When we started this journey to learn more about Fort Collins’ Land Use Code, I was not really sure what to expect. I presumed it would be pretty straightforward; we would learn about the story of the Land Development Code, what had happened and what was to come next.

I never expected that a Land Development Code in a mid-sized town in Northern Colorado could get so political and controversial but that is what I have discovered.  

I have unearthed much more about the Land Development Code, the players involved, and everything that has happened than I expected I would. I am still working on securing some interviews with relevant parties and in the meantime I wanted to give an update on everything that has happened so far and to also give an update on what I am watching in the coming weeks. 

First, we started with an introduction of the Land Use Code, then we moved to a timeline of the code, and we talked about the Growth Management Area. 

From there we went to the stakeholders in the Land Development Code, we talked to members of the business community and got their perspective, and most recently we took a look at the Land Use Bill, the latest twist in this story.  

The City of Fort Collins has made minor updates to the Land Use Code throughout the years but they re-wrote the code to what they believed would meet housing needs and the new code was named the Land Development Code. 

The Land Development Code, like many government documents, is extremely long and complicated, filled with technical jargon. With documents this large and complex, it is easy to see how public opinion can be swayed one way or the other, if the city does not provide simpler ways to digest it. 

There is never one side to a story. Some groups of people, such as FoCo Forward said that from the beginning, the city had conducted plenty of outreach and civil participation when forming the code. 

Other groups, such as the Fort Collins Chamber of Commerce, said that the city did a good job at the beginning when they were forming the code, but could have done a better job explaining what the document was at the end of the process. Even further, some said that at no point in the process was the city transparent. 

Once the city of Fort Collins released the new code, a citizen group was formed to overturn it and overturn it they did. 

But now it all might be for naught because Governor Polis and state Democrats have introduced a Land Use Bill that is extremely similar to the Land Development Code and it will be much harder to stop this legislation than it was to stop the Land Development Code.  

If the Land Use Bill gets signed into law, a more likely than not scenario, housing in Fort Collins would look like it would under the Land Development Code but perhaps even differently, because the Land Use Bill would eliminate U+2 in Fort Collins.

So we had a nearly two year long process to rewrite the Land Use Code into the Land Development Code in which a citizen group was formed to overturn the code and a citizen group was formed to support the Land Development Code and while the City has recently announced that they will start conversations around the Land Use Code again, the state has essentially said they will take care of it through their action. 

 All the while, ASCSU is going full steam ahead to try to get the city to overturn U+2, seemingly before the state does. ASCSU elections also ended today, with every candidate promising to overturn U+2. 

It is important to remember that in the Land Development Code, there was no mention of U+2, despite its effect on housing supply. 

ASCSU also hosted a student rally at Fort Collins City Hall last night to speak in support of overturning U+2. More on that soon. 

There is a lot going on these days with the Land Development Code and housing, not just in Fort Collins, but in Colorado.

I’ll do my best to keep you updated on everything that happens and what to watch for. Until then, feel free to reach me at michael.stella@colostate.edu or @Michaelstella_.