Arapahoe County is in a financial bind and asked community members to weigh in on possible solutions, which might include ballot measures to raise taxes, commissioners said in a State of the County address Thursday morning. 

“Arapahoe County has so many great things happening that it’s impossible to cover them all in this very short time that we have with you all this morning, but our ability to provide those programs and services is in jeopardy,” Commissioner Carrie Warren-Gully said Thursday. 

Warren-Gully referred to what commissioners called a “significant budget shortfall” that will affect the county’s ability to provide essential services going into 2025. 

The shortfall is due to a combination of factors, Warren-Gully said, including “years of insufficient tax revenue,” significant population growth and inflation.

Previous budget shortfalls have been covered using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money, but those funding sources are dry, Warren-Gully said.

In response, commissioners are seeking public input on two proposed ballot measures this November, the first of which would raise the county’s mill levy back to its pre-TABOR level, Warren-Gully said. This would mean the homeowner of a $500,000 home would pay about $13 more each month and provide the county with about $74 million each year, according to county-provided estimates. 

Currently, the county gets about $32 each month from a home valued at $500,000, commissioner Jessica Campbell said. In 2024, TABOR limitations forced the county to lower its share of property taxes, leaving over $74 million uncollected this year. 

The county has a residential property tax calculator on its website.

A second proposed ballot measure would ask voters to approve adding a new 0.25% sales tax in Arapahoe County, which would cost an average household about $4.30 each month and provide the county with about $45 million each year, Warren-Gully said.

More information is available on a new website created by county officials to lay out the options and ask for feedback.

The alternative would be to make significant cuts to county services, commissioners said. 

Commissioner Jessica Campbell said the cuts would mean losing $35 million in essential services, including to public safety, roads and homelessness prevention. 

This would include a $12 million cut to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office budget and a $3.7 million cut to Arapahoe County Public Works, affecting crime prevention, emergency response times, road maintenance and a variety of other services, Campbell said.

“Arapahoe County is facing a choice and we’re asking residents and stakeholders for your input,” Warren-Gully said. 

The shortfall comes after a year of new services, programs and accomplishments, commissioners said Thursday. County officials want to continue to invest in those things and grow, rather than have to cancel them.

One of its accomplishments was the creation of the new Arapahoe County Public Health Department after 44 years of being part of Tri-County Health Department, Warren-Gully said. 

“This amazing team of public health professionals hit the ground running as they effectively managed right off the bat a few health crises,” Warren-Gully said. “We are blown away by the positive impacts the team has demonstrated over and over again just in their first year.”

Commissioner Jeff Baker highlighted improvements to Arapahoe County Open Space over the past year, during which the department celebrated its 20th birthday.

“Our residents absolutely love our parks, trails and open spaces,” Baker said. “They know that these assets contribute to their quality of life and their health.”

Last year, county officials re-opened the Tsistsistas-Hinono’ei Park (Cheyenne-Arapaho Park), a 4.6-acre park that “honors the plains and Native American tribes,” Commissioner Leslie Summey said.  

The park was expanded and renovated to include a new community garden, an off-leash dog area, and more shade and picnic areas, she said. 

The county made gains in affordable housing, commissioners said.

Currently, the county has 108,000 affordable housing units that have been approved and are ready to be built, Warren-Gully said. 

“In terms of our overall capacity, Arapahoe County has one of the most diverse housing stocks in the state,” she said. “That’s great in numbers but our work is not done.”

Summey said housing has been, and will continue to be, a major priority for county officials.

“Housing is both an immediate need and a future need and we’ve worked tirelessly to be responsive to the needs of our residents,” Summey said.