Public Comments

I am writing to oppose the congressional redistricting of our community. I have lived in Ward, Colorado since we bought our house here 17 years ago. Ward, Jamestown, and Nederland are considered suburbs of Boulder. My husband and I both work in Boulder, our children attend school and activities there. Our mountain communities are a part of the Boulder community. A new and different congressional representative will focus on the areas where the majority of the constituent population lives and has no knowledge of our community, its history, culture, and what is important to us. I have voted for Joe Neguse multiple times and feel he has a good working understanding of our community and genuinely cares about serving our interests both locally and on a national level in Congress. Our area in the front range has grown and prospered because we work together to address and solve issues that arise. Grouping us in with a population on the other side of the continental divide hundreds of miles away is considered a reasonable idea? This would address population requirements alone, not our best interests. It would serve only to drive us apart from our neighbors. Will this unite us with people from other communities who have never been here, couldn't even find it on a map, and quite frankly have completely different needs? No. We are part of the front range, not the western slope. Redistricting our towns would only dilute our needs and separate us from our local culture and community. Please reconsider this proposal- it's truly preposterous. Thank you.

As a mountain homeowner, I feel STRONGLY that we should remain aligned with Nederland, Boulder, Golden...we have NO INTEREST in being aligned with a district that has nothing in common with us. We are dedicated to equality, the environment, gun control, educational reform and protection of wildlife. I am an active person of 70+ who works full time, volunteers, and is politically interested in the best interests of our citizens. Keep us with a caring community, a community of interest.

To the Colorado Redistricting Commissions, I'm writing in regards to the redistricting changes being made which directly affect Delta and Delta County. I am asking that all of Delta County be in one district with Mesa County. It is reasonable to do so as our area has historically had common interests throughout our rural area. We share the school board, our agricultural and ranching economy, our county fair, our local celebrations (i.e.: Cherry Day, Pioneer Day, Deltarado, etc.). I ask that you take into account the fact that we, as a community, also share in the use of various establishments for shopping, food service, home building and maintenance, and labor as employers, employees, and customers. It is not in our best interest, as citizens of Delta County, to be separated from each other by this redistricting effort. Please consider these observations as you draw up district maps. Sincerely, Penny Sutton

I live in Hillside and believe my diverse district needs to be heard. Splitting it into the Broadmoor district weakens the voice!

I would like to write to the commission today to tell them that they did a great job with the preliminary map. I am a preschool teacher, a small business owner, and a farmer's wife. I appreciate that you have combined the rural parts of Colorado together and not diluted their voice. Thank you for giving a strong voice to rural Colorado. I do not want to see my area of Southeast Colorado combined with El Paso County, we are not a community of interest with them. They are after the water in Southeast Colorado and putting us in a district with them only gives them more power to take our water. Additionally, the needs of school districts and preschools in the eastern plains are similar but those needs are not the same as districts in El Paso County. Rural Colorado deserves a strong voice in this new configuration that will define our congressional representation for the next 10 years. In conclusion, don't change the preliminary map -- keep it and honor rural Colorado.

I am glad that we have an independent redistricting commission to make our elections more fair. My major concern though is that it uses the data to redistrict that would make things the most fairest and follows recent election results. According to recent elections the Democrats have won by approximately 10% points over the GOP, so when looking at the State overall we should make sure that the districts would represent this and not give the GOP equal billing. From what I've seen so far it looks like your giving the GOP the advantage by combining Douglas County with Jefferson county. It would be better to combine most of Douglas County with El Paso county which would make things more fair.

I have concerns regarding the splitting of certain historically strong minority districts around the state. Please, do you research and understand the importance these communities have had and the power they have had when drawn into truly representative districts. These maps do not need to be color blind, in fact color blindness does the exact opposite of what it attempts to solve--by not honoring the histories of these historically powerful Latino and Black neighborhoods, this redistricting splits the power of these historically powerful neighborhoods/communities. The history of redlining in the Colorado metro area lies on Colorado Blvd, and these new maps split that community in half along Colorado Blvd. Do you see the historic significance of this? Representation matters. Please, keep in mind the historic Latino and Black neighborhoods/cities/communities in Colorado and do not slice and dice districts without thinking about the histories of these communities. Thank you.

Since it’s founding in 1889, the University of Northern Colorado has been the keystone of the Greeley community. Over the years as both the community and the University have grown, the University District has remained a relatively cohesive geographic area. With rough boundaries of the area between 6th Ave on the east to 23rd Ave on the west and 16th Street on the north to US 34 Bypass on the south, this area epitomizes the definition of “Areas of Interest”. In the proposed House redistricting plan, this area is split into two districts. Not only would neighbors who have historically been in the same House District now be separated into different districts, but the very center of this critical mass, the UNC Campus itself, would also be split. In fact, students residing in the UNC Residence Halls would, under this proposal, be split into different districts, creating unnecessary confusion among the students, many of whom would be first time voters. I strongly urge you to keep this important geographic area together in a single House District, not only because it is an Area of Interest which, by law MUST remain undivided, but perhaps more importantly, to avoid confusion and disenfranchisement among first-time voters.

My concerns for the legislative redistricting maps include the Colorado Senate redraw, which splits the City of Golden, Colorado into three different State Senate districts. This means that those living in Golden would not share a state senator. As the City of Golden is a close community and this split is not along city limits, this would not be a beneficial or representative thing for the City. I ask that you keep the shared interests of the City of Golden together by drawing the entire city into one district in District 20. Or possibly District 35 for wild fire concerns. This redraw also splits the School of Mines Campus in half, into two separate districts. The students of the School of Mines are a vibrant and important aspect of the City of Golden, and their vote needs to be collectively together and representative in one district. Putting the entire City of Golden--along city limits--into one senate district would also help solve this issue. Also, I have concerns regarding the legislative districts diluting minority voices. Colorado has a history of some pretty diverse neighborhoods and districts, and splitting these communities is not beneficial for them or representative.

Based on cultural and geographic proximity, Summit County needs to remain in the same district as Boulder County, currently well represented by Congressman Joe Neguse.