Durango, CO: **Public engagement is often a construct in which municipalities strive for perfection but rarely achieve. It’s an evolutionary process that often changes with technology and community feedback. We often look at what’s working and what’s not through data and analytics, but also through community conversations with a wide array of stakeholders. In this initial column from the mayor, I’d like to offer some updates on our outreach efforts, a change that will help the public offer comment, and a new way to get more specific feedback from residents on a particular project.
Our community engagement platform, Engage Durango, is a hub for engagement opportunities, information dissemination, project updates, and localized surveys. What started as a simple idea – to create a forum where the public can interact and be better informed on various projects in the community – has turned into a platform where community members can follow specific projects and be notified as those projects progress.
The numbers show the platform has been well-received by the public. Through August of this year, visits are up 120% to the site compared to last year. The number of followers has increased 60%, to 753, and document downloads have increased by a whopping 740%, from 1,031 in 2025 to 7,632 in 2026. Another interesting metric comes in the form of unique visitors and contributors. We saw an additional increase in unique visitors and contributors of 116% and 331%, respectively. One of our goals through this platform was to broaden participation and inspire input from a more diverse cross-section of residents, especially those that have not previously engaged with us.
Residents are using this engagement resource for contributing and commenting on local projects, as well as for gathering information on projects impacting their neighborhood and community.
While we leverage technology to accentuate community engagement (never to replace it), we also have reformatted existing models of engagement to better elicit feedback for specific projects and during public meetings. At our City Council meeting on Sept. 15, we moved forward with a potential new agenda format for future Council meetings to allow for public comment on specific agenda items at the time they’re being considered by Council. Councilor Gilda Yazzie brought forth this specific policy that would allow for Council to hear staff presentations and allow Council discussion for 5 minutes. Directly after that discussion, the public would be able to make comments specific to the item being discussed and allow for Council to weigh the public remarks before participating in another round of final discussion on the policy.
This format allows councilors to hear public feedback on policies being considered during our deliberations, and to consider the public remarks as we are discussing and voting. While we have not made a final vote on amending the Council meeting agenda just yet, this could be a better format for us to take in and reflect on community views on a particular subject before we decide how we’re going to vote.
An additional model we have tinkered with has come in the form of a dedicated public hearing for specific projects, beginning with the former Head Start facility at 2019 East 3rd Ave. At this dedicated public hearing, we hope to hear from residents on the best possible use for this piece of public property. There is no shortage of need for affordable housing, childcare facilities, and more, and we hope to hear from you on how we can best serve the community with this land. We are still orchestrating the day and time for this hearing and you can stay attuned to the process at the Engage Durango website.
Public engagement is just as much an art form as it is a process. Whether you prefer Councilor Office Hours, public comment at Council meetings, or just want to meet up for coffee, we’re here to listen. We may not always come out of those conversations agreeing with each other, but we truly believe an engaged community is a thriving community. We can appreciate advocacy in its various forms and look forward to the next opportunity to discuss how we continue making Durango great.
WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
Do you have a comment, question, or suggestion regarding this topic or others? Check out our "Engage" webpage and let us know! Want to receive releases like this on city news? Sign up for Notify Me and select "City of Durango News Flash."
Media Contact**Tom SluisPublic Information Officer Phone: (970) 375-5090Email: Tom Sluis