CSU students, community ask City Council to put repealing U+2 housing policy on the ballot
About 30 minutes into the Fort Collins City Council meeting Tuesday night, a Poudre Fire Authority chief took over the microphone to remind people they couldn’t be sitting or standing in the aisles or in front of exits, asking them instead to move to the lobby’s overflow area.
A completely full council chamber on a Tuesday night is a rare sight, to say the least, but about 100 Colorado State University students and community members — about half of whom spoke in public comment — filled the room to show support for placing the repeal of Fort Collins' "U+2" residential occupancy restrictions on the ballot.
Most speakers highlighted the policy’s discriminatory nature, saying it made it hard to keep talent from CSU in town after graduation and even made it difficult for students to live in city limits while in school.
Here’s a rundown of the policy, what students told council and what the options moving forward are for a repeal.
What is U+2 in Fort Collins?
The U+2 ordinance, also called "three unrelated," is an occupancy limit tied to familial relations that prohibits more than three unrelated adults from living in a residential dwelling unit like a single-family home, duplex or multifamily unit.
According to the city’s occupancy page, the ordinance is designed to “help ensure health and safety of residents, and to help protect the quality and character of neighborhoods.”
The city has considered changes to its occupancy and rental regulations 10 times since 2005, when council adopted U+2.
When looking into the policy in the past, staff found Fort Collins’ code is stricter than most; the most common limit was five unrelated people per household in peer cities and four to five unrelated people per household in Colorado cities.
Why do students think U+2 should go?
Many of the stories from students Tuesday night revolved around the discriminatory nature of U+2 and the idea that it made students feel like the city they call home doesn’t want them there.
Charlie Williamson, a senior at CSU, said they’ve had to live in Denver, Greeley and Fort Collins and the latter was easily the hardest place to find a house. They said they lived in a house with five people and had to rotate where cars parked and ignore their neighbors out of fear of being reported. Williamson said the policy is bad for college students and is in turn bad for the city.
“CSU isn't something separate from the Fort Collins community. We've always been here. College students don't only rent from your landlords, but we shop at your small businesses. We spend time in Old Town, we almost single-handedly keep the bar scene alive,” said Williamson.
“We're limiting the growth and prosperity of Fort Collins with these outdated and discriminatory occupancy ordinances.”
A number of students who spoke highlighted the fact that they’ve had to work multiple jobs while in school just to keep a roof over their heads.
Isaiah Dennings, another CSU senior and member of the school’s student government, the Associated Students of Colorado State University (ASCSU), said he works three jobs to pay for housing, and in his experiences has “really been strong-armed by rental owners.”
“I live in a house that can easily fit comfortably — parking and all — six people, but I have to split the rent between three people,” he said. “That's just not economic, not equitable.”
ASCSU encouraged students to speak at council Tuesday night, initially saying they had a deal with a council member who agreed to make a motion to put U+2 on the ballot if 200 students showed up. An ASCSU representative later told the Coloradoan that “was a miscommunication between leadership and our marketing team,” but ASCSU still encouraged students to speak in hopes of getting it on the ballot.
Marcus Zacarias, another student, told council that the ordinance is forcing him out of the city now. He said when applying to graduate programs, he had to be realistic and recognize that this isn’t somewhere he can afford to live.
“Fort Collins is not a place that prioritizes the students it helps educate and the students that want to give back,” he said. “I’m a highly educated student, a very highly educated worker and a very passionate worker here in the city of Fort Collins, but I have to leave because of this city ordinance.”
Students in attendance said they planned to continue to flood public comment at council until U+2 was put on the ballot, and ahead of the planned work session on May 9 at which council will discuss how to move forward with occupancy regulations.
To be clear, students aren’t the only ones who think it may be time to loosen the city’s occupancy limits, or who are affected by the occupancy limits.
Christopher Conway spoke about the effects this law has on “non-students,” saying, “there are families of all kinds across Fort Collins who are trying to survive by finding housing in whatever shape they can.
"And the idea that the city would reach into their private lives and ask them who's related to who, whether they're really the right kind of family to live in the right kind of house, is terrible policy and we should repeal it as soon as possible,” he said.
A survey from 2022 found that nearly 70% of respondents — and 80% of respondents identifying as renters — felt that Fort Collins’ occupancy limit should be changed.
The survey results also showed that 56% of respondents think occupancy should increase to more than three unrelated occupants and that the city should prioritize regulating nuisance rather than occupancy. Sixty-two percent said extra occupancy should be allowed in more parts of the city and 59% said the process to approve extra occupancy should be easier.
What was council’s response?
Council members broadly expressed gratitude to the large group of students who came to engage with them Tuesday night.
“I just really wanted to show our sincere appreciation for taking the time to come out and talk to us. It's a big time commitment on your part and I love the way you listen to each other and hear the other (people and) what they're talking about,” said Mayor Jeni Arndt.
Mayor pro-tem Emily Francis and council members Julie Pignataro, Tricia Canonico and Kelly Ohlson also thanked people for coming out to discuss occupancy and invited them to upcoming conversations about it.
“I just love seeing new faces at council,” Pignataro said. “I know a lot of you, as one person mentioned, had to skip work tonight, many of you should be studying, so again, thanks for taking the time. I think it really shows commitment and I appreciate it.”
How could U+2 get on the ballot?
The repeal or adjustment of U+2 could get on the ballot in November in one of two ways.
It could be a citizen-initiated ballot measure, or a council-initiated ballot measure.
If council wanted to put it on the ballot on their own, they could approve a resolution to send the decision to the voters. Council could also just vote to repeal or change the ordinance themselves, too.
The process to get a citizen-initiated measure on the ballot involves a voter starting an initiative and gathering signatures to amend or repeal the portion of the land use code regarding occupancy. Once a petition is circulated and successful, council could adopt the initiated ordinance without amendment or place it on the ballot.
The number of valid signatures required to place it on this November’s ballot is 4,228. But Chief Deputy City Clerk Rita Knoll told the Coloradoan "it may be too late to make that happen depending on when the process is started and whether or not there is adequate time for all of the steps to play out."
If citizens wanted to get the measure on the ballot for a special election, they would need 6,342 signatures.
Molly Bohannon covers city government for the Coloradoan. Follow her on Twitter @molboha or contact her at mbohannon@coloradoan.com. Support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: CSU students ask City Council to put U+2 policy repeal on the ballot
