Who I Am
I was first elected to the Boulder City Council in 2019 and reelected in 2021. I am now running for my third and final term. On Council, I have focused on housing policy, especially affordable and middle-income housing, since virtually none of the latter is being produced today. I have consistently advocated for converting the Boulder Airport into a property primarily dedicated to middle-income housing, rather than maintaining it as a hobbyist facility for Boulder’s wealthiest residents.
I am also deeply focused on wildfire resilience, as our community is at significant risk for uncontrolled wildfire.
What I Stand For
In addition to housing and wildfire resilience, I have been a strong advocate for public safety and for properly funding and maintaining Boulder’s infrastructure for future generations.
I try to be a data-driven, rational, and reasonable voice on Council. When evaluating any policy or ordinance, I focus on three questions:
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Will it actually work?
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Can we afford it, and how?
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Will it make life better for people in Boulder?
I do not make decisions based on ideology. If that is what you are looking for, I may not be the candidate you are seeking.
My Background
In a past life, I was a real estate developer and, before that, an attorney. I have also worked in politics as a speechwriter for Senator Bill Bradley, helped with voter registration efforts in New York and Mississippi (on behalf of Charlie Evers, brother of civil rights leader Medgar Evers), and held various other speechwriting and campaign roles.
I first came to Boulder in 1980 as an aspiring rock climber and returned many times to climb in Boulder, Estes Park, and Rocky Mountain National Park. I was never a great climber, but it has been a passion of mine for more than 50 years. In my next life, I expect to climb 5.14. In this one, not so much.
Education and Family
I hold a B.A. from Yale University and a J.D. from Columbia University.
Most importantly, I have been with my incredible wife Joan for more than 39 years. Without her encouragement, I never would have had the courage to run for office or serve on Council. If you search "better half," I am pretty sure her photo will come up.
Join the Campaign
I hope you will take a look at my endorsements, read more about where I stand on the issues, and consider getting involved. We are looking for volunteers, event hosts, and, of course, donors. I hope we can count on you to be one of those.
Why I Intend to Run
If you have spoken to me over the past two years, you know that I have promised, sworn and committed to everyone that I would not run again. And I meant it. Yet here I am, having announced my candidacy, and my intention to pursue my third and last term (thank goodness for term limits) on the City Council. Let me explain what happened to cause me to reverse my position.
Here is what changed:
First, the deterioration of the City’s financial position. I have been a member of the Long-Term Financial Strategies Committee on Council and I want my voice to be heard as we try to navigate our way through these difficult times. We have more needs than we have the ability to fund; the decisions we make during the next couple of years will speak to the type of community we want to have.
Second, we are at great risk of harm from the new administration. I want to be part of the conversation as to how we deal with these unprecedented threats to the well-being of our community. We face threats to the employment of hundreds of men and women who work for our university and scientific institutions; we face threats to the federal grants that we rely upon in our City budget; we face threats to the services we provide to our most vulnerable populations. I have 6 years of experience on the Council; I want to put that experience to good use in responding to these threats to Boulder.
Lastly, the experience of the Marshall Fire has made it very clear the jeopardy Boulder faces from future wildfires. We need to do more, and to act promptly, to protect our community.
Of course, we have many other issues to deal with in Boulder, but these are the ones that have led me to reverse my position and run again. So yes, I have reversed my position and intend to run for one more term. I hope that you will understand my reasoning in doing so.
In Boulder, there are too many issues to deal with to cover them all in this website. However, I wanted to offer my views on a number of issues that I believe to be of paramount importance to the community. If you do not see the issue that is most important to you in my website, it does not mean that your concerns are trivial or insignificant (no one would describe concerns over the Iris ball fields in that manner), merely that I have chosen to discuss a few others.