Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
All in Adams: “Nothing’s Off Limits”: 2026 Telephone Town Hall Recap
30 Plays1 month ago
Following the first community town hall of the year, we’re sitting down with Adams County Commissioners and Chair and Vice Chair of the Board, respectively, Julie Duran Mullica and Kathy Henson to talk about what topics came up as the most important to the Adams County community, what’s on the horizon, and how these public forums are built for any and every person to join.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to 'All In Adams'
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to All In Adams, the official podcast of Adams County Government, where we're all in for our residents, our employees, and our community. So whether you live here, work here, or you just want to know more about what makes Adams County a great place to be, thanks for tuning in. We're all in, Adams.
Telephone Town Hall of 2026 Launch
00:00:23
Speaker
Welcome back to All In Adams, the podcast where we talk about all things Adams County and why they matter to you. I'm Nikki Wellander, Press Secretary for Adams County, and it is lovely to be back with y'all.
00:00:34
Speaker
Today we are recapping our first Telephone Town Hall for 2026, first one of the year, We are diving into what we heard, what we learned, and what's coming next. Our guests today on the podcast are the chair and the vice chair of our board of county commissioners, respectively, Julie Duran-Mulica and Kathy Henson. Thank you for joining us today, commissioners. Thanks for having
Community Engagement Success
00:00:57
Speaker
us. Pleasure to be here.
00:00:58
Speaker
This was our first town hall of 2026, and it kicks off a full slate of engagement events. Commissioner Mulica, can you tell us about this event specifically and how it went? Well, it was very popular. We had over 20,000 residents listening in during the call. I had to look at that because it's actually a hard number to realize that 20,000 people listened into this phone call.
00:01:22
Speaker
That's huge. We had over 140 questions and we answered 30 questions live, but it was... I've been hearing it from the community. People loved it. People loved to calling in. They loved listening to the conversation. They thought the flow was nice. They felt heard. um And I heard from one resident who was very excited. She's like, I got to hear from you guys in my pajamas, which was a huge win. So I think overall it was a great success.
Handling National Immigration Issues Locally
00:01:50
Speaker
I love the telephone town hall every year. And I can't wait to do it again.
00:01:56
Speaker
ah Fabulous. So before we fully dive into all of the different things that we discussed, all the topics, let's talk about the elephant in the room. Given the current events that are happening nationally and what's top of mind for a lot of people, nationally, a topic that came up here and how it's kind of happening locally and showing up for a lot of people, we had questions come in both before the event and live about concerns with the situation happening with U.S. Customs and Immigration um I flipped that backwards, US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. Can you tell us a little bit about how Adams County handled this topic?
00:02:33
Speaker
Yes, and I really appreciate you bringing this up. It's on a lot of people's minds and it's a really important topic for us to address. ah First, I'd like to share that the Board of Adams County Commissioners released a statement prior to the town hall ah regarding our take on what is happening with Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions across the country. That is that statement is available on our website.
00:02:55
Speaker
This is a very sensitive issue, but in a nutshell, and also I will say at the beginning of the town hall that evening, we also reiterated that statement. But for those who haven't read it yet or did not hear the town hall, in a nutshell, we are saying that we believe in liberty and justice for all. That's that's it ah in the smallest nutshell I can say. But what that means for us in Adams County, we're a majority minority county. We have a lot of people of color in our county.
00:03:23
Speaker
We have a lot of people who are concerned about their rights. And in Adams County, we want to say to everyone who lives here, you have always been and will continue to be welcome here. We believe in due process of law and that everybody's civil rights should be upheld at all times, regardless of what kind of enforcement actions are taking place.
00:03:41
Speaker
um I'd also like to say that we had Sheriff Gene Claps on the call and he answered several questions about this. And one thing we want to reiterate is that our local law enforcement, our Adams County Sheriff's Department, is local law enforcement. They are not part of these federal law enforcement activities.
Focus on Transportation and Infrastructure
00:03:58
Speaker
ICE is a federal agency and our local sheriff's department is not ah does not take part in their actions. Thank you so much for addressing that. I know that that was really, really top concern for a lot of our residents.
00:04:11
Speaker
One of the other things that came up really frequently, and this is something we always hear about, is roads, transportation, infrastructure. This is without fail something that we hear about in every single town hall. um Commissioner Mullica, what were some of the themes that we heard about a lot during this telephone town hall?
00:04:28
Speaker
During any town hall I've ever done, there's always conversations about roads, right? People are interested in, they either want to come forward and talk about which road needs repaved, or they want to talk about construction projects in their neighborhood, or they're really concerned about snow removal, which thankfully, or not thankfully, This year, we haven't had a lot of need for snow removal this winter, but um those conversations always come up in every town hall. um I think what's really great is we were able to highlight a lot of the broader coalitions that we're working with on some transportation
00:05:03
Speaker
ah projects across the region that includes Dr. Cog and CDOT. There's a lot of work happening in Adams County. So we were able to highlight some of those projects as well. um There's a lot more information out there on our website about some of these projects. um And just so that you know that this board is very active in advocating for all of these projects, large regional projects like I-270 and I-25, but also really cool innovative work that's taking along um taking place along Federal Boulevard. um And the work we'd love to see around 120th one day is something that we're always kind of keeping on our radar and advocating for across the board. but You know, transportation always comes up. It's important to everybody's life. And so um if you didn't get your question in, I think it's really important. Folks report any issues that they have to the C-Click Fix app.
00:05:56
Speaker
And then um or just reach out to us. We'd love to continue to have more conversation about what roads are impacting your life. and one It's always one. i have I have a list myself. So I mean, you can't go a single day without thinking about transportation. it's It's one of the first things you think about every single day. And we actually launched during this town hall on our Adams County Co. Gov slash town hall web page, a place that people can go to see all of the ways to get engaged on Dr. Cog on CDOT on RTD.
00:06:26
Speaker
And all of the resources that we talked about through the entire town hall are on that Adams County co.gov slash town hall page, including that one, including every transportation thing we talked about.
Supporting the Unhoused: Strategies and Coordination
00:06:36
Speaker
And so I think it's ah it's an important resource for people to know about because like you said, there's a lot of players. It's number one issue. You know, it's it's just ah people want to know they want to be in the know. And, you know, we have to provide that for folks. And um I'm really excited about, you know, the conversation we had during the town hall. But then the additional resources we have for people to continue to plug in and um learn more.
00:06:58
Speaker
Absolutely. One other thing that we heard a lot about was homelessness and support for people who may be experiencing housing insecurity. Let's talk a little bit about some of the themes that came out there. Commissioner Henson, can you kick us off there? Sure. Yes, you are correct. I think right after transportation or right up there neck and neck with transportation are concerns over unhoused people in our community.
00:07:20
Speaker
What that means for the safety of those who are unhoused, what it means for the safety of our neighborhoods and our businesses. And so it's pretty much top of mind for anybody driving through Adams County, the Adams County region. You see you see it everywhere. We have a very robust action plan and response through our community community safety and well-being department, and we're very proud of the efforts to alleviate homelessness and help transition people into housing. We need to work more. We want to work more with our municipal partners, and we convened a summit last month with ah city council members from across Adams County and the county commissioners and staff members from all the jurisdictions to talk about topics such as that because it's going to take
00:08:04
Speaker
a coordinated response for us really to make a meaningful dent in this. And at the end of the day, we just want our neighbors everywhere to be safe, whether they are housed or unhoused or transitioning into
Navigating Benefits amid Changing Federal Landscapes
00:08:15
Speaker
housing. We want to support everybody across the housing spectrum and it's a continued top priority for Adams County.
00:08:21
Speaker
Absolutely. Absolutely. It was really interesting to see how many different, different facets of that topic came up during the conversation. And we also had a lot of questions come up both in advance and live about benefits and how people can access them, especially right now. This is a really salient topic given the current climate and things people are facing.
00:08:43
Speaker
Commissioner Mullica, can we talk a little bit about some of the things that people were talking about as far as benefits and what the county is doing to help people navigate that? Yeah, I mean, I think that this has just been such an evolving issue. it is something that sometimes updates multiple times a week as we get additional information from the federal government.
00:09:04
Speaker
um And so I think one of the most important things that I want everybody to know is one, please refer to our website for any updates regarding any federal benefits that the county administers. That's number one. um To really be in the know, please refer to our website. We have folks who are on standby trying to keep every um new piece of information um available to our public. I think the other point too is it's really important to know that you know as commissioners, this is something that we really care a lot about, right? These are our neighbors that we're trying to feed and house and take care of. We want these families to be stable.
00:09:46
Speaker
um And it's really heartbreaking when these conversations have to come up again and again and again. ah with you know just the instability of funding.
00:09:57
Speaker
um We are headed to DC later on this month ah to meet with our congressional representatives as well as our US senators to have this conversation, to bring some of the stories that we're hearing from Adams County to their offices in
Collaboration for Transparency and Trust
00:10:14
Speaker
DC. um Of course, we engage with them throughout the year but this is our highlight kind of dc visit where we go and we're on the hill and we're trying to advocate for our community in that aspect and i'm really looking forward to sharing the multitude of experiences that we've had gathered that we've gathered across adams county and um bringing them back to back to our um congressional representatives so we're working on it it's something that's very important to us but
00:10:44
Speaker
It changes quickly. So please just look to our website for more information as the next headline appears. Absolutely. We'll have to have you all back on the podcast after after your D.C. trip to talk a little bit more about like what you some of what you experienced and some of what you learned. It's going to be awesome. Yeah, let's do it.
00:11:03
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. So Commissioner Henson, you previewed this a little bit. We were joined by Sheriff Jean Claps and our clerk and recorder, Josh Siegelbaum, at the event. um And of course, we had our full board of county commissioners and our county manager, Dionne Schroeder, there as well. And we had a lot of great questions about all of the different functions of the county, including public safety and um the elections that are wonderful clerk and recorder's office puts on. From your perspective, why was it helpful to have some of our other elected officials there?
00:11:35
Speaker
Well, I think it's always important that people understand that we are a united front here in Adams County trying to do the deliver the best services to the people we can across Adams County. Having Sheriff Claps and Clerk Ziegelbaum there was wonderful. Those are independently elected offices. They were not there because we ask because we called them in to be there. they came They joined us of their own volition because they want to make sure that accurate information is getting out to the community. And we've had some very hot topics come up recently ICE, which we've already covered, And elections. That was one of the first questions that came in from a caller at at the town hall. And Clerk Ziegelbaum ah relayed that our elections are safe and secure and will continue to be that way.
00:12:18
Speaker
Colorado is among the gold standard states in our country for a voter voting.
00:12:26
Speaker
Security. I'm sorry, the word is
Addressing Neighborhood Issues and Quality of Life
00:12:28
Speaker
escaping me. you got Voter security. and And I just think that we need to make sure that we are putting our trust in him and in his department to continue to deliver very safe elections that we can count on to be accurate.
00:12:43
Speaker
Definitely. Definitely. I think it was really wonderful to see not just our full board of county commissioners, because it's always fabulous to hear from all of y'all, but to see some of our, some of our additional elected offices, our executive leadership team, we had all of our directors there and to really see so many of the folks who are leading this county every single day and providing services there to answer questions. We heard from, i can't, the number escapes me right now, but it was, I think there was 20 different people spoke on this call. The room was very full, and we as the commissioners cannot answer all of the questions. I mean, certainly not as accurately and as succinctly as our department directors and staff. So it's wonderful to have them there. Again, we're all Team Adams, and we want to do the best we can for all the residents here in Adams County.
Community Interests: Housing and Public Safety
00:13:25
Speaker
Definitely. So the last key topic I want to talk about that was a really big thing on the call, and then we can talk about some things moving forward. um We heard, as we always do, that our residents care deeply about what's happening in their neighborhoods. um Neighborhood concerns like code compliance, those are the things that rose to the top of the list for that question that our residents wanted to ask on the town hall. So the things just like transportation that people see every single day. What is it like for you guys to be able to hear about these in forums like town halls?
00:13:56
Speaker
You know what? I think it's, um I mean, that's why we're here, right, is to answer these questions. um Of course, these are quality of life questions, just like roads are.
00:14:06
Speaker
These impact your life every day. If it's, you know, a nuisance that you're getting from a neighbor or somebody else down the road. I mean, those are things that you have to live with. And so I think it's just really important that you have a local government here that's who here to listen to you and pay attention to your concerns and advocate on behalf on your behalf so i don't know i think that that's the whole point of running for local office so it's bread and butter it it's the bread and butter it's what we do it's all it's part of the game so and you know we have ah a board that's really again pushing the envelope on these issues we kathy has been working really hard on a bill
00:14:45
Speaker
um at the Colorado legislature to help Adams County function better in this code enforcement space. So I mean, more to come. I think that this is a really proactive board who really wants to just make sure that we're delivering for our residents.
00:14:57
Speaker
So we're on it. Fabulous. Fabulous. So Commissioner Henson, I'm really excited to ask this question because I'm a total data geek. And I think that think I'm in good company. I think that we all get really excited about these opportunities. We did live polling at this town hall. Yes. What are some of the questions that we asked? What are some of the things that we learned?
00:15:17
Speaker
Well, we asked people what is most important to them. What are the things they think about every day, pretty much when they wake up. And not surprisingly, housing is a big topic. um Availability and affordability of housing. And how can my kids afford to live here in Adams County with me forever and forever? And also, how do I not have to spend 50% of my take-home income on my rent and or my mortgage? So those are those are always that's always a hot topic right now across the state and across the country, but but really here in in Colorado. um The other thing we hear about is public safety, code compliance, things like that. All politics is local, as the saying goes, and that is very true because it really, potholes and code compliance issues really ah
00:16:02
Speaker
are the thing that unite all of us across all of our neighborhoods, across all of Adams County. paths It's true because everybody wants their neighborhood to look good and feel safe. And ah so I think those were two, two, the real take takeaways for me that those are really on top, the top of people's minds, healthcare also, because we've seen some changes yeah federally um with loss of the income, the the premium tax credits. So that's a new, that's a new, new concern for
Community Engagement Plans for 2026
00:16:29
Speaker
folks. And of course the cost of food, we're still talking about eggs.
00:16:32
Speaker
People want to know how they're going to pay all of their grocery bills. Yeah, absolutely. I thought it was just really, i thought it was great that we asked these questions instead of asking very targeted, which of these programs we asked them in ways that people think about, right? We asked them in ways that what, what's keeping you up at night? You know, what is the thing that's, that's the most on your mind? I think that that was a good way to really kind of have a finger on the pulse of what's happening in our community. I think it's, And I think that this is good information for us to move forward with as we talk about what's coming next. um So Commissioner Mullica, what's coming next? We're launching into a really robust year of engagement, right? I am so excited about this. um We just had ah a study session last week where we talked about the plan for
00:17:19
Speaker
2026. It's all mapped out. It is beautiful. we have a variety of engagement opportunities um where we're going to have town halls. um Some town halls are going to be more focused on specific topics. um And so ah honestly, I'm just really excited that we could give our community a heads up early on. So if you can't make one, just check out our next one. all of our information is going to be posted on our website and of course blasted through our social media channels. So just keep an eye out for that.
The Importance of Town Halls for Transparency
00:17:50
Speaker
But ah just know that we love to hear from you and we're really excited to have more conversations just like this throughout the year.
00:17:58
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. That full schedule is going to be up on Adams County Co. Gov slash town hall very soon. And Adam, do your calendar and we'll see you so soon. um And both of you, yeah you'll be at all of them. And present. Yes. I mean, you will be. I've just announced it publicly. You will be there. Nikki says. It's the truth. Nikki says and it's the truth. Nikki says.
00:18:22
Speaker
You're in your second year now as commissioner and you have a pretty good number of these town halls under your belt and more to come. I've said so. um Why, from your perspective, is it so important as as a board, as a county to host these kind of events? And I'd love to hear from both y'all on this.
00:18:38
Speaker
Well, it's important because the commissioners, all the other elected offices, and every staff person here in Adams County work for the taxpayers of Adams County. We work for the people. And so it is important for us to be available to answer whatever questions they have and to provide them resources or direct them to the resources they need so that they are living their best life in Adams County. That's what we all want. And offering folks a variety of ways to engage, whether it's a telephone town hall, we're going to have some in-person meetings. The fact that we have podcasts and that we also live stream and record these town halls, you don't know what questions you don't have or you don't. And when you hear your neighbor ask a question that you haven't thought of, it's
00:19:17
Speaker
It can bring a critical issue to light and can also help you learn where you can get some resources to maybe help make your life a little bit easier. And that's why it's so important that we're out in community in a variety of ways, answering questions and making sure that folks have the information they need.
00:19:32
Speaker
Batter up, Commissioner Mullica. ah You know, I can't say it much better than Kathy already summarized, but I mean, we're here for you. We're here to hear your concerns. um And from a variety of perspectives, too, as business owners, as parents, as caregivers, as, you know, ah seniors, you know, whatever category you want to put, we have it all here in Adams County. And everybody has their own perspective and their own, um you know,
00:19:59
Speaker
reality that they're living and frankly even with the board of five of us we're not going to be experiencing that so please bring your thoughts ideas energies um to the table because we if you don't if you don't say something we might not know about it so um don't be afraid to reach out absolutely so looking at this town hall that we just wrapped up what do you hope that community members took away from it
00:20:27
Speaker
how much this staff and all of our elected leaders care and that we are in this with them and for them, meaning the people across Adams County.
00:20:38
Speaker
And we understand that there are a lot of concerns about affordability and housing and safety and potholes and transportation and roads and parks and open space and all of the things.
00:20:49
Speaker
um But not to be glib that people have some serious concerns and questions and needs that they need to have met. And I just think it's great that we're all out there together trying to do the best we can for everybody.
00:21:01
Speaker
Absolutely. Yep. I really just hope people felt heard. um I mean, I think that that's a frustrating part that people express a lot about government is feeling that nobody is listening to them or they're concerned.
00:21:14
Speaker
um So I think it's important that people feel heard and have an opportunity to speak up. I think, I hope they also got out the fact that They just how robust of a team Adams County has to serve them. ah If you could just see a picture, I don't know if there's a picture anywhere on the website. Is there on our social of the room when this town hall was taking place? It was packed.
00:21:41
Speaker
We had all the expertise at the table just for you. And that's what matters is that we have a very responsive government and people who want to help serve our residents.
Encouraging Community Participation in Governance
00:21:52
Speaker
So I thought that was just such that was the the greatest part of the night for me is just seeing all the people ready to jump in there and support.
00:22:00
Speaker
It was cool. I think that lends itself so well to the next thing I wanted to ask y'all, which is for somebody that maybe has never attended a town hall and maybe isn't sure that it's a space for them.
00:22:11
Speaker
What would you want them to know? What would you want them to maybe consider before we launch our full suite of events? it's just a place to get your questions answered. It's not a debate. It is not a debate.
00:22:23
Speaker
It's asking questions. It's connecting people with resources. If we can't get them the exact answer or piece of information they need in the moment, it's about following up. And again, it's about being in community and hearing questions from your neighbors and getting your own questions answered because that's what we're here to, at the end of the day, that's the reason we're here in Adams County at the government center.
00:22:46
Speaker
I would also add that it's, even if you don't have a question, town halls are still valuable because it allows you to be in the know. And I think that that's definitely something I heard a lot during our recent board and commissions interviews from the amazing, what, over 75 applicants that we interviewed in four days. um But is that people wanted to be engaged. They wanted to know what was going on locally. You don't need to do a boarding commission to know what's going on locally. You could check out our website, check out these podcasts, but also attend a town hall and just listen and just like be the fly on the wall just so that you could. We have great updates. You get to hear what other people's concerns are. But a lot of people are leaning in locally. And I think that that's really exciting. So just come.
00:23:31
Speaker
It'll be fun. And there's food. That's one of the things I think has been really, really fun about doing these town halls with y'all is you are consistently working to break down barriers too. You're consistently working to make sure they are available virtually. We are making sure that there's snacks, especially because it's hard to sit through an hour plus meeting when your stomach is grumbling or that we have options for folks to be able to participate no matter what may be standing in the way for them. um So I've really appreciated going through that with y'all because, yeah, access to access your local government, your local government officials is so important. So, yeah, absolutely. What else should I know? What did I miss? What do you think people should know about this topic?
00:24:13
Speaker
You know, if anything, I just want people to know that it was a huge success and that we, I think moving forward, are always planning on doing a telephone town hall. um If you missed it, you could listen to it or just catch the next town hall. We're going to have a lot and we'd love to see you.
00:24:30
Speaker
And there's nothing that's really off limits and it doesn't have to be hot topics. It doesn't, it's not always going to be heavy topics. It can be about gardening. It can be finding out about how you can plug into all the programs that are coming this summer in our parks department and things like that.
00:24:45
Speaker
um So you can come and ask anything. It doesn't have to be feel like a big complex issue. Just come ask any question and listen and say hi to your neighbors and get to know people um because that's how we'll just continue breaking down barriers and building community.
Closing Remarks and Staying Connected
00:25:00
Speaker
Perfect. Well, if you missed the town hall, the full recording is available on adamscountyco.gov slash town hall. I might have said that enough times, but I'm going to say it one more, adamscountyco.gov slash town hall. And you can find out all the information about our upcoming town halls on that website and on our social media pages.
00:25:19
Speaker
For the chair of our board of county commissioners, Julie Duran-Mullica, and the vice chair of our board of county commissioners, Kathy Henson, I'm Nikki Wellander. Thank you so much for joining us on All in Addams. That's a wrap for this episode of All In Adams.
00:25:33
Speaker
Thank you for joining us as we explore the people, programs, and the policies that make Adams County a great place to live, work, and thrive. If you enjoyed the show, be sure to subscribe and share with your friends, neighbors, and colleagues.
00:25:46
Speaker
Have a topic you'd like us to cover? Let us know. We're All In for bringing you the stories that matter most. Until next time, take care of each other and stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, Nextdoor, and x We're all in, Adams, and we're all in for you.