Public Comments

I believe the recent Congressional redistricting map based on 2020 Census represents the interests of my home (Routt County) well, as it combines portions of Routt, Moffat, Rio Blanco, Garfield, Grand, Summit, Larimer and Boulder counties that share many common issues with economies based on agriculture and recreation, and include large areas of public lands in both mountain and rangeland settings. Some of those issues include climate, drought, and aridification; the cost of housing; delivery of critical services in remote areas; and changes in demographics. I thank the Commission for their hard work on this difficult issue.

As a resident of the eastern part of Douglas County, I strongly feel Douglas County belongs in the greater metro area and not the eastern plains for the purpose of representation.

Members: I am highly concerned that the latest Congressional districting map is placing Douglas County in combination with the Eastern Plains counties for representation. Douglas County has NO commonality or communities of interest, nor concerns/issues in common with these agricultural oriented counties. This placement is directly contrary to the intent and direction that is expected of the congressional districting process. Douglas County is a suburban/front range county that should be appropriately combined with other like-minded population groups. If population density/distribution issues are a concern for establishing districts, there is more logic in splitting Douglas County so that the northern part is associated with the Denver Metro region and the southern portion with El Paso and similar south metropolitan areas.

Why would you go against your initial findings as a result of 36 hearings of public comments??? You democrats don’t care about the will of the people you serve at all. Greedy self serving a-holes!!!!

This new map ignores and effectively marginalizes agriculture and rural Colorado's unique community of interest by combining it with urban and suburban populations. It fails to reflect the differences in water administration, ag industry makeup, and social landscape between eastern and western parts of the state. It ignores testimony from around the state regarding desired district lines. It is an overt ploy to remove and prevent those who do not agree with the current agenda from elected office. Please recognize rural Colorado as a distinct community of interest based on agriculture, employment, water needs and supplies, which are different from urban and suburban communities.

I live in Highlands Ranch/Douglas County and am extremely concerned about the proposed districting. Douglas County is part of metro Denver and should not be lumped in with rural eastern Colorado. Douglas County should be part of a Front Range district. I strongly urge you to redraw the lines for Douglas County.

This pertains to the September 4 map as it relates to Congressional District 3 (CD3). Why does the Commission seem incapable of drawing a map that doesn’t include some part of the I-25 corridor in almost every CD? Even a CD that should represent portions of the state hundreds of miles from I-25. Colorado is a lot more than the I-25 corridor. The September 4 map violates the most fundamental principle of congressional redistricting: that communities of interest have representation in our Congress. The Western Slope of Colorado has many common interests. These include water, industries such as agriculture and energy that support our economy, and a culture of fierce personal liberty that sadly is becoming less common around the state. The September 4 map would dilute the voice of Western Colorado in Congress by dividing our region into two CDs, neither of which would represent Western Colorado because each would include areas that are far afield from us and have very different interests. Give those areas on the Front Range their Congressional voices, and give a voice to the Western Slope by keeping all of the Western Slope in CD3.

Hello, I very much appreciate this commission and the efforts you are making to represent the people of Colorado fairly. I am concerned that Douglas County is being lumped in with such a large and rural part of the state. Is this really best? My community in Roxborough is much closer to Denver than Limon (for example). We are the “purple” edge of Douglas County and deserve to be in a more competitive district so that our representatives will work for us rather than the right wing conservatives with loud voices. Thank you for your consideration. Best, Melanie

I strongly object to the inclusion of Fort Collins into Weld County for redistricting purposes. Ft. Collins is a university town and promotes high tech businesses and tourism. Weld county is primarily agricultural and has a very strong oil/fracking industry. Ft. Collins is fighting to reduce gas house emissions while Weld county seems to have no such concerns. I don't know how a representative could represent such divergent interests in an equitable manner.

Including highly populated urban areas into the agricultural districts will negate our ability to have a voice in legislation that affects our daily lives. Individuals that reside in urban areas do not have the same pressures we face in our communities. We have seen this in recent votes that were decided by largely populated areas when the majority of the agricultural community was against it. The new map ignores agriculture and rural Colorado's unique community of interest by combining it with urban and suburban populations. Fails to reflect the differences in water administration, ag industry makeup, and social landscape between eastern and western parts of the state. Ignores testimony from around the state regarding desired district lines. Agriculture is still a large portion of this states economy if you wish to have it continue that way the rural community needs to maintain a voice in decisions that will ultimately effect our ability to survive.