City Manager's Budget Message

Dear council and community members, 

Developing a budget that matches resources to the outcomes we seek to achieve is one of the most challenging and, at the same time, rewarding, responsibilities I have as your city manager.  

In times of abundance, the process is an opportunity to advance momentum on many of Boulder’s ambitious priorities. In times of limitations, it is a chance to reflect carefully and make choices about the investments that will serve those with the greatest need while maintaining the services Boulder expects most from its local government. This budget represents a balanced yet responsive approach to community priorities while maintaining investments in our core services. 

You’ve heard me say it before: we are in the latter situation, with a constrained financial environment. The spending plan I present you with today does not contain a long list of new programs or initiatives. Instead, our 2025 Approved Budget seeks to honor our existing commitments, especially those that have been prioritized by City Council; achieve important and clearly defined outcomes across departments; and set us on a responsible course for long-term financial success.  

We’ve realigned existing funding in many departments and made strategic decisions about limited ongoing dollars to position us well for the year ahead. 

This budget contains many wins, especially around equity, safety and livability, which rose to the top as priorities through community engagement. Here are several examples: 

• $12.2 million in support of 144 affordable housing units at Rally Flats, Thistle, and Ponderosa locations 

• $515,000 in additional one-time and ongoing funding for human services-related community programs and rental assistance 

• $515,300 for permanent enhancements to urban rangers staffing and continued funding for the Safe and Managed Public Spaces program, a multi-departmental strategy to address encampments and help unhoused individuals connect with services 

• $210,000 to support the extension of a victim services specialist position and hiring of a civilian Property & Evidence position that will allow for the transfer of a sergeant downtown 

• $63,000 for increased training and monthly stipends for the Police Oversight Panel and the Independent Police Monitor 

• Increased one-time funding for the Equity Office, including the creation of an Immigration Legal Defense Fund ($50,000), training and policy analysis focused on public safety and other public-facing code enforcement activities ($50,000), and diagnostic cultural competency assessments ($50,000) 

• $350,000 in one-time workforce development and wellness funding for Fire-Rescue staff 

• $121,000 in investments in Community Wildfire Resilience with a two-year fixed-term project coordinator 

• Continuation of $40,000 in one-time programmatic funding and a one-year renewal of a part-time support position for Community Connectors and inclusive engagement  

• An additional $9,800 for EXPAND recreational programming that supports people living with disabilities. 

We believe these commitments are responsive to some of the most critical areas of focus for our community in these complex times, and I am eager to meet these needs.

Numbers and financial pressures, at a glance 
 
Before we dive too deep in other details, let’s look at the numbers.

The total 2025 Approved Operating Budget is $399.3 million across all funds. Excluding debt service payments and internal service charges, such as fleet replacements and technology costs, the total operating budget represents a modest 1.3% increase over the 2024 Approved Operating Budget.

The total 2025 Approved Capital Budget is $190.2 million across all funds. This represents a 34.7% increase in capital investments compared to the 2024 Approved Capital Budget. The total Six-Year Capital Improvement Program is $807.4 million in planned spending supporting over 200 capital projects across the six years.

This budget reflects the importance of taking care of what we have and ensuring that any new infrastructure and facilities will meet the needs we anticipate in our rapidly evolving future. As a result, it proposes significant one-time capital expenditures to support some of the most pressing requests. These include:

• Capital maintenance needs across several city buildings, including existing fire stations, the public safety building, the Atrium Building, and North Boulder Recreation Center, to perform heat pump installations, chiller replacements and solar infrastructure maintenance.  

• The continued development of a climate- and footprint-friendly Western City Campus and affordable housing at the old Boulder Community Hospital site, on Broadway, between Alpine and Balsam. 

• Extensive energy retrofits and public-facing enhancements at the East Boulder Community Center.  

• A two-year plan to replace aging fire vehicles and response equipment – the cost of which has tripled in the last seven years. 

The spending proposal also seeks to sustain the commitments that voters approved for specific purposes through new or extended taxes, such as newly dedicated arts funding and wildfire resilience and climate funds.  

Lastly, it maintains the city’s commitment to setting aside sufficient reserves, for use during emergencies or unforeseen circumstances. 

The ability to achieve these goals, however, does not come without trade-offs. Simply put, Boulder is facing challenges.

• Sales and use tax – our largest single sources of revenue – is flattening. 

• Several property tax initiatives are creating heightened uncertainty for governments across the state including the city of Boulder. 

• Costs related to goods, materials and services continue to rise, in some cases, dramatically. We are especially feeling this pressure in connection with new construction, but also as we seek to address a backlog in maintenance work necessary to uphold current functionality. 

• The city’s commitment to exploring minimum wage increases brings additional financial implications.  

• And lastly, invaluable funding from the American Rescue and Recovery Act, passed federally to meet the challenges of the worldwide pandemic, is expiring. 

Constraints require choices.

Several city funds are feeling effects, including those supporting many of the city’s important function areas, including the maintenance of facilities, paths and parks, transportation maintenance and infrastructure, housing and human service programs, public safety, communications, fleet operations and replacements, essential technology and more. 

An emphasis on realignments 

In recognition of these constraints, we placed added emphasis this year on taking a closer look at how we are spending money we already have. Before departments requested new funding, we asked them to identify ways they could re-purpose their current budgets to achieve their goals. 

I am pleased to share that city leadership understood the assignment. Overall, the 2025 Approved Budget reflects $3 million in realignments. The following are a few examples: 

• Realignment of $26,500 from Housing & Human Services operations to personnel to increase an existing Bilingual Family Resource Schools Program Manager from ¾ time to full-time. This realignment will enable the Family Services Program to focus on enhanced levels of afterschool programming at Crestview Elementary, the fourth highest-need school within Boulder Valley School District. Crestview Elementary has not had a full afterschool program since 2016. This realignment will fulfill an ongoing commitment to the program and support increased demand for family case management and family support services at this school. 

• Realignment of $91,000 from Parks Operations and Parks Administration Programs to support necessary equipment, training, and uniforms for the continued build-out of the Urban Rangers Program. This realignment will allow the department to move non-standard staffing to park areas where they will have the greatest impact, prioritizing the Central Zone, which covers the Pearl Street Mall and Civic Area.  

• Realignment of $755,400 from Transportation’s Operations Program gas and electricity budget to fund the city’s acquisition and management of 4,500 city streetlights, including a new Streetlight Maintenance Capital Maintenance Program in the CIP ($300,000), funding for ongoing repairs and maintenance ($225,000), and 2.0 new Streetlight Maintenance Technician positions ($230,400).  

 
Additional spending commitments

When it came time to evaluate proposals for new spending, we used the city’s Sustainability, Equity and Resilience (SER) Framework as our guide, with a goal of bolstering all seven of the focus areas: Safe, Livable, Healthy & Socially Thriving, Accessible and Connected, Responsibly Governed, Environmentally Sustainable, and Economically Vital. Council priorities and the Citywide Strategic Plan also informed our recommendations. 

In addition to the highlights around safety, livability and equity already included in this message, the 2025 Approved Budget allocates:

• $350,000 for expanded economic vitality and outdoor dining programs 

• $600,000 for engagement and technical support for the upcoming update to the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan 

• $1.6 million for infrastructure and landscaping improvements along University Hill to better connect and beautify commercial areas  

• Transportation commitments, including ongoing Core Arterial Network planning and implementation, replacement of the Violet Street Bridge by Primos Park ($7.5 million in the six-year CIP), and equity-centered micromobility improvements ($78,000) 

• $80,000 for a disaster recovery plan to protect against cybersecurity and technology attacks 

• $370,000 for staffing investments in wastewater treatment and water quality 

• An additional $954,000 for Boulder’s vibrant arts community, with support for high-priority cultural programs in 2025 as identified through stakeholder engagement activities after the passage of 2A  

• $75,000 to streamline the city’s special events process and support gatherings that bring our community together 

Many more details, including budgets by departments, are available in the city’s online budget book. The Budget in Brief and Budget Highlights sections are a good place to start. 

An outcomes-focused commitment

For many years, the city’s budget has been the subject of community discussion and decision-making once a year, with two minor adjustment points the following spring and fall. But government spending plans should be an ongoing reflection of the community’s priorities – and when clearly aligned with measurable outcomes – its promise.

As we enter the final year of the Budgeting with Resilience & Equity implementation initiative, every program in all departments now has at least three outcomes they are trying to achieve and proposed methods to measure whether their work is having the intended benefits. All outcomes and measures roll up to a public dashboard. This will help us – and you, as a community that we know cares – evaluate our progress. 

The following is just a sample of the outcomes we are working toward, organized by SER Framework focus area: 

• Safe

• • Increased transparency and accountability of police misconduct investigations 

• • Reduced risk of wildfire to vulnerable homes 

• • Respond to community issues in a holistic and non-traditional law enforcement capacity 
     

• Livable 

• • Reduced percentage of Boulder residents who experience foreclosure/eviction 

• • Support for community members who are unhoused or underhoused to navigate systems, programs, and services to achieve housing security 

• • Increased percentage of homes that are permanently affordable 

• Healthy & Socially Thriving 

• • Increased percentage of eligible individuals who are enrolled in benefits (e.g., federal benefits, local programs, financial assistance, subsidies, vouchers) 

• • Equitable access to all recreation facilities, services and community benefit programs 

• • Access to accurate information about immigration law for all community members 
     

• Accessible & Connected 

• • Community members in historically excluded populations achieve higher levels of capacity, comfort, and confidence when participating in local government 

• • Increased availability of multimodal transportation options to-and-from districts 

• • Timely and responsive software support; uninterrupted access to technology services 
     

• Responsibly Governed 

• • Lower total costs of ownership of city buildings 

• • Reduction of the city’s total energy use and maximization of energy efficiency 

• • Proactive threat detection and cybersecurity incident response capabilities 

• Environmentally Sustainable 

• • Enhanced communication with visitors on open space lands 

• • Preservation and restoration of important habitat blocks and corridors 

• • Protection of public health and environment through compliance with drinking water, stormwater, and wastewater regulations 
     

• Economically Vital 

• • Small businesses, including women- and minority-owned businesses, continue to receive technical assistance and connections to financing and other resources to help them thrive 

• • Educated taxpayer base related to business licensing, tax collection, reporting, and payment responsibilities 

• • Culturally vibrant sense of place within special districts 

Looking Long-Term 

While we recognize the constraints we’re facing, we are also hard at work on a Long-Term Financial Strategy, which was identified as City Council priority at the 2024 retreat. 

The long-term financial strategy will guide future decision-making, both within the budget and as we approach major policy issues that implicate the city’s long-term financial health. Several council members are serving on a committee to help shape this pivotal plan, and I look forward to the full council’s consideration on key components of the strategy in 2025. 

The establishment of this strategy will guide the organization toward long-term financial stability and revenue sufficiency, positioning us better to meet critical needs over the next several years while creating a legacy of sound fiscal management. 

I appreciate the community’s and council’s understanding around the difficult choices we have made this year – and am optimistic that we will be able demonstrate meaningful progress toward the many important outcomes we’ve defined, in service of the beautiful Boulder community.