(D) Kamala Harris
(R) Donald Trump
80%
20%
(D) Diana DeGette*
(R) V. Archuleta
98%
2%
(D) Joe Neguse*
(R) Marshall Dawson
95%
5%
(D) Adam Frisch
(R) Jeff Hurd
50%
50%
(R) Lauren Boebert
(D) Trisha Calvarese
90%
10%
(R) Jeff Crank
(D) River Gassen
80%
20%
(D) Jason Crow*
(R) John Fabbricatore
90%
10%
(D) B. Pettersen
(R) Sergei Matveyuk
90%
10%
(D) Yadira Caraveo
(R) Gabe Evans
70%↑
30%
DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
80%
20%
DEMOCRATS
REPUBLICANS
95%
5%
We’ve said many times in this space that the Republican bench in Colorado is basically a phone booth. For years, the Colorado GOP has had a hell of a time trying to find decent candidates for any number of important races. Things are as bad for Republicans in 2022 as they have ever been; the […]
Adams County voters will decide at the ballot box this fall whether or not to expand their County Commission by two seats, creating a five member board in place of the current, three-commissioner composition. The proposal is a response to recent corruption in Adams County, and championed by current commissioners there as creating greater government accountability and responsiveness.
When a similar suggestion came in front of the Jefferson County Board last month, however, Commissioners John Odom, Don Rosier, and Faye Griffin scrambled to come up with any excuse to shoot the proposal down, according to a report from the Denver newspaper.
Viewed through every lens except that of a current officeholder, augmenting the Commission makes sense. Sure, it’s an “expansion of government” as Commissioner John Odom whines, but it’s not an expansion of bureaucracy. People complain about “big government” when they don’t see or can’t find the personal benefit of government services. In a county of 550,000 residents, however, a five-member commission is simply good government: additional elected officials leads to more opportunities for more constituents to have their voices heard.
Odom also notes that it isn’t practical to allow the county to elect two more commissioners in part because of “additional space requirements.” Is that really enough of a reason? Because there aren’t enough offices? Heaven forbid the commissioners share offices, or, even worse, find space in the expansive Taj Mahal to accommodate everybody. The only reasoning more foolish than the office space canard is grumbling that there aren’t enough chairs in the Commission chambers. “We don’t have enough seats,” Odom could say. “We looked into getting some folding chairs, but those aren’t really comfortable and then we would have to decide who gets the padded seats. I guess we could rotate every few months, but it’s frankly not a conversation we want to have.”
Faye Griffin’s remarks were equally absurd, worrying that overworked support staff would have to put even more hours in at the office. It’s funny how Griffin’s complaints are almost diametrically opposed to Odom’s: in a five-member commission, people would have to work harder? Wait, but don’t we want our elected officials and their staff to work hard to earn and steward our tax dollars? Sounds like Odom’s reviled “expansion of government” may just make everybody a little more industrious, if you take his colleague’s word for it.
Don Rosier grouses that having five, district-elected commissioners would build “fiefdoms,” with each commissioner jockeying to benefit his or her own district. That’s right, Rosier believes that having commissioners catering to the specific needs of different communities across geographically and socio-economically diverse Jefferson County would somehow be a bad thing.
So, to review, Jefferson County absolutely should never, ever have five elected county commissioners because:
1) There aren’t enough offices.
2) People would have to work harder.
3) The commissioners would have to work for and respond to those living in their respective districts.
Great reasons.
These sorry excuses, however, belie the true reason guiding the commissioners’ opposition: expanding the board would dilute their personal political power. In Adams County, proponents of board expansion favor additional members because with three, after all, you only need to convince a friend to support you in order to ram public policy through the works.
Having five members, then, would lead to commissioners having to debate, consider, defend, and win votes for their proposals. Which, of course, would limit the commissioners’ ability to have their way with county government.
And why have “personal fiefdoms” when the entire county can be your domain?
Jefferson County Commissioner Don Rosier was last month selected as president of the Front Range District of Colorado Counties, an advocacy group which advises county governments across the Front Range. It’s a plum appointment for the first-term commissioner, who only took office last year after defeating incumbent Commissioner Kathy Hartman in 2010.
From the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners:
Jefferson County Commissioner Donald Rosier has been elected president of the Front Range District of Colorado Counties, Inc. (CCI), a group that represents boards of county commissioners from more than 60 Colorado counties.
The CCI Front Range District includes Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Douglas, El Paso, Jefferson, Larimer, and Weld counties and the City & County of Denver and City & County of Broomfield. It brings together commissioners from those counties who face similar challenges such as increasing urbanization, declining revenues and accelerating demands for services for citizens. By joining together, the commissioners share knowledge and experience, have a bigger voice on legislative matters, and work together on issues that cross county lines.
Rosier, who chairs the Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners, was sworn in as a Jeffco commissioner in 2011, and was named CCI’s Freshman Commissioner of the Year during his first year in office.
CCI is a non-profit, membership association that provides information and education to county officials, and helps counties work together. Rosier was elected to head the Front Range group because of his work with other counties on critical issues such as transportation and economic development.
Rosier also serves on the National Association of Counties (NACo) Community and Economic Development Committee, which develops NACo policies and represents counties across the U.S. before Congress on matters related to community development and redevelopment, housing programs, building and housing codes, subdivision regulations, public works and economic development. Recently he was chosen as one of only 23 leaders in county government from across the U.S. to participate in a national leadership institute developed by NACo and the Cambridge Leadership Associates.
Locally, Rosier represents Jefferson County on several boards including the Denver Regional Council of Governments, the Jefferson Economic Development Corporation and the Jefferson Parkway Public Highway Authority.
Rosier has quickly become the face of the Board, leading the controversial charge to complete the Denver-metropolitan beltway while still finding time to scare little kids.
He’s risen to the top of county government, however, less because of any inherent ambition or talent and more because of the power vacuum left in the wake of the Kings’ of Corruption abdications. Commissioners Jim Congrove and Kevin McCasky were so masterfully able to define — and desecrate — the Board of Commissioners because, working in tandem, they could ramrod through their policies with no questions asked. You could call it leadership, even if it was unquestionably corrupt — and occasionally bizarre.
Indeed, Rosier’s political profile has stumbled into the spotlight in part because the current Board isn’t really composed of strong personalities. Commissioner Faye Griffin, while popular, lacks the legislative chops to be anything more than a yes-woman. After decades in county government, she’s proven to be a better bureaucrat than policymaker. And while Commissioner John Odom has made some of the same mistakes as his predecessors, he’s too green — commissioner is too big for the guy who’s never successfully been elected to public office before.
And so Rosier, rocking facial hair which would make Colonel Sanders shudder, has alone been able to wield power in Jeffco. The Rosier era is doubtless an improvement over the reign of McCasky, Congrove, & company: there’s been no major corruption scandals, yet.
Still, you’ve got to wonder: is this the best we can do? Should one man really set the direction of the county as a whole? And what has Rosier accomplished, anyway?
The Taj Mahal is no longer a font of shame and outrage for Jefferson County residents. But the county government isn’t really anything to be proud of, either.
Don Rosier, then, is the rebound girlfriend of local politics: necessary to move on from past mistakes, but ultimately forgettable in the long run.
Despite the fact that former Jefferson County Commissioner Jim Congrove passed away earlier this year, his ethically questionable decisions and attendant legal missteps will continue to cost the county taxpayer dollars, as ordered by a recent decision of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Congrove, remember, was taken to court in 2005 by blogger Mike Zinna. In that lawsuit, Zinna alleged a gross violation of his First Amendment rights after the commissioner used county funds to hire a private investigator to tail the county critic. A jury eventually agreed with Zinna’s claims, awarding him a symbolic $1,791 in damages. U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch then ruled that the gadfly was entitled to $8,000 in reimbursement for lawyer’s fees.
As it turns out, the county’s tab for that particular lawsuit may run up even higher.
From the Denver Business Journal:
A federal appeals court says the amount of attorneys’ fees awarded to a blogger critical of Jefferson County government isn’t enough and is sending the case back to the lower court to increase that amount, The Denver Post reports.
It’s unlikely that Zinna will receive the $500,000 he’s requesting, but there’s no question that the county will be forced to spend more public money to finally end this particular legal skirmish. No matter how much the lower court decides Zinna deserves — and it’ll be considerably more than $8,000 — it will only add to the half a million dollars the county has already spent litigating this case.
While it’s ridiculous that taxpayers are continuing to foot the bill for the incredibly stupid decisions made by their erstwhile elected officials, it’s merely symptomatic of a larger problem with Jefferson County government. Congrove may be dead and buried, but his tenure as a commissioner is still hurting Jefferson County. Likewise, former Commissioner Kevin McCasky’s recent ethical violations continue to paint Jefferson County as a cesspool of corruption.
Bottom line, Jim Congrove was most certainly not the “good steward of taxpayer funds” that the legislature retroactively defined him as. In fact, just the opposite: Congrove and his cohorts left such an indellible black mark on Jeffco that it has taken — and will continue to take — years for the county to move beyond their years on the Commission.
Unfortunately, while the current Board of Commissioners hasn’t been mired in scandal (yet), history has a nasty habit of repeating itself in Jeffco.
Last week, State Senator Evie Hudak co-sponsored a resolution honoring former State Senator (and Jefferson County Commissioner) Jim Congrove on the floor of the Senate. Congrove, who opted not to run for re-election in 2008 after becoming embroiled in several corruption scandals, died earlier this year.
From the Colorado Senate Majority:
DENVER─ Today, the Senate honored former Republican Senator Jim Congrove in a bipartisan memorial resolution sponsored by Senator Evie Hudak (D-Westminster). Senator Congrove was a Vietnam War veteran and former undercover narcotics officer. He was elected to the Colorado House of Representatives in 1994 and to the Colorado State Senate in 1996. Senator Congrove also served as a Jefferson County Commissioner from 2005-2009. He passed away on January 10.
Below is the full text of Senator Congrove’s Senate memorial:
WHEREAS, Our respected former colleague, Jim Congrove, a past member of the Colorado Senate and House of Representatives, departed this life on January 10, 2012, at the age of 65, in Arvada; and
WHEREAS, Senator Congrove was born on May 5, 1946; and
WHEREAS, Senator Congrove graduated from Boys Town in Nebraska, where he was named head commissioner in the cottage where he resided; and
WHEREAS, After serving in the Vietnam War, Senator Congrove returned to Colorado and enrolled in Adams State College; and
WHEREAS, Senator Congrove served first in the Colorado House of Representatives from 1994 to 1996, during which time he served on the House Finance and State Veterans and Military Affairs committees; and
WHEREAS, From 1996 to 2000, Senator Congrove served in the Colorado Senate, where he was a member of several committees, including the Health Environment Welfare and Institutions, Local Government, and State Veterans and Military Affairs committees; and
WHEREAS, While serving in the Colorado General Assembly, Senator Congrove, who was a former undercover narcotics officer, sponsored a bill that further restricted no-knock warrants; and
WHEREAS, While serving in the Senate, Senator Congrove also sponsored a bill granting disabled veterans free entrance to parks, legislation affecting the governance of charter schools, and legislation updating the certification system of the Peace Officers Standards and Training Board; and
WHEREAS, Senator Congrove’s public service did not end with his tenure in the General Assembly; in 2004, he was elected as Jefferson County Commissioner for District 1; and
WHEREAS, Senator Congrove said that the primary job of a county commissioner was to be a good steward of the taxpayers’ dollars and support property rights, government accountability, and limited taxation; and
WHEREAS, As a pilot himself, Senator Congrove had a particular interest in improving the Jefferson County Airport, which he called “the absolute crown jewel of Jefferson County”, and he was instrumental in changing its name to the Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport; and
WHEREAS, In addition to his involvement with public service, Senator Congrove cherished his family and loved spending time with them, especially his two daughters and three grandchildren; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the Sixty-eighth General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the House of Representatives concurring herein:
That, in the death of Jim Congrove, the people of the state of Colorado have lost a dedicated public servant and outstanding citizen, and that we, the members of the Colorado General Assembly, do hereby extend our deep and heartfelt sympathy to the members of his family and pay tribute to a man who served his state well and faithfully.
Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Memorial be sent to Senator Congrove’s wife, Judy Congrove; his two daughters, Jennifer Fawcett and Jamie Lombardi; and his sister, Marie Hebdon.
We’re sure that this resolution means a lot to Congrove’s grieving family. That said, however, Congrove’s reputation as a crook most certainly overshadows the positive contributions he did make to public service.
After all, this is the same Jim Congrove who was a card-carrying member of the Jeffco “Kings of Corruption,” alongside former Commissioner Kevin McCasky and former Treasurer Mark Paschall. This is the same Jim Congrove who was accused of using public funds to spy on county employees, county critics, private citizens, and even other elected officials; who cost Jeffco taxpayers thousands of dollars in legal fees; who was accused of lying to investigators about his role in the mysterious disappearance of legal files. The list goes on and on.
What was Senator Hudak thinking? We understand the mentality behind memorializing recently-deceased politicians, but usually, those politicians left behind a legacy worth honoring. Jim Congrove’s repeated ethical missteps as a county commissioner should have totally precluded the passage — or even the introduction — of this resolution.
Put simply, you can’t whitewash over Congrove’s ethical missteps just because he passed away.
Congrove might have believed that his job as a county commissioner was to “be a good steward of the taxpayers’ dollars” and to champion government accountability. The problem is the gigantic chasm between what Congrove said and what he did. It’s absurd to celebrate his words while ignoring his actions.
Evie Hudak and the General Assembly could pass hundreds of gushing resolutions honoring Jim Congrove, but they won’t make his tainted legacy go away. You can’t forgive the unforgivable.
After all, people will remember Jim Congrove not for the kind words spoken about him in the halls of government but instead for the gallons of newspaper ink directly tying him to scandal.
Disgraced former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich will no longer be calling the Land of Lincoln “home.” Instead, he’ll be settling down right here in Jefferson County, Colorado. Not by choice, of course!
From 9News:
LITTLETON, Colo. (AP) – Convicted former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich entered a federal prison in Colorado on Thursday to begin a 14-year sentence for corruption, the latest chapter in the downfall of a charismatic politician that seemed more like a bizarre reality TV show than a legal battle.
Followed by helicopters and television news crews broadcasting his every move, the 55-year-old Democrat pulled up in a black SUV at the Federal Correctional Institution Englewood in suburban Denver just before 1 p.m. after stopping for lunch and taking a break to make a cellphone call.
“I think it’s kind of surreal to him, but he seems in good spirits,” said Brian Pyle, who owns the Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers in Littleton where Blogojevich had lunch with three other people…
Blagojevich sounded an optimistic and even defiant note, as he has done repeatedly before and after he was convicted on several corruption charges that included attempting to sell or trade an appointment to President Barack Obama’s vacated Senate seat.
“I’m leaving with a heavy heart, a clear conscience and I have high, high hopes for the future,” said Blagojevich, wearing a dark shirt, sport coat and blue jeans.
Next time you’re driving down Kipling, just south of Hampden, you might just be lucky enough to catch Blago wistfully combing his perfectly-coiffed hair behind a barred window.
And hey, maybe Kevin McCasky will drop in during visitation hours to get some advice on how he too can turn his ethical problems into a primetime spot on The Apprentice.
Despite Jeffco electoral gains in both houses of the General Assembly, representation at the county level is one nut Jefferson County Democrats have yet to crack.
Commissioner Kathy Hartman was the lone Democratic voice in elected government at the county level until her loss last cycle. In fact, Hartman was the first Democrat elected to the Board of Commissioners in 14 years. With Hartman’s 2010 loss to Republican Don Rosier, however, the Democrats lost their last connection to the Taj Mahal.
As things stand today, it’s unlikely the Democrats will be able to reverse that trend in 2012.
Commissioner Faye Griffin, elected in 2008, seems set to ascend to a second term. Griffin, of course, is the only sitting commissioner to have signed off on the now-infamous “Bridge to Nowhere” linking the Southwest Plaza and Bowles Crossing shopping centers. That’s a definite weakness which the right challenger could use in mail pieces to link Griffin with both wasteful spending and government corruption, two talking points that even conservatives in South Jeffco could get behind. Even with that veritable Achilles heel, however, the Jeffco Dems have yet to draft a candidate for the District 1 seat.
That’s no surprise. Longtime State Senator Sue Windels lost to Griffin in 2008, taking only 42% of the vote. If Windels, who from a decade of service in state government was popular in north Jeffco, couldn’t defeat Griffin for an open seat, it’s unlikely that there’s a candidate out there who could beat the former treasurer in a re-election fight.
Instead, it seems, the county Democrats have focused their efforts on District 2 Commissioner John Odom. Odom, a failed candidate for the State Senate, was appointed to fill the remainder of Kevin McCasky’s term after the latter took a now controversial post at the Jefferson Economic Council. Odom’s previous electoral difficulties and lack of resounding name ID throughout the candidate led attorney Casey Tighe to jump into the race.
Tighe is by no means a bad candidate. He’s served in senior positions at the Colorado Department of Transportation for a quarter-century and also chaired the Jefferson County Audit Committee. In short, Tighe’s got a great resume to make the case that he’s qualified to root corruption out of county government, once and for all.
Absent on Tighe’s CV, however, is previous elected service. Without it, the attorney is going to struggle to make voters remember his name. He’ll also have problems convincing donors to give him the amounts of money he’s going to need to take on an incumbent Republican in right-leaning Jefferson County. Tighe would be an incredible candidate for a competitive State House or State Senate seat – if he shows that he can put together the semblance of an effective campaign, he’ll set the stage for a future run. For county commissioner, we just don’t see him pulling off a surprise win against Odom.
As for the district attorney’s race? We doubt Republican Pete Weir will face any serious opposition. The former district judge served as executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Safety in the Ritter administration, a bipartisan resume bullet that even Democrats can get behind. He’s a good fit for the post, and barring any major campaign trail revelations, should cruise to the DA’s office. If anything, district attorney is too small for Weir: we could see him pivoting from the 1st Judicial District onto the short list for attorney general when John Suthers is termed out in 2014.
Jefferson County Democrats have been struggling to field candidates in the two countywide commissioner races this cycle.
Commissioner Faye Griffin is vying for a second term in 2012, and Commissioner John Odom, who filled the vacancy created after Kevin McCasky’s controversial move to the Jefferson County Economic Council, is seeking a full term. No Democrats had announced to take on either Griffin or Odom until attorney Casey Tighe filed papers late last month for Odom’s District 2 seat.
From the Columbine Courier:
Democrat Casey Tighe has the lofty goal of unseating Jeffco Commissioner John Odom in November, and the Colorado Department of Transportation audit director is ending his 24-year career to focus completely on his campaign.
Tighe, a longtime Golden resident who filed his candidate affidavit on Jan. 27, said he does not foresee a highly charged, partisan race for the District 2 seat, which in recent years has been dominated by Republicans.
A Republican vacancy committee appointed Odom to fill the seat vacated by former commissioner Kevin McCasky a year ago, when McCasky accepted a job as head of the Jefferson County Economic Development Corp.
“I don’t know that this will be a real partisan race,” Tighe said. “You’re looking for someone who will run an effective government.”
The last Democrat to fill an elected office in Jefferson County was former commissioner Kathy Hartman, who in 2010 was defeated by District 3 Commissioner Don Rosier, a Republican. Hartman was also the first Democrat elected to the seat in 14 years when she won the office in 2006.
But despite the local electorate’s historically conservative leanings, Tighe, 52, said his auditing expertise will make him a competitive candidate.
“I can provide a fresh set of eyes and perspective as a county commissioner,” said Tighe, who was serving on the county audit committee last year when the current Board of Commissioners dissolved it. “I try to make my decisions based on the facts … and not purely on ideology. There’s a lot of talk right now about cutting government … but you need to make the right decisions about where can you cut and where you focus the government’s efforts.”
Further, county residents are interested in a business-friendly atmosphere, he said, an insight that does not appear lost on the current board.
“I know Jefferson County. I know what the people are looking for. … People are interested in business development. They want to see businesses grow,” Tighe said, adding that county services should be streamlined and helpful. “The government should be elegant in that the customer has a positive experience. … It should be an efficient process. You shouldn’t have to go back again to get service.”
That political newcomer Tighe is the only Democratic candidate set to take on Odom in District 2 shows just how intimidating the commissioner’s races are for Democrats. Odom, who lost his first ever political bid against Cheri Jahn for the SD-20 seat in 2010, is arguably much more vulnerable in his re-election bid than Griffin – he lost his last campaign for a much smaller office and never before has been on the ballot countywide. Even with that inherent vulnerability, however, no big-name Democrats were willing to challenge him for the District 2 seat, leaving the race open to the relatively unknown Tighe.
Can Tighe win? He’s got an interesting pedigree, at the very least. The longtime CDOT audit director also served as the chairman of the Jefferson County Audit Committee, qualifications which will enable Tighe to campaign on government transparency and accountability. Those talking points may resonate in light of Jeffco’s own “Bridge to Nowhere” scandal if Tighe can make the case that he’s better qualified than Odom to root out county corruption.
With no contribution limits in county races, however, Tighe’s talking points won’t be relevant unless he can raise enough to televise them. Tighe may have some contacts with the Colorado Trial Lawyer’s Association, but he doesn’t have a record as an elected official. Without it or any other indicator of previous success, Tighe will struggle with convincing donors that he can win the election against Odom. There’s just no way that Tighe’s fundraising list, as a political newcomer, will be long enough to really give incumbent Odom a run for his money.
The commissioner’s race is an important challenge for Democrats – a strong presence at the countywide level will boost turnout for State House and Senate Candidates, especially given that there are no statewide offices up this year with the exception of CU regent at-large.
Tighe may prove a worthy adversary for Odom, but the numbers aren’t on his side. There are more residents in Jefferson County than in the entire state of Wyoming, and unless Democratic challengers can raise the kind of money characteristic of a congressional race, incumbent Republicans will continue to dominate county level politics. Without previous elected service and with a low name-ID, it’s unlikely that Tighe will be able to pull in enough cash to be viable.
Still no word on who, if anybody, will take on Faye Griffin.
Like many, we’ve been keeping a keen eye on Kyle Clark’s reporting on Jeffco’s so-called “Bridge to Nowhere,” a rarely used pedestrian bridge at Wadsworth Boulevard and Bowles Avenue in south Jeffco.
It’s a story with legs, so to speak. In fact, taxpayers (aided by Clark and 9News) have raised such a stir that even Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has had to defend the use of federal funds on the project.
From 9News:
9Wants to Know asked U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood about the project during a recent interview opportunity provided by White House officials.
LaHood bristled at the suggestion that federal funds were being spent on expensive and unnecessary projects.
“These are hard earned tax dollars and we take serious our responsibility to make sure that the money that we allocate is spent correctly on projects that people want in their communities,” LaHood said.
LaHood’s staff subsequently reached out to 9Wants to Know for more information on the pedestrian bridge project but then did not respond to multiple phone calls offering additional information and seeking comment on federal involvement in the project
The real story here – given Jeffco’s rather unique history of commissioner corruption – isn’t that the commissioners wasted millions of tax dollars on a useless bridge. It’s who convinced them to make that decision.
With a $1.5 million contract awarded to build the bridge, we’re pretty sure Muller Engineering knows the answer. Somebody within the Jefferson County government needs to provide a (real) answer as well.
Clark agrees:
Bauer said an engineering study was done to determine projected usage of the bridge. In emails to concerned taxpayers, Bauer cited the study’s projection of 100 pedestrians/bicyclists per day, not mentioning that the figure was for the year 2030.
The study was conducted by Muller Engineering of Lakewood. In one internal email, Jeffco Transportation and Engineering Director Kevin French says Muller “milked” the project for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
County records indicate that Muller was awarded about $1.6 million in contracts for the entire Wadsworth-Bowles intersection improvement project that, including the pedestrian bridge, totaled $8 to $9 million.
Additionally, two Muller employees are listed on the membership roster of a steering committee that recommended building the bridge. Muller president Robert Carlson denied that his employees were on the steering committee but could not explain why the names of two Muller engineers appear on a steering committee list provided by the county.
In a written statement, Carlson denied “milking” the project for money, as suggested by French.
“Muller Engineering’s involvement in the pedestrian bridge project on Wadsworth Boulevard north of Bowles Avenue came as a result of Jefferson County contracting Muller to provide a feasibility study for the bridge,” Carlson said. “At no time was it Muller’s position to be an advocate for the bridge.”
The final paragraph of the Muller study used to justify the building of the bridge reads in part that the bridge “will provide a viable and desirable transportation enhancement.”
Reached via telephone and asked whether that summary constituted advocacy for the bridge, Carlson hung up the phone
Jeffco’s Transportation and Engineering Director Kevin French best encapsulates the whole situation in noting that that Muller was “milking” the project.
But who helped Muller “milk” the county, and why? Two Muller employees sitting on the committee that ultimately recommended the bridge certainly raises questions about conflicts-of-interest. But considering the historic relationship county commissioners have had with interested third parties when it comes time to divvy out county funds, we’re sure Clark and his team at 9News will start focusing on the conversations Muller had with the Board of Commissioners at the time the bridge was approved.
With former Commissioner Kevin McCasky already having to answer uncomfortable questions about the Jefferson Economic Council and Faye Griffin facing re-election next year, neither could be thrilled that this story is starting to turn heads nationally.
The thing is, though, taxpayers really hate when their money gets wasted. Somebody’s going to have to explain why Muller was awarded such a lucrative contract despite the county’s financial woes. When that explanation is unearthed, we wouldn’t be surprised if it’s just the latest scandal to rock county politics here in Jeffco.
It’s a shocking story, but it’s not surprising. Welcome to Jefferson County.
Over the last several months we’ve been chronicling the strange saga that is Jefferson County Republican politics, and yesterday the editorial board of The Denver Post weighed in with their opinion” Congratulations, Jefferson County. Your county commissioners have once again made Jeffco look like a backwater. In this episode, commissioners almost certainly violated Colorado law […]
BY: 2Jung2Die
IN: Longtime Colorado Journalist Sanda Fish Retires
BY: Lauren Boebert is a Worthless POS
IN: Richard Holtorf Jumps Into Colorado GOP Chairmanship Fracas
BY: Lauren Boebert is a Worthless POS
IN: J.D. Vance Really, Really Not Going Over Well
BY: MichaelBowman
IN: Richard Holtorf Jumps Into Colorado GOP Chairmanship Fracas
BY: Lauren Boebert is a Worthless POS
IN: Former Colorado Prof Eastman’s False Birther Attack on Kamala Harris Already Being Recycled
BY: spaceman2021
IN: Former Colorado Prof Eastman’s False Birther Attack on Kamala Harris Already Being Recycled
BY: bullshit!
IN: Longtime Colorado Journalist Sanda Fish Retires
BY: Southwest Denver Dem
IN: Richard Holtorf Jumps Into Colorado GOP Chairmanship Fracas
BY: The realist
IN: Richard Holtorf Jumps Into Colorado GOP Chairmanship Fracas
BY: Conserv. Head Banger
IN: Swashbuckling Transphobe Eli Bremer Offers To Save Colorado Republicans From Themselves
Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay in the loop with regular updates!