Responsive to our Community

Strategic Plan 

One of our biggest accomplishments in 2023 was creating a new Strategic Plan. Through regular interactions, we know residents generally agree on the challenges we face—things like aging infrastructure, lack of affordable housing, homelessness, public safety and more. These are all issues the County has made important and measurable progress on over the past several years and our new strategic plan will help us make even more effective by focusing our efforts in six broad categories: demonstrating good governance, working to increase revenue, advancing sustainable development, creating housing, furthering economic mobility, and showcasing workforce development. Read more about the plan. 

Launch of Public Health 

We kicked off 2023 with a major win as we launched the new Arapahoe County Public Health Department. This was no easy undertaking. When the Tri-County Health Department dissolved in 2022, we had one year to plan and build a new single-County department that would solely serve Arapahoe County residents. Our hard work paid off on Jan. 1, 2023, as we opened our doors to the new department and immediately offered services that keep our residents and businesses safe. This new department uses policy and environmental change to prevent disease and injury and enhance health and well-being. 

Celebrating 20 years of Open Spaces 

From splashing in the water at the Cherry Creek Valley Ecological Park to birding at Richmil Ranch Open Space or reliving history at the 17 Mile House Farm Park, Arapahoe County residents have more than 32,000 acres of open space, 78 miles of trails and more than 190 park and trailhead projects that help our neighbors get outside and enjoy what makes Colorado so special. It all started in 2003, when voters approved a quarter-cent Open Space Sales and Use Tax that created our Open Spaces program. It has been so successful that voters permanently reauthorized the tax in 2021, ensuring that parks, trails and open spaces will be a part of our community in perpetuity. Explore our open spaces.  

ARPA provides once-in-a-lifetime opportunities 

Designed to assist our post-pandemic economic recovery, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) allowed us to significantly increase support for both residents and community stakeholders, including small businesses, nonprofits, and industries disproportionately affected by COVID-19. Arapahoe County received $127.5 million in funding, which was allocated to several areas, including vulnerable populations, business support, homelessness and affordable housing, mental and physical health, County operations, education, COVID-19 response, and water/sewer infrastructure.

Not only did these funds help keep residents and organizations safe and afloat during and after the pandemic, it also demonstrated how investment in community-based programs can have a positive effect on our population. ARPA funding allowed us to launch new programs like a regional homeless response and support workforce training programs at Arapahoe and Aurora community colleges. ARPA has been a lifeline for providing innovative and critical services that the County would otherwise not be able to provide due to our immediate fiscal challenges.  

Sustaining essential services 

Arapahoe County has a long history of fiscal accountability. Our elected leaders and staff take great pride in our ability to balance the books and provide top-quality service to our residents. We’ve even been able to balance the budget while also providing property owners relief on their taxes by adjusting our tax rate down to stay compliant with the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR). Living within our means, however, has come at a cost. To keep the budget in check, we’ve had to defer more than $316 million in deferred maintenance and needed transportation projects.  At the same time, the County has grown exponentially and now has more than 655,000 residents that need and demand services. The additional strain caused by population growth has been exacerbated by inflation that increased the cost of many items tenfold. With the impending loss of ARPA dollars, commissioners began a strategic effort in 2023 to solve the County’s sustainable funding challenge and kicked off a community engagement process that seeks to educate and inform residents about the challenge and garner ideas to sustain essential services. Read more about these efforts.  

County Commissioner redistricting 

In 2023, all Colorado counties were legally required to draw new boundaries for County commissioner districts. Arapahoe was one of only three counties in the state to create a citizens’ commission to solicit public input, draft new maps and recommend three draft maps to the Board of County Commissioners for adoption.

Transparency and public engagement were crucial. Several County departments collaborated to promote public hearings in each district, design a redistricting webpage that included regular updates and a digital tool allowing residents to create their own draft maps. Commissioners unanimously adopted one of the draft maps created by the citizens’ commission in June. Arapahoe County was even cited by The Denver Post as an example of how to provide transparency and public engagement in the redistricting process.  

Beginning our DEI journey

In September, the Board of County Commissioners rolled out County’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategic Plan.  

The plan outlines four pillars designed to create a culture of continuous learning and improvement, include more diverse voices in decision-making, remove potential inequities and bias from policies, practices, unspoken norms, and procedures, and increase representation of marginalized groups in all levels, roles, and departments/offices across the Arapahoe County.   

Aid to Agencies 

Sometimes the people who help others need help themselves. That’s why commissioners approved supplemental funding for more than 20 area nonprofits that serve at-risk and underserved populations in the County. In total, $2 million was distributed as part of the Aid to Agencies Program, which supplements eligible organizations that provide critical safety net services such as substance abuse prevention, mental/behavioral health, shelter, food assistance, domestic violence support, affordable housing, and employment skills. Helping those who help others.    

Protecting Public Health 

At the stroke of midnight on Jan. 1, 2023, Arapahoe County Public Health officially began operations. Over the next 12 months they helped prevent the spread of typically cyclical diseases—Rabies beginning in the spring, West Nile in the summer, and the flu, RSV, and COVID-19 in the fall and winter. They launched new initiatives—mpox vaccines, free breast and cervical cancer screenings, and Baby Café breastfeeding support—and responded to 700 public health complaints. 

But one of their most far-reaching efforts came in the heart of the holiday season when State health officials confirmed that an international traveler to Colorado tested positive for measles. Our health department led the investigation, alongside the state and several other local public health agencies, in notifying people who may have been directly exposed. We educated our community on measles symptoms and offered pop-up immunization for anyone who had been exposed. By following established best practices, Arapahoe County limited the spread of disease and is prepared as occurrences of vaccine-preventable diseases continue to grow. 

Renewed focus on accessibility and services

In September 2023 we launched new websites for Arapahoe County, the Sheriff’s Office, and Public Health. Going into this massive project, our primary goals were clear cut. 

Improving accessibility was a top priority. Not only was this the right thing to do for our communities, but we were determined to get ahead of new state accessibility law (HB21-1110) that holds local governments to higher accessibility standards. 

Helping residents find information faster by emphasizing the services and programs we know residents seek most, and providing a better mobile experience, were also top of mind. Lastly, we jumped on the opportunity to build trust with our residents by updating our site domain to arapahoeco.gov. (dot gov being the most trusted standard for government identification.) 

18^th Judicial transition

The 18th Judicial District is the largest district in Colorado, serving nearly 1.4 million people in four different counties: Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert, and Lincoln. Because of its diversity and size, the Colorado legislature approved creating a new judicial district for the first time in 60 years.  

In March 2020, Governor Polis signed legislation forming a new 23rd Judicial District and configuring the 18th Judicial District to be comprised solely of Arapahoe County effective January 2025.   

Over the past several years, a core project team from Arapahoe County and the current 18th Judicial District has been meeting to guide the transition with the goal of creating a single-County structure that is employee-focused, fiscally sound, and based on best practices among similar entities. The teams have made significant progress and will continue to work together throughout 2024 to ensure a smooth transition for employees and the public served by both districts. 

Motor Vehicle 

Motor Vehicle offices in the County performed approximately 564,000 customer transactions and answered 83,000 customer calls. Despite the ever-increasing volume from serving an ever-growing population, same-day appointments are now available at every branch office almost every day, and we’ve reduced average waiting times to less than six minutes, and total transaction times to eight minutes. Self-service kiosks have helped more than 95,000 customers renew their registration without even coming into the office, and two new kiosks opened in Bennett and Glendale to offer this convenient option to our residents. 

Racial Equity

As the County dives deeper into diversity, equity and inclusion practices, the Arapahoe County Justice Coordinating Committee launched a new Racial Equity Subcommittee to help strengthen the inclusion of diverse voices and remove potential inequities and bias from policies, practices and procedures within the criminal justice system. To kick off its work, the committee hosted a racial equity event in September where residents were asked to speak about injustices in the system in a safe and respectful environment. It was standing room only as guests shared their experiences with commissioners, the sheriff, and district attorney.  

Recording 

Searching for documents in the public record got a lot easier in 2023, as the Clerk’s Recording Division launched a new cloud search platform with more intuitive features and 24/7 customer support. Almost 4,000 happy couples tied the knot in our offices last year, and just over 4,000 travelers processed their passport applications. The division recorded more than 86,000 documents in 2023 and made notable progress in digitizing all Arapahoe County records. Residents, historians, journalists and real-estate professionals can now easily find records from 1966 to the present, comprising nearly 2,674,000 total documents containing over 6,813,000 pages.  

Elections 

The 2023 coordinated election saw the highest turnout of any odd-year election since 2011, with nearly 171,000 (41%) of active registered voters casting ballots (remarkably, 17 of those voters were over 100 years old!) Voter Services staff registered or updated registration for almost 161,000 voters throughout the year. The Elections Division hosted public tours of the Arapahoe County Election Facility as ballots were being processed, and the division released two more videos about accessible voting options and how voter rolls are kept current, furthering its commitment to public engagement and transparency. 

Oil & Gas Phase 1 & 2 

Resident and stakeholder feedback helped drive new oil and gas regulations in 2023. The County’s new regulations are some of the most protective in Colorado. The rules address safety, traffic, and quality of life considerations. New regulations were adopted after several hearings and public meetings with residents, and include increased setbacks from bodies of water, homes, and outdoor activity areas, as well as additional testing requirements for soil, water and air. In 2024, additional oil and gas amendments will be considered that include financial considerations, wastewater injection well facilities, and an inspection program.  

Taking the lead on leaded aviation fuel 

The use of leaded gasoline for aircraft has long been a concern for both the aviation industry and residents as it has been known to be harmful to humans and the environment. Working in conjunction with Arapahoe County commissioners, Centennial Airport became the first airport in the state to switch to unleaded aviation fuel in May 2023—a move heralded by community groups and pilots alike. The change was made months before the Environmental Protection Agency made a final determination that leaded fuel causes or contributes to air pollution and years ahead of the Federal Aviation Administration’s transition to unleaded fuels. Our work hasn’t stopped there; commissioners are working with the airport and regulators to address noise concerns from communities surrounding the airport.  

Cheyenne-Arapaho Park 

Last summer, Arapahoe County completed the expansion of Cheyenne-Arapaho Park, located at 9200 E. Iowa Avenue in unincorporated Arapahoe County at the borders of the Aurora and Denver. Park improvements have been a huge hit with the community. On a typical day, you’ll see multigenerational families playing in the accessible playground, neighbors taking walks and picnicking, and healthy tree canopies. It truly is an urban oasis!   

The new features are there today because of resident input. You asked for a playground, a dog park, community gardens, more picnic areas, and shade. We delivered! Our new community garden in partnership with Denver Urban Gardens and Arapahoe County CSU Extension had a great first season; residents grew an estimated 2,500 pounds of produce.   

Neighborhood parks like this, along with nearby Long’s Pine Grove, have addressed a historic gap in access to green spaces close to home—and have transformed the landscape in northwestern Arapahoe County.   

Infrastructure report card 

To get a clearer picture of the County’s transportation assets, Public Works and Development began creating an annual infrastructure report card that grades the County’s roads, bridges and other transportation assets. The report assigns a class rating to each asset, noting if it’s in good, fair or poor condition. For example, 40% of the County’s roads are classified as being in “poor” or “very poor” condition—well above the County’s target of 15%. The report card helps prioritize maintenance work and mitigate road hazards in a timely manner. The report also demonstrates the need for additional County revenue sources to address the backlog of maintenance that has been deferred due to budget challenges. The County needs about $70 million to bring every transportation asset to a “good rating.” View the 2023 report online. 

High Plains Trail connector project 

The County’s High Plains Trail Connector Project will link the High Plains Trail to the Cherry Creek Trail, improving regional trail connectivity and neighborhood access to the larger Denver regional trail network and increasing the quality of life for residents. The project reached a big milestone in July 2023 when a new pedestrian bridge was installed over Parker Road, drastically increasing safety. Watch a video of the bridge being installed.  

Open Spaces that work for all 

Last year, Arapahoe County distributed $25 million to cities, towns and partner agencies to support local recreation and conservation efforts funded by the County’s Open Space Sales and Use Tax. This financial partnership honors the direction the County received from voters in 2021 when they reauthorized the County’s limited sales and use tax to support open space purposes.

 Fifty percent of the annual Open Space Sales and Use Tax revenue is distributed directly back to participating cities and towns across the County through its Shareback program. Funds are allocated according to population, and they contribute to the quality of life and overall health of County residents via trail, playground and park projects.   

Iliff Avenue corridor construction project

Motorists traveling along Iliff Avenue now have a sleek, efficient, and safer route thanks to a $30 million improvement to the roadway. After more than two years of construction, the two miles between Quebec Street and South Parker Road now feature a four-lane roadway with acceleration and deceleration lanes, improvements to the Cherry Creek Trail, and new sidewalks, bike paths and traffic signals. The project also included demolition of the old Barn Store building, bus stop enhancements and intersection modifications.  

Water study kickoff 

Water is a precious commodity in Colorado and Arapahoe County is interested in preserving as much of this resource as possible while also allowing for appropriate growth. To gauge the water needs for years to come, we kicked off a Countywide water study in 2023. The study projects that the County’s population will grow to approximately 800,000 by 2050. Because of this, the study shows that conservation will be key; technological advances must be made to conserve water, and we should adopt stricter landscaping requirements. The study also is determining how much water is available in non-renewable aquifers within the Denver Basin, a vast reservoir of groundwater the size of Connecticut. A public outreach plan was initiated, and the report is expected to be finalized in summer 2024.

Admin building turf replacement

As a growing County, we know that water is one of our most precious resources. We developed a Water Action Plan that promotes reduction measures for all facility water uses with a goal of reducing landscape water use by 13% over the next 5–10 years. 

 The County replaced a three-acre field of unused, water-intensive Kentucky bluegrass at the Administration Building with a mix of prairie grasses. The project is returning the field to how it looked before settlers started moving to the area and began irrigating the land. 

The turf conversion saved over two million gallons in 2022 and three million gallons in 2023. We are incorporating best practices into the County’s internal facilities design and construction standards for implementation at other sites.  

Protecting wildlife habitat along Kiowa Creek  

Arapahoe County purchased a 74-acre property near the Town of Bennett in January 2023. The property contains a section of Kiowa Creek and is approximately 60% floodplain, representing valuable wildlife habitat in Colorado’s eastern plains. The County’s acquisition of this property protects an environmentally sensitive area, preserves scenic views from I-70 and Kiowa-Bennett Road, and supports future recreational opportunities.  While the County’s newest open space property will not be immediately accessible to the public, we anticipate it will eventually be connected by a multi-use trail to nearby Kiowa Creek Open Space, Bennett Regional Park and Open Space, and the Town of Bennett.   

The County completed a master plan for Kiowa Creek Open Space and is working to develop the site with trails, picnic areas, archery range, features for equestrians and mountain bikers, and other recreational amenities designed to have minimal impact on the creek corridor. The park is anticipated to open to the public in 2025.   

  

Approved ADUs 

Facing a housing shortage, the County approved Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in 2023. An ADU can be added to, created within, or built adjacent to a detached single-family home—on any property of at least 5,000 square feet. ADUs are allowed within all Agricultural, Mixed-Use, and most Residential zoning districts. They also are allowed in planned unit developments unless they are prohibited by a homeowner association. The construction of an ADU requires a County building permit. These structures must include a kitchen, bathroom and sleeping quarters and the regulations provide guidelines for design, location, size and the number of bedrooms.  

Housing tour  

Arapahoe County has one of the most diverse housing stocks among large counties, from single family to townhomes and condominiums to multi-family apartments. This diversity is reflected in the County’s 13 cities and towns as well as unincorporated areas.  

Arapahoe County commissioners, mayors, city/town councils, and our economic development partners are committed to working together and with the state legislature to solve the affordable housing crisis. Today, more than 90,589 housing units are already approved to be built throughout the County, which will provide housing for at least 236,437 individuals.  

To understand these projects better—and to highlight the challenges and opportunities we have for land use—Arapahoe County in 2023 hosted two tours to showcase the County’s continuum of housing to legislators and housing policy experts. The bus tours—in Eastern and Western Arapahoe County—visited properties ranging from luxury high-rises to pallet home shelter villages, highlighting the unique zoning and financing characteristics of each. 

ARPA funds for low-income housing

In August 2023, work began on the Sapling Grove Apartments. Once complete, the apartments will offer 81 one-, two-, and three-bedroom units and fill a deep need for affordable housing in Aurora for residents with incomes ranging between 30% and 80% of area median income.

Arapahoe County helped fund the project using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars. To provide gap financing to assist with affordable housing, $5 million was allocated to grants for development companies, housing authorities and local entities. Additional County-funded projects are already in progress or complete, including housing for older adults, at-risk/unhoused youth, and those in transition. The grants are part of a larger $25 million effort to take a regional approach to addressing homeless

Prop 123

In 2022, the Colorado voters approved Proposition 123, which creates the State Affordable Housing Fund and is expected to provide several hundred million dollars for affordable housing. The fund provides grants to local governments and loans to nonprofit organizations to acquire and maintain land for the development of affordable housing. Arapahoe County has committed to increasing our affordable housing stock by 3% each year, which will make a dent in the more than 69,000 units needed across the Front Range.

Homelessness 

The number of people experiencing homelessness in the County more than doubled between 2020 and 2021. It’s a daunting social challenge and one that neither Arapahoe County nor any municipality or service provider can solve on its own. But County commissioners made measurable progress toward addressing homelessness by unanimously approving a Homelessness Strategic Plan—developed in partnership with more than 100 partners—that focuses on regional approaches to coordinated care, expansion of affordable housing inventory, enhanced legislation and policy making efforts, and public information about the crisis. 

The plan uses a five-part model to address homelessness:  

• Working to prevent homelessness by connecting individuals with prevention resources. 
• Encouraging the development of a variety of housing options along the housing continuum. 
• Sharing data with partners to provide services to individuals and families at risk of experiencing homelessness. 
• Delivering coordinated, supportive services. 
• Encouraging alignment among each participating entity on ideas to improve service and reduce homelessness.  

Human Services distinguished performer award from state 

Arapahoe County was awarded the C-Stat Distinguished Performer Award for our timely processing of applications for public assistance. We met or exceed timeframe goals set by the Colorado Department of Human Services for timeliness, safety and accuracy. We are the only large County to receive the award five times.  

County staff are expected to process applications for food assistance as if each was submitted as an expedited request—meeting a processing goal of 7 days, rather than 30 days. By doing so, clients can meet their most basic needs and focus on building a secure future.

Helped residents transition to reduced food benefits  

Public assistance programs were more widely available to those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic-related public health emergency. With the end of the emergency, assistance programs were required to unwind and begin serving at the pre-pandemic levels.

Benefits were reduced by $90 person each month for those receiving food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). We contacted our 30,000 affected residents to help them prepare. They received resources on how to stretch their benefits by shopping differently and where to go if they needed additional food. 

Taking care of kids in a childcare desert 

Families living at the Generational Opportunities to Achieve Long-term Success (GOALS) campus in Aurora gained an additional support as they seek to gain and enhance the skills and resources needed to achieve economic self-sufficiency for themselves and their families—an onsite early childhood education center. 

In partnership with Family Tree and Ability Connections, the GOALS program launched an early childhood education center to support the end of multi-generational poverty. Children with access to this type of early education are more likely to graduate from high school, are less likely to be incarcerated, and are physically healthier, among numerous other benefits that will uplift them and future generations.

The best part? The center is not limited to families living on the GOALS campus. It has space for up to 70 children living in the nearby childcare desert. 

Youth Awards 

The Arapahoe County Mayors and Commissioners Youth Awards (ACMCYA) recognizes teenagers who have overcome obstacles and risen to challenges life has presented. This award is unique because it encompasses youth who live and attend school in Arapahoe County within traditional classroom settings, group homes, alternative schools, and emancipated youth. 

In 2023, ACMCYA was proud to present awards to 23 students. Scholarships are awarded to graduating seniors who have overcome adversity and wish to pursue post-secondary educational opportunities at vocational, two- or four-year schools. Scholarship amounts and the number of scholarships awarded are determined on a year-by-year basis. This financial assistance helps students focus on their studies instead of finding the money to attend college.  

Serving our Veterans 

Arapahoe County deeply appreciates the service of our veterans. We also have the largest veteran population in the state, which is why our two Veterans Service Centers help veterans and their families obtain federal and state benefits that they may be eligible to receive. Our staff helps assess needs, determine eligibility and advocate on behalf of our veterans. Due to the PACT Act in 2023, a law that expands VA health care and benefits for veterans exposed to toxic substances, we saw an unprecedented number of claims. We helped veterans recover over $6 million in disability claims, a 52% increase from the recovery amount in 2022. To further support veterans, we also hosted a resource fair in June 2023 to connect veterans with programs and services as well as a job fair for local employers looking to hire veterans. 

In November, we participated in Operation Green Light, a national collaborative initiative of the National Association of Counties to raise awareness about the unique challenges faced by veterans. During the weeklong celebration, County offices were illuminated green to show our support.