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LAUNCH's 2023 endorsements were voted on by its members, and reflect our belief that voting for these candidates and for these ballot measures represents an opportunity to make tangible progress for housing affordability in Longmont and Boulder County.
MAYOR: JOAN PECK
We are endorsing Joan Peck for re-election as Longmont's Mayor.
While Joan earns our endorsement for her commitments to provide opportunities for affordable housing and her work advocating for transit options, the truth is that her opponents are not very strong. She lacks a solution-based approach on housing affordability, and has not been effective leader on council, seeming to lack basic information about zoning regulations, development requirements, and the minutia of the development process.
While Joan touts her record working with RTD, and she does deserve some credit for making Longmont's coming microtransit service possible, Joan's record is disappointing. We are not sure that she is a good advocate for housing affordability, and the front page of her candidate website brags about being against development.
We hope that another term will bring more visible evidence and a stronger track record of working for housing affordability for everyone in Longmont.
AT LARGE: BEKA VENTURELLA
We are endorsing Beka Venturella for the Longmont City Council At-Large seat.
Beka is taking a grass-roots approach demonstrating her active listening at the community level. At the same time she is involved in the legislative process at the State level working to bring about real change. While her main issue is advocating for gun control, she also supports affordable housing in Longmont, the need for sustainable infrastructure, and supports various approaches to multi-modal transportation. We have seen Beka at Community Events, City Council and Planning and Zoning meetings, and various community group meetings. Beka has a strong willingness to dig deep and educate herself on issues and we like her engagement at the State Level.
WARD 1: NIA WASSINK
We are endorsing Nia Wassink for Ward 1 on the Longmont City Council.
Nia is a true leader, filled with empathy for people and whip smart on the issues. She understands that housing has to be affordable and that transportation options have to be diverse, and has expressed a desire to lead on these issues. We are impressed with her breadth and depth on nearly every topic, and between her connections to the community and clear passion for Longmont, consider her a worthy successor to Tim Waters.
WARD 3: RON GALLEGOS OR SUSIE HIDALGO-FAHRING
We consider Ward 3 lucky to have two great candidates working to reduce the cost of housing. We think Ward 3 residents would be well served by either Ron Gallegos or Susie Hidalgo-Fahring, but for very different reasons.
Ron Gallegos has a decades-long history with Longmont and Colorado politics and a legacy, multi-generational perspective on the historic Hispanic West. His previous political experience serving on the city council and in the state legislature offers a practical understanding on the function of budgets and city departments and what kinds of policy and procedures can produce an effective impact. His understanding of the practical realities of business and finance, - and his emphasis on housing and transportation issues, align with the goals of LAUNCH Longmont Housing.
Susie Hidalgo-Fahring is a teacher in the St. Vrain Valley School District and understands the hardships of parents and families due to the rising cost of housing and transportation. As a council member she voted to move forward a Vision Zero safety plan that she knows will encourage a multimodal and transit first approach while ultimately lowering costs for families and increasing quality of life for all citizens. She understands housing affordability goes hand in hand with quality of life, living closer to work, services, and amenities and ultimately our climate goals.
YES ON LONGMONT BALLOT ISSUE 3E
Vote YES on Longmont Ballot Issue 3E. We endorse Ballot Issue 3E to build 100 desperately needed units of affordable housing in the city of Longmont, directly adjacent to a brand new YMCA providing childcare and incidentally a new city recreation center. Centennial Pool is aging, and not only would be replaced with a more up-to-date recreation facility that is a more productive use of the land, it would add a significant number of desperately needed affordable housing units. Adding more housing in this manner will also slow down price increases of market rate housing, helping more people who work in Longmont afford to live in Longmont. Additionally, the location of these new housing units is promising from a walkability standpoint, as their residents will be in walking distance of multiple schools, and just one major block away from a grocery store. This also includes the quality of life benefits of housing in close proximity to a “third place”. It would also provide further benefits The decrease in cost burden of housing is well worth the price in taxes.
YES ON BOULDER COUNTY BALLOT ISSUE 1B
Vote YES on Boulder County Ballot Issue 1B. Boulder County Issue 1B is a critical step on the path for housing affordability in Boulder County. Voting Yes on 1B is an affirmative step to stop the process of systematically squeezing the most vulnerable out of our communities and make progress on housing affordability and attainability.
Issue 1B is an extension of an existing 0.185% county sales tax, that for the first time in Boulder County history will create a sustainable source of funding for Affordable Housing in the county. Estimated to bring in $15 million per year, this money will be critical in providing housing for the sort of people who make communities work -- from teachers to service workers, who are very quickly being priced out of Longmont and Boulder County.
In addition to the logical good that it does, 1B is endorsed by a huge number of respected people and organizations in the community including Longmont's Mayor, Joan Peck, Representative Karen McCormick, and a huge coalition of Longmont organizations who serve people impacted by the rising cost of housing.
This measure doesn't raise taxes, and will lower the cost of housing for those who have the greatest challenge paying for it. If this measure passes, it will be a significant milestone on the path to turning the tide on the ever rising cost of housing in Longmont.
