Jenny Robins, 48, director of Insite Inc., a telecommunications company, is campaigning on broad themes of “good governance,” basic services and wildfire resilience. She is chair of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and served on the board of the Play Boulder Foundation, which advocates for recreation programs. She has also volunteered for the Boulder International Film Festival and led Girl Scout troops. Robins said she is running to strengthen core city services, promote economic resilience and advance Boulder’s environmental and wildfire safety goals.
Endorsements: Open Boulder, PLAN-Boulder County, Safer Boulder, Boulder Elevated and Stop Antisemitism Colorado
Answers to questionnaire:
Perspective and experience: What perspective or lived experience would you bring to city council, and how would it shape your approach to policy?
I would bring the perspective of a working mom, a small business owner, and someone who has spent years serving Boulder through civic leadership. I know firsthand how challenging it is to juggle family, work, and rising costs in this city. As a small business owner, I’ve also seen how red tape and delays can make it harder to thrive here. On top of that, my service as Chair of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, on the board of the Play Boulder Foundation, and as Co-Chair of the Boulder Chamber’s Community Affairs Council has given me a front-row seat to how city policy impacts residents, local businesses, and the broader community. These experiences shape my approach: I want policies that are practical, equitable, and focused on results. Always asking how decisions will affect families, workers, and businesses on the ground, because I’ve been in their shoes.
Camping ban: Should Boulder enforce its camping ban when the All Roads shelter is full? Please answer yes or no and explain.
Yes, we should always enforce the camping ban. Because living in our floodways, ditches, and on the creek is not a compassionate solution. There are several strategies we should begin focusing on starting with enforcing our camping ban while also making sure we have real pathways off the street. Prioritization, diversion, and reunification are all key pieces, and the good news is that Boulder is already doing a lot of this work, so I don’t believe the cost needs to be as high as the Clutch report suggests. We should keep building on what works while coordinating closely with the county. As the new mental health tax plan takes shape, I want to make sure those dollars are directed toward inpatient and outpatient services, additional treatment beds, and real solutions that address the root causes of homelessness. This is how we can both protect public spaces and ensure people in crisis get the support they need.
Wildfire mitigation/home hardening: Should the city require wildfire mitigation and home hardening — such as a five-foot buffer of noncombustible material around the home, or banning wood fences and gates within eight feet of a home — for existing homes? Please answer yes or no and explain.
Yes. Wildfire is an equitable disaster and it will take everything in its path without discrimination. If we don’t fire-harden now, the people who will suffer the most are our most vulnerable residents. I believe the city needs to expand wildfire mitigation beyond just new construction and additions, but we have to do it in a way that doesn’t put a crushing financial burden on homeowners or rental property owners. That means focusing first on strong incentive-based programs like rebates, grants, neighborhood cost-sharing, and partnerships with insurers and the county so people have real support to retrofit. We should also phase requirements in over time and provide extra resources for low- and middle-income households. The goal is to build resilience across the entire community, not just for those who can afford it.
Housing supply: Boulder needs thousands of new homes by 2032 to meet demand and keep rents and home prices from rising further out of reach. Yet projects often face cost overruns, community pushback or zoning hurdles. What specific steps would you take to address the city’s housing shortage?
Boulder has done a good job supporting affordable housing, and we have no shortage of high-end, market-rate homes, but what’s missing is the middle. Our middle income earners often can’t find housing here, even though they’re the backbone of our community. We need to make it easier and more attractive for developers and builders to create homes that middle earners actually want to live in. That means streamlining the process and providing the right incentives so that “missing middle” housing duplexes, townhomes, smaller condos can actually get built in Boulder. I would explore the option of reducing impact fees for developers that want to build for this population. Part of the solution also means looking ahead and exploring the Area III Planning Reserve in a thoughtful, deliberate way. If we plan carefully, we could use that land to create truly livable, mixed-income neighborhoods that include middle-income housing and the services that support it. We need to approach it with balance and intention, so we’re building for the community.
Council’s role on foreign affairs (and Gaza): Should the Boulder City Council take positions on foreign affairs? Regardless of your answer, what actions, if any, should the city council take in response to Israel’s war in Gaza and the related disruptions and demonstrations in council chambers (e.g., open comment rules, safety, hate speech, First Amendment considerations)?
No, I don’t believe City Council should take positions on foreign affairs. Our responsibility is to focus on Boulder’s local needs and challenges. That said, it’s important to acknowledge that innocent people are suffering in conflicts around the world, and that is always a tragedy. Here at home, I think we need to maintain council chambers as a safe and respectful space for everyone. That means enforcing the rules of decorum that already exist and allowing people to express their views within the bounds of open comment, but stepping in when rules are broken or behavior becomes disruptive. Everyone deserves the chance to be heard, but we also need to ensure that meetings remain safe, respectful, and focused on the work of the city.
Budget priorities: With sales tax growth slowing, the city manager imposed a hiring freeze this year and the city council faces tough trade-offs. The city also has an estimated $380 million capital maintenance backlog and uncertain federal funding. With limited dollars, what are your top priorities, and what would you cut or delay?
Boulder has a nearly $600 million budget, but most people don’t feel like they’re seeing $600 million worth of results. To me, that means it’s not just about how much money we’re spending, but how we’re spending it. We need to overhaul the budget so it’s focused on outcomes, transparency, and accountability. That starts with prioritizing the basics like fixing our streets and sidewalks, keeping bike paths clear, improving snow removal, investing in wildfire mitigation, maintaining our rec centers, and supporting public safety. These are the services every resident counts on, and they need to come first. From there, we should hold programs and contracts accountable with clear performance measures, and if something isn’t delivering results, it shouldn’t automatically get renewed. I also think the city relies far too much on outside consultants, and we’d be better off shifting those dollars into staff capacity and resident-facing services. It should be alarming to the entire community that sales tax growth is slowing. We need to look hard at that problem before jumping immediately to additional taxes for the residents. And finally, I want to bring residents directly into the process by creating a Community Accountability Committees that focuses on and reviews the budget, wildfire mitigation, and our homeless solutions.