Rob Smoke, 69, a semi-retired artist and app developer, served on the city’s Human Relations Commission from 2003 to 2008. Smoke is largely running on the Gaza issue. He said the city is failing to uphold morality regarding Israel and Palestine and has criticized council for ignoring residents’ pleas to divest from companies tied to the war. He has also raised concerns about council transparency, including its decision to stop broadcasting open comment video and to suspend some speakers. Smoke has previously run for council and said he has circulated a petition asking for the removal of gas powered boats on the Boulder Reservoir.
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’ve lived here since 1986 — twenty years at the same address in central Boulder. In spite of some personal challenges, I feel pretty good about living here and have no particular desire to move. The trend of the current city council has been to be arrogantly dismissive of people who only want what most of the world obviously wants — an end to the genocide occurring in Gaza. There might be other big issues for Boulder, but this happens to be the moral issue of the day — and council’s stance runs counter to the way most people feel. I’d like to help change the obviously unfortunate outcome regarding our public conversation.
Camping ban: Should Boulder enforce its camping ban when the All Roads shelter is full? Please answer yes or no and explain.
I believe that the camping ban has had poor results in terms of making Boulder better or safer. Boulder has, for at least the past two decades, been running in place on a treadmill in terms of solving anything. We need to stop having to make the police the go-to resource. Doesn’t mean they don’t do their best, but we have ample evidence to suggest that current policies are inadequate in terms of addressing the issues related to “urban camping,” which is something people do not for amusement, generally, but because they can’t obtain housing. I believe there’s a better way and this issue would be second only to the need for divestment from corporations profiting from the extreme suffering in Gaza.
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, I think the City needs a pragmatic approach to what it demands and where. Homes with an adjacent position to open space probably need more treatment than homes in central Boulder — although we have had some extraordinary fires in central Boulder. On the other hand, if we’re talking about something like de-juniperizing the entire city, I think that might be problematic.
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?
I grew up in one of tens of thousands of apartments built by legislation supporting co-operative low- to middle-income housing. The legislation, passed in 1955, created a very clear formula for collaboration between governmental agencies and NGOs interested in creating affordable housing. I would like to see the city generate at least one pilot project to gain an understanding of the “equity framework” and whether or not the program can be expanded.
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)?
The world, generally speaking, understands that genocide is occurring in Gaza. How then does a super-majority of council manage to simply look away and allow itself to invalidate the legitimate feelings of psychological pain, moral injury and general distress that people are experiencing? The evidence is overwhelming — we know it’s not about Israel defending itself when tens of thousands and quite likely hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, most of them women and children, are being murdered at an industrial scale. If elected, I will immediately demand a fresh look at divestment from companies that profit from the suffering in Gaza.
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?
Firstly, I would realign middle and upper level employees’ salaried compensation via adjustments taken from data collection from similarly sized municipalities. Separately, I would give a closer review of the technical aspects of integrated benefit management. I believe in certain types of pragmatic “best practices” implementation; I have a background that applies to this type of situation.
Correction: This story was corrected regarding Smoke’s position on issues related to the Boulder Reservoir.
