Irony and accountability

I was both surprised and frankly a bit shocked to see the recent news that the City of Boulder and Boulder County are suing ExxonMobil and other oil companies for environmental damage caused by burning fossil fuels.

Commissioner Stolzmann was quoted as saying: “Communities like ours are exposed to destructive climate change impacts caused by the actions of fossil fuel companies while they reap record profits.

These companies need to pay their fair share to deal with the climate chaos they’ve created and take responsibility for the climate impacts.”

This lawsuit seeks financial compensation for those impacts.

I have lived on Iris Avenue in Boulder for over 25 years. Like many in the community, I have strongly opposed the Iris redevelopment project, which removes two through lanes to create a turn lane and expand bike lanes. From the beginning, I voiced my concerns about the impact on traffic flow — I attended open houses, submitted feedback to staff, emailed City Council members requesting an independent traffic and environmental study and even spoke at a council meeting. I also wrote a previous letter to the editor, published in the Daily Camera, outlining my objections. Despite these efforts, the project moved forward without requiring an independent environmental impact study.

More recently, I learned that Boulder County is selling the large property at Iris and Broadway. While the buyer has yet to be determined, it is highly likely that the land will be developed into high-density housing, further increasing traffic on Iris Avenue.

In response to these changes, I have been collecting traffic data myself. While my technology is not perfect, I am recording more than 13,000 cars per day and fewer than 100 cyclists. Even if bike ridership were to double or triple, the loss of vehicle throughput due to lane reductions will inevitably lead to increased congestion — and with it, higher carbon emissions. The math simply doesn’t add up.

The irony is striking. The city and county are suing others for environmental harm while simultaneously making decisions that contribute to it.

This raises an important question: Does this lawsuit set a legal precedent? Can I, along with other residents, now sue the city and county on the same grounds?

— Pete Olesen, Boulder

Keep Boulder weird: Protect culture and airport

Boulder faces a critical choice: preserve our unique character or succumb to unchecked development. Recent efforts by the City Council to close Boulder Municipal Airport exemplify this conflict.

A costly lawsuit against the FAA, driven primarily by noise complaints from a few vocal residents who knowingly bought homes near an airport, could force closure and conversion into yet another luxury housing project.

The airport isn’t merely a haven for aviation enthusiasts — it’s essential for emergency operations, particularly wildfire responses, as tragically demonstrated by the Marshall Fire. Furthermore, concerns over leaded fuel are solvable: FAA grants exist specifically to help airports transition to safer, unleaded options.

Yet, this issue points to a broader pattern. Boulder’s leaders increasingly cater to developers building luxury apartments while ignoring genuine community needs. The result? Iconic local businesses like Conor O’Neill’s close, replaced by soulless condos. Developments like The Steelyards overload neighborhoods with inadequate parking and green space, while affordable housing remains scarce.

Many of these luxury units sit vacant, often owned by absentee investors, further inflating costs. Commercial rents stay high despite vacancies, suppressing cultural spaces crucial to Boulder’s identity. Instead, we should incentivize diverse, affordable housing and subsidize the local businesses and cultural venues that truly define Boulder.

It’s time to tell our City Council: enough luxury apartments, enough catering to developers and enough dismantling our cultural heritage. Let’s protect spaces for artists, pilots, firefighters — and anyone who values what makes Boulder exceptional.

Keep Boulder Weird, before we lose everything that makes us special.

— Jack Elston, Boulder