Another week coming to a close. Where does the time go? Into the past, I’ve heard.

For today’s top story, John Herrick covers land-use maps and codes. On Thursday, Boulder City Council approved new land-use codes to help make it possible to add about 5,000 homes to the area east of Foothills Parkway. The new plan for East Boulder — in the works since 2019 — is the latest attempt to redevelop land in a city surrounded by open space. The area could prove a testing ground for new housing, transportation and climate policies aimed at transforming commercial areas into livable and walkable neighborhoods.

Also, according to new FBI data, reports of violent crime are continuing to rise in Boulder — though the city’s violent crime rate remains below the Colorado rate and that of major U.S. cities.

It’s still lovely out there. Enjoy your weekend.

— Tim, reporter

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What to know today

  • Possibly perfect weather: High 50s today and 60s through the weekend. Based on the forecast, this weekend might put itself up for Best of the Year.
  • Crime rising in Boulder: In 2021, reports of violent crime continued to rise in Boulder. Up about 23% over 2020, the increase was largely due to a rise in reports of aggravated assault, according to new data released by the FBI on Oct. 5, 2022.
    • Boulder’s violent crime rate of 390 per 100,000 people is still below the Colorado rate of 423, and well below other major cities across the U.S. where crime has risen since the Covid-19 pandemic. Using similar data, Boulder Reporting Lab reported that reports of violent crime — which include reports of assault, robbery, rape and homicide — reached record highs in Boulder in 2021.
    • The same FBI data indicate property crimes, such as theft, leveled off slightly last year after a rise since 2010. Motor vehicle theft, however, continued to increase.
    • The federal data on crime is based on reports to the Boulder Police Department, which relays its data to the FBI under the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program.
  • ‘I believe we have the budget’: During Thursday’s Boulder City Council meeting, several residents and business owners called for increases to the city’s police budget to deal with the rising reports of crime.
    • Police Chief Maris Herold said the police department is down 29 officers due to national hiring challenges, leaving it about 15% short of its preferred 190 officers.
    • Herold said the recommended 2023 budget includes money to hire 29 officers with competitive pay and benefits. In response to questions from councilmembers about whether they should allocate additional money, Herold said: “I believe we have the budget.”
  • City council greenlights extension of homeless sweeps program: Boulder City Council gave initial approval to a $1.3 million request from the city manager to expand and extend a pilot program to clear out homeless encampments.
    • This includes doubling the Utilities Department budget to $700,000 to collect trash and belongings from people sleeping in public spaces. The request was among the most controversial aspects of the city manager’s $513.5 million proposed budget, which also includes historic funding for affordable housing.
    • The approval came after an in-person public hearing during which businesses cited homelessness as a challenge for their employees, and residents said they do not feel safe walking along the Boulder Creek path.
    • Councilmembers Nicole Speer and Lauren Folkerts voted against the recommended budget and opposed the spending request for clearing out encampments.
  • Salt Lake City, Santa Fe join Boulder County and Flagstaff to tackle climate crisis: A total of four localities now make up the 4 Corners Carbon Coalition. The goal of the coalition is encouraging carbon dioxide removal projects in the Four Corners Region. Carbon dioxide removal are processes “that take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and durably lock it away in geological, biological, and synthetic formations for decades, centuries, or even millennia.” Though drastically cutting fossil fuel emissions is still necessary, it’s not enough to prevent the worst climate change has to offer.
    • “Less than a year ago, the most devastating fire in Colorado history destroyed over 1,000 homes in our community,” said Boulder County Commissioner Matt Jones. “Boulder County knows all too well the catastrophic impacts of climate change, which is why we are thrilled to partner with other local governments to fight the climate crisis through carbon dioxide removal. The 4 Corners Carbon Coalition will take action to develop and test real world projects to address the enormous challenge we face.”
  • Second arrest made in University Hill shooting: After receiving help from the public, police identified and arrested one of the alleged participants in the weekend Hill shooting. Held on a $500,000 bond in the Boulder County Jail, the suspect is facing charges of:
    • Felony attempted murder in the first degree – extreme indifference.
    • Felony attempted murder in the first degree – after deliberation.
    • Misdemeanor disorderly conduct-discharge firearm.
  • Last chance to leaf peep by bus: The Hessie Shuttle to the Hessie Trailhead near Nederland closes Sunday, Oct. 9. The trailhead will remain open, but your own car will be necessary.
  • Boulderthon, the city’s only marathon, is happening this weekend: The marathon, half marathon and 10K will be held on Sunday, Oct. 9. (A 5K is happening on Saturday.) The marathon will end on Pearl Street and 15th, and spectators should expect the first finishers after 10 a.m. The marathon will pay a relatively sizable purse: $2,000 for the male and female winners. Road closures here.

Go deeper

Boulder City Council approves plan to bring 5,000 new homes and apartments to East Boulder

By John Herrick

In the coming years, warehouses now occupied by breweries and shipping centers on the eastern edge of the City of Boulder could also include apartments and for-sale townhomes. And sprawling parking lots surrounding the industrial buildings today could be torn out to plant trees and build bike lanes connecting new neighborhoods to downtown. 

This is part of a 20-year vision for redeveloping the city’s commercial area east of Foothills Parkway, known as the East Boulder Subcommunity Plan. On Oct. 6, 2022, the Boulder City Council unanimously passed new land-use codes that lay the foundation for implementing the plan. 

The plan, which has been under works since 2019, seeks to preserve some of the city’s only remaining affordable commercial real estate, while also allowing developers to build homes there for the first time. It is the latest attempt to redevelop land to build a substantial amount of housing in a city that is virtually surrounded by open space off limits to housing development.

Continue reading…

BRL picks

🌲 Community food share Turkey Trot: On Nov. 24, Thanksgiving Day, trot your way around old town Louisville to benefit the Community Food Share “whose mission is to eliminate hunger in Boulder and Broomfield Counties through engagement, collaboration, and leadership.”

🗳 Become an election judge: Boulder County Clerk and Recorder is seeking election judges, more commonly known as poll workers, for the upcoming elections. The position is paid and all party affiliations are welcome.

🌴 OAK’s new menu: Boulder’s OAK at Fourteenth is unveiling a “much anticipated” autumn menu. Rolling out over the next few weeks, the new yum-yums will include an OAK wedge salad with caramelized pork belly, roasted little gem, blue cheese fondue, tomato breadcrumbs and pickled red onion, and other dishes that aren’t salads.

☃️ Name a snowplow: Boulder elementary students are encouraged to submit their ideas for what the city’s plows should be named for this coming winter. The names will be featured on each plow, and winners can pose for a pic with the plow they named. Deadline extended to Oct. 14.

👻 ‘Meet the Spirits’ at Columbia Cemetery–reminder: From noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 9, Boulderites can learn pieces of Boulder’s history from costumed orators. CU professors, prospectors, and gunslingers may make appearances. Tickets are necessary, unless you’re a fourth grader.

Covid in Boulder County: Oct. 7, 2022

  • 61 daily new cases (7-day avg.) ⬇️ Down 45% over preceding 7-day avg.
  • 13 patients hospitalized with Covid (7-day avg.) ⬇️ Down from a high of 16 last week.
  • 38% percent of ICU is occupied. ⬇️ Down from avg. of 65% since July 2020.

What else we’re reading

  • Former Fairview High students settle in sexual assault lawsuit: A follow-up on a topic reported on by BRL, CPR reports a settlement may have been reached in the federal civil rights lawsuit brought by two former students. The suit alleges that Boulder Valley School District and former Fairview Principal Don Stensrud “failed to respond” when the women brought sexual misconduct complaints to school administrators, in violation of federal law. The case was brought under Title IX, the law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools that receive federal funding.
  • Interim director named after the firing of Patty Limerick: Limerick, co-founder and director of the Center of the American West at CU, has been replaced by Tom Zeiler, the director of CU’s international affairs program and former chair of the history department. An audit report indicated Limerick had used center staff for personal business. But it did not recommend her termination, and doing so caused the center’s entire executive committee to resign.

ICYMI

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