City of Boulder, CO

10/14/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/14/2025 12:05

A Shared Vision for the Boulder Valley

Since 1977, this plan has been our community's roadmap for making big, long-term decisions about sustainability, services and growth. Every 10 years, we revisit the plan to make sure it reflects our current values, addresses today's challenges and sets us up for a better future. This is a community plan. And that means your voice matters.

A vital part of the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan update is community engagement. Many of the challenges we face are complex and impact community members differently. For these reasons we want to hear from as many people as possible.

Throughout this process we have been asking our community to engage in both traditional and innovative ways. The City of Boulder and Boulder County are grateful for your participation and thoughtful input in this process so far. We have particularly appreciated the opportunity to hear from historically excluded groups who haven't always been at the table in the past.

Kick-off Open House

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Our Shared Vision for the Boulder Valley - What We've Heard

The city and county have used our community's input to date to influence policy direction by identifying common themes and priorities for the update. These "areas of focus", as well as general input have guided the topics that staff are concentrating on for additional research and further engagement - topics into which we know our community wants us to dig deeper.

After months of conversations, events, online feedback and performances, a clear vision began to take shape. This vision will guide the decisions we all make together for our future:

"Our community works together to ensure everyone belongs, to create opportunities for all and to sustain the health of the Boulder Valley for future generations."

To realize this vision, we will:

  • Balance housing opportunities and economic activity with natural ecosystems and rural lands
  • Serve as a model for innovation and action as we face a changing climate
  • Strengthen physical and social connections that are accessible to everyone
  • Embrace our diverse experiences, community partnerships and creative spirit to solve tough problems

The areas of focus and other topics, all narrowed down after months of engagement, hundreds of conversations and thousands of comments are broadly as:

  • Climate Action | Community members call for the project to explore climate change mitigation, natural resource management, resilience to climate change effects and preparing for natural disasters.
  • Food Systems | Community members are interested in increasing the viability of local food systems and economy, increasing access to affordable, local food, supporting local and regenerative agriculture and decreasing barriers for new farmers.
  • Housing Choice and Opportunity | Community members are interested in increasing the supply and diversity of housing types that are affordable to more people (including missing middle housing like duplexes and townhomes), increasing the number of homes in the affordable housing program and expanding options to enhance affordable living.
  • Inclusive Local Economy | Community members call for more support for local and community-minded businesses, local start-ups, entrepreneurs and innovators and building generational wealth.
  • Multicultural, Multigenerational Community | Community members call for the project to explore ways to foster belonging, support health and wellness, strengthen social connections, increase accessibility and intentional planning for youth and older adults.
  • Safety | Community members want to feel safe in public spaces and want enhanced bicycle and pedestrian safety and improved natural disaster resilience, protection and response planning.
  • Travel Options | Community members seek more opportunities to easily and safely get around without a car through better transit, walking and biking infrastructure.

We've also heard that we need a vision of future land uses that are more flexible and resilient to changes in the economy, society and climate. Many community members recognize that our highly specific regulations have led to some great things like open space preservation, but also may have made Boulder expensive and exclusive. There is a lot of interest in more walkable and bikeable neighborhoods - places where daily needs can be met within a short walk or bike ride.

We appreciate the varied perspectives on each topic and have worked to balance opinions and view them through the lens of the city and county's equity goals. We deeply appreciate the willingness of community members to listen to each other, engage respectfully and explore solutions together. That spirit of collaboration is exactly what will carry us forward.

Land Use Workshops

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How We're Using Your Input

Your input isn't just being collected - it's shaping the direction of the plan and guiding where staff dig deeper. Here's how:

  • Housing Choices | To address community interests in expanding housing choices, we're exploring different options - like where additional housing could fit and what it might look like. We're also testing support for policies that would rethink the city's approach to managing a local housing supply and contributing to regional demand.
  • Population Growth | To balance community member concerns about population growth, we're using a statistically valid survey, Community Assembly discussions and additional engagement activities to better gauge the community's desired level of change in neighborhoods throughout the Boulder Valley. Additionally, the city is using community input to assess and plan for impacts of growth on local services and resources.
  • Environment | To support and strengthen our natural environment, we're considering stronger policies related to biodiversity, natural infrastructure and greenways.
  • Local Economy | To support an inclusive local economy, we're exploring policies and land use choices that could allow more small-format businesses - like cafés, childcare centers and corner shops - to operate in more places throughout the city while also contributing to neighborhood vibrancy.
  • Food Systems | To support our local food system, we're considering new policies to help farmers and food businesses grow, process and sell local products. They may also help improve infrastructure, promote sustainable practices, expand urban agriculture and support agricultural workers.

All of these ideas are being tested and refined through analysis and ongoing community input. The statistically valid survey - open through Oct. 17 - is a key tool to give us a snapshot of how Boulder Valley residents are thinking about housing, climate, growth and more. The survey results will be shared this November and will help shape the draft policies and future land use map. The Community Assembly will also meet through Oct. 18 and deliver their recommendations to policymakers in December, providing another important community led perspective to guide the update.

Spring 2025 Open House

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How We've Engaged So Far

The city and county have been intentional about offering a mix of traditional and innovative engagement so more voices can be heard - there have been 55 opportunities to engage so far!

  • Innovative approaches | MOTUS Playback Improv, the first-ever Community Assembly on 15-Minute Neighborhoods, the Voicing Boulderonline storytelling portal and Building our Voices skill-building and From Vision to Action: community-hosted gatherings in partnership with YOUnify. Learn more about the city's experiments in public art and watch MOTUS performances.
  • Traditional approaches | Open houses, workshops, office hours, pop-ups around the Boulder Valley and the annual What's Up Boulder event.
  • Focused outreach | Consultations with University of Colorado, Boulder students, Center for People with Disabilities, Child-Friendly Cities Initiative Council, Climate Justice Collaborative, our Community Connectors-in-Residence, Growing Up Boulder and sessions organized by Once and Future Green to ensure voices often left out of planning are included.

MOTUS Performances

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Spotlight: The Community Assembly

Boulder's First Community Assembly

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This year marks Boulder's first ever Community Assembly, where 48 randomly selected and demographically diverse residents have been meeting regularly to deliberate on if, where and how to define and implement 15-Minute Neighborhoods. Over seven Saturdays from May to October, and under the guidance of an independent facilitation team, the assembly has learned together, considered challenges and opportunities and worked towards common ground. The assembly will present their recommendations directly to City Council and Planning Board on Dec. 11, and policymakers have committed to respond to the recommendations. This is a first for Boulder - and we're excited to see how it shapes the future of our city.

What's Next

We're entering a key phase of the update, and your input continues to play a big role. Right now, we're asking the community to weigh in on potential policy solutions and land use options through two main opportunities - the statistically valid survey mailed to 5,000 random households, and an online version available to the entire community. These results will be combined with all the input we've heard so far to develop draft recommendations on any significant policy changes. These preliminary recommendations will be presented to Planning Board and City Council at a study session on Dec. 11.

The main components of the comprehensive plan are policies and a future land use map that guide growth over the next 20 years. Staff shared a draft land use framework with the four decision making bodies (City of Boulder City Council, City of Boulder Planning Board, Boulder County Board of Commissioners and Boulder County Planning Commission), several city boards covering water, housing, transportation, arts and culture, parks and open space. Staff also shared the draft land use framework in a community workshop on Sept. 9 and asked the 65 participants to share preferences for land use locations. The framework, which provides greater flexibility and would support more missing "middle" housing, was largely well received. Staff are now updating it with comments received throughout the process, and survey results will also shape the future land use map. Watch staff's presentation on land use to city council.

Timeline

  • November 2025 | Survey and questionnaire results will be shared publicly through an informational memo provided to the four adopting bodies (City of Boulder City Council and Planning Board, and Boulder County Board of Commissioners and Planning Commission).
  • December 2025 | Staff will present recommended policy updates and a new land use framework to City Council and Planning Board. The Community Assembly will present recommendations on 15-minute neighborhoods to City Council and Planning Board.
  • March-early April 2026 | A full draft plan will be released for community review and feedback. We will host an Open House in early March to launch the draft and hear feedback from community members.
  • Summer 2026 | The final draft will be shared with, reviewed and adopted by the four decision-making bodies. This process will include Public Hearings to allow community feedback.

Thank You

We are grateful to everyone who has contributed ideas, time and energy to this update. Because of you, this process has brought in more voices, more perspectives and more new ideas than ever before. Together, we're shaping a plan that reflects Boulder's values and prepares us for a sustainable, equitable and resilient future.

Stay tuned for more updates and keep sharing your voice - it truly makes a difference.

  • ABoulderFuture.org
City of Boulder, CO published this content on October 14, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 14, 2025 at 18:05 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]