East Boulder Subcommunity Plan

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The draft East Boulder Subcommunity Plan and 55th & Arapahoe Station Area Master Plan are complete and available for your review. Please use the questionnaire below to add your feedback!

Several resources will help you navigate the plan:

Why does this area need planning?

  • Most of the land in Boulder is built out. As buildings age, they get "redeveloped" and replaced.
  • Subcommunity planning is a once-in-a-generation (20 years) opportunity to holistically plan for change, rather than considering changes incrementally and parcel by parcel.

The City of Boulder doesn't own most of this land - it is private property - but the city can use zoning to allow or disallow various types of redevelopment in the future.

Creating the plan is a two-year process, with completion scheduled for early 2022. Once final, the plan will guide decisions in East Boulder for decades.

55th & Arapahoe

The area around 55th & Arapahoe has been identified for transit-oriented development (TOD). While this intersection and area is currently served by a handful of local and regional bus routes, in the future, it will be the location of a State Highway 7 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) station – connecting Boulder to I-25 and beyond with high-quality, high-frequency service. A Station Area Master Plan for this area is being developed in conjunction with the Subcommunity Plan.

The red lines in the map below mark the official boundaries of the East Boulder subcommunity. However, we welcome feedback from nearby residents, as well as community members from across the city.


The draft East Boulder Subcommunity Plan and 55th & Arapahoe Station Area Master Plan are complete and available for your review. Please use the questionnaire below to add your feedback!

Several resources will help you navigate the plan:

Why does this area need planning?

  • Most of the land in Boulder is built out. As buildings age, they get "redeveloped" and replaced.
  • Subcommunity planning is a once-in-a-generation (20 years) opportunity to holistically plan for change, rather than considering changes incrementally and parcel by parcel.

The City of Boulder doesn't own most of this land - it is private property - but the city can use zoning to allow or disallow various types of redevelopment in the future.

Creating the plan is a two-year process, with completion scheduled for early 2022. Once final, the plan will guide decisions in East Boulder for decades.

55th & Arapahoe

The area around 55th & Arapahoe has been identified for transit-oriented development (TOD). While this intersection and area is currently served by a handful of local and regional bus routes, in the future, it will be the location of a State Highway 7 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) station – connecting Boulder to I-25 and beyond with high-quality, high-frequency service. A Station Area Master Plan for this area is being developed in conjunction with the Subcommunity Plan.

The red lines in the map below mark the official boundaries of the East Boulder subcommunity. However, we welcome feedback from nearby residents, as well as community members from across the city.


Q&A

Hi! This is the first time in a long time that Boulder has created a subcommunity plan so we expect you'll have questions. Please share them here. We look forward to responding to you!

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    I own a building on Western Ave., on the north side, backing up to the tracks. Leasing to my 3 long-term local manufacturing businesses is my sole income. I've invested in extra electric, and maintenance of my building. I'm not some deep-pocket developer. I don't want to sell or lose my building, or have my valued tenants zoned out of it. I'm fine to work with the streetfront area to honor the new vibe of the neighborhood, and at the same time I'd really like some reassurance about the stability of my situation. Please, can you ease my worry on this?

    kelynn asked over 1 year ago

    Thank you for this question! The plan represents the future vision for the East Boulder subcommunity and is not intended to prevent property owners and users from using or improving a property in a manner that is consistent with the underlying zoning. Hope this offers reassurance - feel free to contact staff at subcommunityplanning@bouldercolorado.gov if you have any further questions! 

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    Are you planning to reassign a lane for buses only on Arapahoe, reducing the road to two lanes for all other traffic? If so, have you done studies of how this will impact emergency vehicles and vehicles turning onto Arapahoe?

    Tronmom asked over 2 years ago

    In 2018, the Boulder City Council adopted the East Arapahoe Transportation Plan, a long range vision to create a Complete Street that would include the following features:  

    • Maintaining two general purpose lanes in each direction throughout most of the corridor, 
    • Repurposing the existing curbside general-purpose travel lanes to accommodate a combination of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), High Occupancy Vehicles (HOV), right-turning vehicles, and new shared technologies such as autonomous/connected vehicles, and
    • Pedestrian and bicycle improvements including an off-street multiuse path and raised protected bike lanes. 

     

    Emergency vehicles, as well as vehicles turning onto or off Arapahoe from driveways and connecting streets could use these curbside travel lanes.

    For more information, please visit the East Arapahoe Transportation Plan web page, which includes a detailed traffic safety and congestion analysis.

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    What evidence is there that adding affordable housing units to the East Boulder Subcommunity housing stock will NOT raise other residential and commercial rents in the same area?

    JoeUser asked almost 4 years ago

    This is a great question. There is currently no proposal for adding affordable units to East Boulder, but this is one of the city-wide goals with potential for implementation in the subcommunity. 

    Future phases of work will analyze the potential impacts of land use changes. Changes in rent would be a great impact to test and we will add this to our list! 

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    We live near Eisenhower Elementary and there has been a significant increase in traffic in the residential areas. A lot of it is due to on going construction in the area bringing in increased trucks and the personal vehicles of the workers. The neighbor is being used as pass through area.There are also new residents moving into the area. Speeding has become increasingly common which is significant worry not only because of the school children, but regular walkers and bicyclists. Now that school is in session, I see even more speeding with parents dropping off and picking up their children. It's an older neighborhood with apparently no rules about keeping intersections clear of sight blocking vegetation, thus creating serious blind spots at intersections and around bends. As East Boulder continues to grow, and traffic congestion increases, what kind of plans are being put in place to mitigate the speeding issue as well as ensure clear unobstructed views for drivers and safety for all.

    cindy asked about 4 years ago

    Thanks for your comments and concerns about issues in East Boulder.

    While the area you mentioned isn’t part of this study, we do want to share a couple of programs that might help address your concerns:

    The City has a Neighborhood Speed Management Program (NSMP) to help slow down speeding drivers on residential streets. The program has four components: education, enforcement, engineering, and evaluation. If you register for the program you will receive access to education and enforcement tools immediately. To register for the NSMP, please visit the NSMP webpage or contact Ryan Noles, Transportation Planner, at nolesr@bouldercolorado.gov or (720) 564-2396.

    If you are interested in engineered speed management devices like speed humps or traffic circles, you will need to complete a neighborhood petition. Once you complete the petition, city staff will begin evaluating speeds and traffic volumes on your street to determine if it is eligible for engineering through the NSMP. This process occurs on an annual basis, with an application deadline in May of each year.

    Regarding your concern about reduced visibility at intersections due to encroaching vegetation, please visit Inquire Boulder on the city’s website to submit a code enforcement request for overgrown sidewalk obstructions. Inquire Boulder is a great way to reach the appropriate staff for a myriad of issues.


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    There are many performance artists working in this light industrial area. There are several theaters too; The Spark, Theater O, BDT Stage, etc., and performance spaces. Are you going to help us develop an E-Bo Arts District?

    JoeUser asked about 4 years ago

    Thanks for this great question!  We have heard from many local artists and creative talent about how important East Boulder’s industrial spaces and performance venues are for the arts and cultural community. Today, there is no formal process for creating an arts district in Boulder, but we do have precedent in the North Boulder Art District. If there is community interest in forming an arts district, it’s certainly something that we could explore with local artists and property owners. For more information, please contact subcommunityplanning@bouldercolorado.gov.


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    I learned of the community outreach events to late to attend. I want to make sure I am able to represent views on both youth and equitable access to nature and the outdoors as part of the plan. I work at Thorne Nature Experience, which operated a Nature Center at Sombrero Marsh (directly adjacent to the subcommunity plan area) and is a site that could be impacted by planning (hopefully will be positively impacted). Further, our organization is eager to promote design and development which promotes connection to nature for ALL youth in our community as a means of impacting their health and well being and building the next generation of earth stewards. How can I ensure these viewpoints are considered, both of which appear to be in alignment with goals from the proposed OSMP master plan and the Cities Parks and Rec, Equity, and Human Services work/programs, as the process moves forward.

    KDOFROSES asked about 4 years ago

    Hi there!  Thank you for your interest in the project! The East Boulder subcommunity is home to some great natural assets and the confluence of many of our area creeks. The protection of, sensitivity to and connection with the subcommunity’s ecosystems will be a very important aspect of this planning process.  It would be great to connect with local area specialists to discuss this further. Please feel free to contact our team directly at subcommunityplanning@bouldercolorado.gov.  The project is also engaging Growing Up Boulder to incorporate youth voices and experiences into the planning process. We believe Thorne Nature Experience has worked with Growing Up Boulder before. We’d love to talk about the possibility of perhaps partnering on some youth engagement with Thorne.


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    why isnt there more mixed use residential housing planned?

    mkmarland asked about 4 years ago

    Thanks for your question! Right now, the planning team and the East Boulder Working Group are assessing the subcommunity’s existing conditions, needs, challenges and opportunities. There are currently no city plans that identify land use changes in this area, but this topic will be explored with the community as part of this process. Design Quality and Placemaking is a focus area of this planning effort and we will be engaging the community to discuss different types of land uses, densities, building products, heights and styles in the future.


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    Will new housing follow design standards? Some years ago I participated in a study about development in Boulder and many people gave feedback about wanted better designs than the modern, high-density urban style going up across the country (including Boulder and Denver). Many in the community do not feel that this urban style fits the character of this town, and is changing it into a less attractive, less walkable, cookie-cutter city. We also expressed a desire for lower building height. However, I keep seeing modern, tall housing going up around the city anyway. For example, S'park on Valmont, and housing at Pearl and 3oth, tall urban hotels on Canyon at 28th St., etc. It seems the City is not putting any limits on this style of urban housing.

    beep asked about 4 years ago

    Thanks for your question! Right now, the planning team and East Boulder Working Group are assessing the subcommunity’s existing conditions, needs, challenges and opportunities. There are currently no city plans for new housing in East Boulder, but this topic will be explored with the community. Design Quality and Placemaking is a focus area of this planning effort and we will be engaging the community to discuss different types of building products, heights and styles in the future. Please check out our project website for upcoming engagement opportunities: https://bouldercolorado.gov/planning/east-boulder


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    How do I share my concerns? Polls often are geared to a goal already set and do not let us provide personal input.

    SADDAS asked about 4 years ago

    So glad you’re interested in sharing your concerns about East Boulder!  We have a couple of ways you can get in touch:

    If you would like to share your concerns with the planning team, you can always reach us via email at: subcommunityplanning@bouldercolorado.gov

    The project is supported by the EastBoulder Working Group, a 22-member group of area stakeholders who are collaborating with the planning team, area residents, land owners, business owners and workers to develop the plan. You can send your thoughts to working group members by using this online form:
    Working Group Contact Form

    If you want to share your thoughts with other Boulderites, you’re in the right place! BeHeardBoulder is a great place to post comments.


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    Is a Public Library being considered for East Boulder? Is a Rec Center being considered for East Boulder?

    Cynthia asked about 4 years ago

    Great question! Right now, the planning team and East Boulder Working Group are assessing the subcommunity’s existing conditions, needs, challenges and opportunities. We haven’t yet discussed recommendations for new public facilities in the area, but this doesn’t mean that it won’t be considered in the future. Valmont City Park is located in the East Boulder subcommunity. In 2015, Parks and Recreation completed a Concept Plan for future improvements to this park. Please check out the plan to see some ideas about expanded public facilities at the park: Valmont City Park Concept Plan


Page last updated: 22 Jun 2022, 10:27 AM