Letters, June 12: Public meetings in name only; rushed, reckless; frustration; mirrors Project 2025; Conflict of interest
- Stop the Power Grab
- Jun 12
- 4 min read
Excerpts from letters to the editor at Colorado Community Media, June 11 and 12, 2025
We live in a world that is suffering from severe political polarization. However, for most of us, if you talk, face to face, with a friend, family member, neighbor, etc. you may often find that you are not as far apart on the issues as you may have originally believed. What does this mean? We have more that brings us together than that which divides us. I believe this is especially true for the Home Rule special election and that we can all agree that we deserve to have our tax dollars put toward elections that are transparent and supported by the citizens of Douglas County...
...I’ve come to learn that home rule will create a significant cost for Douglas County residents with little benefit and possibly even cause harm. Home rule is not being initiated by the community which calls into question why it is being proposed at all. It seems that the motivation for home rule is not to benefit the Douglas County community, but rather to support local politicians in pushing their agendas...
...After the chaotic Town Hall meeting on May 28th, where commissioners delivered a monologue interrupted by only seven questions, a “mostly Q&A” Town Hall was scheduled for June 17th. In their June 10th meeting, the BOCC announced that June 17th “Town Hall” will now be in an online-only format. This change is not about logistics or convenience. It’s about control...
I attended the May 27 DCSD Board meeting expecting an informational presentation about home rule. Instead, I witnessed a troubling example of how our county commissioners are rushing this critical decision through a process we simply cannot trust.
What was billed as information became a campaign event, with Commissioner Teal repeatedly outlining his personal agenda and inappropriately asking DCSD to endorse home rule. This premature push for endorsement exemplifies the commissioners’ reckless rush toward a decision that demands careful deliberation...
I am so incredibly frustrated with communication coming from our county commissioners regarding Home Rule, it has been chaotic, indecisive and confusing.
Is this a tactic to make it look like they are encouraging open and honest dialogue, while in reality sabotaging it? Are these commissioners really responsible for running our county?...
The recently filed campaign finance reports for the Douglas County home rule special election paint a troubling picture of whose voices are being amplified — and whose are being drowned out. While the pro-home-rule committee, Yes on Local Control, boasts an impressive war chest of over $110,000, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that this sum comes from just five wealthy donors. In stark contrast, Stop the Power Grab, the opposition group, has raised about $30,000 from nearly 300 local residents...
...At the last Board of Education meeting, the Douglas County commissioners were given time under the guise of providing “information” about Home Rule. Instead, they delivered a partisan campaign speech, complete with personal digs at some board members. When those with opposing views asked to speak at the next meeting for balance, they were denied. That is not democracy...
The surprise of these first months of Trump’s term is how quickly chaos happened. Project 2025 had a plan though, and executed it quickly.
Similarly, Douglas County commissioners have allowed only months to understand how home rule would give them more power, even though they’ve been planning this for years...
...One of the fundamental principles of our democracy is the power of the vote. Home Rule threatens that principle by potentially shifting key positions — currently decided by voters — to appointed roles. This change would reduce voter influence and allow unelected officials to make important decisions without being directly accountable to the people they serve...
Douglas County voters face a critical decision on June 24: whether to approve Home Rule. While proponents tout increased local control, the reality is that Home Rule could enable developers to sidestep obligations to our public schools, particularly in Sterling Ranch...
As a concerned resident of Highlands Ranch, I am deeply troubled by the upcoming June 24 special election regarding the formation of a Home Rule Charter Commission in Douglas County. Proponents argue that home rule offers greater local control, but I fear it poses significant risks to the independence of our public libraries. This is especially true under the influence of our current county commissioners, who are aggressively pushing for this change to county governance while also running for seats on the commission that would draft the new charter...
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