Ballot initiative: Expanding what ‘family’ means

"Letter to the Editor" published in the Daily Camera on June 26, 2020.

In a recent letter to the editor, a writer falsely stated that the Bedrooms Are For People ballot initiative would impose occupancy limits on families. That is simply incorrect.

Bedrooms Are For People proposes a change to the city’s charter that would allow one person to live in each bedroom in a house (plus one additional person in the household to allow for one shared bed), regardless of relationship status. Our charter amendment grants a right for people to choose to live together . It does not impose new restrictions on families.

For decades, the city has prevented more than three unrelated people from living together in most of Boulder. City laws cannot legally impose restrictions on traditional families, which are protected by Boulder’s charter.

This ballot initiative would give equal housing opportunity to all people in Boulder.

Bedrooms Are For People will benefit homeowners and renters, including families, who are struggling to make home payments and have empty bedrooms that could safely accommodate housemates. Our measure will also benefit non-traditional families that don’t fit into the city’s current definition of a “family.”

Emergency Family Assistance Association, a Boulder nonprofit, has endorsed our initiative, stating that: “We feel this initiative aligns with EFAA’s support for housing stability and prevention of family homelessness. In fact, the most common thing for families to do when they lose housing is to ‘double up’ with another family, which is often illegal under Boulder’s current laws. Loosening these limits is key to preventing family homelessness.”

Bedrooms Are For People will help address Boulder’s housing crisis without building a single new home. It will make Boulder a more sustainable and equitable city.

Please sign our petition to get on the ballot, and vote for our measure in November. Visit BedroomsAreForPeople.com for details.

— Fiona Pigott, Boulder

"Letter to the Editor" published in the Daily Camera on June 26, 2020.