These are turbulent times in Golden. For the past nine years, we have been developing a series of plans designed to control and direct changes to our city. We started with the Vision 2030 plan, in which we said we valued our small town look, feel and character. We said we valued walkability, the natural beauty of our environment, safe-clean-quiet neighborhoods, local business and a vibrant downtown; local amenities, local history, education, a family-friendly environment, friendliness and a sense of community, and volunteerism. We used that as the basis for our Comprehensive Plan, followed by a series of Neighborhood Plans.
In response to the recent rash of tall buildings built near lot lines, neighbors have protested, using the language from Vision 2030, the Comprehensive Plan and the neighborhood plans. They point out that the new buildings are not “compatible” with the neighborhood; that they will result in traffic that jeopardizes our safe-clean-quiet neighborhoods. They object to losing their mountain views to views of 30-foot walls.
As development after development is approved, citizens have become increasingly baffled and angry. What was the point of all these plans, if they’ll be ignored for any developer who comes along?
Last Wednesday’s Planning Commission meeting was an epiphany for me. The Commission was considering the site plan for 72 new apartments and a 48-room hotel on 8th Street. Neighborhood residents had made impassioned appeals at the previous meeting, expressing concern about the increased traffic that would result from such a development.
One of the Commissioners asked that they discuss the proposal in terms of the comprehensive and neighborhood plans, while another objected to doing so. The attorney was asked whether those plans could be factors in the decision, and he said no—the only document that could be used to define whether the site plan was acceptable was section 18.40 of the municipal code.
This explains so much. It explains why the many appeals from citizens regarding compatibility, etc. were ignored. According to that attorney, none of those plans matter when approving a site plan. Our code says that a building can be x feet tall and y feet away from the edge of the lot, and as long as it complies with those and other factors defined in section 18.40, none of our preferences for a friendly small town environment, desire for a quiet neighborhood, love of our natural environment, etc., matter.
If you cannot see the video above, click here
Out of frustration at not feeling “heard” at public meetings, some citizens have turned to NextDoor and engaged in angry, unfiltered conversations. Others are planning law suits against the city and/or gearing up for a ballot initiative similar to the one that gave us the 1% growth limit.
Few people are pleased that we’ve come to this pass—not City Council, nor City Staff, nor the Planning Commission, and certainly not the citizens. I urge you to watch the entire Planning Commission meeting. You’ll find it on the City’s Agenda page. Scroll down to the Planning Commission section and watch the February 6th meeting. If that seems too daunting, you can watch the most relevant segment here:
If you cannot see the video above, click here.
So were the 2030 Vision, Comp Plan, and Neighborhood Plans a waste of time and paper? Not entirely. They come into play when we consider annexations, rezonings, special use permits, and single family subdivisions. Annexations rarely happen these days. Rezonings do occasionally happen. We rezoned part of the Mines Campus last year, to allow them to build a taller residence hall. Single family subdivisions are quite rare, since Golden has very little land where they could be built. Special Use Permits come up quite often, generally when developers want to build 100% residential in an area zoned for commercial or mixed use.
With each of those types of cases (annexations, rezonings, subdivisions, and SUPs), the Planning Commission has some latitude to consider whether the proposed changes fit in with our Vision and Plans.
Unfortunately, it’s not until we get to the site plan that the public sees, in concrete terms, what is proposed. Site plans are apparently not subject Vision/Plan goals; they’re only subject to the code in 18.40. So by the time we get to a site plan, it’s too late to affect the plan on the basis of terms like “compatibility.”
We need to find ways to either put more legal force into our plans or more of our vision into our code.
Tonight’s Events
Please plan to attend tonight’s meeting regarding RTD’s planned service cuts to Golden at 6PM in City Council Chambers. While we sympathize with need to stick to a budget, we cannot make headway on encouraging use of public transit while making it less convenient.
The Library is hosting a “Galentine’s Day” event at 6PM. Ladies celebrating ladies! We’re kicking it breakfast style while creating free menstrual hygiene kits for our community members who are experiencing homelessness. Grab your friends and lend a hand to those in need. Waffles, mockmosas, and supplies provided.
Tonight’s Live Music
DIRTY DOGS ROADHOUSE – Peter Fletcher, 6-9P
OLD CAPITOL GRILL & SMOKEHOUSE – Wintery Wednesdays Concert Series, 6-9PM
ROCK REST LODGE – Dave Frisk, 5-8:30P
