Jameson “Jamo” Goldstein is a first-time candidate running for Boulder mayor while attending CU Boulder.

Goldstein grew up in Arvada and graduated from Forge Christian School, a private K-12 school, in 2024. He is majoring in philosophy at CU Boulder and expects to graduate in 2028. He has worked as a swim coach at Boulder Meadows Club and sold educational software for the Boulder startup Brain Buffs.

Goldstein is running on a platform of affordability and opposition to the city’s contract with Flock Safety, which supplies Boulder’s automatic license plate readers. He proposes an excise tax on corporations that own more than 75 Boulder housing units and would use the revenue to subsidize rental assistance. He also supports keeping Boulder Municipal Airport open.

Goldstein’s campaign website states that he has not received funding from AIPAC. He has not reported receiving contributions from any source.

Rather than identifying with a political faction, Goldstein describes himself as “pro People.”

Occupation: CU student

Neighborhood: University Hill

Age: 21

Answers to questionnaire:

Affordable housing: Market-rate homes are out of reach for many teachers, nurses, police officers and firefighters. What would you do to create more housing these middle-income residents can afford? What regulations, if any, would you change to lower the cost of building or renovating homes? 

People who teach our children, care for patients, and protect our neighborhoods should be able to live here. I would expand the supply of homes at different price points, including apartments, duplexes, triplexes and accessory dwelling units, while preserving meaningful neighborhood input. For ADUs, I want a predictable approval path that takes under a month once an application is complete. Notify neighbors early, allow a short period for concerns, and use mediation to resolve specific problems instead of letting the process drag on indefinitely.

I also support Boulder’s affordable housing programs and would examine a tiered excise tax on large corporate rental portfolios to fund targeted rent assistance. We should measure whether each change actually brings down costs for residents.

Homelessness: What is one approach Boulder has not tried, or has not tried at scale, to address homelessness that you would bring to the council, and how should the city pay for it?

I would scale up coordinated behavioral health outreach for people living outside, with a direct path to treatment, shelter and housing. People with serious mental health or substance use needs should not have to navigate disconnected city and county systems on their own.

The city should partner with Boulder County and service providers on mobile response and case management, then publish outcomes such as connections to care and stable housing. I would seek county and existing program funds first and pursue the tiered excise tax on large rental portfolios described in my affordability plan as a dedicated local source. We also need focused enforcement against violence, theft and dangerous conduct in public spaces, paired with services rather than treating homelessness itself as a crime.

Governance: Boulder is entering its third straight year of budget cuts while facing a roughly $400 million backlog of major facility needs. How do you assess the problem, and what specific spending, revenue or management changes would you support? 

The backlog and repeated cuts show why Boulder needs to make capital priorities visible before asking taxpayers to take on major debt. I would commission an independent, project-by-project audit of the backlog and publish one accessible list showing each project’s cost, urgency, history of deferral, and whether repair is cheaper than replacement. I would prioritize urgent safety and maintenance needs in the budget, examine where avoidable delays have increased costs, and give residents a real role in building any future bond package.

I oppose the $400 million bond as currently presented. A smaller, justified package could earn my support after the work is independently verified and the public can see its tax impact. The 2011 community-driven process is a useful model for how to set those priorities.

Flock: Would you end Boulder’s use of automated license plate readers, yes or no? Why or why not? 

Yes. I would end Boulder’s Flock automated license plate reader contract. The network records the movements of ordinary people who are not suspected of a crime and places that information in a privat surveillance system. Residents should not have to give up privacy just to travel around town. Police need effective tools, and I would work with them on targeted, accountable methods for investigating specific crimes that do not collect everyone’s movements as a matter of course.

Wildfire: Should Boulder adopt an ordinance requiring owners of existing homes and homeowners associations in high-risk areas to harden their properties against wildfire, yes or no? If yes, what should it require? Is the city doing enough to push Xcel Energy to prevent or limit wildfire-related power shutoffs? What more should it do?

Yes. For existing homes and HOA-managed property in high-risk areas, I support practical requirements to clear combustible material immediately around structures, maintain defensible space, and address vulnerable vents and other ember-entry points. The city should map the covered areas, give owners clear guidance and reasonable time to comply, and offer help to households that cannot afford the work. HOAs should be held responsible for common areas under their control. The goal is measurable risk reduction, not a sudden unaffordable mandate.

Xcel shutoffs: No. Boulder should push Xcel to improve the infrastructure that makes emergency shutoffs necessary: inspect and maintain equipment in high-risk corridors, manage vegetation, and invest in targeted upgrades that reduce ignition risk and let outages affect fewer customers. The city should demand a public schedule for that work and clear reporting on progress. When a shutoff is unavoidable, Xcel must give timely, accessible notice, explain the criteria, and coordinate restoration and support for medically vulnerable residents and essential services.

Local businesses and downtown: Many local businesses, especially downtown, are struggling with rising costs and stagnating sales. What city policy would you change to help businesses stay open and reduce commercial vacancies, and what would you do to bring more customers downtown? 

I would simplify and speed up city permits for new businesses and renovations so an entrepreneur is not paying rent on an empty storefront while waiting through avoidable delays. I would meet regularly with local owners, publish clear timelines and points of contact, and revisit rules that create cost without a demonstrated benefit. To bring customers downtown, I would support year-round arts and cultural events, clean and welcoming public spaces, and reliable ways to get there by bike, bus and car. Any downtown investment authority should have clear boundaries, public financial reporting and priorities shaped by the businesses and residents affected. We can strengthen downtown while preserving the local character that brings people there.

Closer: Imagine it is November 2027, one year after your election. What is one specific thing you will have accomplished?

By November 2027, I want Boulder residents to be able to open a public dashboard and see an independently audited, project-by-project account of the city’s capital backlog: the cost, urgency, status and repair-versus-replacement decision for each project. That would let residents and council set priorities together and judge any future borrowing proposal against a transparent record.