Democracy Isn’t A Closed Door
An Open Letter to the Douglas County Board of Commissioners
In Douglas County and across Colorado, residents have long participated in local government through a simple yet powerful tradition: public comment at public meetings. For decades, this practice gave voice to parents, business owners, veterans, and everyday citizens who wanted their elected officials to hear their concerns directly, not just through petitions or emails, but face-to-face at the dais. This tradition matters. It is a clear articulation of democracy and civic engagement at the local level. It helps shape decisions about land use and development, public safety, and quality of life. Yet in Douglas County, that tradition has now been eliminated, as the county commissioners have removed general public comment from meeting agendas. This decision discards decades of civic practice and closes an essential channel for constituent engagement.
In explaining this change, the Board emphasizes the importance of structured dialogue, agenda-focused discussions, and orderly meetings. They point to other avenues for input, including email, phone calls, office hours, and town halls. But these alternatives are not substitutes for real-time public accountability when governing decisions are made. We’re seeing a troubling pattern of top-down governance from these commissioners, including the hasty special election on Home Rule this past summer, which also offered very limited opportunities for public input. And we saw how that turned out. The measure was defeated with over 70% of the vote.
Removing public comment at public meetings and simultaneously restricting comments on official social media channels sends a troubling message: direct and open public dialogue is optional or unwelcome rather than foundational to democratic governance. When you add symbolic barriers, such as the velvet ropes that recently appeared in the commissioner’s chambers, it further separates officials from community members, creating an impression of power over the people rather than with the people, and certainly not for the people. What are our commissioners afraid of?
I recently deployed a public poll asking whether public comments should be allowed at every Douglas County commissioner meeting. Of the 137 respondents from the first 12 hours of its activation, 100% said yes. Not a single “no” or “maybe.” This belief in the value of transparency isn’t a fringe view. It reflects a broad and deeply held expectation that local government should remain open to public voices of all kinds, not just when officials decide those voices are convenient, orderly, or friendly to their agenda.
Once elected, our leaders are entrusted with the authority to make decisions affecting taxes, infrastructure, land use, public safety, and residents' everyday lives. With that authority comes a responsibility to listen to all of us. Not just their friends, not just their party, but every citizen. This obligation extends beyond scheduled emails and filtered forums to the moment when people step up, speak up, and demand to be heard. After all, creating spaces for public discussion and listening to constituents should be a basic expectation for anyone in public office. As such, I call on the Board of County Commissioners to:
Restore general public comment to every public meeting agenda, without preconditions.
Reinstate public comment features on official County social media and other communication channels.
Affirm that public participation isn’t a nuisance but a democratic right.
The people of Douglas County want to be heard and deserve leadership that listens.
Respectfully,
Irene Bonham
Community Advocate & Candidate for Douglas County Commissioner
