More Boulder election coverage: Read about Aaron Brockett’s reelection as mayor and the results of the Boulder City Council race. Follow the latest vote counts in our election results tracker.
Boulder’s $400 million bond measure, the most contentious issue on the city ballot, was headed for defeat Wednesday, while most other city and county measures were poised to pass, according to unofficial election results.
Issue 2K, which would allow the city to borrow up to $400 million to repair and replace aging facilities, had just 44% support as of Wednesday morning, according to unofficial results from the Boulder County Clerk and Recorder’s Office. Its support grew slightly with the later batches of results, but it remained well short of the majority needed to pass.
The measure split the field of city council candidates, while an opposition campaign backed by some of Boulder’s largest property owners, including Bill Reynolds and Tebo Properties, spent more than $20,000 to defeat it, according to city campaign finance records.
Under the measure, the city would repay the debt through property taxes over 20 years. If the city borrowed the full amount, the owner of a $1 million home would pay about $400 a year, according to city estimates. The owner of $1 million in commercial property would pay about $1,600 a year.
The Boulder City Council unanimously referred the measure to the ballot earlier this year. The city faces another tight budget, driven in part by flattening sales tax growth and rising costs. The measure has since become a proxy for a broader debate over the city’s financial stewardship.
Question 2M, a companion measure that would change how the city calculates its debt limit so it can borrow more, had 54% support.
Nearly every other city and county measure was headed for passage as of Wednesday.
A tax on homes that sit vacant most of the year had 57% support. A measure guaranteeing city firefighters the right to collective bargaining had 83% support.
In Boulder County, Issue 1A, a property tax increase to pay for child care, had 58% support. A measure expanding the county commission from three members to five had 66% support. In a separate question about how those commissioners would be elected, voters narrowly favored electing three commissioners by district and two at large, with 52% support, over electing all five by district, which had 48%.
A measure allowing Niwot to incorporate as a municipality was poised to fail, with 73% opposed. All of the companion measures allowing the new municipality to levy taxes also lacked majority support.
Thank you for an edition filled with election results on Wednesday morning, which the Camera was apparently unable to deliver.
The inclusion of 190M – roughly half – for a palatial new HQ for cops was really a poison pill on this thing. I hope they put forth a proposal just to fund the rec centers. I have no doubts that would pass.