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By Mary Gorman. Also published as a letter to the editor in the Daily Camera on October 29, 2021.
"Regarding Ballot issues 300 (BAFP), please watch and listen to CU’s professor, Dr. Albert A. Bartlett’s lecture, 'Exponential Growth Arithmetic, Population and Energy,' easily found on YouTube. Both of these ballot issues concern how many people are currently living in Boulder plus those that commute into Boulder for work every day (60,000 pre-pandemic estimate).
The people are already here! The fears about more coming are true! And the mind-blowing number of how many more people to come are astronomical! Dr. Bartlett’s lecture predicted in 2000, Boulder’s population at 96,727 and increasing at a 5.20% rate of growth, Boulder would have a population the size of Los Angeles (3,694,820) in the year 2070! Or at a 2.49% growth rate, Boulder’s population would equal Denver’s population (554,636) in 2070! Okay, we’re on a growth rate track. Boulder’s population in April 2020 was 108,250.
I believe appropriate solutions need to be created with economic equity for the people already here and also strive to minimize horrendous climate conditions.
Fear of realtors building more bedrooms is a misguided fear. Real estate developers are already building Downton Abbey-sized single-family residences with plenty of bedrooms for a family and their service people. These homes have the ability to become boutique hotels or boarding houses in the future. Please allow people to share their current living spaces. And create small private housing with apartments and little houses that incorporate green spaces for everyone to share.
For those people who really want/need to live in larger or more affordable houses and continue to commute, better cleaner mass transportation needs to be created ASAP! For people residing in Boulder, minimize the number of cars allowed and create local convenient transportation solutions!
The disparity of wealth and poverty slate needs to be cleared. Because many lower and middle-income homeowners’ wealth did not increase at a sustainable rate, they have chosen to create under the radar living situations. We need to strive for a humane growth slate that equalizes and provides for every person’s basic rights. The solutions aren’t easily made but we need to keep arithmetic on the slate. Let’s take good care of the people already here and create a humane, climate-safe future. Vote 'yes' on 300."