfield belong? Southeast Boulder County and Broomfield have the most issues in common including oil and gas, transportation, environment especially air quality, housing, employment, and education. Southwest Weld and Northwest Adams Counties have similar commonalities but to a lesser extent than Boulder. Jefferson County has even less in common with Broomfield. As the reason the Commission used for splitting Broomfield infers, Jeffco is not impacted by oil and gas extraction. That is a major gap in our common interests. Broomfield is a north metro suburban community that belongs in the 2nd Congressional District with Boulder County. If that is not possible, we could fit in a CD-8 that includes more north metro suburban communities and fewer rural plains communities. Please allow the residents of Broomfield to have a reasonable voice in choosing our Congressmember. Thank you for your work and for listening to my comments.

I currently live in Broomfield city/county. We often struggle to have our voices heard because we are the small county within Colorado. The new redistricting lines would splits my community of interest into two separate areas thus negating our voice completely within our legislative system.Please do not silence opinion by making us the minority in splitting in the district. Thank you for your time

My name is Charles T Holley (Tom) and I'm a registered voter in Routt County. I am 58 years old and spent the first 55 years on the front range specifically Weld and Larimer until moving to Oak Creek in 2018. I have seen the growth of the populous areas of Northern Colorado, seen the changes of what population growth does to water, agriculture and the generational family farm businesses. Living now in NW Colorado, I can absolutely see the importance now how important it is to keep Western Slope counties intact and not separated for the sole purpose of gerrymandering. Respectfully, the mapping is really strange, makes no sense and dilutes strengths of communities. Issues with the Senate map starts with dividing up Western Slope Counties. Unnecessary and not well thought out. Making SD 5, SD 8 and SD 6 completely uncompetitive is a good start. Splitting up Mesa & Delta Counties? All you have to do is drive up I70 to see Clear Creek has very little in common with our rural western slope. So many issues with this Senate Map. HD26 & 49 is where I start on the House Map. Geographically speaking, Larimer joining Jackson, Routt, Rio Blanco and Moffat is highly questionable. Western Slope and Front Range communities, if for no other reason than water sheds. Simply drive over Camron Pass and notice where these waters flow off the east side versus the west side. Front Range cannot have a say on Western Slope Waters. We must be independent of populous front range policy making. Additionally, the people that do the hard labor in the town of Steamboat Springs, (change the sheets, shovel the snow, mow the grass, dig the ditches, landscape etc. cannot afford to live in Steamboat Springs and come to the rural areas to raise a family yet cutting out the City of Steamboat Springs and the County Seat gives these people no voice. That is a real shame you would consider this. Where is the balance, the logic, the geographically commonality and the competitiveness of the legislative map? Divide and conquer may be how it works on the populous front range but it is not how it works out west. This is not how it works. . This cannot be the best of the committee correct? Gerrymandering has no place in Colorado and specifically when it silences the voices of the rural folks and laborers in Colorado for a decade. I respectfully ask you start over with these ideas and don't cut up, cut out No more gerrymandering our rural voice for the next ten years. Thank you very much for your time and your consideration.

I live in Larimer County and spoke during the review of the 2nd map. I just reviewed the latest maps. I want to thank the Commissioners and Staff for listening and thoughtful consideration of the comments given, including mine. Listening to the comments in one of the review sessions I came to appreciate the tough decisions and trade-offs that must be made to balance population and also respect County boundaries. I most appreciate the change that keeps the county seat, Fort Collins, with most of Larimer County. Thank you for your work and focus to be non-partisan during a process that has significant partisan implications.

I support the map that keeps the Western Slope counties whole and does not put them in with the Eastern Slope counties, as we are very different from the east slope. We are more of a rural setting and have rural values. We have many small business and we like less government in our lives. think that the lasted map keeps our in on the Western Slope whole which would give us the government representation we deserve.

The second staff plan for congressional districts is ok, the first plan is horrible. Delta County must be placed with Mesa County, they share the same watershed and are communities of interest. For the state redistricting the same applies, Delta County MUST NOT be split. The western slope counties must be put into blocks that truly do represent communities of interest. Montrose County should be with Gunnison County, they are a community of interest and share the same watershed. The "staff" for "independent" commission appears to be doing all of the work here, they should have to meet the same requirements as the commission members!

Any map that lumps Pueblo into predominantly rural CO is going to seal the deal on destroying Pueblo’s growth and success. Pueblo needs it’s own representation and to be able to tackle issues important to them as a city that rural folks, like me, don’t care about. Pueblo is poised to grow and improve on a level never anticipated and unless you only care about Denver and the springs, you’ll make sure Pueblo is not handcuffed to rural CO any longer. OR even worse, all of us rural citizens will just get ignored and the things that matter to us put on the back burner bc Pueblo’s agenda will be the priority. Just give Pueblo it’s own representation.

Colorado has one natural geographical feature that in my opinion should be taken into account when redrawing the Congressional districts. The Continental Divide splits the eastern slope from The Western Slope and thus spilts the State into 2 distinct sections. I don’t know the population of the Western part but it seems it should be close to the correct number. The population demographics offer the correct divisions of the actual people of Colorado. Smaller cities, ranging & farming, rural and the Ski Towns. Proposing that districts could be drawn by where the current Congressional seat holders live is non-sensical. Thank you, Alan Barrington

I have often thought how odd some counties were made up, in the first place, split up. I am requesting of you, the redistricting committee, to NOT further divide counties into separate districts. DELTA COUNTY NEEDS TO STAY WHOLE AND WITH MESA COUNTY. Our area does not need to be separated and included with districts that have nothing in common with us.

Loveland is an art community, nestled at the base of the Rocky Mountains with I-25 basically being the divide. I feel a connection with Fort Collins, Berthoud, Estes Park and Longmont. Our communities value art, trails, fishing, hiking, water sports, biking, etc and we all hope to enhance our tourism efforts. It is important to me and to my community that we remain united with Fort Collins, Berthoud and Estes Park.