Instagram story viewer> @boulderreportinglab> Posts

Boulder Reporting Lab

@boulderreportinglab

3.6K

followers

193

following

⛰️ Boulder, CO’s nonprofit newsroom.
🕵️ In-depth local reporting.
📝 Essential community information.
⬇️ Sign up for our FREE newsletter.⬇️

POSTS STORIES REELS

Mayor Aaron Brockett has been decisively reelected to a third term as Boulder’s mayor.

Brockett has served as mayor for the past five years, after serving as a city councilmember for six years. He narrowly won Boulder’s first direct mayoral election in 2023 and sought reelection this year, saying he wanted to continue the work council began under his leadership. Political newcomer Aquiles La Grave, his closest challenger, centered his campaign on criticism of Brockett’s record and leadership, framing the election as a referendum on the state of the city.

With more than 60% of the votes counted late Tuesday night, Brockett had received about 50% of the vote, compared with 25% for La Grave.

Councilmember Taishya Adams finished third, with 17% of the vote in the second round of ranked-choice tabulation. Adams chose to run for mayor instead of seeking reelection to the city council, meaning she will leave her council seat.

This will be Brockett’s final term under the city’s term limits.

Find more Boulder election results at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

Historically, Boulder’s mayor has always been a former city councilmember. Today, voters will have their first chance to vote for a serious mayoral candidate who is new to city government.

At Boulder Reporting Lab and @kgnu’s mayoral debate, we asked candidates to weigh in on whether experience in elected office makes someone a better mayor.

Mayor Aaron Brockett, who has served six years as a city councilmember and five as mayor, said yes, saying it takes time to learn the city code and charter. Councilmember Taishya Adams also said experience is important, though she said her perspective as an “outsider” – with a shorter stint on council and time serving on state boards – was as well.

Political newcomer Aquiles La Grave implied experience is not an asset when a candidate has a poor record, which he argued is the case with Mayor Brockett. Jamo Goldstein, a 21-year-old CU student, also said his fresh perspective was more relevant than experience in office.

As early election results come in tonight, it will become clear who made the most compelling argument to voters.

Check election results and watch the full debate at the link in our bio. by @boulderreportinglab

Open enrollment for the 2027-28 school year began Nov. 1, with Boulder Valley families facing major changes to their elementary school options. Four schools are set to close next fall, while others will change grades, buildings or attendance boundaries.

A Boulder County judge last week declined to temporarily block the district’s plan after three parents sought an injunction, alleging the school board violated Colorado’s open meetings law. The judge’s decision allows the school changes to move forward while a lawsuit challenging the process continues. The district has also filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that it did not violate the law and that any violation would not invalidate the board’s decision.

School choice is common for BVSD families, with 41% of elementary students open-enrolling outside their neighborhood school. But the changes approved by the school board Sept. 22 are forcing some families to find new schools and leaving others to reconsider their options.

The changes will reshape attendance boundaries and reduce school options across Boulder, Broomfield, Louisville and Superior. But the information families need to weigh their options is scattered across district reports, state data and school websites.

To help, Boulder Reporting Lab created an interactive guide to 29 BVSD elementary school options for fall 2027, bringing that information together in one place before open enrollment closes Dec. 18.

Find the interactive guide and read more at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

A 19-year-old CU Boulder student was killed and another is in critical condition after a shooting at a house party on University Hill late Saturday night, according to Boulder police.

The shooting happened around 11:30 p.m. at a home in the 700 block of Marine Street, where hundreds of people had gathered earlier in the evening. Police said a group attempted to force its way into the home shortly before shots were fired inside, striking the two students.

Police are searching for those responsible and asking for the public’s help identifying people captured on video. Investigators have identified two people of interest they want to interview, but have not said whether either is suspected of firing the shots.

Both victims were 19-year-old men and CU Boulder students. Authorities have not released their names. The Boulder County Coroner’s Office will identify the student who died after notifying his family.

The killing is Boulder’s first homicide of 2026, Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said at a Sunday morning news conference.

“This is an incredibly tragic and upsetting incident,” Redfearn said. “We do not regularly have gun violence here in Boulder, and we know how shocking and devastating this is for everyone involved.

“Everyone in our community, especially our young adults, should feel safe to gather without fear of gun violence,” he added.

Read more at Boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

Aquiles La Grave entered Boulder’s mayoral race as a political newcomer promising to challenge city leadership. He has attracted support from voters frustrated with city government and raised more money than any other candidate.

But with Election Day fast approaching, his confrontational campaign is drawing criticism from across Boulder’s political spectrum, including from early supporters and moderates who share some of his concerns about city policy. His attacks on incumbent Mayor Aaron Brockett and other city officials have drawn particular scrutiny.

Councilmember Rob Kaplan, a moderate, initially supported La Grave, advising him, attending early campaign events and donating to his campaign. He later withdrew his support, citing what he described as La Grave’s misleading statements, confrontational tone and failure to build relationships with city officials.

“At the end of the day, criticizing from the sidelines and leaning on these long-winded narratives is easy,” Kaplan said. “The real work is building productive relationships with the key players who actually keep the city running, which are the city manager, the attorney, the staff and the rest of council.” Kaplan has since endorsed Brockett.

Former Councilmember Mark Wallach, a moderate who has frequently disagreed with Brockett on city policy, described La Grave as trying to ride a “wave of discontent” into office.

“It’s a strange election,” Wallach said. “It’s not progressives versus moderates. It’s people who are trying to tap into the anger, and people who are not.”

La Grave sees his approach differently. He has framed his campaign as a challenge to the “established political order” and defends his criticism as legitimate scrutiny of Brockett’s leadership and the city’s performance. He and his supporters argue that his critics are applying a double standard, pointing to inflammatory tactics used by progressive political groups and organizers in past elections.

Read more at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

Reported bike thefts in Boulder have declined since 2020, when property crime spiked in the city, according to recent data from the Boulder Police Department.

Thefts from January through August this year fell 13% compared with the same period last year, according to a Boulder Reporting Lab analysis of city data. That’s in line with the average annual decline over the past five years.

The reported value of stolen bikes still tops $1 million most years. Since 2020, people have reported about $10.6 million worth of bikes stolen in Boulder. The Boulder Police Department has recovered about $754,000 worth.

Read more at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

Boulder plans to focus its wildfire prevention efforts on a dozen neighborhoods along its western edge, where homes face some of the city’s greatest wildfire risks. The approach marks a shift toward concentrating resources in the most vulnerable areas.

But the city aims to have just 20% of homes in those areas meet wildfire home-hardening standards recognized by insurers by 2030, prompting several Boulder City Councilmembers to call for more ambitious goals.

The proposal, presented during an Oct. 22 council study session, is part of a broader plan to prioritize wildfire resilience through 2030. It includes a framework called “Wildfire Ready 2030” to guide projects and a resource hub to help residents protect their homes.

Find out more about wildfire risk and your neighborhood at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

With less than two weeks until Election Day, a clearer picture of who is raising and spending money in Boulder’s 2026 elections is taking shape.

This year, Boulder will elect five city councilmembers and, for the second time, directly elect its mayor. One candidate for mayor has received substantially more campaign money than his rivals, while two county ballot measure campaigns have raised nearly half a million dollars combined.

According to the latest campaign finance reports, Aquiles La Grave, who is running for public office for the first time, has reported $40,693 in campaign funds, including a $10,542 loan to his own campaign. His total is about 60% higher than that of any other candidate. Most of his rivals have opted into the city’s public campaign financing program, which limits how much they can spend.

The money is flowing into an election that could reshape the political balance of Boulder’s city council. The city faces budget cuts, declining tax revenue and questions about city spending. Candidates are divided over how to address housing affordability, homelessness and public safety, as well as Issue 2K, a $400 million bond measure to repair and replace aging city buildings. At least two new members will join the nine-member council after the election.

Read more — and find our 2026 Boulder voting guide — at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

Halloween falls on Saturday, Oct. 31, and Día de los Muertos follows Nov. 1 and 2. From family-friendly trick-or-treating to late-night costume parties, Boulder County has plenty of ways to celebrate.

Día de los Muertos, also known as the Day of the Dead, has roots in Indigenous Mexican traditions and incorporates Catholic observances. Observed Nov. 1 and 2, the holiday honors deceased loved ones. Families create altars (ofrendas) and offer food, flowers and cherished items as they welcome the spirits of the dead for a visit.

Boulder favorites such as “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and the Munchkin Masquerade are returning, alongside smaller events you might not know about.

Check out our guide to 66 events at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

The Sundance Film Festival is moving its Boulder headquarters out of the Hotel Boulderado as workers at the historic downtown hotel wage a monthslong campaign to unionize and call on festival organizers to support their efforts.

The Sundance Institute says the move was driven by a need for more space and that discussions with the new venue began before the labor dispute.

The move was announced Oct. 15, the day tickets went on sale for Sundance’s first Boulder festival. The two-sentence announcement did not mention the Hotel Boulderado.

The switch comes as Boulderado workers campaign to get their union recognized. In recent months, they have picketed outside the hotel and urged the festival’s organizers to use their influence to encourage hotel management to resolve the labor dispute. Unite Here, a national hospitality union, is helping to organize the Boulderado employees.

Read more at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

The race to represent Boulder on the RTD board has become surprisingly contentious, with disputes over missing campaign signs and pointed exchanges on social media. The two candidates, Jack Rosenthal and Audrey DeBarros, bring different backgrounds to the race as the agency faces a major budget shortfall and prepares for passenger rail service to Boulder.

Rosenthal is a software engineer and transit advocate who helped draft the Transit Access Bill and says he has taken more than 800 RTD bus rides in the past year. DeBarros is the longtime executive director of Commuting Solutions, a nonprofit focused on improving transportation options in the northwest Denver metro area, where she has helped advance major bus and bikeway projects along U.S. 36 and CO 119.

Boulder’s next representative on the Regional Transportation District (RTD) board will help shape the agency’s direction as it confronts declining ridership, service cuts and a major budget deficit, all while preparing for the proposed Colorado Connector (CoCo) passenger train linking Boulder, Denver and Fort Collins.

RTD provides bus and rail service to the Denver metro area, covering eight counties and serving a region of about 3 million people. Its 15-member board approves the agency’s budget — the proposed 2027 budget totals about $1.34 billion, with a projected $148 million shortfall.

The board also shapes policy decisions, authorizes major route changes and oversees RTD leadership, including hiring the next CEO.

Rosenthal and DeBarros are competing to represent District O, which includes Boulder, Louisville, Superior and western Boulder County.

Their campaigns reflect competing visions of what the board needs.

Read more at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab

The Boulder City Council on Oct. 15 voted 7-1 to pass a $552.6 million budget for 2027. The budget comes as the city tries to address rising costs and revenue growth that has not kept up. It also comes during a city election in which the city’s management of its finances has been front and center.

The budget includes a $417 million operating budget, up from $408 million in 2026. That includes 5% raises for police and fire union members and 4% raises for other city employees.

The budget also allocates $135 million for next year as part of the city’s six-year capital improvement program. That covers projects such as South Boulder Creek flood mitigation at CU South, treated water equipment, sewer rehabilitation and renovations to the Pearl Street parking garage.

To help close a $6.3 million gap in the General Fund, the budget cuts about 24 full-time-equivalent positions, 13 of which are filled, according to city officials. The General Fund is the city’s largest fund and pays for a wide range of services. It is the second year in a row that City Manager Nuria Rivera-Vandermyde has proposed staffing cuts. Last year, three of the eliminated positions were filled.

The cuts follow several years of slow revenue growth. Sales tax revenue, the city’s largest single source of money, has come in below projections. The city has also lowered its property tax revenue projections because of state legislation that reduced assessment rates. About two-thirds of the city’s budget is restricted to dedicated purposes, meaning it cannot be moved to fill gaps.

Last year, the city manager recommended General Fund cuts to close a $7.5 million shortfall in the 2026 budget. It was the first time she had done so since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. To close the current gap, she asked all departments to prepare ongoing 4% reductions.

Read more at boulderreportinglab.org. by @boulderreportinglab