I'm the only candidate not pushed forward by a slate, god bless 'em.

Here’s why that’s not just important, but vital to the issue of Public Safety and homelessness in our town:

It'll take someone, as a statewide candidate said about me the other night, straddling the various slates and bringing them together and being willing to listen and look at what works (a few other worthy candidates have this approach, too) to focus on solutions and get things done. While I want endorsements, and perhaps have more than anyone else from a wider spectrum of community leaders in Boulder, I am running as a candidate, and perhaps public servant, who will look to listen to you, and experts, and stakeholders, not hold my own opinion in too high regard.

So, first of all, stop the infighting. We can't make meaningful progress and actually help people, increase safety, & return our town to a baseline of functionality, access, and safety for all. Specifically, I'm supportive of the camping ban. Our parks are for all of us. Right now they're getting trashed, and we're paying millions of dollars to move folks repeatedly a block or two and see the next area trashed. It's also not safe for our homeless friends—drug use, untreated, is heartbreaking. Same with mental wellbeing. Same with assault, which is sadly prevalent—homeless women and youth are assaulted at alarming rates—up to 79% according to some studies. The status quo is good for no one. So not only am I supportive of the camping ban, I'm supportive of enforcing it. Then, moving folks to a safe, warm, cool, dog-friendly longerterm space where nonprofits (which cost taxpayers nothing) and our police can go to one space. That's a two-step process that has actually worked in many cities. Saved money. And increased safety—for all.

My general approach is to learn, ask questions, listen, then focus on actually helping and executing solutions.

Let's listen and work to bring opposing sides together, not in a kumbaya sense, but in a pragmatic way, in a time when folks in Boulder won't even talk to one another. Let's do so in order to make progress and make this a city that we're grateful to call home, and that other cities look to as inspiration, once again.

It's a good one. Happy to talk it through with your friends. I've done a video on it on IG, if you look back, or happy to come meet or talk in person with you and your friends.

Right now the two approaches are "homelessness is not a crime" which is the status quo, wasting money, tying hands of police, and awful for our homeless friends, too.

The other approach is "throw more money at the police," but without having a place for the homeless to go, as well as carrots and sticks (more below), we're just throwing good money after bad, status quo again, which is expensive and not working. Enforcement is expensive if it doesn't lead to solutions. Bob Yates, who I like and endorse, is more or less in this camp, though he and others have some great ideas.

Thirdly, an independent (I'm the only indie with a good chance to win that I know of) approach that has actually worked in towns and cities: not only for the camping ban, but for enforcing it. That's some of the "stick." Carrot: a transitional camp that is safe, dogs can go (problem with shelter), that is TEMPORARY for them to go to, where non-profits (that we largely don't pay for) and police and services (mental health, addiction care) can all go to. Saving money, making safer for surrounding neighborhoods, and leading to folks getting back on the horse of jobs, income, living independently. Finally, working with Denver and regional/state/federal for funding and to make sure we we are not a destination city. Johnston the new mayor in Denver is basically taking this approach, which will help Denver bottleneck many homeless transients coming here.

All of this saves money and actually works but it takes folks focusing on solutions, not fighting, and that's why an independent candidate who is happy to both listen to experts, stakeholders, and then work to execute is vital.

Or, we can continue to be unsafe, waste taxpayer money, and go the way of Portland etc.

More: This isn't easy, making progress—but the status quo is far harder on all of us. It's not safe for joggers, for tourists, for seniors, for cyclists, or for our homeless. It's also a moral issue: we can not allow ourselves as a society to look the other way on freezing cold nights or 100 degree days. We can work in concert with our police force, our non-profits, and our homeless friends to help folks get the care they need to get back to permanent housing and active roles in society and employment.

As for those concerned about making Boulder attractive to homeless elsewhere, that's where the "stick" of carrot-fame comes in: enforcement and working with the region, state, and federally to make sure we are not alone in approaching homelessness with real solutions.

Boulder is fast becoming a white-washed homogenous and dare-I-say more boring town that it should be or inherently is.

Home prices more than doubled 15 years ago, and we have yet to recover.

We are losing good, "weird" and wonderful people every day who move away to buy a home, start a family and business. I've been to 3 housewarmings in Boulder in the last 10 years.

I'd love for more folks who work in Boulder to be able to live here. Double our funding for BHP, which is doing amazing work, and they can double the speed of our affordable housing. Affordability is a must for the "missing middle," too: for those with a healthy but not wealthy income. ADUs are a good start, and will help locals afford their mortgage. Density is a scary word in the mouths of developers, but in the hands of eco, caring citizens, it can result in more communities like Holiday (thanks, Morzel!) where children's bikes are strewn across front yards, where communities feel safe, unpretentious, and fun for all.

We can do bold, fun, eco-responsible, quality, communityful, victory-garden-ful communities in Boulder. We can ease our reliance on THE CAR, while making it easier for all to get around, and undermining our reliance on fossil fuels. It’ll take concerted focus and coalition-building, and I’m in it for the long haul. I was a nerd back in my school days, and am eager to tackle long meetings and tall packets, weekly, if it can help our community, gradually, over time.

This is my first issue among equals.

It's an existential question—and a fun answer. Fun? Biking around a mature-treed town to community gatherings where folks feel safe? Fun. Homes that aren't polluted by fracking/gas fumes? A lot more fun than having asthma and health issues. Fire mitigation is an urgent priority—we need to go door-to-door with subsidies helping folks who are interested to replace wood siding and wooden fences with alternatives, to electrify and solar up their homes. The fires we saw here will return. The impact is economically devastating—this should be the top concern for the restaurant and business community. We don't want home insurers to pull out of Boulder, as they have elsewhere. We want folks dining out on the West End patio, not hiding in their homes because it's yet another toxic smoke day. I live on a bike. My publiciation, Elephant, was voted #1 for green coverage a few times. I am zero waste, vegan, and annoying in many other ways.

All that's to say: I walk my talk, I care, and we'll do everything we can to make sure Boulder is safe and economically safe for our next generations.

I haven’t owned a car in 16 years. That said, biking should not only be for the hardcore everyday cyclists–with a connected network of protected bike lanes and bike paths, we’ll see families, seniors, tourists and locals all get out far more. We can emulate the Netherlands, and make cycling a real, respected, and safe mode of transportation.

I would also support efforts to encourage ebike subsidies for more citizens, Eco Passes for all taxpayers, and work to discourage idling and distracted driving.

Bike lanes—protected. More busses—electrified. Every person we get out of a car because they want to, because we make it quicker and easier to do so—is less traffic, less pollution for all of us, including drivers. This is a win-win.

Heat islands and traffic jams? No one's a fan. We can do for our citizens what Paris has done for theirs, and we're already far along. My next door neighbors would love to bike around with their three children more, but don't feel safe doing so, so their SUV and truck see more use than their fleet of bikes.

I may be the only candidate who only bikes, haven't had a car for 15 years—and this will be a priority if elected. Not to make car drivers feel second class, but to make cyclists and our children and seniors feel safer walking, biking, bussing, (and...inner-tubing) and driving. 

For me, my first priority will be process. City Council should not pretend to be experts in everything—we can afford to delegate some issues, like Creek safety, to experts.

In turn, we must prioritize urgent, needed solutions to painful problems of affordability, homelessness/public safety, transportation, climate.

We can be a city that we're inspired by, every day, and grateful to live in.

We can be a city that the world looks to for inspiration, again.

After process, I will focus on homelessness/public safety first, in a way that will save lives, and save money, and return our city to safety and sanity.

Climate solutions big and small, and affordability, go hat in hand with every other issue.

Those three are my priorities, along with helping Council communicate more effectively (whether with our community outside of the choir, our City Staff, RTD, statewide and federally (so as to get more support), and our police force).

PS: I always say I have one "bonus" priority on my list of urgent tasks, and that one is empty, reserved for times of urgency.

We must reserve bandwidth to meet times of crisis, or we risk 1) losing our focus on other priorities, or 2) sliding into burnout.

So yes: pandemics, fires, floods, shootings—the more we can do ahead of time to be ready matters.

And when they occur, we must be prepared to address them without losing our focus on other pressing priorities. The job of service is not easy—it requires both flexibility and focus. Much of that is made possible through relationships, communication, and a willingness to work hard toward a common goal.

Emergencies can not be a surprise—they must be expected.

Generally, green equals green. Environmentalism and economy can and must work hand-in-hand, not at cross purposes.

Historically, our approach to mindful development here is one that celebrates nature, leading to Boulder enjoying a strong economy, folks around the world wanting to live here, and a resilient home in the face of climate crisis.

But we have new and real challenges in supporting our local businesses and ensuring that toxic smoke days, fires, cost-of-living and unaffordable housing don’t drag and drain our success.

There’s a lot to this one, so let’s continue with some specifics:

1) Residents and businesses are deeply concerned about criminal activity impacting property and sense of personal safety. What measures would you propose for addressing these concerns about crime in our community?

We should all be concerned. Four of my friends’ businesses on East Pearl were recently robbed. Stephen Tebo, who’s endorsed my candidacy, and I just talked about several of his tenants’ businesses that were also robbed.

Crime—from bike theft, to the homeless situation largely downtown/along the Creek Path, to hard drugs and organized robberies, has no place in our community if Boulder is to continue to be welcoming, vibrant, healthy, and fun. 

I’ve spoken with our Police Chief several times, and we are on the same page generally that: our police and City Staff need consistent support, and consistent policy direction so that we can make Boulder safe again, actually save taxpayer dollars vs. ineffective strategies, and give our local businesses and citizens a real sense of everyday (and night) safety.

From enforcing our camping ban and moving beyond the expensive, detrimental, and pointless moving of our homeless community a few blocks, repeatedly, to community policing and night patrols, to working regionally to busting bike theft gangs, Boulder has a responsibility to provide safety to all.

I will always listen to experts and stakeholders, and push for real action, beyond whatever is popular or safe. As a local business owner myself, and as a lifelong born n’bred Boulder boy who could not have gone on to success without the privileges of safe streets and a good education here, I take this responsibility not just seriously but will work urgently to build a coalition to change the frustrating direction Boulder has taken over the past year.

2) The City of Boulder has numerous complicated processes - including in planning review and permitting approval – which can lead to delays in business redevelopment activities. The resulting financial impact on local businesses can be crippling and has forced other businesses to relocate out of town. What steps would you take on Boulder City Council to streamline and improve the City of Boulder planning review and permit approval processes?

Other cities have made it easier for local businesses to open up, and made the process more nimble. By trusting City Staff more, and allowing them to ignore criteria that’s frankly not always relevant to said businesses (a friend of mine went through a costly and lengthy food safety process in his coffee truck that…does not make food), we can make this process manageable, while maintaining the eco, rigorous, and safe process necessary to protect our citizens. May we never hear from another colleague that their shop took well over a year in permitting to open. To fix this we need to support our staff while, yes, roto-rootering the process, making sure only what is essential and helpful is included.



Unlike many candidates, as evidenced by my yard signs at local shops all over Boulder, I am friends with, have done business with, and have longstanding friendships with many of our local businesses. I will work with them, our City Staff, and the Chamber to make sure real progress is made, and quickly. Our local entrepreneurs have waited long enough.

3) What do you see as some of the biggest challenges and opportunities arising on University Hill with the opening of the hotels and conference centers in terms of connectivity to the downtown district.

The hotel and conference center, etc., must engage and integrate with the larger community. I’m already concerned about this, though I welcome these buildings and institutions with open arms (I live on the Hill and have heard enthusiasms and concerns, both, of the neighborhood). First of all, they should be connected to the Hill, the local neighborhood, which presently is drowning in trash (mattresses, TVs, refrigerators, wrecked Ikea left on lawns all year round), broken glass, noise violations, and red cups…to the detriment of some amazing local businesses on the Hill, like Cafe Aion.

Whether protected bike lanes, a free City/CU-run EV bus shuttle, or programming, working to better sew together these communities is a wonderful opportunity that I will not miss.

4) Over the past many years our greater Boulder County community has experienced opportunities for philanthropy, government, and our community members to come together. What role do you see public and private partnerships playing in some of our greatest areas of need for all to thrive in our community? 

Working together sounds kumbaya, but is the secret sauce to any vibrant, economically-healthy town. Boulder has long flourished because we’re so naturally connected. As we grow, however, those connections must be made more explicit, and stronger. Whether looking at women’s health, science research, our natural products companies, our outdoor recreation communities, care for struggling families and our houseless friends—partnerships are key to making Boulder work.

I look forward to meeting with and learning from our wonderful community of nonprofits, donors, and community leaders. 

5) As you look at the non-profit landscape in Boulder and the county, what is your understanding of the most pressing needs for our community?

Whether supporting artists’ ability to stay here, employees to be able to live and raise families here, companies to be able to hire here, there is much work to be done in shoring up our nonprofit community. Non-profits fill in the gaps in resources between citizens and our government, whether providing support for the arts, bicycle infrastructure, children's education, Spanish-English community, or food pantries. Our needs are countless, and we're fortunate to have a diverse range of non-profits filling many of those needs. We must continue to improve in supporting those non-profits, in turn.

6) Boulder County Commissioners recently turned down an opportunity to create an early childhood special district which would have generated roughly $60 million a year through a mill levy tax for Boulder County residents. 

If elected, what would you do to promote new substantial sources of revenue to support children and families with affordable and accessible early childhood education needs, and support a significantly underpaid and predominantly female workforce? 

Districts can be frustrating to work with, but luckily Boulder voters have long shown a willingness to tax ourselves if said taxes truly meet our values and help to put them into meaningful action.

We should step up and work to fill this gap ourselves, if the Commissioners won’t help. Council can do so in big ways and small, by maintaining communication with those concerned—families, non-profits, and employees all. Our current levels of poverty and food insecurity among children in Boulder are immoral. 

(I grew up poor here, with food insecurity at various times, but had the care of a loving mother and a safe home. It will be a personal cause for me to make sure other children and their families have a healthy start in life).

7) Many business sectors are grappling with a current labor shortage – including the Human Services sector. What are your concerns about this labor shortage now and in the coming years? What ideas do you have for how we might address it in a way that supports and maintains a diverse community of employees? 



Raising the minimum wage is a piece of this puzzle, as those who can not afford to live here will gradually, too often, decide to work where they live. I do think a frequent, safe, affordable and clean network of buses to the L-towns and Golden, etc, will help folks work here who do not live here. It’s an issue of climate, economy—but also equity. Affordable housing is, of course, fundamental, and in short supply, and my plan for that is both determined and nimble.

Finally, I will always have an open ear for employees, unions, and employees—without a healthy, resilient economy, much of what we love about Boulder falls away. 

8) How do you plan to promote economic growth and job opportunities specifically within the Latino community, including support for Latino-owned businesses.

When I grew up here, many of my school friends hailed from the Latino community. Today, our communities are too often too siloed.

By first humbly listening to these friends and leaders in our dear Latino community, I will always work wholeheartedly and sincerely to further their needs and to make sure we are all listening to and helpful to one another. 

8a) What initiatives do you have in mind to reduce barriers for Latino entrepreneurs to access resources, funding, and business development opportunities?



Whether offering job listings, job applications, and emergency alerts, etc., in Spanish, to fostering visible Latino heritage and other celebrations in Boulder, I will be a receptive proponent of serving the diversity that we are fortunate to have, here.

Homelessness: I'm supportive of actually enforcing our camping ban. Our parks are for all of us. Right now they're getting trashed, and we're paying millions of dollars to move folks repeatedly a block or two and see the next area trashed. It's also not safe for our homeless friends—drug use, untreated, is heartbreaking. Same with mental wellbeing. Same with assault, which is sadly prevalent—homeless women and youth are assaulted at alarming rates—up to 79% according to one study. The status quo is good for no one. So not only am I supportive of the camping ban, I'm supportive of enforcing it. Then, moving folks to a safe, warm, cool, dog-friendly longerterm space where nonprofits (which cost taxpayers nothing) and our police can go to one space. That's a two-step process that has actually worked in many cities. Saved money. And increased safety—for all.  

Car culture…is good for no one. Parking minimums make affordable housing out of reach. Streets cost millions in maintenance. Climate is killing our local businesses (no one's dining out on toxic smoke days). But we're not going to get rid of our cars, but we can better balance busses, protected bike lanes so families, seniors and those with disabilities feel safe getting around, pedestrians, and EVs. Every driver who gets on a bus or bike reduces traffic for the rest of us—and reduces our carbon heat, along with increasing their health and decreasing their stress levels, as studies show. I'm a lifelong cyclist, don't own a car, but we need to make biking safe and easy for all of us, not just everyday cyclists like myself.  

Development: Almost every city has seen an increase in population in the last decade or so, sometimes by tenfold. How do you envision balancing growth and development with keeping the unique character and appeal that draws people to CITY/TOWN?

Lately, Boulder has actually (slightly) shrunk. We don't need to follow the bad examples of sprawl and growth that we see in once-weird and wonderful cities like Austin, but we don't need to pull up the ladder and keep folks out, either. I've only been to 3 housewarmings in Boulder in the last 10 years—my friends move away, because there's few opportunities to buy a family-appropriate home for less than 800K, these days. Our schools are emptying out. I envision more green-built, human-centered communities like Holiday with mixed income housing that's fun, friendly, appropriate for co-housing, seniors, affordable housing, and our dear middle class. We can do it. 


Affordable housing is vital if we want to "make Boulder Weird again." No joyful community can survive with only rich people—but that's what we'll get if we don't continue to support affordable housing (we're at 8.4%, surrounding cities are at less than 1%), and missing middle income housing, urgently. We can do more, quickly. I've bike toured with Boulder Housing Partners and seen their affordable housing projects. They're inspiring. We can double the speed with which we're protecting what diversity we have here, and insure that employers have local employees ready and eager to work, in town. 

Mental health is largely unsupported, particularly for vulnerable populations, in the US. The speed of modernday life is such that, even with a tragedy like the King Soopers mass shooting, or Marshall Fires, too many of us move on too quickly without doing the hard work of healing, therapy, and making changes in our societies to prevent the next tragedy. Boulder has long been an innovative, caring pioneer, and this is a vital area where we should help our citizens get vital care. 

Minimum Wage:  I'm supportive of it going much higher, over time, without too much delay, in concert with our local businesses. A living wage is just that: it helps retention, which is a huge cost savings, and enables folks who work here to live here. If they can't afford to live here, they won't generally work here longterm—they'll find better jobs where they live. 

Climate Change: as Boulder Reporting Lab noted, I'm the only candidate who is, okay, obsessed about the Marshall Fires. I'm focused on fire mitigation, and flood mitigation. Both are devastating to our lives, our communities—and our economy. We need to fund fire mitigation crews, arms with subsidies, going door to door helping those who want to fireproof and floodproof their homes to do so. We're not doing enough, quickly enough. Our fire department says they are kept up at night about the danger on windy nights. We all should take this seriously, because it's not a matter of "if," but "when." Climate crisis is coming for all of us, and that means more protected bike lanes, fireproofed homes, white roofs, solar, EVs, gardens not lawns, regenerative ag not factory farms, and getting rid of single use plastic in our daily lives.  

Oil, Gas, Renewables, Fracking: Right now, a used Chevy Volt, after incentives, and a brandnew battery (thanks, recalls) is $12K. Biking is free, and healthy. Busses are fantastic (if we can increase their frequency, keep them clean, enjoy wifi and plugs, convert them to EV). The more folks we get using alternative forms of transport, including walking, carpoolin—the less traffic jams for all of us. Gas prices are relatively average right now—and it's time we stop paying altogether, and work to save our planet for our children and all future generations. PS: Fracking sucks.

Policing, I support our Police. We've tied their hands, while asking them to do too much, simultaneously. We're gifted with a caring, equity-focused chief and force, and should do our best to hire up, and retain, caring officers and reinvest in community policing. I almost never see officers walking store to store on the mall, or biking on the bike path, and I'm out there all the time. That's not their fault—we need to support them so they can be members of the community, and not overburdened. Would also love to see the fleet convert to EV, where possible.

Crime: I don't believe our response to crime (including bike theft) has been comprehensive or successful.

That said: our DA has a tough, and often thankless job. Our jail is overfull. We're letting repeat offenders back on the streets. That said, jailtime without reform just makes those in a bad place more desperate. I believe in our DA, and in our Police, and in supporting them more fully to do the work they're working tirelessly to do.

Airport. I'm supportive of listening to those who use the airport, and if we can find compromises, cleaning it up and making it possible for hundreds of police officers, healthcare workers, teachers, and other missing middle income citizens to move back into Boulder, or stay here and not have to move away. Wherever the City actually owns land—that's where we can build affordable housing most easily, instead of (more luxury condos). 

Other priorities: First of all, stop the infighting. We can't make meaningful progress and actually help people, increase safety, & return our town to a baseline of functionality, access, and safety for all unless we can stop it with the conflict culture and focus on solutions. Specifically, that's why I'm running as an independent, beholden to no one but Boulder itself.