GLENWOOD SPRINGS—The Garfield County Board of Commissioners feel they’ve been unfairly blamed for prioritizing money over public health. Commission Chairman John Martin says for the official record, the county is compiling all the e-mails and phone messages from concerned and even angry citizens. He says some of the comments are misguided and misinformed. Martin says he wants to set the record straight, especially with regard to variances. County Public Health Director Yvonne Long says the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment did not withdraw the site specific variances, they were kept in place. Commissioner Tom Jankovsky says when it comes to health, safety and welfare of the community, those three things are inseparable and intertwined. Jankovsky says, “You cannot have strong welfare without health and safety but you also cannot have health if you don’t have strong welfare.” He says, “to sit here and say we will destroy the welfare, the economy side of this and say you will have a healthy community is absurd.” Martin says it irritates him when people accuse the board of sacrificing public health for tax revenue.
