Public Comments

Hello, The Colorado Senate District 24 is horribly gerrymandered, with a flagpole running down Federal from 92nd to 88th. This is not a compact district and should be corrected.

I strongly recommend keeping the Western Slope united in one CD, as it is now. The issue of water is of enormous concern that to people of the Western Slope, and any split would compromise the unity needed to protect our resources. We deserve representation in Congress that is not forced to choose between agriculture and suburbia.

My name is Scott, I am a father of 2 who live in Oak Creek CO outside of steamboat. We cannot be grouped together with other districts based on the fact our western slope is rural, conservative, and centered on agriculture. This would be detrimental to what has founded our town. Keep it intact! Thank you!

Hello, I am writing regarding the proposal to split Boulder County into 3 separate Congressional Districts. I am firmly against this as I believe this action would be detrimental to the residents of Boulder County for the following reasons: - Boulder communities share interests regarding environmental initiatives, climate goals and response to natural disasters. We need to work together to prevent, mitigate and respond to wildfires. - The towns in Boulder need to work together on transportation goals for the US 36 corridor and Highway 119. - Boulder municipalities are aligned on public health, housing, and employment concerns. During the COVID crisis, our representatives worked district wide in a collaborative manner. - After the recent tragic massacre of TEN people at the Boulder King Soopers, gun safety is a very important issue to all Boulder County residents. We need consistent representation on gun safety issues at the federal level. Thank you, Melissa Gardner, Lafayette Colorado 80026

My name is lauren Patton I am a resident of oak creek Colorado, outside of steamboat. I am a mother of 2 who loves our rural community. These new district lines would be detrimental to our small rural western community. We wish to remain rural, centering on agriculture and conservative values. The Rocky Mountains create a natural boundary between the eastern and western parts of the state. The Western Slope has unique infrastructure, outdoor recreation and tourism challenges that unify our counties and communities of interest. Our infrastructure is not mainly centered around growing populations as it is in the front range, but around the mountain passes, rivers, and lands that make up the Western Slope. The heavy snow and other similar weather patterns in the west also connect the similar kinds of needs for roads, which vary from the eastern and front range part of the state. The economy, with regard to tourism and outdoor recreation, of the western slope contains almost all of the ski areas and encompasses what people think of when they think of Colorado: hiking, mountain biking, hunting, camping, fishing, skiing and snowmobiling. It is because of these reasons that I support the preliminary plan for CD-03 released in June. Whether we are speaking regarding shared interests such as our energy grid on the Western Slope, or our values at home, rural Coloradans on the Western Slope cannot be fairly represented without the region being kept intact. Keep the West Slope whole

Please leave CD2 as is. Rural Colorado needs a voice!

I am very frustrated with the Redistricting Commissioners for NOT LISTENING to the voices of the people in the Eagle County! Along with many others, I drove to Steamboat for the hearing just to be sure that my voice was heard early in this process. It has been stated many times to the committee that we want representation for the issues of the Western Slope! Keeping the Western Slope whole will put a Congressman in the best position to improve our infrastructure and best serve our ski communities. The Western Slope is responsible for stewarding a large portion of Colorado’s water, which will be made far more difficult if the Western Slope is split up. Communities like Moffat, Rio Blanco and Garfield will be ignored by their Representative and not receive the attention they deserve, particularly when it comes to water, if they are lumped into the Second Congressional District and removed from the Third. Please keep the Western Slope whole so our water-related issues can best be addressed in Congress. Unfortunately, the first Staff Plan map released on September 3rd ignores the needs of rural America by removing rural counties in the current Third Congressional District that include Moffat, Rio Blanco, Routt, Garfield, Jackson and Grand counties and lumping them in with Boulder and Larimer, two counties with which they have little to nothing in common. This drastic departure from the current Congressional Districts is a disservice to both the residents of the Second and Third Congressional Districts. The preliminary plan serves the West Slope best. I urge the Commission to adopt a map that mirrors that plan. As a long-term resident of western Colorado, I have felt disenfranchised by the redistricting affect in our part of the state. The map released with the June 23 preliminarily plan respected our way of life and the geographical areas connected to that. The Western Slope is united in many ways, the large amount of federal lands and tourism being some of the top ways. The front range communities steward different types of lands and engage in different kinds of economic activities than we do on the West Slope, both of which need accurate representation. We do not have common issues with the Front Range ( Boulder.) We deserve representation in Congress that isn’t forced to choose between our needs and the issues that matter to suburbia. The June preliminarily plan contains the best map for rural America and will ensure that our voice is heard through two distinct rural districts. Furthermore, if Teller, Park, Chaffee and Fremont counties are no longer going to be in the Fifth Congressional District, then they should be in the Third Congressional District with other communities of interest not lumped in with Jefferson County and other suburban counties with which they have nothing in common. I ask the Commission to adopt a map that closely resembles the June initial plan. Residents of rural Colorado have unique interests and need representation in Congress whose constituency does not have divided priorities. Our voices deserve to be heard, undiluted by inclusion in a district with suburban and urban residents. Jalyne Lessig

I support the Tafoya 5 map suggestions. Thank you, for all the hard work. Lucretia Robinson

WE want to keep our district 59 whole. Please don't divide us Malynda Nelsen 22094 Rd N Cortez CO 81321

Dear Redistricting Committee, I was completely offended by the latest map showing Eagle County appearing in district 2 with Boulder. I find it outrageous that in light of the massive amounts of money we contribute to the state in taxes and visitor based business, that you want to lump us in with a district that has very different priorities and lifestyles. We are a skier and visitor based economy with many different public policy demands. Please, if you have any sense of fairness and public responsiveness let us remain in district 3 along with other western slope areas that we interact with, like our own. It seems that the majority of district 3 members want to remain in district 3. So please don't put us in an untenable situation in district 2. I trust you will be responsive to this necessary request, Robert De Luca