[bouldercouncilhotline] Hotline: Planning issues 2014

[cmosupport at bouldercolorado.gov]

Sender: Morzel, Lisa

Issues:

Where is it Boulder wants to go, how do we want to get there, who do we want to get there, are we there, if not, at what pace will we accomplish goals?  Do we have a vision? What is our plan? Do we have a consensus? Time for community discussion. 

1. Site review as it now is enacted:
Currently, the city encourages developers to go through the site review process instead of developing their property by right. This has basically provided an automatic 55' density bonus with little or no community benefit.  This requires significant revision that results in more apparent community benefit. 

2. Architecture/design. Most of our site review projects are resulting in full height 55' buildings with no variation, little to no permeability, little usable or inviting public spaces, walls with no articulation, pure mass, little to nothing of interest. Building materials used have short life spans and look in poor condition over a short period. Needs revision. 

3. Gentle infill is not happening despite strong past council support.  In the late 1990's, the city adopted weak and, what turned out to be, ineffective ordinances for adu's/oau's and coops. In 2008, the majority of council asked for ordinance modifications for which we are anticipating.

4. On-site affordable housing is not happening nor is it being encouraged as part of a larger development. I want to see on site affordable housing, not so much cash in lieu for off site. 

5. Lack of much-needed discussion of C/I growth and its impacts to housing, transportation, and services.  Needs to be real part of discussion. 

6. Lack of clear focus in terms of where, what type of, and rate of development residents and businesses want in city. It appears discussions are siloed to that of housing separate from transportation separate from economic vitality separate from needs in parks and recreation, open space, social services separated from current and future water and other infrastructure needs We have no clear near-term or future vision for Boulder. What we are doing now seems just reactive to requests for various types of building. Do we really need 7, 8?? more hotels, as an example. 
Are our current fees and taxes in line with anticipated costs and impacts?

7. CU should be more involved in creating its own housing needs while it is continuing to grow its student populations. Unfortunately several neighborhoods are negatively impacted from what were once single-family neighborhoods to investor-owned havens where not just one additional unit has been added to the original s-f unit but more like 8-12 units/s-f lot. This has created many unintended negative consequences. 

8.  Increased Mass and bulk of buildings associated with increased density is too gross and has little evidence of people density or of any benefit to community. We need to reconsider how we calculate number of units and for what benefits. I do not see how we will achieve micro- or even smaller units without serious reconsideration of some of our land use codes. 

9. Need to focus preserving existing housing and manufactured housing, micro-zoning of mobile home parks. 

10. Lack of outreach to neighborhoods and residents regarding planning resulting in people being upset, not included, not understanding planning process. 

Desired outcomes:
1.  Seriously revise what is now allowed in site review and the benefits handed to the developer. We need clear benefit to the community. 

2. In response to poor architecture/design, implement design guidelines, implement form-based zoning, overlay districts, require earlier input by design advisory board, earlier input (at the very front of process) from neighborhoods, residents, businesses

3. More active dialogue between planning board and council. Allow PB to recommend policy changes PB thinks are in order so that CC has a better idea of some of the challenges PB is facing.  

4. Implement much-needed ordinance changes to oau's adu's cooperatives. Consider a process for owner-occupied boarding houses. 

5. Require on-site affordable housing. No more exceptions. 

6. Invite CU to table to discuss its growth and what its intentions are for providing much needed housing. 

7. Implement a comprehensive development or planning strategy that considers all of the currently siloed issues like housing, growth in the C/I sector, transportation etc. 

8. Revise/ reconsider the downtown commercial density bonus and amount of linkage fees. 

9. Implement program to preserve existing and manufactured housing, micro-zoning of mobile / manufactured parks. 

10. Significantly improve communication from the planning, transportation, parking services to community, council, PB, residents, neighborhoods and businesses. 
Hire asap a neighborhood resident liaison 





Lisa

303-815-6723

"Polite conservationists leave no mark save the scars upon the Earth that could have been prevented had they stood their ground." 
- David Brower (1912-2000)

In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock. 
Thomas Jefferson