Here are the 11 things Fort Collins City Council plans to prioritize for 2024-25
Editor's note: This story was updated Tuesday, Feb. 27, to reflect council's approved priorities. One proposed priority previously included in this story was not approved at the Feb. 27 meeting. That priority was: "Improve animal welfare through public education and policies. Fort Collins is a place that loves its animals, both wild and domesticated, and its policies should reflect that."
The new Fort Collins City Council formed after the November election has adopted its priorities for the current two-year term that began in January and essentially lasts through the end of 2025.
Council spent a January weekend at a retreat to form those goals and honed them further at a February work session. At a Feb. 27 council meeting, council approved 11 of the 12 proposed priorities.
Below are the 11 approved priorities and the accompanying "problem statements" that help define the issues.
More: What is Fort Collins government celebrating, working on? Here's a list from State of City
Operationalize city resources to build and preserve affordable housing
"Not everyone in our community has access to healthy, stable housing, and we are currently not meeting our affordable housing production goal. Limited highly competitive funding, rapidly increasing costs, long development timelines, and historic under-production of housing units have led to severe housing availability and affordability issues in Fort Collins and many areas around the State of Colorado."
Improve human and social health for vulnerable populations
"Obstacles and barriers exist that impede access to services for our underserved community members. We need to work with our regional partners and invest in a robust and accessible safety net to create conditions where one is not needed.
Existing oil and gas wells in and around Fort Collins cause harmful pollution and have negative environmental and human health impacts."
Advance a 15-minute city by igniting neighborhood centers
"Market factors, limited tools and programs, ownership patterns and rising development costs hinder us from accelerating our goal for everyone to have daily goods, services and transit within a 15-minute walk or bike ride from their home."
Pursue an integrated, intentional approach to economic health
"Good jobs and opportunities for economic mobility are missing for many in our community, particularly those from underserved and underrepresented populations.
Processes related to doing business in the City of Fort Collins can be unclear, unnecessarily complex, and unfriendly to business customers."
Accelerate zero waste infrastructure and policies
"Fort Collins is currently missing the nearby infrastructure needed to meet its commitments to becoming a Zero Waste and Carbon Neutral community. Policies and programs for diverting material away from landfills are dependent upon viable, community-scale facilities for recycling, composting, and other waste diversion actions."
Reduce climate pollution and air pollution through best practices, emphasizing electrification
"Building energy use accounts for over two-thirds of the community emissions inventory; vehicle transportation emissions account for 25%; small engines (such as lawn and garden equipment) contribute to both local Greenhouse Gas emissions and air pollution; and the North Front Range is in a severe non-attainment zone for air quality under the Clean Air Act. Without significantly reducing emissions from these sectors, it will be impossible to improve air quality and meet Council-adopted climate goals."
Protect community water systems in an integrated way to ensure resilient water resources and healthy watersheds
"Resilient water resources and healthy watersheds depend on complex systems and a diverse network of relationships and regional partners. The water utility of the future must incorporate a One Water approach to deliver equitable solutions to meet the future challenges of water scarcity, quality, and affordability."
Advance a 15-minute city by accelerating our shift to active modes
"Multiple departments and funding sources are necessary to implement the Active Modes and Vision Zero Plans with an emphasis on Safe Routes to Schools."
Develop a Hughes Site Master Plan
"In accordance with the voter-approved ballot measure, the City acquired the 164-acre Hughes site in summer 2023. After conducting initial general public outreach and identifying conflicting interests and desires, Council will engage in an inclusive process to develop a site plan for future use."
Make government more accessible, approachable and fun
"Our evolving community and ever-changing media/communications landscape requires an innovative approach to reduce barriers and ensure everyone has access to timely, relevant and accurate information and opportunities to connect with their local government and community in meaningful ways."
Modernize and update the City Charter
"Although small parts of the Charter get reviewed and updated on a regular basis, due to changes in state laws and elections procedures, there is a need to modernize and update the City Charter which has not been done in a comprehensive way in over 25 years."
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Fort Collins City Council approves 11 priorities for 2024-25
