Boulder County Commissioners Watch

This is a monthly feature summarizing the activities of the Boulder County Commissioners.

Boulder County Commissioners background information:

The Boulder County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) are Claire Levy, Marta Loachamin, and Ashley Stolzmann. Each commissioner is elected at-large to a four-year term. They are elected by and represent the entire county with a population of 330,758 according to the U.S. 2020 census, but each comes from a different district.

The BOCC is responsible for a myriad of matters, including approving expenditures, contracts, and grant agreements; establishing county policies related to land use; deciding on county employee compensation and facilities; and setting budgets for all elected offices.

While all county residents vote for commissioners, the commissioners’ primary local control is exercised over the approximately 12.5% (approximately 42,178 people) of the population residing in unincorporated Boulder County areas, including Niwot.

Thursday, May 1 commissioners meeting issues of interest to Niwot and Gunbarrel communities.

At the Boulder County Commissioners' monthly public comment session May 1, approximately eight Niwot residents who took time out of their day to appear in person were denied the chance to speak against the minimum wage ordinance, mainly due to inefficiencies and what appeared to be manipulation of the speaker sign-up process.

Union members who are employees of Boulder County advocating on a separate issue dominated the initial ten speaking slots.

Concerns about manipulation arose when union member Cindy Johnson, listed initially at position eight, spoke ninth. In contrast, Alberto De Los Rios, whose name was not on the original sign-in sheet, spoke eighth. After hearing from 10 people who attended in person, the hearing switched to online speakers who had signed up on a separate list.

After the hearing, Business Operations Manager Robin Valdez explained the situation to Jim Schaefer of the Niwot Minimum Wage Task Force. “[Valdez] said all requests to speak at the monthly commissioners meeting get time stamped as they come in,” Schaefer said. “The speakers then are put in a queue based on their time stamp. One queue is for in-person speakers, the other queue is for remote video speakers. If a person who requested to speak remotely decides to show up in person instead, then that person is put in the in-person queue and taken off the remote queue. That person's place in the in-person queue is then decided by the time stamp. If that person had an early time stamp then that person will ‘bump’ all those with later time stamps that are in the in-person queue.”

Further inefficiencies plagued the session. Transitions between in-person and online attendees were difficult, technical issues were prevalent, and the session concluded early due to the commissioners' pre-scheduled 10:00 a.m. meeting.

Tuesday, May 6 commissioners meeting issues of interest to Niwot and Gunbarrel communities.

Community Planning & Permitting – Nelson Nygaard Contract for Countywide Strategic Transit Plan. With funding from the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG), the county is embarking on its first-ever Countywide Strategic Transit Plan (CSTP) to ensure that its transit system is equitable, sustainable, and affordable and meets the needs of all communities within the county today and into the future. Boulder County is seeking signature on a contract with Nelson Nygaard Consulting Associates, Inc. to create the Boulder County CSTP.

Public Hearing on Rodriguez Transferred Development Rights/Planned Unit Development. Staff recommended that the proposed Rodriguez Transferred Development Rights Planned Unit Development at 6184 Niwot Road does not meet all the applicable criteria of the Boulder County Land Use Code for Sketch Plan Review and Transferred Development Rights, Planned Unit Development. Therefore, staff recommended via a 44-page document that the Board of County Commissioners deny Record SD-23-0003 Rodriguez TDR/PUD Sketch Plan. The proposal was tabled until July 10.

Tuesday, May 13 commissioners meeting issues of interest to Niwot and Gunbarrel communities.

Boulder County Community Planning & Permitting, Docket DC-25-001, involves text amendments to the Land Use Code related to mobile farm stands. A unit designed for the retail sale or wholesale of agricultural or horticultural products and adhering to the provisions for the Accessory Agricultural Sales and/or Farm Store uses may be a structure, a portion of a structure, or a mobile farm stand. A mobile farm stand is a vehicle-based sales unit (being either self-propelled or towed by a vehicle). Units shall maintain all applicable local, state, and federal permits and licenses. Some additional provisions include that the majority of all products sold must be sourced from Boulder County farms. A minimum of 70 percent of the area used for sales must be used for the sale of agricultural products. The remainder (up to 30 percent of the area used for sales) may be used for the sale of craft, artisan, or prepared food products, and may include a nominal amount of other products. Food items sold must meet all applicable state and local requirements; for example, the sale of value-added products may require a license from Boulder County Public Health. The text amendments were approved on April 15.

Tuesday, May 20 commissioners meeting issues of particular interest to Niwot and Gunbarrel communities.

Boulder County Community Planning & Permitting Docket LU-24-0017/SPR-24-0081, Starling CO LLC Equestrian Center and Agricultural accessory dwelling unit. Resolution 2025-017 was conditionally approved Boulder County Community Planning & Permitting Docket LU-24-0017/SPR-24-0081: Starlings CO, LLC Equestrian Center and Agricultural Worker ADU located at 8130 N. 73rd Street.

Upcoming agenda items for May 28 through June 6 of interest to Niwot and Gunbarrel communities (Boulder County Events Calendar).

Friday, May 30: Celebrate the Boulder County Courthouse's national historic landmark designation. To kick off the start of LGBTQ + Pride month, the Boulder County Commissioners will celebrate the historic Boulder County Courthouse and its designation as a National Historic Landmark. The status was granted in December in recognition of the significance of the building as the site of the first intentional same-sex marriage in the United States. The event is scheduled at 10:00 to 11:00 a.m.

Friday, June 6: Register to walk with Commissioner Ashley Stolzman from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. at Stearns Lake, 2190 S. 104th, Broomfield.

Other news of interest to the Niwot and Gunbarrel communities:

Homeless solutions for Boulder County: At the direction of the Executive Board for Homeless Solutions for Boulder County (HSBC), the cities of Boulder, Longmont, and Boulder County, an external evaluation of HSBC was solicited. Homelessness increased faster in Boulder County (and across Colorado) than in the rest of the U.S. from 2022 to 2023. The report cites causes that include high housing costs, unstable job markets, and more people moving into the area. The two main reasons for the rise in homelessness in Boulder County are that more people are becoming homeless for the first time, and more people are coming into the county from other areas. HSBC’s crisis services (emergency shelters, intake help, and outreach) have been able to help more people than in the past. Nonetheless, from 2022 to 2023, overall funding for services increased by 22%, with 27% going to emergency response services and only 17% going to housing and long-term support.

Wildfire Mitigation Rebates Available: 2025 wildfire mitigation rebates are now available to Boulder County residents who own or rent a home in Boulder County. Residents who act to lower wildfire risk are eligible for a rebate up to $500. The four eligible wildfire mitigation actions from the 2024 program include replacing fences attached to a home with fire-resistant, noncombustible materials, removing highly flammable juniper shrubs from the landscape, replacing the first five feet surrounding the house with noncombustible materials, and installing 1/8 inch mesh screens or upgrading to flame-resistant vents to block embers. Two new wildfire mitigation actions will be eligible for 2025, including decluttering under the deck and covering the bottom six inches of house siding with noncombustible materials.