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This edition of Jacob's Golden Update takes a look at next steps for the Golden Sustainability Initiative. We also talk about the future of the Golden Ridge area. Finally, some news from the campaign trail. Thanks for taking a look.
1. Golden Sustainability Initiative: Next Steps
2. The Future of the Golden Ridge Area
3. News From the Campaign Trail
4. City Council Meeting Agenda: Thursday, October 18
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1. Golden Sustainability Initiative: Next Steps
The city council about two months ago adopted the Golden Sustainability Initiative, setting ambitious community goals for saving taxpayer money through energy efficiency, increasing our use of renewable energy in Golden, being more water-wise, and improving our quality of life with better pedestrian and bike connections around town. The city council then prioritized a small number of the suggestions made by the community working groups, and directed the city manager to present specific recommendations to city council about next steps. We will discuss his recommendations at tonight's city council study session.
The city manager basically makes two recommendations:
a) Create a Sustainability Advisory Board. I support this. I have been thinking about dedicating specific seats on the board to people with specific kinds of backgrounds as a way to ensure that the board has good representation from a diversity of perspectives. I'll suggest that idea at our city council meeting this evening.
b) Include $100,000 in the 2008 budget for the Initiative, including the hiring of a staff person dedicated to coordinating the program. The city manager suggests waiting to decide on a specific job description until the Sustainability Advisory Board begins meeting and prioritizing projects so we are sure to hire someone with the appropriate skills. I support this proposal as well.
Once we have created and appointed the Sustainability Advisory Board, they will begin working on the projects prioritized by the city council: single stream recycling, improving the city code to eliminate barriers to energy efficiency and renewable energy, exploring an incentives program to make it easier to invest in energy efficiency or renewable energy, encouraging low water use, and recycling at community events.
2. The Future of the Golden Ridge Area
The Golden Ridge area in southern Golden has received a lot of attention lately. Not too long ago, city council rejected a proposal for a 300-unit residential project on the undeveloped land along Highway 6. City council recently voted to seek federal funding for a pedestrian bridge connecting the new light rail station (scheduled to open in 2012) with the neighborhoods on the west side of Highway 6. And the Voice of Golden recently claimed that various entities were considering condemning private property in the area for redevelopment. The odd thing is that the Voice of Golden and their city council candidates seem to be the only ones suggesting condemnation/redevelopment. I've never heard anyone else even suggest the idea, nor can I imagine it getting any real support from anywhere if someone did.
Here's the real challenge: all the private property in the Golden Ridge area, including the undeveloped land right along Highway 6, is, well, private property. Those property owners have the legal right to develop or redevelop their land if they so choose.
A key part of the solution is a neighborhood plan for the Golden Ridge area. This would get everyone - the residents, other private property owners, other neighbors - to the table, and we'll at least have a shot at coming up with a vision that folks are generally supportive of. I have strongly supported neighborhood plans in other parts of Golden and will gladly do the same for the Golden Ridge area if there is support for doing one. With a proactive community planning effort, we may be able to shape the changes. Without one - as so often happens to us in Golden now - those changes will probably happen to us.
3. News from the Campaign Trail
The big news is that the all the Golden ballots are out. If you live in Golden, you should have received your ballot by now or within a couple of days. If you don't, call the Jefferson County Clerk's office (303-271-8111). Ballots are due by November 6th. If you mail it, it must be received by the County Elections Department by 7:00 p.m. on November 6th. You can also drop it off at the following:
- Golden City Hall (911 10th St.), open Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Jefferson County Elections Department (100 Jefferson County Parkway, in the county building), open Monday - Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
All sites will be open from 7:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. on election day (November 6).
Also, the first fundraising period ended and all the candidates and committees (including the Voice of Golden) have filed their financial reports. I had more than twice as many donors from Golden than both of the other mayoral candidates combined. I knew fundraising was going to be important because I am running against the incumbent (who has an advantage just by being the incumbent) and against the Voice of Golden's candidate. I asked lots of folks in Golden plus all my friends and family and received support from a terrific diversity of folks: Republicans and Democrats, small business owners and schoolteachers, hunters and hikers and mountain bikers, environmentalists and developers. They've supported me because of my leadership in Golden on key issues like sustainability and growth, my regional leadership on smart growth and improved transit, my hard work and commitment, and my integrity.
I am really gratified by the strong support in my campaign. If you want a yard sign, want to volunteer during the election home stretch, or just have questions,
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or call me (303-216-1680).
4. City Council Meeting Agenda: Thursday, October 18
We have a city council study session scheduled for tonight at 7 p.m. You can download the agenda on the city's web site, and you can watch us on Channel 8 if you have Comcast. In addition to the Golden Sustainability Initiative, the other major agenda item is the city manager's presentation of his proposed 2008 Budget. Next week's meeting will be on Thursday, October 25.
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Jacob Smith
Golden City Council
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(303) 216-1680
smithforgolden.com
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