More affordable housing than most other cities

A recent letter to the editor (1/20) contained some misinformation that needs correction. The author wrote that the cash-in-lieu program that developers can pay, is a state mandate and getting rid of that program would provide more affordable housing.

First, it is not required by the state. It is part of a City of Boulder requirement that requires residential developers to either make at least 25% of their units permanently affordable, or pay a corresponding (and substantial) amount to the city’s affordable housing fund.

It is often and erroneously said that developers “buy their way out of” providing affordable housing with this cash-in-lieu option. What most people don’t know is that money is then leveraged by Boulder Housing Partners (the city’s housing authority) using state and federal grants, along with Low Income Housing Tax Credits, to build more units than the developer would build.

This cash-in-lieu program is one of the very few in the state, and provides Boulder with much more permanently affordable housing units than most Colorado cities have.

— Mark Fearer, Boulder

For next four years, it’s okay to say ‘I told you so’

On suffering through Mr. Trump’s speech with gloom, doom, decline, pestilence, carnage and locusts, it is safe to say that from Inauguration Day 2025 (Coronation Day for the ever-faithful MAGA cult) until January 20, 2029, it’s perfectly acceptable to say “I told you so” or “You were warned” without offering any apologies.

— RC Lloyd, Longmont