Thornton residents seem conflicted about the idea of breaking away from Adams County and starting their own city and county, according to survey conducted late last year.
At least 30 percent of those surveyed said they would “somewhat support” a Thornton city and county while 29 percent said they would be “somewhat opposed” to forming a city and county.
However, some among the 400 surveyed clearly know where they stand. Fifteen percent “strongly support” a city and county idea while 26 percent “strongly oppose” it.
Mayor Heidi Williams said the survey provided a snapshot of people’s opinions and the notion of forging a new county needs to be studied further. “We want to speak about this issue based on facts and not emotions.”
The survey was prompted partly by frustration with an Adams County plan to cap the number of municipal inmate in the jail and charge cities $45 per day for every inmate over the limit.
The county says the fee is needed to bridge a $7 million to $9 million shortfall in the county budget.
But several Adams municipalities have complained that they already pay for jail services through property taxes. “There is still a lot of lingering feelings about inequities when it comes to dealing with the county, ” Thornton city spokesman Todd Barnes said.
The survey was automated and those who responded could not ask questions about each issue, said Williams. “Once we do more fact-finding…talking to people I think we will get a more meaningful idea of where we need to go next.”
Williams hopes to meet with the Adams commissioners soon to talk about conflicts between the city and the county. “Hopefully, we can work things out with the county and better understand how do we fix things.”
Monte Whaley: 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com
