by Zachary Beilman

 Fort Collins’ popularity continues to rise because of the community’s efforts to sustain a healthy and safe city. It truly stands out, partially due to its commitment to supporting the environment and its efforts to contain a diverse set of individuals.  

Fort Collins provides a wide variety of events that are hosted weekly, whether they are hosted on the Colorado State University’s campus or in Old Town.  

One element that separates Fort Collins from other cities is its feeling of belonging. The downtown area of Fort Collins, called Old Town, is considered a gathering place for residents and visitors. 

Fort Collins provides a variety of restaurants, shops, and events in Old Town. The array of activities in Fort Collins provides a sense of inclusion and joy.  

While talking with a woman named Sabrina Richardson, the topic of healthy living, along with inclusion, was discussed as another reason for Fort Collins’ popularity. Richardson, who has lived in Fort Collins for over 25 years, is a Technology Business Consultant at Black Knight Inc.   

The conversation began by asking Richardson how well she thought Fort Collins had performed in creating opportunities to improve the well-being of its citizens. “There’s a lot of diversity in the businesses that are around, and they do a really good job with keeping open spaces,” she says. “Creating opportunities for recreation and just meeting everybody’s interests is something I think they do a really good job of.” 

Richardson attended Colorado State University in the late ’90s and hasn’t left since. She states that she and her family attend Colorado State sporting events, theater events in the Lincoln Center, and a variety of events hosted in Old Town.  

Richardson was then asked if she had had any issues with the city of Fort Collins. “Fort Collins isn’t super diverse in the people that are here,” she says. “I grew up outside of Denver and the diversity was much greater down there than it is up here. I don’t know if that’s anything the city itself can control, but that is one thing that I wish we had more of – diversity.”   

Richardson says living in Fort Collins makes her happy because of how close the city is to the mountains and how Fort Collins doesn’t bring off a big city vibe. She also says Fort Collins has been a great place to raise her kids. 

In addition to the events hosted in Fort Collins, the city is also known for its involvement in sustainability. According to the City of Fort Collins website, the city has greenhouse gas reduction goals for the near future.  

The City of Fort Collins website states that as of 2022, the city’s municipal inventory has dropped by 24% compared to 2005. The primary causes of this reduction are cleaner electricity and increased energy efficiency.  

Fort Collins contains three departments within the City’s Sustainability Services Area: Environmental Services, Economic Health, and Social Sustainability. The City of Fort Collins website states that the city was one of the first to structure all three of these components under one service area.  

The long-term goal of the effort, aimed towards sustainability, is to reduce its carbon footprint and promote renewable energy. These efforts can only be effective with the help of Fort Collins residents.  

Furthermore, an article titled “Recipe for Urban Happiness,” written by Charles Montgomery, discusses the foundation of what makes a happier city. Montgomery is a writer and speaker that studies the science of cities and how they are built on happiness and trust. 

Montgomery discusses a variety of steps and categories that help lead to a happy city, such as subjective well-being, psychological well-being, social relationships, and core needs.  

The article “Recipe for Urban Happiness” relates the importance of community opinion to the overall well-being of a city. For example, the article mentions how the more people participate in economic and cultural life, the stronger a community is.  

Montgomery states that previous studies have found that societies with a narrow gap between rich and poor are both happier and healthier than less equal societies. He relates all these contributions towards a healthy city and relates them to Fort Collins.

According to Montgomery, cities thrive the most when community members are active in city problems, especially in the local government. Fort Collins is a successful example of this. 

The community discussed projects, such as the future of the Hughes Stadium site and the city-wide contracts for trash, all while creating local stories of resilience in Fort Collins.  

In short, Fort Collins is a very healthy and joyful city to live in due to the rise in sustainability efforts and the wide variety of opportunities it provides to improve the well-being of its citizens. 

“In a world where people feel increasingly disconnected from one another, we need to use all the tools at our disposal to create communities worth caring about,” Montgomery says. “The good news is that in an interconnected world, actions to boost urban happiness are also actions for sustainability, equity, and resilience.”