Where do our local candidates stand on issues important to central Arvada? Our neighborhood association sent out a candidate survey to 14 candidates whose districts lie in or near the CLRC neighborhood association boundaries. Here is the first set of responses we received. They are for the Colorado State Senate District 19 race. Except for formatting, the candidate’s questionnaire responses are unedited.
We thank these candidates for the time they took to respond to CLRC. We hop this helps you make a decision as to whom to support in the upcoming election.
T.O. Owens — President CLRC
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Laura Woods
Name: Laura Woods
Mailing Address: P.O. BOX 740388
Arvada, CO 80006-0388
Phone: 720-588-0522
Email: LAURAWOODSFORSENATE@GMAIL.COM
Website: LAURAWOODSFORSENATE.COM
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/laurawoodsforsenate
Party: Republican
Questionnaire Responses
1) If elected, will you support re-introduced legislation that causes the First Choice emergency room located in the Arvada Triangle at Independence Street and Ralston Road to go out of business as a stand-alone emergency room?
I will always defend the First Choice ER, just as I did at the community forum in March. I will stand for small businesses and their rights against the big-government agenda of my opponent. I will NOT support re-introduced legislation to take away First Choice’s right to do business.
2) If elected, will you propose (or support) legislation to amend the existing construction defect laws to make it advantageous for developers to build owner-occupied condominiums instead of for-rent apartments?
I support Construction Defect Litigation reform so that multi-use housing projects can once again be built in Colorado, and particularly here in Arvada. I also support arbitration as a means of resolving these claims, and I support the homeowners’ rights to know what the HOA is getting them involved in or just how the HOA is encumbering their property. The trial lawyers, which support the democrats, have shut down building for so long that first-time home buyers are being impacted, seniors are being impacted, condo dwellers are being forced into apartments, and everyone in the construction trade is suffering.
3) If elected, will you support a resurrected House Bill 1375 to redirect new tax revenues generated by Arvada’s urban renewal authority to Jefferson County instead of being used for eliminating urban blight within the City of Arvada?
I need to look into this issue and consider both sides’ arguments. At this time, I am not familiar enough with the reasons for redirecting the tax increment. But I would consider it from my district’s perspective, which is the city of Arvada, not Jefferson County. I need to learn more about this.
4) Please use this opportunity to let us know your views on any other issues you want to comment on, including, but not limited to, a) restrictions on public-private partnerships for large infrastructure projects, b) Amendment 67, unborn human beings, c) Amendment 68, using racetracks to fund schools, d) Proposition 104, open labor negotiations in school districts, e) Proposition 105, labeling of genetically engineered foods.
I am not in favor of raising taxes for any reason, but I know infrastructure, roads and bridges, utilities, etc., are suffering due to a lack of funding. P3s are a good method of paying for new roads, but certainly P3s need to consider the needs of the community they’re impacting. I would work with other members of the senate to protect Senate District 19’s interests.
Amendment 67: I am a pro life candidate, standing up for the most vulnerable in our society, which includes BOTH the unborn and the elderly. Under the death panels of the Affordable Care Act, the elderly, starting in 2015, can be denied health care and told they simply have to die. I will defend life on both ends of the spectrum.
Amendment 68: I am fundamentally opposed to using gambling proceeds to fund education or any other government program; and this amendment is especially troubling because the proceeds are to benefit people in Rhode Island, not in Colorado.
Proposition 104: Transparency in collective bargaining discussions seems like it would solve a lot of issues. This is something I would support, just as I support transparency in government.
Proposition 105: GMO labeling is something that I am in favor of. Until and unless we determine that no harm flows from genetically engineered foods, people should be told if they’re consuming them.
[end of responses by Ms Woods]
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Rachel Zenzinger
Name: Rachel Zenzinger (incumbent)
Mailing Address: 7725 Marshall Street
Arvada, CO 80003
Phone: 303-748-0770
Email: RACHELFORCOLORADO@GMAIL.COM
Web: RACHELFORCOLORADO.COM
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RachelZenzingerInOffice
Party: Democratic
Questionnaire Responses
1) If elected, will you support re-introduced legislation that causes the First Choice emergency room located in the Arvada Triangle at Independence Street and Ralston Road to go out of business as a stand-alone emergency room?
I did not support the legislation that was drafted during last session. It was due, in large part, to my opposition that the bill never made it to the floor for a vote. I supported First Choice ER when I was a member of City Council by approving their application and I would like to see First Choice continue to operate in Arvada.
2) If elected, will you propose (or support) legislation to amend the existing construction defect laws to make it advantageous for developers to build owner-occupied condominiums instead of for-rent apartments?
I agree we need to do something about this issue. There is already a draft bill in the works to amend the CRS to address the issue with construction defects and I support the general direction of the draft bill. The main issue will be to move toward alternative dispute resolution rather than very costly class action lawsuits. But ADR alone is not enough to address the issue. We also need to change the CCIOA (Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act) to require a majority vote of homeowners to initiate a lawsuit.
3) If elected, will you support a resurrected House Bill 1375 to redirect new tax revenues generated by Arvada’s urban renewal authority to Jefferson County instead of being used for eliminating urban blight within the City of Arvada?
I was a staunch opponent of HB14-1375 and was one of two Senators that argued against the bill during debate. The urban renewal tool is extremely important to municipalities and the arguments against urban renewal (and there are some valid arguments) were not addressed in HB14-1375. During debate, I cited the enormous success of urban renewal in Arvada and pointed out how the bill would staunch Westminster’s ability to move forward with renewal of the Westminster Mall Redevelopment. Because the bill had bipartisan sponsors, it was very difficult persuading a majority of legislators to oppose the bill and it passed through both chambers. However, I was one of several that urged the Governor for a veto, which proved successful.
4) Please use this opportunity to let us know your views on any other issues you want to comment on, including, but not limited to, a) restrictions on public-private partnerships for large infrastructure projects, b) Amendment 67, unborn human beings, c) Amendment 68, using racetracks to fund schools, d) Proposition 104, open labor negotiations in school districts, e) Proposition 105, labeling of genetically engineered foods.
The restrictions on PPP for large infrastructure projects as proposed in SB14-197 was a major concern to me and I worked to amend the bill to address the provisions that would have negatively impacted the State’s ability to attract and pursue PPP’s in the future. My four amendments addressed the following:
- The language regarding the revenue share back provisions would have hurt the local entities.
- The return on investment language that would have made entering into PPP agreements unnecessarily difficult.
- Public Highway Authorities that utilized HTPE would not have been exempted from the provisions of the bill, and would have negatively impacted the Jefferson Parkway and other Public Highway Authorities.
- The 30 year restriction on PPP agreements was untenable, making any future agreements highly unlikely.
I successfully argued the first three amendments, but the fourth amendment did not pass. I believe the reason the Governor ultimately vetoed the bill was due to the 30 year provision. We have several successful PPP projects in Arvada, namely the Gold Line, and I believe that they are a reasonable approach for funding large infrastructure projects and very supportive of ensuring they continue in Colorado.
[end of responses by Ms Zenzinger]
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Name: Gregg Miller
Mailing Address: 6060 Estes Court
Arvada, CO 80004
Phone: 303-467-3451
Email: PALMIST46@YAHOO.COM
Party: Libertarian
Questionnaire Response
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[end of responses by Mr Miller]
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WHERE TO FIND OUT MORE
Our local candidate survey responses for other seats in and near Arvada are coming up now. Look for them on our RalstonCommunity.org website. Here’s a link to a CLRC article that tells you why our neighborhood association is doing this survey and what the issues behind it are.
Not sure what General Assembly district you or your neighbors are in? Here’s a click-on link to a handy district locator map for the entire state for Colorado.
http://www.colorado.gov/esri/webmaps/my-hood.html?webmap-id=0bbdbd4450154b1c9a9827d21c862dad
The Citizens for a Livable Ralston Community is an independent neighborhood association representing the neighborhoods adjacent to Ralston Road from Wadsworth Bypass to the Kipling Parkway.
Our main website is at http://www.RalstonCommunity.org or you can read even more posts on our Facebook page at “CLRC – Citizens for a Liveable Ralston Community” where you may post comments or questions. Or, you may write to us at
CLRC
c/o John Kiljan, Secretary
6185 Field Street
Arvada, CO 80004
CLRC -- Arvada News and Commentary 
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