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Colorado Parks Commission Votes 5-4 to Keep Roxborough State Park Name, Denying Bid to Honor Gov. Richard Lamm
The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission narrowly rejected a petition to rename Roxborough State Park after former Gov. Richard D. Lamm, citing cost concerns and local opposition. Supporters of the Lamm family say they will seek other ways to honor his legacy.
The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission voted 5-4 on Thursday to deny a petition that would have renamed Roxborough State Park after former Gov. Richard D. Lamm, ending â at least for now â a months-long debate over how best to honor the late governor's environmental legacy.
Two commissioners recused themselves from the vote, citing conflicts of interest.
The petition, submitted to the commission in July, was backed by letters of support from every living Colorado governor, Lamm's family, and several current and former U.S. senators. But it drew organized opposition from residents and the nonprofit Friends of Roxborough State Park, who argued that the 3,400-acre park's name should remain unchanged.
"I am thrilled the commissioners saw through the potential problem of renaming this park, setting a bad precedent," Fran Santagata, a member of the One Roxborough community group, said after the vote. "I do believe that former Gov. Lamm should be honored in some way, somehow, but not with the renaming of our park."
By denying the petition, the commission will not move forward with further review of the proposal.
Some commissioners raised concerns about the potential financial cost of a name change, which could reach $105,000, according to a memo from CPW Director Laura Clellan.
Dottie Lamm, the former governor's widow, who is nearing 90, addressed the commission in person. "I want to put something straight, right away," she said. "We are looking for his name to be added to Roxborough; we aren't trying to take anything away from the name. We wouldn't want to do that. We love the park. We love the name."
Lamm, a three-term Democratic governor who served from 1975 to 1987, was known for his advocacy on environmental protection, growth management and end-of-life issues. He died in 2025.
While Roxborough residents agreed that Lamm's work deserves recognition, many argued that renaming the park was not the right approach. Santagata said she and Mike Thomas, president of Friends of Roxborough State Park â a local nonprofit that has cared for and worked to expand the park since 1994 â suggested alternative locations to honor Lamm.
"I had suggested they look at the headwaters of the Arkansas River Valley recreational area, which is not a park per se, but a more broadly defined area, as possibly being named after him," she said. "And we also had suggested looking at a variety of areas within the park, like a scenic overlook that could be named after him, or a pavilion that might be named after him or a prominence within the park that might be named after him, or in some other recreational area."
Friends of Roxborough State Park publicly opposed the name change, and some residents at the meeting argued that state parks should not be named after any politician.
"In this area of increased polarization, the state park experience is one to escape division," resident Marie Adams said during public comment, citing her husband. "It should welcome everyone and alienate no one."
CPW's naming policy states that "naming an area after a person should be done only in cases where an individual has made a significant contribution to the specific area, to CPW or to the State of Colorado."
The decision leaves the park's name intact for now, though the conversation about how to memorialize Lamm's contributions to Colorado's public lands appears far from over.