Another week in the books! 📚 Before you turn the page to Memorial Day Weekend, catch up with your community in this morning’s edition of BRL Today. In today’s top stories: Reporter John Herrick breaks down the ACLU of Colorado’s lawsuit against the City of Boulder over its ban on public camping. We also have […]
Posted inHousing
ACLU of Colorado sues City of Boulder over camping ban that mostly affects people experiencing homelessness
The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado is suing the City of Boulder to halt enforcement of the city’s controversial camping ban, a decades-old law allowing police officers to ticket homeless people for sleeping in public spaces. In a lawsuit filed in the Boulder County District Court on Thursday, May 26, attorneys argued the city’s […]
Posted inLocal Government
Boulder Parks and Recreation aquatic facilities are operating at ‘reduced or constrained’ service levels this summer. Here’s what you need to know for Memorial Day Weekend and beyond.
With the summer season around the corner, Boulder’s Parks and Recreation Department has announced it will not be fully opening its pools to visitors due to a widespread staffing shortage across the department. Although the city hired more than 200 new staff for summer 2022, it fell short of its goal to hire more than […]
Posted inClimate Change
How much water does Boulder actually need — and how much is at its disposal?
It flows from our faucets and shower-heads and flushes our toilets. But until water begins dripping from places it shouldn’t, few of us consider the liquid or the tangled piping carrying it around our homes. And what about before it enters our buildings? What’s water up to then? One possible deflection: If plumbing is such […]
Posted inBRL Today
🧱 What Pearl Street’s history says about its future
Looking for a little community journalism to start your Wednesday? 🗞️ We’ve got you covered. Today’s top story looks to the past of the Pearl Street Mall to make sense of its present and future. Reporter John Herrick spoke with Richard Foy, an architect who helped design the downtown Boulder gem in the 1970s, about […]
Posted inLocal History
‘Beauty, meaning and connection’: As the city considers changes for the Pearl Street Mall, its history offers perspective on present challenges and future opportunities
The Pearl Street Mall, a four-block pedestrian throughway and centerpiece of Boulder’s downtown, was built in 1977 to help stop the hemorrhaging of restaurants and retailers from the city’s center. But there was more to the vision than economics. “We were trying to create an ode to Mother Nature, a combination of civilization set in […]
Posted inEconomy
Downtown Boulder retailers have largely rebounded from the pandemic slump, sales tax revenue indicates. The full picture is more complicated.
The economic outlook for retailers on the Pearl Street Mall is relatively rosy despite the lingering downturn in tourism and reduction in the number of workers commuting into town during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a presentation from city budget managers to the Boulder City Council on Tuesday, May 24. Businesses on the pedestrian mall […]
Posted inBRL Today
🌲 How forest thinning protects Boulder’s water supply
Hey there, Boulder! 👋 Welcome to your Monday edition of BRL Today. This morning we’re bringing you the final installment in a two-part series on the relationship between wildfire and water quality. Reporter Tim Drugan spoke with local experts about why Boulder is investing in forest health projects to protect the city’s water sources ahead […]
Posted inClimate Change
Why Boulder is investing in forest thinning to protect the city’s water sources ahead of the next fire
One of the biggest risks of wildfire — outside of flames welcoming themselves, uninvited, into our neighborhoods — is its potential effect on water quality. Ash and sediment from burn sites happily ride rainwater downhill to clog stream channels and lower water quality for all those downstream. Last week, Boulder Reporting Lab spoke with Kate […]
Posted inBRL Today
🏘️ Why some housing was nixed from East Boulder housing plan
The weather might be crummy outside today, but I hope you’re feeling those good Friday vibes nonetheless. 💫 We’ve got a trio of original stories for you in this morning’s edition of BRL Today to set you off into the weekend — from a scoop on nixed housing in the East Boulder redevelopment plan, to […]