[BoulderCouncilHotline] Alternative Proposal to Address Large Homes on Large Lots

[Grano, Jill]

Dear Colleagues and Hotline followers,

We understand that there is significant concern in our community about the construction of large homes on large lots. As such, a moratorium on homes over 3500 square feet on lots over 10,000 square feet has been proposed and will be discussed at our City Council meeting tomorrow night.

While we are in complete support of moving forward with the conversation around large lot subdivision and the possibility of allowing higher density on large lots (duplex, triplex, tiny homes, etc.), we feel that a moratorium would have numerous unintended negative consequences. Therefore, we would like to propose an alternative...

Instead of a moratorium, which would mean not issuing any building permits for homes over 3500 square feet on lots over 10,000 square feet, we propose that a $100 per square foot fee be levied on any new home over 3500 square feet on lots over 10,000 square feet.  $100 per square foot will be a placeholder fee as we conduct a Nexus Study to determine a more precise fee based on the impact that larger homes have on our community. The fee would apply to any new building permits (after tomorrow) for any homes above 3500 square feet and would be collected upon Certificate of Occupancy.  This means that if a home is 4,500 square feet, the fee would be $100,000; at 5,500 square feet, the fee would be $200,000.  Any funds received will go to The City of Boulder’s Affordable Housing Fund.

We feel that this alternative proposal addresses the community’s concern about large home construction, while reducing unintended consequences for property owners.  It may even help increase our affordable housing fund!

We have instructed City Attorney Tom Carr to write an ordinance for tomorrow's discussion that would impose a fee on new large homes on large lots and we look forward to this important conversation.

Jill Adler Grano and Bob Yates
Boulder City Council

“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high. Where knowledge is free. Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls. Where words come out from the depth of truth. Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection. Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary sand of dead habit. Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever widening thought and action. Into that heaven of freedom, my father, let my country awake.” - Tagore

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://list.ci.boulder.co.us/pipermail/bouldercouncilhotline/attachments/20181015/bde89f18/attachment.html