The pioneer spirit, accompanied by the beauty of the mountains, foothills and plains, is gloriously evident in Douglas County. In 1861, the Colorado Territorial Session Laws created Douglas County, named after Stephen A. Douglas. Known as the "Little Giant," Stephen A. Douglas battled his own Democratic Party, as well as the Republican Abraham Lincoln, over issues of slavery, the Kansas-Nebraska Act and popular sovereignty. Douglas County originally stretched from the Rockies to the State of Kansas border.
Today, Douglas County is virtually the geographic center of Colorado. The County is approximately 844 square miles, 71 square miles of which are permanently protected land through the Douglas County Open Space Program. Recreational areas include more than 146,000 acres of Pike National Forest, Roxborough State Park, Castlewood Canyon State Park and the Chatfield State Recreation Area.
There are five incorporated municipalities within the boundaries of Douglas County: Castle Pines North, Castle Rock, Larkspur, Lone Tree and Parker. Each has its own mayor and provides services in cooperation with Douglas County.
The County’s strength, as the centerpiece of the Denver/Colorado Springs development corridor, is a perfect blend of quality lifestyle and business environment.
Douglas County has plenty to offer to its residents and is quick to respond to their demands.
As part of the County’s collaborative work with other communities, the seven-year-old Partnership of Douglas County Governments is a notable example. Established in 2002, the Partnership includes the Towns of Castle Rock and Parker, the City of Lone Tree, Douglas County, the Douglas County School District and Douglas County Libraries. A nationally recognized model of collaborative statesmanship, the Partnership has successfully sidelined individual agendas in the interest of working collaboratively on issues, projects and programs for the greater good of Douglas County. Outcomes of this collaborative effort include the creation of the Douglas County Housing Partnership and the Douglas County Youth Initiative. The Partnership’s latest initiative will examine current and future needs and potential locations for various regional facilities.
Communicating with such a diverse County includes not only the use of an award-winning Web site, but also the Emmy-award winning Douglas County Television Network. With three different stations, as well as a Web site on which television programming is available, the Network DC reaches approximately 50,000 individual cable television subscriber households, as well as the 95 percent of County households with in-home access to the Internet.
The County’s vision, “Setting the Standard of Excellence in Local Governance,” is continually top of mind for County leadership. And while service delivery is one primary role for Douglas County government, it is only one aspect of a total problem-solving approach to governance that requires citizen engagement for total effectiveness.
Additional Information
- In 2007-08, Douglas County worked on the 2030 Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP) Update.
- 2008 Citizen Survey Results
2008 Demographic Update
- Population estimate for Jan. 1, 2008: 286,622.
- 90 percent of the population lives in urban areas which is 16 percent of the County land area.
- 10 percent of the population lives in rural areas which is 84 percent of the County land area.
- 39 percent of the population resides in the incorporated towns and cities.
- Parker and Castle Rock each have an estimated population of 45,000.
- Lone Tree and Castle Pines North each have an estimated population of 10,000.
- Larkspur has 245 residents.
- The housing growth rate has slowed considerably from 14 percent in 1996 to 2.6 percent in 2007.
- The average annual growth rate since 2000 is 6.6 percent.
- The number of jobs in Douglas County has been increasing faster than the population.
- Projections show the population growing to 315,297 by 2010, and to 444,784 in 2030 - this is an increase of 41 percent over 20 years.