The Peloton – Photo Tour and Impressions
by Osman Parvez ---- Last month, residents finally started moving into The Peloton. With phase one's recent completion, we headed down to The Peloton to take a look at a few units. Phase one includes the two east buildings with about 200 residential units, and the three floor community building. Shots of the exterior were posted with the development map update, and we've posted two new sets of the interiors of a loft and two bedroom. Note that the units do not come furnished. The loft is 956 square feet and priced at $409,400. The two bedroom is 1,673 square [...]
Boulder Pops and Scrapes Workshop – PHASE 1
by Osman Parvez ---- Can a house be too big for the neighborhood? Last night was the start of a new public process, something many demanded given the haste with which City Council was moving towards Draconian solutions only a few months ago. In a series of workshops aimed at solving the issue of "pops and scrapes," residents, consultants, and city employees have begun focusing on the task. When it comes to house sizes and other elements of design, seldom have I seen such a polarizing issue. Both sides were represented at last night's meeting. In case you forgot where [...]
Boulder Development Map Update
by Osman Parvez ---- We've just completed a huge update to our Boulder Development Map. With this update, we are publishing over 180 pictures of various development projects in Boulder on Flickr. Clicking on the place marks in the Google map will bring up a description with a thumbnail. Click on the thumbnail to visit the set of photos on Flickr. Some sets, such as The Peloton, contain over a dozen images. Here is a key to serve as a reminder: As always, if you know of any other projects or have photos you think we should include, feel free [...]
City Council – What, Me Worry?
by Osman Parvez ---- An email was posted on the City Council hotline providing staff's initial answers to Council Member Wilson's questions. Three items are of deep concern ---Questions of Deep Concern---(staff's responses are in italics. My responses are bracketed). 7. How would property values be impacted with an interim ordinance? I know this is difficult, but we should put some thought into it. Although we will not be able to address the economic impacts of an interim ordinance, we will try and research other communities' experiences since many communities across the country have enacted ordinances that limit the size [...]
House Size Limits – Get Involved!
by Osman Parvez ---- Do you care about City Council's recent efforts to limit the potential of your property? Here's two ways for you to get involved! 1. Join a group dedicated to understanding this issue and finding ways to address it. Email rationalplanning@gmail.com for details on how to join. 2. Take a survey. City Council wants to know about your specific situation, and how proposed regulations could affect you. Click HERE to complete an online survey (it should take no more than five minutes). The survey is anonymous. Questions generally refer to where you currently live and how the [...]
Can You Hear Me Now?
by Osman Parvez ---- If you ever want to speak in front of City Council, better show up early. At last night's meeting, sign-up began at 5pm but only the first 15 people were allowed to speak before the meeting's agenda commenced. That left dozens of people waiting nearly two hours before the public hearing was resumed. When I first started hearing the feedback, I admit I was a little concerned. A seemingly organized group of senior citizens, most living near each other, were among the first to the microphone. They spoke in favor of an immediate emergency measure to [...]
FAR Vote Delayed, Public Hearing Tonight
by Osman Parvez ---- The Camera is reporting that City Council has decided to delay the vote on the proposed ordinance to April 1st. Yes, April Fool's Day. Apparently it was the overwhelming response from Boulder residents that caused City Council to reconsider the urgency surrounding this issue. There will be a meeting tonight at 6pm to discuss the provisions of the ordinance. If you want to speak, you should come early. According to the City's website, the list to sign up for speaking opens at 5pm. ---- Like this analysis? Subscribe to our client research report. [...]
A Letter to City Council of Boulder
by Osman Parvez ---- City Council will hold a public hearing tomorrow on new restrictions to house sizes. I've encouraged residents of Boulder to voice their concerns by writing an email to City Council and by attending tomorrow's meeting. If you'd like to let city council know your thoughts on the matter, send them an email at council@bouldercolorado.gov. Here is my email to City Council: Dear City Council Members, My name is Osman Parvez and I live in Boulder. Together with my wife, I run a small, independent real estate brokerage. We own a small home in South Boulder and [...]
Boulder City Council Are Out of Control
by Osman Parvez ---- I attended last night's packed City Council study session. Before the meeting, I was under the impression that they were calmly studying the issue of a few oversized, out of character houses in Boulder and carefully considering reasonable options for addressing the problem. I was wrong. Dead wrong. Before I had a chance to write this post, Mark Hartwig provided the following comment: Osman, I'm not sure if you made it to the meeting tonight or not, but I was there. The city council means business. At least 5 of the city council members were in [...]
Pop and Scrape Map and Analysis (+Meeting Details)
by Osman Parvez ---- A commenter in my post on efforts to limit home sizes asked for more details on the meeting. Where: Municipal Building at 1777 Broadway When: Tonight, March 13th. 5:30pm to 9:00pm Contact: 303.441.3008 The earlier Pop/Scrape/Floor Area Ratios study and the more recent FAR subcommittee memo are particularly interesting. Here's a few tidbits I thought worth posting (a little fuzzy, but readable). Demolitions and additions citywide from 2001-2006 : Map of demolitions and additions 2001-2006: ---- Like this analysis? Subscribe to our client research report. Want to get blog updates via email? Click [...]
Your House is Too Big
by Osman Parvez ---- 5 Questions About Limiting House Sizes in Boulder "Your House is Too Big." "What?" "Oh, you heard me. Your house is too big. You're ruining the neighborhood." Sounds pretty confrontational, doesn't it? Well that's precisely the path that Boulder City Council is taking. Beginning last summer, the city revived an effort to study maximum home sizes and has indicated it will pursue the issue aggressively. If you think you can be complacent, guess again. In January, City Council held its annual retreat during which members shared their priorities. Many want new restrictions on redevelopment put in [...]
FasTracks Update
by Osman Parvez ---- It appears that a few federal transportation rules have changed, with the potential to add sizable costs to the FasTracks project. Meanwhile Boulder City Council is preparing to lobby for noise mitigation. From the Daily Camera: Some federal transportation rules have changed since voters in 2004 approved the $4.8 billion FasTracks initiative, said Chris Quinn, FasTracks Northwest Rail project manager. And those changes could cost real money by the time the rail line is complete in late 2014, he said. Also, be sure to check out where the proposed stations are in my development map. ---- [...]
Ready to Lose 25% of Your Property Value?
by Osman Parvez ---- Should there be limits on the size of homes in Boulder? How large is too large? Results from an economic study on the issue were released yesterday. From the Daily Camera: The latest version of the proposed house limits would cap houses in the plains at 4,500 square feet above ground and houses in the mountains at 3,000 square feet above ground. The study also presented a "quick and dirty" analysis on how the new program would affect property values and estimated it was possible that some land could lose as much as 25 percent of [...]
The Washington Village Petition
by Osman Parvez ---- They're everywhere. On street corners waving signs, canvassing neighborhoods door to door. Their goal? Collect enough signatures to force a referendum on the Washington Village development. If you're a reader of this blog or participate in a neighborhood email list (highly recommended), you've already heard some of the debate. On Sunday, the developer was granted an audience via an opinion piece in the Daily Camera. I've already presented the views of the neighborhood association. Here's what Jim Leach thinks (an excerpt, trimmed): These neighbors ask you to sign in order to "allow the people to be [...]
The News That Fits
by Osman Parvez ---- Here's a quick glance at some news stories that caught my attention this morning. Click on the links for the full articles. Water issues from Summit Daily News Municipal planners in northern Colorado say the prospect of drought combined with a booming population (predicted to increase three-fold by 2050), leaves only one solution: more water storage, in the form of the Northern Integrated Supply Project. "This is not a case of 'if you don't build it, they won't come,' " says Carl Brouwer, project manager. "Bottom line: More people equals the need for more water." Updated [...]
