Reporter Jacy Marmaduke looks to her future as she writes about the city's
Dear Coloradoan subscribers,
Reporter Jacy Marmaduke here.
Like most journalists, I’m not particularly good at meeting deadlines. So every time I come face-to-face with the due date for a big Sunday story, I have a tradition: I curl up in my favorite armchair at home, gently swatting away my feline companion every 10 minutes (it’s his favorite chair, too, but La-Z-Boys are simply too small for sharing), turn on some music and write. Late into the night. I print out my drafts and cover them in handwritten self-edits. I read and re-read my story from multiple perspectives to evaluate whether I gave every source a fair shot and included all the most necessary context. I like to ruminate on my enterprise stories, to reflect on the topic until I feel I’ve distilled the heart of the matter into my copy.
This week was the last time I’ll get to do that. Barring the unexpected — which I would never do — my feature on Fort Collins’ Land Use Code update is my final Sunday cover story for the Coloradoan. My last day is July 20. I’m moving to Germany for two years with my husband, a chemist who found his dream post-doc opportunity near Dusseldorf. My goal when I return is to attend graduate school to become a social psychology researcher, which when you think about it is remarkably similar to a journalist.
I’m excited for this adventure, of course, but I’m also sad. I’m really going to miss covering city government. It’s an incredible beat, positioned at the intersection of imagination and reality. I get to watch as our city leaders chart out a course for the future of Fort Collins — the easy part — and then try to make it happen — the hard part.
That’s why the seemingly dry Land Use Code is such a fascinating topic. It’s really about using municipal nuts and bolts to design the future of housing in our community. City Council’s vision is bold, and it’s not universal even among council members. I tried with this story to fully unfurl the blueprint that they’re creating together. I hope my article will lay a foundation for discussion on housing issues like affordability, diversity, density and community design.
I’ve been trying to put my finger on why this Land Use Code update feels so monumental. I think it’s because council’s highest-profile actions are so often about creating goals and plans that can make an impact only with the continued perseverance, funding and attention of future councils. This code update is different: It will place the future of housing development on a new track, on which it will stay unless future leaders act to change that trajectory. Though it could never solve Fort Collins’ housing affordability problem on its own, the Land Use Code update promises a lasting impact. This kind of opportunity doesn’t come around every year.
I’m getting a little misty-eyed thinking about watching the results of this code update from 4,900 miles and eight time zones away. Lucky for me, I’m a night owl, so I have no problem tuning in to City Council meetings at 2 in the morning. I’ll just have to adjust to watching them recreationally.
I have more to say, but as usual, I’ve gone on for too long. I want to offer my most heartfelt thanks to our subscribers, especially those who’ve tuned into our city government coverage over the years. This work means nothing if nobody reads it, and I hope my reporting has helped to illuminate the inner workings of our community in a way that’s left you curious to know what happens next. I know I am.
Thank you so much for your readership and your support. I’ll never forget it.
— Jacy Marmaduke, jmarmaduke@coloradoan.com
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Reporter Jacy Marmaduke looks to her future as she writes about the city's
