[BoulderCouncilHotline] Mayor Appointment

[Yates, Bob]

Aaron, Rachel, Junie, Mark, Matt, Lauren, Nicole, and Tara:

I ask that you appoint me as Boulder’s next mayor, to serve you and our community from November 16, 2021, until November 21, 2023.

Let me start by saying that I recognize that my long-time colleague and friend, Aaron Brockett, is also seeking appointment as mayor. Aaron and I served together on the Greenways Advisory Board a decade ago, before running side-by-side for council seats in 2015, and for re-election together in 2019. Having served alongside Aaron for more than ten years, I know him to be a person of integrity, wisdom, kindness, and compassion. If you ultimately appoint Aaron as Boulder’s next mayor, this council and our community will be well-served.

But, because you have a choice, and because Aaron and I are somewhat different, allow me to lay out for you my experience and strengths—just as Aaron will—so that you can make a fully-informed decision. This will not be a list of my positions on various issues, or what I hope to accomplish substantively over the next two years. It is not the role of mayor to push her or his agenda. Rather, the limited role of Boulder’s mayor is to facilitate council meetings and to represent the city to the outside world. As I describe below, it is my belief that both of these obligations should be approached with humility, sharing as much responsibility as possible with other council members.

            Why I Want to be Mayor

This will be the last time that city council will select a mayor. Starting in 2023, the mayor will be elected by the people. I am 60 years old and I have served on city council for the last six years. It remains to be seen whether, at the end of my current term in 2023, I will seek a third term on council, will run directly for mayor, or will retire from elected office. Some days, the job beats me down and I think I’m ready to be done. Other days, I am invigorated by our service to the community and I never want it to end. Either way, this is the best job I have ever had. I give it my all, seven days a week.

I have accumulated a lot of institutional knowledge about the city and how it operates during my six years on council and during my many years prior to that serving on several city boards and committees. And, as described below, I have decades of experience as a leader of groups of all sizes and types, from serving as the president of a 1700-person corporate division, to serving as the chairman of city boards and small local non-profits. I would like to bring those experiences together in service to this council and to our community as mayor.

It often surprises me when a group of people elect me as their leader. But, I have become more comfortable with that responsibility, and I have learned how to gather and rally people towards a common cause. More importantly, I have become a better listener. I am not the smartest guy in the room, and I recognize that it is often the quiet person who has the best ideas. As a leader, it is my job to ensure that everyone is heard.

The following is a partial list of some of the leadership positions I have held over the last several decades, both with the City of Boulder and with non-profit and for-profit organizations:

City of Boulder


  *   Mayor Pro Tem (2019-20)
  *   2021 City Council Appointments: Audit Committee, Engagement Committee, Retreat Committee, City Attorney Recruitment Committee, Personnel Committee, Police Master Plan Process Committee, Convention & Visitors Bureau Director, Downtown Business Improvement District Director
  *   Chairman, Nominating, Personnel & Governance Committee, Boulder Housing Partners (2017-20)
  *   Chairman, Parks & Recreation Advisory Board (2011-13)
  *   Co-Chair, City of Boulder Capital Investment Strategy Committee (2011-12)
  *   Fundraising Chairman, City of Boulder Sesquicentennial Celebration Committee (2007-10)

Other Organizations


  *   Chairman, Downtown Boulder Community Initiatives, formerly Downtown Boulder Foundation (2020-present)
  *   Adjunct Professor, University of Denver and University of Colorado law schools (2015-21)
  *   Chairman, Museum of Boulder (2014-15)
  *   President, Boulder History Museum (2010-14)
  *   Secretary, Dairy Arts Center (2014-15)
  *   Treasurer, Colorado Chautauqua Association (2012-15)
  *   Editor, Conference on World Affairs (2010-2019)
  *   General Counsel, Senior Vice President, and European Division President, Level 3 Communications (1999-2011)
  *   Partner, Fraser Stryker law firm (1991-99)
  *   President, American Cancer Society, Douglas-Sarpy Counties (1991-95)
  *   Editor-in-Chief, Hastings Law News student newspaper (1985-86)
  *   Managing Editor, Aquinas student newspaper (1982-83)


            My Vision for the Next Two Years

            I greatly admire and respect the two mayors with whom I have served during my six years on city council, Zan Jones and Sam Weaver. They each shared responsibilities of the mayor position with other council members to the greatest extent they could. And, they led our meetings admirable, efficiently, and fairly. No one could want better mentors.

            If appointed mayor, I will build on the reforms that Zan and Sam began, to make council meetings more efficient, to be respectful of our city staff, and to help the community understand what we’re up to. Specifically, here is what I commit to do:


  *   Council Meetings: A council meeting should not last longer than four hours. A study session should not last longer than three hours. Full stop. When I was elected president of the board of the Boulder History Museum in 2010, the first thing I asked that somewhat-disorganized board was how long they wanted their board meetings to last. They agreed that their meetings should be no longer than 90 minutes. From that point forward, and during my entire four years as president of the history museum board, no board meeting lasted longer than 90 minutes. I continue that meeting discipline today as chairman of the board of Downtown Boulder Community Initiatives, the non-profit that creates downtown art and puts on downtown community events, like Bands on the Bricks and Munchkin Masquerade. I realize that, on council, we have less control over the length of meetings, particularly those at which a lot of people sign up for public hearings. But, even then, I believe that we can anticipate public interest and adjust our agendas so that council deliberations on hot topics are separated from lengthy public hearings.



  *   Commitments: I would like us to critically evaluate the number of council’s non-profit and intergovernmental board and committee appointments. While each experience is valuable, we must appreciate that service on the boards and committees of these organizations takes time away from other council duties, day jobs, and family. Earlier this year, I spoke with a number of outstanding community leaders who were considering running for city council, but who ultimately decided against running because of the time commitment. We simply cannot expect many good people to give up 30 or 40 hours a week for a job that pays about $12,000 a year. We don’t have much say over the compensation, but we can reduce the number of hours necessary to do the job. If we are successful, perhaps a more diverse group of candidates will seek election to council in 2023.


  *   Communications: As council’s Engagement Committee, Rachel and I have worked hard to improve council’s interactions with the community, something I can perhaps do even more effectively if appointed mayor. And, I will continue to communicate with residents through my monthly newsletter, the Boulder Bulletin. Over the course of more than 70 issues since I launched the publication in 2016, my monthly newsletter has grown to more that 6,400 subscribers. These are Boulder residents who are hungry to hear what council is up to, what issues are before us, and how they can participate. As mayor, I will use this and other communications tools to keep us connected with our constituents.

            Sharing of Leadership

            As a person who has been fully retired from a working career since 2011, and who dedicates nearly all of his time to city council service, it would be easy for me to hog all of the opportunities and limelight available to Boulder’s mayor. However, if appointed mayor, it is my intention to continue, and to build on, the practices adopted by Zan and Sam to share leadership opportunities with all council members. This not only eases the burden on the mayor, it gives council colleagues chances to showcase their own leadership skills to the community. Some of the many leadership opportunities that I would share as mayor include:


  *   Passing along to council members invitations to attend and speak at regional and national conferences, and to sit on regional intergovernmental boards. While these opportunities are often initially extended only to the mayor, we have learned that many organizations will accept any representative from Boulder, given our city’s leadership in so many endeavors.



  *   Sharing with all council members the numerous opportunities to speak to local groups and to preside at ribbon-cuttings. This is a great way for council members, especially new ones, to expand their presence throughout the community and to ensure that all of council stays visible and connected, particularly as events and gatherings resume following the COVID crisis.


  *   Diverting the news media to other council members when the media seek to interview the mayor on topics of local, regional, or national interest. While the media often prefer to have the mayor speak on behalf of the city, each of you is well-qualified to do this.


  *   Continuing the practice conceived two years ago by Mary Young that council members take turns facilitating study sessions. This cuts in half the number of meetings that the mayor runs, and gives each council member three or four opportunities each year to lead a meeting.

            My Commitment to You

Some of you I endorsed in the recent election, or the one before that. Some of you I did not. All of you are qualified to lead. Where we may differ is in how we might approach some of Boulder’s tougher challenges, like ensuring housing affordability, addressing homelessness, or managing the city’s budget priorities. But, while some of us may disagree on some things, the mayor is still simply a peer of eight council members, entitled to exactly the same vote, no more and no less.

My commitment to you is that, if appointed mayor, I will never use my position to gain an unfair procedural advantage on an issue. My job as mayor will be to ensure that each one of you has the information you need to make an informed decision, and that you have a forum to express your views as you wish. I am not always right, and I am not always in the majority. I am comfortable with both of these things. I am committed to give you the opportunity to express yourself and to vote as you determine best for our community, regardless of whether I agree with you.

* * * * *
I apologize for the length of this. There is a lot to share and to commit to, as Aaron and I present our respective cases, to help you make the best decision you can. I’ll close as I started: You can’t go wrong in your selection of either Aaron or me as mayor. I know that Aaron feels the same way. Regardless of who you select as mayor, I hope that the civil and cordial approach that Aaron and I are taking to this competitive process can serve as a model for the comity that we sometimes saw missing from the recent council election. It is our responsibility to behave the way that we expect of others, especially those with whom we disagree.

While we are colleagues and friends, Aaron and I each bring somewhat different backgrounds and styles to council. It is now your job to decide which one will best suit this council and our community. As always, I will respect your decision.

All my best,

Bob











-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: https://webappsprod.bouldercolorado.gov/mailing-lists/mailman-archive/bouldercouncilhotline/attachments/20211108/3b71c72b/attachment.html