The excitement of the new year has yielded busy calendars for many of us, particularly those of us in Arapahoe County government. Despite the freezing temperatures, 2023 is off to a fast start with exciting opportunities and some difficult challenges.

Already this year, two new commissioners, Leslie Summey and Jessica Campbell-Swanson, have been sworn in, county meetings have started, our budget process is underway, and we recently hosted our first telephone town hall of the year.

I’m a hometown girl. I grew up here, met my husband and raised a family here and also started a business here. So as a resident, mom and chair of the Board, it’s important to me that we act now to maintain the things we love about the county so that they can be enjoyed for generations to come. There’s a lot to love about Arapahoe County, too.  

From the farming and ranching community of Byers to Colorado’s second-largest city, Aurora, to the western suburbs, our county offers a unique diversity of landscapes, industries, recreation opportunities and people. That diversity is one of the many reasons so many people have chosen to call Arapahoe County “home.” In fact, Arapahoe County is expected to add another 200,000 people by 2030 and grow from 600,000 to 800,000 residents.

Our appeal to our new neighbors is both understandable and challenging. Meeting the needs of this growing county with the economy’s ups and downs can be daunting. It becomes even more formidable as we realize the magnitude of the issues we must address: housing affordability, mental health, criminal justice, homelessness, crumbling infrastructure and roads. These are big, complex issues that we simply cannot ignore.

How do we meet the challenge? It starts with listening to you and identifying our shared  priorities. A sincere thank you to the residents who took time out to join our most recent telephone town hall and offer your opinions. When asked, 37% of you named crime as the most important issue facing the county followed by homelessness and affordable housing (26%), roads (15%) and mental health (10%). These are our priorities too.

These priorities come at a cost. And despite our long tradition of doing more with less, our shared priorities require additional resources. For decades, we have pursued efficiencies, innovations, cost-savings, and continuous improvements when managing resources. This practice has earned us a track record that includes awards, consistently high bond ratings and balanced budgets.

The question now is how we secure the resources we need to achieve our goals. The Board is taking a serious look at how best to modernize and stabilize our revenue stream, to help meet the priorities that will ensure Arapahoe County continues to be the number one place to live, work and raise a family.

In the coming weeks and months, we look forward to engaging with you as we navigate a path forward. I hope you’ll join us and learn more about your county government, voice your opinion and ask questions on our next telephone town hall event. Please look for future telephone town hall events on the county website or follow us on social media.

Commissioner Carrie Warren-Gully is Chair of the Arapahoe County Board of County Commissioners.