Good morning, Boulder, and a happy Friday.

For today’s top story, I talked to Ashley Stolzmann who is leading the push for Louisville to ban natural gas hookups in new commercial buildings. Following Crested Butte, which passed a similar measure this summer, Louisville’s ordinance would come as more than 20 states have passed laws preventing cities from enacting such bans.

And more ADUs might be coming to a Boulder backyard near you. Plus much more.

Have a great weekend.

— Tim, reporter

It’s a good day to support local journalism

What to know today

  • Rain? What is this, Oregon? 60% chance of rain the next couple days with temperatures in the 60s and 70s. Should make for a cozy weekend. Get that candle burning.
  • Hop back on schedule: With West Pearl reopening, the Hop bus is returning to the stretch between 9th and 11th, which was previously closed off. It will also be returning to East Pearl between 15th and 20th streets.
    • While West Pearl has reopened, the city has said it would consider closing the two block stretch in the future, perhaps seasonally, as part of a comprehensive plan. It will asses the future uses of other streets in “the broader downtown area and throughout the community.”
  • Beware, or at least be aware, of bears: There are two families of bears passing their days in south Boulder. The city encourages those living in town, especially on the Hill, in Table Mesa, Martin Acres and Chautauqua, to make sure they’re conscientious about possible bear attractants. They’re hungry this time of year as they try to fatten up for their big nap. A few tips from the city include:
    • If you leave your trash out on the curb overnight, you must use a bear-proof bin.
    • Don’t let fruit from trees build up on the ground.
    • Secure your goats.
  • ADU saturation limits on the chopping block: The Housing Advisory Board — a five-member board of volunteers advising the Boulder City Council on housing policy — is drafting up recommendations to make it easier to build more accessory dwelling units (ADUs). ADUs are smaller housing units typically build atop garages or in backyards and rented out or reserved for family and visitors. 
    • Among the restrictions likely to be scrapped: saturation limits capping how many ADUs can be built in neighborhoods, minimum parking requirements and overall size limits.
    • The goal is to increase the number of affordable and market-rate homes in single-family home neighborhoods as an incremental step toward addressing the city’s housing crisis.
    • In January, the Boulder City Council made it one of their priorities to revise the city’s ADU regulations. During a Housing Advisory Board meeting on Thursday, city officials presented preliminary findings from its research into three dozen similar cities with ADUs. Of the 36 cities studied so far, none have saturation limits, few have minimal lot sizes and most allow larger ADUs than Boulder, an indication Boulder’s policy is relatively restrictive.
    • In 2018, the Boulder City Council approved changes to the city’s ADU regulations to increase saturation limits and create a new “affordable” ADU category, allowing some to be larger and without parking in exchange for rent limits.
  • Mining to cease in Lyons. The Boulder County Commissioners on Thursday voted 2-1 to deny a county permit extension to a cement-making company in Lyons, a move that will end its mining operations as soon as today.
    • In May 2022, the Mexico-based cement manufacturer CEMEX applied for a permit extension to continue digging up limestone and shale at its Dowe Flats quarry on the north side of State Highway 66 just east of Lyons. The permit expires Sept. 30, 2022, according to county records.
    • Despite losing its nearby mine, CEMEX has state air pollution permits necessary to continue making cement, the materials for which it may have to ship in by truck. The plant is among the county’s largest greenhouse gas emitters, and environmental advocates have long clamored to shut it down.
      • The company had offered to cease all operations in 12 years if the county approved its permit extension. It also offered to donate the county land for open space. For this reason, Commissioner Matt Jones voted to extend the permit. But Commissioners Claire Levy and Marta Loachamin were not convinced the company would continue operating that long.
      • They were also concerned about the ongoing impacts of the mining: “It’s causing a lot of dust. It’s causing a lot of noise. It’s causing a lot of truck traffic. It’s distributing wildlife in the area,” Levy said.
  • Boulder County passes 400 Covid deaths: Boulder County Public Health released a statement bemoaning the loss and encouraging everyone to get vaccinated.
    • “This tragic milestone reminds us of the toll that families in our community have endured. Our hearts go out to everyone who has lost someone to the pandemic. To keep yourself and your loved ones safe, please consider getting a vaccine or booster.”
  • Last chance for Lime e-scooter input: The deadline to respond to a city survey on electric scooters closes today, Sept. 30. The city is asking residents for feedback on its yearlong e-scooter pilot program, launched last August with the deployment of 200 Lime scooters east of 28th Street.
  • Free MPX vaccine—reminder: Out Boulder County is hosting a free vaccine clinic today, Sept. 30, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. No appointment is needed. Walk-ins welcome.

Go deeper

Louisville seeks to become second Colorado city to ban gas in new commercial buildings

By Tim Drugan

This summer, Crested Butte became the first municipality in Colorado to ban natural gas in new buildings. Other than cooking in commercial kitchens, everything in the mountain town’s new structures must be achieved electrically. If it had been up to Ashley Stolzmann, however, Boulder’s neighbor would have taken gold.

“We’ve been talking about it for long enough,” Stolzmann, Louisville’s mayor, said. “If we’d done it faster, we would have been first.”

Berkeley, California was the first U.S. city to ban natural gas hookups in new buildings. Between Berkeley’s 2019 decision and today, some 60 California cities and counties have followed suit, as have several cities in other states, including New York City. Climate change is the impetus. Carbon dioxide emissions must fall to zero as early as 2050, if we hope to keep warming within safe margins. Rapid cuts in non-CO2 drivers of warming must also be made, including methane — also known as natural gas. 

“We are facing a climate emergency,” Stolzmann said. “And a lot of what we see in response is not rising to the occasion to reduce our emissions in a way that’s really going to help our generation and the next.”

On Sept. 27, 2022, Louisville City Council held a special meeting to discuss options for updating the city’s commercial energy code. Honing in on the language of such a code, however, can take more than a few meetings.

City staff and some engineering groups, who act as the city’s consultants, presented options for paths forward. Some potential codes were less aggressive, encouraging all-electric construction while allowing for “flexibility with fuel choice and energy use reduction methods.” Others were more ambitious: net-zero emissions, solar generation on site, and no natural gas to speak of. Or at least almost none. Exceptions would be possible.

Continue reading…

BRL picks

🧑‍🎨 Artist exhibition at First Congressional Church: Artist John Aaron will be putting on his first solo exhibition in the U.S. in five years at the First Congregational Church at 1128 Pine St. The official opening is today, Sept. 30, from 5:30-8:00 p.m. Visitors will be treated to an overview of Aaron’s last 40+ years “of drawing, painting, the book arts, and sculpture.”

🚲 Donate your old bikes: On Oct. 2 at Centaurus High School, Community Cycles is accepting old bikes and parts to hopefully give them a second life. All bikes are welcome, though they’re especially interested in 24″ kids bikes for the Kids Holiday Bike Giveaway — where Community Cycles gives away more than 350 bikes to those in need every December.

🍺 Ride a colorful BCycle: BCycle partnered with Street Wise Arts to bring color to the publicly available bicycles. The bikes could be a great way to enjoy the murals going up this weekend around Boulder.

Covid in Boulder County: Sept. 30, 2022

  • 62 daily new cases (7-day avg.) ⬇️ Down 43% over preceding 7-day avg.
  • 16 patients hospitalized with Covid (7-day avg.) ⬆️ Up from a high of 9 last week.
  • 47% percent of ICU is occupied. ⬇️ Down from avg. of 66% since July 2020.

ICYMI

Tim Drugan was a climate and environment reporter for Boulder Reporting Lab.