Good Wednesday morning, Boulder. Today’s edition is sponsored by Boulder County’s call for residents to serve on its boards and commissions — check out this opportunity to help shape local government.
We’re going under the hood of government spending today — because it’s taxpayer money. And with city budget pressures mounting, it’s a good time to pay attention.
Boulder’s open space board is raising concerns about a growing share of open space tax revenue being diverted to cover citywide services like legal, HR and IT, John Herrick reports. Trustees say the rising costs — projected to grow from 8.5% to 14% of the OSMP budget by 2031 — could ultimately erode the protections the tax was meant to fund. They passed a resolution calling for more transparency and limits. Still, they approved a 2026 budget that includes the higher allocations. City council takes it up later this summer.
Also in today’s edition: A new House bill proposes smaller cuts to NOAA than Trump’s budget, but Boulder-based scientists and advocates still warn of “drastic” impacts, Brooke Stephenson reports.
And in BRL Opinion: Why long-term science matters in Boulder County’s high country. Nancy Emery, who leads CU Boulder’s Niwot Ridge Long-Term Ecological Research program, reflects on decades of climate research unfolding on a quiet stretch of alpine tundra near Brainard Lake. These discoveries — among the longest ecological records in the world — depend on sustained funding.
Plus much more, Below the Fold:
- BoulderCAST: Morning gloom, storm risk and wildfire smoke.
- Pearl Street attack: Arraignment set for Sept. 9.
- Chain assault: DA files first-degree charge among 17 counts.
- Andrea Gibson: Beloved Boulder poet dies at 49.
- Boulder Creek funding: Trump budget would cut habitat restoration.
- Climate Equity Fund: County launches $2.5M grant program.
- Marshall Fire memorial: Superior seeks designer for remembrance project.
Thanks, as always, for reading,
– The BRL team
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Boulder open space board questions city’s use of open space tax money for administrative services
The city plans to shift more open space tax revenue to cover administrative services like legal, IT and HR as budgets tighten. Continue reading…
House bill proposes smaller cuts to NOAA’s Boulder labs than Trump’s, but still ‘drastic’
Proposed 6% cut to NOAA and 10% cut to NSF would affect research labs in Boulder, despite avoiding Trump’s deeper reductions. Continue reading…
Nancy Emery: What long-term science in Boulder’s alpine is teaching the world about mountain ecosystems
With over 45 years of uninterrupted data, scientists at Niwot Ridge in Boulder County are documenting changes in alpine ecosystems — and why such studies need long-term support. Continue reading…
Morning gloom, afternoon severe storms and a smoky sunset
It’s a drab start to Wednesday in Boulder. Thanks to an overnight cold front, low clouds and a bit of foggy drizzle have formed. Expect the cloud cover to lift by late morning or early afternoon, making room for a round of scattered thunderstorms, some of which could pack a punch.
The severe setup today is a little uncertain due to the morning gloom, but if storms do get going, supercells containing large hail and gusty winds are on the table, especially as they roll eastward away from Boulder. After the gray beginning in the low 60s, temps should eventually crawl into the 80s later on.
Also, if things start looking hazy this afternoon or evening, it’s not just leftover clouds or moisture — it’s smoke. A thick layer of wildfire smoke drifted in overnight above the low clouds, sourced from big fires burning out west. This smoke will sustain beautiful sunrises and sunsets the next several days but may lead to lingering air quality issues, as no major wind shifts are expected anytime soon.
Suspect in Pearl Street terror attack to be arraigned Sept. 9
Mohamed Soliman, 45, who is accused of throwing Molotov cocktails at a crowd on the Pearl Street Mall, waived his right to a preliminary hearing in Boulder District Court on Tuesday, July 15. His arraignment is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 9.
Soliman faces multiple charges in Boulder County, including first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and use of incendiary devices. Prosecutors allege he attacked a June 1 gathering in support of hostages held in Gaza, killing 82-year-old Karen Diamond, an active volunteer in the community and at her synagogue, and injuring others.
Soliman shouted “Free Palestine” during the assault and said he targeted participants with the Run for Their Lives group because he “hated the Zionist group,” according to prosecutors. He also faces federal hate crime charges. Read more on BRL.
Boulder DA files first-degree assault charge in string of chain attacks
On July 11, Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty filed formal charges against the suspect accused of attacking multiple people with a metal chain earlier this month. According to Boulder police, at least 10 people were targeted, four of whom were physically injured.
The charges include one count of first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree assault, seven counts of attempted second-degree assault, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, harassment, three counts of menacing, criminal mischief, and third-degree assault.
This is the first time a first-degree assault charge has been publicly confirmed. Initially, police had only announced second-degree assault and did not connect a serious early morning attack to the string of incidents that followed later in the day. That attack left 22-year-old Ashton Sasser with a fractured skull and loss of vision in his left eye, according to his mother. Read more on BRL.
Remembering Boulder’s Andrea Gibson: ‘Their heart was covered in stretch marks’
Poet Laureate of Colorado, internationally touring spoken word artist and beloved Boulder resident Andrea Gibson died on July 14 at 4:16 a.m., surrounded by their wife, Meg Falley, four ex-girlfriends, their parents, dozens of friends — and their three beloved dogs, according to a post by “Meg and Heather” on Gibson’s Instagram page.
Since being diagnosed with cancer in 2021, Gibson became “a champion of finding beauty in unlikely places and gratitude in the hardest hours,” they wrote. “Over the last four years, they danced with their diagnosis, and continually aimed their internal compass toward joy.”
As Meg and Heather shared, one of the last things Andrea said was: “I fucking loved my life.”
Gibson wrote in their poem “Love Letter From the Afterlife:” “I am more here than I ever was before. I am more with you than I ever could have imagined.” Their family and friends added: “Today, and all days forward, we hope you feel Andrea’s enormous spirit and immense presence beside you.
As their family wrote: “Though Andrea desperately wished to have lived a longer life, they could not have possibly lived a fuller one.” They concluded: “Andrea would want you to know that they got their wish. In the end, their heart was covered in stretch marks.”
That fullness — and the vulnerability that defined Andrea’s poetry — are captured in “Come See Me in the Good Light,” a documentary that premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and is slated to stream on Apple TV+ this fall. The film follows Gibson’s final year, their marriage to fellow poet Falley, and their experience living and creating in the face of terminal illness.
“It took a year to make this film, and I never expected to live to see it,” Gibson said, according to Sundance. “And so it is my feeling that they completed this at a rapid pace so that I would be able to see it, and it’s just so wonderful.”
The film includes doctor visits, poetry readings and Gibson considering their first live show in four years. “If I die,” Gibson says in the film, “Meg’s really going to need me to support her through those feelings. I can’t stand the idea of not being there for her through that.” You can check out thousands of tributes online.
Trump budget plan would cut Boulder Creek habitat restoration funding
President Trump is proposing to eliminate a key water conservation program that’s sent more than $3.2 billion to Western states, including nearly $1 million for Boulder Creek habitat restoration, CPR reports.
The 15-year-old WaterSMART program provides funding to Western states to address drought and water scarcity, including a grant to the Boulder Watershed Collective to restore 181 acres of “degraded aquatic and riparian habitat” near the headwaters of Boulder Creek. The restoration efforts are meant to increase water reliability, improve water quality, reduce the severity of downstream flooding and improve aquatic habitats, among other goals.
The Boulder Creek restoration is just one of 118 water conservation projects WaterSMART has funded in Colorado since 2010. The program is run through the Bureau of Reclamation, but Trump’s budget proposes eliminating all of the program’s funding, as well as funding for other water initiatives at the bureau. Read more on BRL.
New $2.5M Climate Equity Fund launches as Boulder groups lose federal support
On Aug. 1, Boulder County will launch its new Climate Equity Fund, a $2.5 million grant program designed to support community-led climate action, particularly in frontline communities most impacted by climate change. Grants will be awarded in two tiers: $5,000-$50,000 and $55,000-$1 million.
The program’s launch comes at a pivotal time. Earlier this summer, the Environmental Protection Agency abruptly ended a national environmental justice grant program, cutting nearly $50 million in funding across the Mountain West, Boulder Reporting Lab reported. Several Boulder County groups were among those affected.
FLOWS (Foundations for Leaders Organizing for Water and Sustainability), Boulder’s longest-running environmental justice group, lost a $250,000 grant — as well as all of its 2026 funding and more than half for 2025. Another group, the Boulder County Climate Justice Collaborative, lost more than 90% of its budget, which was earmarked for training and advocacy around coal ash pollution at Xcel Energy’s Valmont Power Station. Read more on BRL.
Superior seeks designer for Marshall Fire remembrance project
The Town of Superior is inviting contractors to submit qualifications for a creative project honoring the 2021 Marshall Fire, which destroyed nearly 400 homes and the town’s historical museum. The memorial is planned for open space near the Oerman-Roche Trailhead and will include three possible components: A Place to Gather, Pet Remembrance and Dispersed Components. Submissions are due by 10 a.m. on Aug. 12. View the full RFQ on the Town of Superior’s website.
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