Time to get to constructive on Fort Collins land use code. Here are a few ideas:

Here are responses to last week's question: What changes do you want to see in a new land use code for Fort Collins?

City staff and City Council might have a tricky road ahead navigating land use code changes, with some residents who generally approved of the revised code and others who didn't. Those either-or viewpoints are not the focus of this conversation recap because plenty of responses in this week's Coloradoan Conversations suggested compromise.

Read on for some of their ideas:

Public outreach on the land use code

On this subject, many agreed: More and better public outreach is needed before changes take place.

"I doubt that any council member had enough time to read the 472 pages of the new land use code," Ray Martinez wrote in a letter to the editor. "More time is needed for review and clarification by council and the public. In addition, there should be a condensed version of this land use code for easy previewing by the public and council."

Jeff S. suggested: "Have City Council send emails or email attachments periodically with utility bills or in some manner explaining proposed changes by neighborhood zone."

"The city neighborhood resources department should also maintain a list of active and concerned citizens who would like to be notified of changes/updates to the land use code, City Plan, the transportation plan, etc.," Scott M. said.

"Use Preserve Fort Collins and Strong Towns as conduits to announce public meetings and work sessions for all (land use code) discussions. They have members who want to participate," Carolyn M. said. "The city should announce LDC discussion dates well in advance using all available media venues (utility bill, social media, city website, newspaper, etc.). When the city and all stakeholders agree that a satisfactory LDC is ready for adoption, the city should announce this milestone using every media resource available. Do this prior to first reading. Publicity blasts prevent delaying policy adoption and implementation."

How we got here: Fort Collins City Council repeals revised land use code, commits to more public engagement

Public meetings as part of the development process

A lot of folks said the land use code should prescribe routine public meetings for projects.

One compromise suggested: Modify the neighborhood meetings so only residences that are impacted be notified, Ray Martinez said in his letter.

Neighborhood and city quality and density

Many concerns in recent months have been about changing the feel and quality of neighborhoods.

Here are ideas to address those concerns:

"Let's start with the code change that will allow increased density without requiring any changes to buildings, and that's getting rid of U+2. It would be the easiest and lightest touch way to increase density and provide more housing without changing the built environment," Meg D. contends.

But some changes should require extensive public engagement first, she said. "Any code changes that allow for easier demolition and new construction within an existing neighborhood probably should go through at least a year or two public engagement process with intense resident input as this is the most (invasive) type of change and what people seem to be most concerned about," Meg D. said.

Similarly, "Higher densities than that allowed in the previous (land use code) should not be permitted in existing neighborhoods unless approved by those neighborhoods," Glen C. said. "This could be done through a neighborhood plan voted on by those impacted."

"Limit medium and high density Old Town neighborhoods to fourplex/four-unit apartments," Jeff S. said, based on his interviews with people while collecting petition signatures. "Having six-unit apartments replacing single-family homes in Old Town is very unpopular."

"Explore designating certain neighborhoods historic, such as Old Town down Mountain Avenue. A big concern is losing the historic feel of these neighborhoods that contain an abundance of hundred-year-old homes," he said.

Many people felt more neighborhoods should be left as single-family zoning. "Traditional single-family zoning creates predictability for neighbors. A contractual relationship that they typically can count on (i.e. if my neighborhood vacant parcel is zoned single family, then I can count on that developing in the future as single family). This new code takes away predictability and creates an implied distrust, or at minimum a very unpredictable situation."

"Fort Collins residents should be asked how much growth they want, what the 'buildout' population should be, and how fast we should grow. No more just taking the state demographer's population forecast as a given and then figuring out how to 'accommodate' that," Glen C. said.

And Greg V. said growth standards should take into account more than neighborhood impacts: "I'd also love to see a consideration of the environmental impact of an increased population — do we have enough water? Already the hiking trails and reservoirs are overcrowded. Traffic is already nonstop in town, unless you're driving at 3 a.m. Parking is difficult. How about the increased air pollution? It's tough to even kayak or paddleboard at the reservoir without running into 100s of other people doing it as well."

Accessory dwelling unit ideas

Ray Martinez suggested allowing ADUs in some neighborhoods, but not all: "Implementing the new code that allows for accessory dwelling units (ADU) should only occur in new subdivisions where there is an expectation for new homebuyers in their neighborhoods, or where it was previously permitted," he wrote.

Meg D. suggested a strategy for allowing more ADUs with a smaller impact: "For ADUs, the code should especially encourage those that are within the current envelope of a building, as that would also be a nominal change within a neighborhood. If that's not possible, then adding a few dormers or a small back addition should be encouraged — allowing for changes that are sensitive to the character of our current neighborhoods.

Affordable housing

One complaint about the land development code changes was that they didn't do enough to prescribe affordable housing.

But some don't think it should be addressed by the code: The city "should ask if it is the government's responsibility to provide affordable housing," M_T said.

Echoing that, Glen C. said, "We need to ask, who are we making policy for? What is affordable housing, who deserves help from the government, and who just has to go with the market? Not everyone who wants to live here will be able to. They never have and never will. Existing residents' quality of life should not be sacrificed to accommodate an ever growing number of people who want to live here."

But Christopher B. and Peter E. challenged others to consider the extent to which people can't afford housing and exactly who those people are:

"I for one would like teachers, nurses, service workers, elderly on fixed income and many others to be able to live here," Christopher B. said.

"If you make a median wage in Fort Collins, you can't afford to buy the median home here," Peter E. said, and he gave an extensive explanation:

"Most experts recommend buying a home that is no more than three to five times your annual household income. The median household income in Fort Collins in 2020 was $70,528 for a household. The median home value in Fort Collins in $515,000. That's more than seven times the median wage.

"In other words, people who live in Fort Collins making Fort Collins wages can't afford to buy a home here. I'm not talking about outsiders moving in from out of state. I'm talking about current residents, the people who already live here.

"Most of you who own homes know that you probably couldn't afford to buy it today at its current price.

"Dedicated subsidized affordable housing units are terrific. They are rented out at below-market rates to families that make less than the median wage. This is possible because those units are subsidized in some fashion by government. We should build as many dedicated affordable housing units as we can. If an affordable housing project is proposed in your neighborhood, I hope you'll turn out to support it.

"But by definition if your household is making the median wage in Fort Collins, you're not eligible for subsidized affordable housing units, because those units are specifically set aside for people making less than the median wage."

Meredith Hill Kwiatkowski, in a letter to the editor said the city can't depend on developers to make affordable housing happen: "Affordable housing needs to be addressed very intentionally by the city — use some vision and money to require affordable apartments above commercial developments .... close to transportation, parking and shopping. This would be ideal housing for many."

One idea from Jeff S. "Require one affordable unit in every building design bigger than a duplex."

HOAs

A common desire was for the standard of homeowners associations to be honored in some way.

• "The HOA rules that many Fort Collins neighborhoods have, that dictate the square footage and lot size for that HOA, should not be overridden by the code," Jean Reucker wrote in a letter to the editor.

• "HOAs are contractual agreements and should be allowed to continue, but perhaps no new ones should be allowed," Meredith Hill Kwiatkowski said in her letter.

• Or "Let each HOA vote on proposed changes to their HOA neighborhood. Superseding HOA covenants is very unpopular," Jeff S. said, citing his interactions as a signature gatherer.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Here are Fort Collins' residents ideas for second take of land use code