Several City Council candidates voiced displeasure with a local organization of outdoor recreation leaders after it published responses to a questionnaire that did not include all the candidates.
In Sunday’s edition of The Daily Sentinel, a letter to the editor from Outdoor Recreation Coalition (ORC) member Sarah Shrader pointed readers to the ORC website, which published candidate responses to a questionnaire on public lands and recreation issues.
The questionnaire itself was not part of The Daily Sentinel’s news coverage of the race, but an independent effort by the ORC.
Following the publication of the letter, candidates Jody Green, Greg Haitz and Mark McCallister said they did not receive the questionnaire from the coalition.
However, Shrader shared a screenshot of the original email, which showed it addressed to the candidates campaign email addresses listed on the city’s website.
“We reviewed our original emails and confirmed that they were sent to their email addresses listed on the Grand Junction City Council website,” a statement from the ORC Leadership Council reads. “We then promptly responded by phone, email and/or messenger to these candidates with another offer to publish their responses on our website and to immediately update our Letter to the Editor once we received the completed candidate questionnaire.”
Green said he searched both his campaign and personal email thoroughly and could not find the questionnaire even in his spam folder. He said in an email to Shrader, which he shared with the Sentinel, that public lands access is an issue he has fought for for years.
“I have spent 25 years advocating for public lands access, serving as president or board member on both Public Lands Access Association and Citizens Access for Public Lands,” Green’s email reads. “My work has directly restored and/or protected tens of thousands of acres of public lands for public access over the last 25 years. I would have enjoyed answering your survey if I had received it.”
Green’s opponent, Abe Herman, did receive the questionnaire and submitted responses. He also said maintaining access to public lands was an important issue to the city.
“Our access to public lands is essential to the incredible quality of life we enjoy here in Grand Junction,” Herman wrote. “Whether you’re a hunter, angler, biker, hiker, camper, or anyone else who enjoys spending time outdoors, almost all of that time is spent on public lands.”
The ORC Leadership Council in its written statement said it has still not received responses to its questions, which are also posted on its website, from the three candidates, but that it would publish those responses on its website and write another letter to the editor if they do.
“We will promptly publish their answers if they choose to respond,” the statement reads. “It has always been our goal to share the thoughts and opinions of every candidate running for office on the outdoor recreation economy, as this is vital to our community’s future.”
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Council candidates miffed by public lands discourse | Western Colorado | gjsentinel.com - The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel
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