City Council Special Meeting (Meeting video starts at 1:41) — January 14, 2026

! Good evening everyone we have just one item scheduled tonight and that is to conduct interviews ! For the vacant district six council seats ! Following the interviews will take about a 15 minute break to adjourn or move into the council chambers where we'll have a special meeting to select the person We'll have a special meeting to select the person who will be our new District 6 councilmember

Great. Thank you. We do not have a staff presentation for tonight's item, but I'll just provide a quick Interview process overview so interviews will be approximately 30 minutes in length I will invite the applicant to make an opening statement folLod by Questions from council there will be three questions ounce by council members on a rotating basis brief clarification of information provided in response to a question or in the applicant or in the application is alLod the applicant will then be invited to make a closing statement a timer will be used with the yellow light going on when there are five minutes left in the interview in between each applicant we will take a five-minute break and we drew the order of

applicants so the order tonight is first we have Liana Warren then folLod by Ann Nelson, Kat Steele, Ted Shepard, and then Emily Gallashop. Are there any questions about the process or tonight? Okay seeing none we will now begin the first interview. Do we have Liana? I do.

MS.

Hello and welcome. Hello, thank you. Yes, of course. Thank you for making time for the interview. So just another overview. So we'll do 30 minutes. We expect that about a three-minute open and a three-minute close and five minutes for each question which we have three and then there may be additional follow-up questions you don't have to use the entire 30 minutes and when the yellow light over there comes on you'll have five minutes left so okay any questions before we begin no thank you so much okay yeah all right so if you would just like to make your opening statement and then we can get started okay thank you so much

hello everyone good evening mayor good evening council it is such an honor to be sitting in hot seat today. I've actually already been here seven times in my stress dreams this week, worried about my performance. So just thank you all for allowing me the opportunity

to be here with you today as a candidate to represent my district. And thank you to all the city staff who supported myself and other applicants through the vacancy application process. I believe that my entire life's experience has primed me for being a public servant in this capacity. I was raised in a low-income working class family and I was a first-generation student who did not take the traditional path in school. We are facing a number of affordability issues that I can directly relate to. I know that is not news to any of you all. You are all very much believers in that. And I would bring a strong advocacy for our most vulnerable populations in our city. I know what it's like to have to make trade-offs that compromise quality of life, to simply afford rent, hold down multiple jobs to make ends meet, and live in dilapidated housing. If chosen, I will bring that deep understanding and ideas for how we can continue to prioritize our low-income neighbors' needs and leverage local partnerships and programs to continue advancing our efforts. The variety of jobs I've had over the years has taught me so much about people and rooted me in my passion for community service and helping reduce suffering through care and compassion for others in all that I do. My community is who taught me to be resilient, and I was supported by so many people along the way and truly felt this is where my desire to serve comes from. When I was nudged to pursue college at 24, I obtained my GED and started my path towards earning my bachelor's in ecosystem science and sustainability, where I worked as a watershed and water quality research assistant. It is in that space where I learned the value of policy and the powerful ways that it can shape our world for better or worse. I then obtained my master's in political science with a focus on public and environmental policy. My educational background has given me a strong foundation to stand on in solving some of our most challenging social, political, and environmental challenges. And now I serve as a program manager for the Colorado Energy Office and the Weatherization Assistance Program. That is a mouthful. Our program serves income-qualified Coloradoans with a mission to reduce energy burdens, steer us towards clean energy alternatives, and also helps make homes safer and healthier, actively addressing a major component of our housing strategic plan. My job is to directly support agencies that perform the boots-on-the-ground work of administering our program, helping them navigate the complexities of multiple funding sources and policies. I provide budget oversight and ensure proper use of millions of dollars of state and federal funds, and in that space, I am a tireless advocate for the agencies that I serve. I'm a team player and collaboratively work with my team to create to address challenges across the network and also use every opportunity that we can to gather input from our agencies to help shape the way that we structure our policies at the state level with a very people-centered focus. I believe that this work is very similar to a council member's role and that essentially I would be doing the very same things but for the residents of District 6 and the City of Fort Collins as a whole. I would be a tireless advocate for my community and would do so empathetically, respectfully, and with civility with a goal of helping contribute to a more equitable, affordable, sustainable, and connected community. Thank you.

Great. Thank you so much. Thank you. All right. So your first question is, what do you think is the largest issue facing our city, and what ideas do you bring to help tackle that issue?

Awesome. I have this question written down

The short answer of that is money I really do think that we have extremely ambitious goals and I think we do need to have ambitious goals in order

You know you shoot for the moon and land among the stars kind of perspective

And it seems daily that funding available to us to solve a lot of issues that we're facing in and reach a more affordable

space and and city is being under a constant

constant upset of streams and cutbacks.

I am so sorry. I'm so nervous. Name it to tame it.

Okay. We are under a constant stream of cutbacks and clawbacks.

I actually watched my friend and co-worker's program, Solar for All, be dismantled recently this past month and was really stressed out by watching all of her work that she'd been contributing to for several months be just completely thrown in the bin.

We were able to absorb them in our office, which was amazing, so we didn't have to worry about losing those team members and watching layoffs happen. But we know that that's not the case for a lot of folks around the country

who are, you know, IRFs are sort of the headline that we see time and time again with reductions in force. And so I do I do think we are we are facing some extreme challenges with cutbacks left and right

And I know that through my program We have been keeping in touch with all of the energy initiatives and the cutbacks that are happening at that level and Fort Collins alone

Just lost out on 22.4 million dollars for our ev plans on expanding our ev fleet and And now a bus transit that we desperately needed for that expansion is now being cut and we also have less charging infrastructure possibilities with that loss of funding. So it just seems to be kind of an endless stream of cuts and setbacks.

So the challenges are real, and I just wanted to name that before moving on, because I do think that that's important. There's no shortage of it.

But my upbringing and being raised by those who had to make do without a lot to do it with has sort of given me a sense of restrained and limited resources, it forces innovation. And so I do think that while we might have some challenges ahead that may seem impossible,

they might force us to think about these things a little differently, right? When resources are abundant, we may have a little bit easier time finding solutions and creating things and ideas and bits of hope for our future. But when they are constrained, it forces us to think about how we can utilize less and do more with that.

And I really love things that are like Councilwoman Pat Yandy brought up the other day in a work session before the holidays, talking about how could we use parking spaces that are left vacant for the nighttime hours for our nighttime parking and the folks who would need that and utilize that. And I know that immediately that was met with the reality of there's risk involved and there's things that we have to consider for who bears the burden and asset management and et cetera, et cetera.

But I do think that's the kind of thinking that we have to have looking at what's already available to us.

What are resources that already exist that are not being used at certain times of day and how can we collaboratively move those pieces around to make use of what's in our community.

And I've seen it done in Houston. So that very example of having lots that sit vacant And open up to other people in the nightlife I am in a band so I had many a nights where you know

I could use those lots when we were searching around for parking and so it is possible To do so to do those kinds of things. It's just going to take

Maybe a digging a little deeper and feeling a little uncomfortable in some of those spaces while we do that

Great, thank you.

So what do you think are the biggest challenges facing District 6 and what approaches would

you take to ensure you are representing the diverse needs and perspectives of District 6 residents?

Affordability is definitely number one on my list for top priorities in my community. I also think the housing affordability for renters and we are a heavily renter we're a renter heavy district and we have a lot of renters in our community and I know a lot of my neighbors are struggling to pay rent and keep up with their day-to-day amenities as well and needs so I think the housing crisis we're facing is number one and I think that an incredible plan has already been laid out by previous council members and that we have a lot of work to continue and especially with concerns about HUD programs on the chopping block, like the permanent supportive housing. And when those things start to pile up, we start to think, oh my gosh, we're going to have to start constraining and constraining. But I truly do feel like that has to be our number one priority no matter what and I know that there are a lot of things that we might have to sacrifice to do that maybe some of the things that we're used to having such as our aesthetics and the amenities that we have in Old Town and the things that really give our city some charm and I would never want to risk the character of Fort Collins but I also think that sometimes when we're thinking about surviving through something that we might call a crisis I I would say affordability crisis and with further budget cuts just compounding compounding. I just think that we have to continue to prioritize that work. That's absolutely number one. And minimal lot size requirements was something that I had chatted with Councilmember Conway about. And I know that we've already assessed those things and we've been looking at the land use code. but I do think that that is something really smaller homes smaller single-family unit homes are something that I particularly would be a fan of one day and hope that I think that's kind of a future for folks to be able to afford homes in this area right now there's just really no path forward for me and a lot of the people that I know who are in the same boat who have been working very hard and and trying to just sustain and there's just really not an affordable housing option for them in their future to have ownership at some point. And I lived the apartment life and I loved it and I did my time. So I think the affordable housing that is in apartments is wonderful and it's great. The multifamily complexes are amazing and they serve their purpose. And some people love living in apartments. There are people who do that in Denver on purpose. So, but I did my time and I love having a little yard and I do think for my dogs and whatnot. So So I think there's just an importance for us to focus on, I know we have a fixed growth management area, how can we manage that by reducing space and requirements for lot sizes and ADUs as well. Thank you.

Thank you very much. What core values or guiding principles will you lean into when navigating policy decisions that don't have a clear right answer?

That is a wonderful question. Thank you, Councilmember Hoven. I think that there are a lot of really difficult conversations that have to be had in this space for folks who are balancing a number of different important aspects of an issue. I think my core values are that I very much have a people-centered mindset and I also I am a systems thinker so I think of kind of all the different aspects of the levers that we pull and the knobs that we turn and how those things are going to impact various layers of things all at once maybe maybe on purpose and maybe unintentionally. I also just am a very empathetic person. I am an active listener, and I just very much deeply believe that people need to be heard and seen. And I also think that we all deserve to have the basics, at least, at the very least. And so whatever choices that we make in this space should always be centered in really trying to ensure that that's the goal and that's the driving factor at the end of the day. And again, sometimes that might mean sacrifices in some arenas, but that we all are equally deserving of the same basic rights. but that we all are equally deserving of the same basic rights. ! And also, I'm a hard worker. ! I work very hard. ! I work very hard. ! I work very hard. ! I work very hard. ! I work very hard. ! I think just that hard work ethic would serve me well in this role.

Liana, I'd love to ask a follow-up question about how do you handle situations where evidence Evidence may push against your initial views and if you could give an example

Oh, okay evidence may push against my initial views well

we have had a lot of discussions around the use of weatherization readiness funds in my program and and there is a substantial kind of back and forth because I'll give some context. Those programs are meant to sort of perform a level of rehab in some ways so that we can install weatherization energy efficiency measures, and those would be compromised if we didn't fix things like a leaking roof or plumbing issues and things like that. And so there are often clients that we serve that our agencies are out doing the good work

for a number of days and weeks, and the issues kind of just keep compiling with a specific homeowner's home as they sort of uncover things and go through.

And we are not a rehab program, and so there's kind of a delineating factor there and how we move nimbly in that space of we do have a cap of funding that we can only go to $24,000 per every home with those funds.

And when you do start to pull the layers back and things just start to get a little bit more and more and more, and we realize that this client needs so much help

that we can't help. That has been one of the most difficult things I've done as a program manager is to realize that while I'm advocating

for the client to get the best service that they can and have whatever that we can offer within the means of the program, we have to remain compliant. with our policies and we have to We have to abide by the federal government's laws and our own state laws and so Really just having to pull back and realize The limitations of our program and what we are true mission is which is is not necessarily rehab We just have some funding to make some of that

some of that go away

Great, thank you Before I move to your closing statement, I just want to open up and see if council members have any additional questions or follow-up

All right, see none you can move on to your closing statement

Well, I just want to say thank you for all of your time and Consideration and for all the amazing support from city staff

particularly from the City Clerk's office for tirelessly answering my questions and for the enthusiasm and kindness that they all demonstrated

Every time we spoke. Thank you. Thank you to each of you for how you all supported me and and gave me a bit more confidence to come into this space and Helped me to feel so much more prepared for this attempt and I can't thank you enough for that time all of you counsel

There are a great deal of challenges ahead with our current budget constraints and seemingly endless slew of cuts and clawbacks hampering our city's ability to achieve our ambitious goals.

But I truly do believe that limited financial resources can force innovation. And I know that there is so much empathy and goodwill in our community. And it gives us an incredible foundation to stand on through these trying times ahead.

There will be very difficult decisions to make as a council person, but I believe my experience and my commitment to being a good listener, a systems thinker, will help me to make those hard decisions thoughtfully. pragmatically and with a people-centered focus.

No matter the outcome of this day, I truly just hope that City Council is able to select

the best representative for District 6, someone who will listen to their community, advocate tirelessly for their needs and concerns, and someone who will do so with the passion and

empathy that District 6 deserves.

This is a harder statement to make.

It sounds a little self-centered, but I can check the box for relating to most everything

that was mentioned in the housing strategic plan for the issues that we are facing in creating a more holistic housing stability situation in our communities. And as all of you heard yesterday from Dr. Jill Barron, who came to speak a little bit more about my story and what I've overcome,

I just want to say that I am simply an example of the potential that exists right now in our low-income communities. I did not get here by myself. And I am here today because there are innumerable incredible people who saw something in me and invested in me, whether that was time, mentorship, and even financially or emotional support, and I would not be here today without

them. So no matter what happens in the city of Fort Collins as we continue to navigate an assumed continuation of further cuts and clawbacks, I think that our utmost priority should remain investing in our low-income communities and ensuring that they can stay in our city and

take advantage of the opportunities here because they are plentiful. And because who knows how

How many more young people are out in those neighborhoods who could become the next Michelle Obama or the next Cesar Chavez or the next leading researcher in cancer research?

We have ambitious goals and there are a lot of hard choices ahead of us in how we prioritize limited funding, but at the end of the day, we cannot compromise on affordability efforts because we need as many empathetic, compassionate, brilliant minds as we can to help solve the problems of the future.

And considering the disproportionate impacts on affordability for our BIPOC community members, we may never be able to recover from that kind of loss in our great city if we don't continue to prioritize affordability right now.

Thank you all for your time. This was incredible to be here with you.

Well, thank you so much for taking the time. That is the end of your interview. You are welcome to hang out in the audience if you would like to. So thank you. Thanks, we're just going to take a five-minute break so that we can get the next person and switch over so we'll be back in five minutes

All right, so we are back and our second interview is an Nelson so and as you know We have 30 minutes for your interview. You do not have to use the full time We estimate three minutes for each the open and closing we have three questions That we estimate about five minutes each and then council members can ask follow-up questions if they need to Any questions I Don't think so great. Well, we'll turn it over to you to start with your opening statement. I

Came prepared and then more prepared and then we're prepared Anyway, hello. My name is Anne Nelson, and I live at 230 North McKinley Avenue, which is, fun fact, almost the exact geographic center of District 6. I have lived in District 6 longer than anywhere else in my life, and I don't just live there. My life revolves around the places it contains. My current office is technically in Chris's district, but it's one block from the District 6 border. District 6 contains my library, my dentist, my doctor, my lunch options, my dinner options, my child's school, my grocery store, and so many of my friends. It contains the building that we're sitting in, where I volunteered two Wednesdays each month on the Historic Preservation Commission. District 6 contains Poudre School District's Johansson School Center, Service Center, rather, where I currently serve on their district advisory board. It contains both Housing Catalyst Maine and development offices, where I spend many hours volunteering as a council-selected member of the board. I have been known to sample the goods of your other very fine districts. But I have to say, there's a lot to love about my own. I love it for its history. While District 1 may technically have the original Fort Collins site, we have Old Town Square, which is literally the inspiration for Disney's Main Street USA. So many of its streets and buildings are both iconic and charming. You guys, we have a trolley.

I love it too for its diversity, for its range of people from all ages, backgrounds, and incomes. to me that is what a city looks like. Jumaane Williams, the public advocate of New York, said recently we can at once love our city as it is and challenge its flaws not as a reason for pessimism but a call for activism. Because it is also true that District 6 has some of the highest rates of people experiencing homelessness in our city. and the highest rate of people living in poverty. Our district's median home value is $488,000, but its median household income is $65,000. Home ownership in our district is not in the cards for many of my neighbors. There are so many reasons why I applied for this position. I am a policy wonk. my work requires wide knowledge and specific abilities that align with the responsibilities our community has given you I am grounded in process and continual improvement but nothing motivates me more than knowing that two elementary schools in my district contain the greatest amount of need and all of PSD to those kids stable housing is not something they can take for granted. That should not be what a city looks like. The voters have asked you to make sure that people who work in Fort Collins can afford to live here. I'd like to work with each of you

to make that a reality. Thank you. Okay, thank you very much. Your first question is what do you think is the largest issue facing our city and what ideas do you bring to help tackle that issue

right so as i mentioned in my opening statement um absolutely housing is

by far the the greatest issue in our city um

And as I said, I think I believe that housing is a human right and that housing affordability and access are by far again the biggest issue based in our city.

We are failing our city by not meeting our affordable housing goal. I think I wrote in my application at this point we're about a thousand units behind as of now and that represents close to $500 million worth of construction if you take Chapa's estimated about $500,000 a unit so this is real and I think until if you consider why a city is started to begin with right like why do we have cities. I think they're to protect our basic human needs. So looking at water, food, shelter, safety. And if we're not providing those core essentials, then I think we're missing something. So as an architect and vice chair of Housing Catalyst, I know housing deeply and intimately,

both policy and actual development.

I've developed projects in the private sector, market-rate housing.

I've also worked on many capital A affordable housing units. With Housing Capitalist, we have leveraged resources to create net new units of housing in our community.

I think again, in my application, I wrote that I've been responsible for like 140 different residential units of housing in our city. And I think it's important, again, to consider not only policy, but the implications of the follow through, the reality of that and what that looks like. So, yeah, I have lots of ideas. I think the thing that excites me the most about District 6 is that there's so much potential. we have some of the only zones in the city that you can build up to 10 stories um there's the potential to really develop like instant density which is for so many reasons one meeting our affordable housing goal and two i mean if you're looking at trying to increase revenue and also a 15-minute city experience, then it's not broad strokes that we have to do here. It can be within our existing framework. But I've lots and lots of thoughts about housing. But I'm not sure about what else you'll be asking. So I want to make sure that I've not been keeping track of time at all.

Thanks so much.

What do you think the biggest challenges facing District 6 are?

And what approaches would you take to ensure you are representing the diverse needs and perspectives of District 6 residents?

Well, that's a great way to putting it. Actually, because I think one of the greatest needs of District 6 is making sure that all voices are represented. As I mentioned in my opening statement, we're a substantially diverse district. And I love that so much. ! ! But often it's very easy ! ! to hear the loudest voices ! Which can often be the most well-resourced. But I think good representation

really comes down to making sure that you're paying attention to who's not even in the room.

not even in the room, what voices are invisible? So I think that would continue to be one of the greatest needs. Transportation is certainly another.

One is an equity issue, right? When money is tight. If you have to pay for a car and the upkeep of car and the gas that goes in the car to get to and from work,

that that's a substantial part of your budget.

And also, I think, again, thinking about our climate goals and making sure that often I think it holds true that climate by far sometimes impacts the most traditionally marginalized or historically marginalized communities. So public transportation is obviously something important. Road safety as well under transportation in District 6. I was driving up to a project in Wellington recently on a county road,

and the speed limit was 55. and then I came back and I drove on shields from the speed limit is 30 those roads are exactly the same width. So there's there's something psychological and research substantiates this that when we're driving like it's the perception of the road and that determines our speed not the sign. so I have a nine-year-old and I think about the community that I grew up in

which is fairly similar to Fort Collins and I've rode my bike everywhere but

ask any parent in district 6 right now if they would let their child bike anywhere save for on the trails which are amazing but like to bike to a friend's house it's just not going to happen and I think again like what I was

talking about with zoning, there are small ways that we can make impacts in this district. I mean, it doesn't have to be big. I down the street from my house at Putnam Elementary, and actually over by the Lincoln Center too,

there's painted curb cuts with plastic bollards. Those aren't huge infrastructure projects, but they really make a difference. So that's another part, I think, of the needs.

And again, I'm stressing this a lot, but housing by far is such an issue in our community and specifically in District 6. I think, of course, we've talked about providing more affordable housing, some ways that we can build that in the district. But I think the other part of that is the need to protect or offset the loss of naturally occurring affordable housing. So, you know, for a district that has so much potential, I'm afraid that we're losing more and even like, I mean, I just think about all of the things that make the district what it is. If we're removing small, affordable, single-family homes or duplexes, then we run the risk of pushing out families that have been there for generations,

and we lose those stories in the process.

So I really want to make sure that we're not pushing out groups of people. A demolition permit costs $65. for a single family home.

Boulder has, I'm not sure if they've implemented this or not, but they are considering taking demolition permits

and actually, I suppose when you demolish a single family home, there is a fund that they've established that you pay into that supports affordable housing. and so some offset. I mean, again, the fabric and the character of our neighborhoods are changing, and if we don't do anything about that, then I think we lose what District 6 is.

Again, I think that we have so many issues,

but we also have the greatest potential for

were small inexpensive changes that would make a big difference.

We have the possibility of really implementing thoughtful density.

The district itself grew up with the historic.

Let's see. The district evolved without cars to begin with.

and then there's the beloved trolley that I called out.

The scale and the grid, the sidewalks, everything, it's so close to being this ideal of a 15-minute city where you can go to your doctor,

your job, and all of these things in one place without having to get in your car,

but without changing road safety or also I think about alLod uses in the zoning code I think some of the favorite places in the Mountain Avenue Market or Little on Mountain those are like places that people come from across the city to go to and yet in most of of our residential districts right now and even mixed-use districts, those places can exist. So I think small changes in the zoning code could also

really make this district closer to what the vision of Fort Collins is.

This is a lot of ideas, not in the most organized format.

Have I answered your question?

Yes. Okay.

All right. Thank you. Next question is, what core values or guiding principles will you lean into when navigating policy decisions that don't have a clear right answer?

So I think I mentioned already that I think that cities exist at their core to protect these basic human needs.

And by looking at wicked problems,

which are often problems that at the outset seem like they're impossible to solve because it's

either complicated by technical details or the social science surrounding it. I think when we're looking at policy,

we should start with those basic human needs

and see what meets those the best to begin with.

when the school board, let's see,

when the school board announced in 2024 that they were closing schools

as a result of not having enough students in the district,

I felt as an architect that we should look at the buildings as part of the conversation, right?

If you have a lot of properties, then you should look at what buildings meet your needs the best already.

and then also I was very concerned with equity and making sure that we weren't closing schools

that were just under enrolled because they weren't popular and so I really asked the district one to

look at what they were spending. For example, I brought charts, you guys.

What does the district spend on schools whose students have the least amount of need?

I did an analysis of cost per square foot. At the bottom, using a metric that the district already

had to demonstrate the needs. So the number of students that were experiencing homelessness, or were learning English as a second language,

students who were in poverty, and I think the fourth was students with special needs.

So they created a metric to evaluate this. But this is what our district spends on

schools with the least amount of need. Then this is what our district spends per square foot, it on schools with the most amount of need. That isn't automatically obvious

when you're confronted with this problem.

But what I did was kind of did a detailed analysis clearly.

Took all of the information I could and started to

integrate it and look at it in different ways and

see if I could saw something out that meant something.

And I think this did because we hadn't been looking at it that way.

And I think you have to take all of your stakeholders into account. At the same time, again, what I mentioned, making sure that, I mean,

the loudest voices in the room are going to be the ones often with the most resources.

But it is so important to make sure that we're taking everyone into account and fighting for them.

So then I made graphics and sent long emails to the school. But again, I think to the district rather.

So I think we should again,

focus on basic human needs,

do thoughtful analysis, take all stakeholders into account, make pretty pictures.

but then also think about when there is the possibility for those those intersections I mean something that I think about a lot are you know our climate goals and affordability and

I wrote rather in my application about how when you begin densifying some areas thoughtfully in your community,

then suddenly the income that you can gather from that exceeds the amount of money that is needed for maintenance.

I guess there's a graph that works.

When you have buildings that are underutilized in your community,

but you have a lack of housing, you should think about incentivizing,

converting those offices or grocery store, whatever it is, to housing.

I mean, there are plenty of case studies that show that that's

possible and then suddenly you're making moves and not one but two goals so yeah if this was easy

probably wouldn't need like all of you to show up on every Tuesday night right but it's not

and there will we have hard problems now there will continue to be hard problems but I think

that by sort of considering all of those things that I admittedly just threw at you

I think that there's a way to to make progress in our city and really do that for everyone

I would like to ask a follow-up question to that about how you handle situations where evidence pushes maybe against your initial views of something and if you could give an example

and as you do that I just want to acknowledge it appears our timer has gone out I apologize for that because I was keeping such careful chat no I just in fairness to you want you to know that

you have about seven minutes okay all right I can do that I'm sorry about that no you're fine Um, Emily, could you, excuse me, Mayor Francis, could you please repeat the question?

How do you handle situations where evidence pushes against your initial views? And if you could give an example.

Yes. Um, if you had asked me in 2004 how you evaluate the success of a school, I would have told you, I don't know, look at the test scores. Like, they take tests all the time. Um. ! But, again, as we were then moving into this conversation as a community about what schools do we close, ! there was a real push to close under-enrolled schools. ! And so I started digging into how do we even evaluate what schools are doing the best at being a school. ! Like, what is being a school? And ultimately I think it comes down to something pretty simple. It's to convey knowledge. knowledge and how do you measure that in a way that's fair? Because when a student comes into school on their very first day, they might score really high on a test. Is that a real, does that come from the school? No, not really. They might score really low on a test. Is that the fault of the school? Not necessarily, but you can look using in a metric called an academic growth rate. I have a chart.

Because I made these again for the school board in the community.

You can track academic growth. So year over year, you measure the difference

between what a student's test score is now, and what it is the next year, and next year, and that is charitable.

So again, I learned that by talking to the experts.

I am not an expert in education, but our district certainly has plenty of people who understand this deeply.

So I talked about it with them, again, processed it in my own way, made more charts,

and then came to the conclusion that we can, if we're interested in not only what buildings serve the community the best and the school district, but if we're interested in evaluating what schools are doing the best regardless of how many students they have, then you look at it and you chart it and you can see, okay, this school has this ranks here, this is their academic growth and it goes down. So, and did that for the district.

The point of this is that we're always learning, right? That's what being a human is. And I think it's important to consider information that challenges us and helps us grow because this was really valuable.

so I'm my longest friend calls me an intellectual magpie and I think that's

just in my core who I am but yeah it's it's iterative and I'm always growing always changing and I am never going to stick to my guns just for the sake of it

such an antiquated reference but great um i think we have about four minutes left so we will move to your closing statement okay i hope that too

all right i hope i win for the most amount of paper

sorry thank you again for taking the time to meet with me this evening um having the opportunity

to interview for this position is such a tremendous honor.

I'm glad that I could share my thoughts on housing, equity,

what the district means to me, development, all of these things. I would really love to spend time exploring these issues

and more with you in service to our city.

At the core, as an architect, I am trained to solve problems. sometimes big and sometimes small, and the solutions weave together many competing priorities that must meet the needs of the moment and follow the law. Building codes, land use codes,

climate stewardship, tight budgets, short timelines, and a staggering amount of stamina are a reality of my job. I have helped take projects through the city's full development review process. Most recently, the 15 lead platinum pedestrian-centered townhomes, catty-cornered from Library Park, that are currently under construction. I have navigated building permits, minor amendments, and the deceptively named micro-amendments. I have worked with parks planning and development on new parks like Traverse Park and Tailwinds Park, as well as older, well-loved parks like Spring Canyon. I worked closely with every department housed in the utilities building at 700 Wood Street to find ways for the building to serve their current and future needs. I continue to work with Housing Catalyst to leverage resources into net new units of affordable housing.

These partnerships give me insight into the varied needs and processes of our city, and they give me tremendous trust and respect for the employees of the city.

I am not interested in using this position or this district as a stepping stone. Nor am I aligned with a platform other than what is simply best for our community. My little house in the center of District 6 is where I intend to be long after my child has grown up and left home. this investment of time and energy means something to me because it is an investment in my community and our collective future good representation is rooted in listening thank you thank you for listening to me and the four other highly qualified candidates to me it would be an honor to serve alongside you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much for your time.

You are welcome to sit in the audience or in the lobby,

and we will take a five-minute break until our next interview with Kat Steele.

All right. Welcome back. We are on to our third interview with Kat Steele.

So, Kat, just as a reminder, you'll have 30 minutes overall.

You don't have to use the whole time if you don't want to we estimate about three minutes for opening and three minutes for closing

We have three questions which we estimate about five minutes each just in case there's follow-up or additional questions

So if you don't have any questions about the process we can go ahead and get started. Okay, and you can start with your opening statement, okay

Thank you for selecting me to interview for the district six council member role and taking the time to meet with me as I was preparing for my application. I'm impressed with how much each of you care about being good civil servants

to the community, and I appreciate the advice that each of you have given me, and I have taken to heart those recommendations. I'm excited to see what this council accomplishes as each of you

brings different qualities to the chamber. I am also eager to work with city staff who I know from my board experience are highly qualified and dedicated to furthering the success of

Fort Collins. The focus of my application includes two council priorities as well as one that is close to my heart. As a renter and a hopeful homeowner, affordable housing

is very important to me. The housing affordability crisis didn't happen overnight, and it will take many different approaches to resolve. Land use codes impacting our commercial corridors need to be updated to reflect current conditions. Building codes need to be modified to meet

the needs of a changing city. Council can show support for economic growth, environmental sustainability, and community well-being through implementation of process improvements and removing roadblocks and inefficiencies. In my career as a project manager, I take the status quo into account and consider why things are the way they are, adjusting along the way to fine tune the process based on the feedback that I get.

Second, as acting chair of the Active Modes Advisory Board, I have witnessed how the Active modes plan and the vision zero initiative have been implemented to help residents move safely

around town. Infrastructure that is mindful of the needs of people going to work, school, or to get

groceries is possible and necessary.

City planning that accounts for active modes is benefit to residents and businesses alike.

Pedestrian crossing signals, protected bike lanes, curb cuts, traffic calming measures

They take careful direction and coordination to implement successfully.

Finally, as a queer transgender member of the community, I would like to represent the LGBTQ residents of Fort Collins. I am a visible and open person with a lived experience of what it means to be considered different.

I'm not afraid to stand up to my values and to stand up for others who may not have a voice or an opportunity to speak Thank you

Okay, thank you. All right for your first question Kat All right, what do you think is the largest issue facing our city and what ideas do you bring to help with that issue?

I'm sure it's going to be a common theme tonight, but housing affordability is is affecting everyone who lives here or wants to move here. It affects businesses that can't attract employees from out of town that can't afford to live here or don't want to move here because they can't find a place to live that meets their salary for what they make here. So creating an environment where companies want to come here and be in this community to be able to offer salaries that pay what the city needs to, what you need to make in this city to afford a home.

making a range of homes available. So that means big single-family homes for people who want those, condos, apartments, rentals, accessory dwelling units, all the things that can be a flexible arrangement for someone who's coming to town.

When I moved here, I was looking for a small house

because I knew I was going to be, I wanted to live in this area, and I knew what I wanted, it was very hard to find. And it was, you know, doing the tag of trying to find someone who knows someone who has a place that's for rent.

Streamlining those situations of making it easier to build homes, to make it easier to subdivide if it's a house that's a big house that can be split up. accessory dwelling units that are simpler to create the story I've learned is that there is whenever someone wants to build an edu on their property they're sort of starting from scratch every single time where if we had as a city sort of a template that we could use that people could say okay you're gonna need this permit, you're going to need this, you know, this many for this many square feet, this is what you need. And so people can take that and know like what their expenses are going to be to build that. And and also for renters in those situations that they would know what they're going to get when they move in. Also making it easier for the multi-unit buildings, whether it's a businesses on the bottom with condos or apartments above, expanding that land use code and the building codes that allow those structures to be built at levels that developers can afford to build them is very important. Thank you. So what do you think are the biggest challenges facing District 6? And what approaches would you take to ensure that you are representing the diverse needs and perspectives of District 6 residents?

If you look at the map, District 6 is massive. In many ways, it seems to me to be different from some of the other districts in that it is a mix of homes like you see on Mountain Avenue, trailer parks, farms, ranches, the business district downtown the pooter river runs through district six being the one person who can represent all those people is going to be a real hard job and i'm not i'm not saying that lightly because i know that a homeowner has a different perspective of what they're what they need from the city than a person who lives in a trailer park or in an apartment or is a csu student here that's only going to be here for a few years and is renting a place there that what they care about is much different but it doesn't mean that they're not living in district six so being mindful of the um the folks that maybe aren't able to come to city council meetings that don't have the time or the ability to get here or don't even know that they happen those people need a representation here and just as much as the people who come here and to pound on the table and demand that they get a service from the city district 6 also is an older district so some of the things that we have also is an older district. So some of the things that we have, we have really nice city park. Lee Martinez park is over there. It's really nice. ! But then we have the Mulberry pool which is ancient. Because I know it's an accounting thing and I'm not an accountant, but because it's an existing facility, it's different than the new builds that are going in on the south end of town. And that has to come from a different budgeting concern. And so being able to be as a different budgeting concern and so being able to be the person who is here in front of in in front of in front of the city on council to say I care about the infrastructure that we have in district 6 and that it matters and we are just as important even though we have stuff that's old it's still important to maintain and keep going with.

Thank you, Kat. You spoke about your values in your opening statement. So we're wondering

what core values or guiding principles will you lean into when navigating policies that

don't have a clear right answer? Policies that don't have a clear correct answer, right

answer if there's one thing I've learned from being on the active mode board it is that city staff are the bedrock for making decisions that affect the city so if there's something that I don't have enough information about or if I'm

unclear about what sort of background is bringing this issue to the table I'm

going to rely on the city staff who have been here for years, who have knowledge of how things work and what our options are, and use that knowledge that they have to formulate a decision.

When there's not a right answer, I know it's going to be, there's going to be times when we

have to make tough calls that not everyone's going to be happy with. We have businesses that

have different principles and things that they care about than residents.

And we need to be as kind as we can.

One thing I, the experience that I saw from Loveland when they had a ballot measure for

a sales tax that failed.

and as soon as it failed they started reclosing they closed their the city's park beach and the residents were like we didn't have any idea that this was going to happen we we didn't know i would like to be a council that does the opposite that we say if you pass this that we're requesting that this is the benefit that you will see from it. There will be a result.

It's not that we're going to punish you and take things away. It's that we want to do more. We want to make the city better. And this is what we can do if you let us help you.

I'd just like to ask a follow-up question about that, about how do you handle situations where evidence pushes against your initial views of something?

And if you could provide an example. I try, as I've gotten older, let's say, I've been trying, I try to be more mindful of different opinions and knowing that my lived experience is not the same.

So when I hear something that doesn't, that I don't, initially doesn't match my value or something that I think should happen, I try to look at it from both sides. I try to research what I can about it and just be mindful that there's other opinions. As far as an example of that, I'm trying to think.

Interview questions.

I just think, like, in general, when things come to me that are new, I try to learn as much as I can about them. and roll with it and rely on the people who have experience. That is one thing I think I'm proud of is if I don't know something, I don't spin my wheels trying to figure it out. Especially with technical problems at work, if there's something I can't figure out, Google is my friend.

And I will use you all and city staff and also the residents of the city and District 6 as my Google to find out what direction I should take. Great. Before we move to closing statement, just want to see if anyone has any follow-up questions. Okay, seeing none, you can go ahead.

I'm a relative newcomer to Fort Collins. I've lived on both coasts, the Midwest, and sadly, I've lived in Texas.

I chose Fort Collins as much as it chose me, where I have felt welcomed and celebrated, where the community and culture are vibrant and engaged.

I am a partner, a parent, a veteran, an athlete, and I never thought that my life could be this good. I'm a ride leader with the Fort Folley Cycling Club. When I'm leading a group ride, I need to be thinking ahead of turns, stops, or hazards, mostly railroad tracks, as well as being ready for dangers that I'm not anticipating. At the same time, I need to be listening to the riders behind me in case there is a problem in the pack. I'm only one factor in our ride's success. At the start, I coordinate with the suite who will help keep the group together,

and we have other leaders in the group who know to alert me when needed.

I tell the riders, shout real loud if they need help.

When we get back from a ride, I often hear, thanks for leading, Kat, but I never do it alone.

Without my trusted teammates, we would just be riding around in slightly smaller circles. The Front Range of Colorado has a line of vastly different towns and cities, all laying their own agendas for how they fit into the big picture.

Fort Collins is an example for other communities in how to do things right by including citizens in planning using our resources for the advancement of all.

District 6 is a particularly diverse community. from beautiful Mountain Avenue, City Park, the downtown businesses, small farms and ranches, college students, and everyday folks

that make Fort Collins great. All these people can be assured that I have their interest in mind with every decision that the council makes. I would be honored to represent District 6 in Fort Collins.

Well, thank you so much for your time tonight. You're welcome to hang out in the lobby or in the audience. and we will take a five-minute break until our next interview. Okay.

All right. Welcome back. We are on to our fourth interview with Ted Shepard. So, Ted, as you probably know, you have 30 minutes for the interview and the timer will go yellow when you have five minutes left. Yep. You don't have to use a full 30 minutes if you don't want. We estimate about three minutes for opening, three minutes for close, and then we have three questions. estimated about five minutes in case there's follow-up or additional questions. So any questions about the process?

No, I like it when you said estimate. Yes.

The 30 minutes is hard, but everything else is an estimate. Yes. All right. With that, I will turn it over to you for your opening statement.

Okay. Well, thank you. And hello, everyone. Your patience, very valued tonight. Long evening. I've been in your position. I think I would be a really strong rep for District 6. Bought my house on Sycamore Street in 1980.

District 6 is pretty interesting downtown, Old Town Square west side neighborhoods

part of the east side, the library one mile of the Poudre River McMurray Ponds, Salier Open Space mobile home parks, it's like a city if it were in Wyoming it would be a city

I was a census enumerator in 2019 right after I retired and I did canvassing in Hickory Village Mobile Home Park

1601 North College Mobile Home Park and the Skyline Mobile Home Park. I don't think a lot of our citizens have been in those parks, but there's a lot of humanity there, and that's all part of District 6, and they need representation too.

In my materials, you've got my priorities, housing affordability.

Hope we have a chance to talk a lot about that.

I've got some ideas, and we can get into that in some depth, I hope.

In terms of fiscal health, I'm on two foundation boards.

I'm pretty familiar with the balance sheet. know how to preserve assets, know how to grow and develop a fund. And so I know my way around budgets. I see the general fund is about $660 million. The enterprise funds are debruced. They're a little different.

But I also think I read where sales tax revenues are flat. That's pretty concerning. Maybe we can talk about that.

And I also saw where the investment portfolio looks like is underperforming the market. The two foundation funds that I administer, we're at market or beating the market, so I'd like to maybe talk some more about that.

We have a lot of obligations in the city to maintain our physical plant operations and maintenance on the water treatment plant, the wastewater treatment plant,

electrical distribution, the substations, fleet facilities.

And this is ongoing, 50 to 75 years for our physical plant. And these are some pretty interesting obligations facing every budget cycle. In my materials, support small business, especially North College.

There's vacancies downtown. There's underutilized properties, vacant land. There's even a single-family home still sitting on North College. A lot of underutilization up there. Would really like to support small business. I think I've got some more ideas on that.

Sustainability. I love the 15-minute city. I've been working on that since I started becoming a planner. I don't want to say it's old wine and new bottles, but it's land use, air quality, transportation, walkability, safety.

It's everything we've been working on as planners. But it's a great program. I'm glad there's an emphasis on that. Reducing greenhouse gas. We also would like to, you know, reduce vehicle miles traveled and help air quality with that. Carbon neutral by 2050 is all integrated with that.

And speaking of integration, in my materials, I mentioned that we need to integrate land use, growth management, infrastructure, transportation, and air quality, and break down the silos. Because a lot of times we have silos in our city where those values aren't fully integrated to give us great new neighborhoods.

I think a council person wears three hats. We're district reps, and we're also community leaders.

And we also have what I call mind the store, high-performing government, keep track of things, what's going on in the organization, what's working, what's not working.

That's part of our job, too. So collaborator, I like the vision that we have with the strategic plan, city plan, sub-area plans, team player, creative problem solver.

I facilitated over 200 neighborhood information meetings. A lot of that was mediation, not just facilitation.

And sometimes it took multiple meetings to get a project across the finish line. But I think I can add a lot of value to the council.

Great bunch of folks. Two years ahead are very exciting with the new members. And I think I can be of benefit to your endeavors.

Okay, thanks so much, Ted. Your first question is, what do you think is the largest issue facing our city, and what ideas do you bring to help tackle that issue?

I'm sure you've been hearing from other folks the affordable housing issue.

And the ideas I have there, some are new, some are not new. But what's interesting is it's been an ongoing problem for a long time, but now it's become acute, and that's part of our times. And previous councils have done great work, but the acuteness of the issue is so crucial now

that it's the number one issue in our city. We don't want to have up-valley, down-valley syndrome, where people live in little bedroom enclaves and then commute in. Again, it's an air quality issue. But what I have found is that from a public policy perspective,

The tax credits are the most important. Affordable housing follows the tax credits.

Whether they're federal or state, Colorado Finance Authority, the tax credits are crucial.

And that's how a lot of the catalyst projects get built. Housing catalyst is with tax credits.

Partnership with Neighbor to Neighbor, Habitat for Humanity, LARCH. I don't know if you know about LARCH, but Heartside Hill uses tax credits.

and just collaborating with all those entities, those nonprofits.

Multifamily zoning by right. Missing middle housing zoning by right.

Fee reductions, and perhaps the fee reductions can either be subsidized or backfilled. Perhaps borrowing from another fund.

There are a lot of funds in the city. Streamlined review process. The land bank has proven successful in the past. I'm not sure it's current funding or what the funding is for 2026 or 27 or the next budget. or what the funding is for 2026 or 27 or the next budget cycle. ! But the land bank is important.

! There's another concept called yes in God's backyard. ! And that means that there's a lot of big churches with big parking lots. And these churches have declining congregations and the parking lots sit empty for ! most of the time. Pretty good place for missing middle housing. Pretty good place for a couple of fourplexes.

Maybe an apartment building.

There's a lot of vacant land out there that's just sitting. You drive by them every day. I buy them every day and maybe a little bit for what's called yes in God's backyard. Interesting phraseology. In the multifamily, there is the single stair construction. So you can get more density on smaller lots. And that's been through the Puter Fire Authority. There's all kinds of little caveats to that for life safety. but single stair construction, allowing more or an easier process for dividing lots into smaller lots, small lot divisions. And so you can divide a 50 by 190 and you can get two houses on it instead of one. And the houses don't have to be big. And if they have a public street frontage,

there's the water and sewers in the street. Shared water and sewer services for duplexes.

Right now, that's a real institutional roadblock. And you can serve two units with single water and sewer service, but there's some institutional hesitancy to allow that. Creative fire suppression systems. There's new technology out there. Not every separation between units has to be a one-hour firewall. It doesn't have to be an inch and a quarter drywall. There's other systems. And then finally, modular housing. manufactured housing, and brainstorming a little bit. It's being done all over the state, especially in some of the mountain communities. It would be really a wonderful policy if we could promote modular manufacturer company

to move to Fort Collins and make them here and not have to ship them across state and just pick them up on a flatbed truck and move them about a mile.

And there was a whole subdivision like that called Rossboro Subdivision that got built that way.

They had the plant, flatbed truck, big crane, Rossboro subdivision. So lots of ideas.

It's all of the above.

Thanks. So what do you think are the biggest challenges facing District 6, and what approaches would you take to ensure that you are representing the diverse needs and perspective of District 6 residents?

The diversity is the key. and I'm really concerned about the quality of life in the mobile home parks. They are, as you know, being purchased by hedge funds. They are profit-oriented. The water systems are declining. The sewer systems are deteriorating. The streets are falling apart and their rents are raising. That's an issue. The other issue I look at is North College. and a little disappointed that the market hasn't beaten the path to that diamond in the rough. I remember when we did the river district, we had a great river district plan. We had great policies and plans in place, and the council person called us up and said, how come nothing's happening in the river district? And we said, well, it's in place. We just don't know. And then, boom, the river district just took off, and it's even got some greater potential with the vacant lot at Kiefer Concrete. And the underutilized parcels up there that have little buildings on them, the vacant parcels, the older buildings that are looking like they're a little long in the tooth, I'd like to see some focus on that. I know we have the urban renewal area, the urban renewal district. We bought the budget host. We bought the Albertsons. Great things are going to happen there. But there should be a focus. We've got a lot of public investment up there with State Highway 287, and we've done some great things with street trees. It's a diamond in the rough. I think it's going to happen locally. It won't be in and out. It won't be a Costco. It won't be anyone national. There will be no corporation to drop from the sky and revitalize the area. It's going to be us. It's going to be local.

That's me. Talk about what core values or guiding principles you'll lean into when navigating policy decisions that don't have a clear right answer.

Thank you. On the Planning and Zoning Commission, we're faced with this all the time. Competing objectives, lots of tradeoffs, no clear answer, what's the best way forward. and we fall back on the adopted plans, the strategic plan, city plan, which I contributed to. Of course, the land use code, which are the rules and the regs. But when it comes to some really tough decisions, sometimes it ends up in a 4-3 vote, as you know. And the debate is honest and forthcoming and rigorous, respectful. and that's what being on PNZ is all about and facilitating that and having respectful dialogue and hearing from your fellow board members. But relying on the adopted plans and policies, great guidance. The strategic plan and the city plan are detailed. They're thorough. They're comprehensive. No stone unturned. Great language in there. And that's really a wonderful reliance and you try to apply that to the facts of the case. to see if that moves the conversation forward. Sub-area plans, corridor plans,

whether or not there's an intergovernmental agreement with the county, whether or not it's an annexation. We had an annexation request the other day, and it was the other month. Very controversial.

But we relied on state statute and city code, and that was our way forward. But it wasn't a popular decision. But we have a lot of tools in our toolbox that we can refer to when we have interesting decisions to make.

I'd like to ask a follow-up question about that, about how do you handle situations where evidence pushes against your initial view of something? And if you could provide an example. Didn't get the last part. Sure. So it's how do you handle situations where evidence pushes against your initial view?

or initial or evidence pushes against my initial viewpoint yeah my bias right okay um that's

we're all human we have a bias um and uh we have to remember that uh we do represent more than our

personal viewpoint uh there are some uh reluctant votes that have been made when uh the evidence was clear, but the bias was not happy, but the evidence prevails. That's the rules of the road,

and it can't be any different. So that would be, again, the relying on our plans and policies, listening to fellow board members, and respectfully listening, and evaluating the the evidence and realizing that what fits the facts of this case is that a

certain vote should be made based on the evidence. Thank you. Those are all the questions we have right now so I'm going to open it up to any council members if

they have follow-up questions. Okay seeing none we will move on to your

closing statement. Oh my goodness I didn't take very long. Well I was

thinking that a closing statement would be a little more spontaneous, and I didn't have

anything really prepared because I wanted to see where this conversation went. But what a wonderful

opportunity, and I just wanted to mention that being on the Partnership for Age-Friendly Communities has given me a real perspective on a countywide issue, not just Fort Collins, but countywide, and we're affiliated with AARP.

And we're the ones who came up with the, it was our idea to distribute the book, Missing Middle Housing. We bought 30 copies from AARP. And we distributed them to all the planning departments and all the council from Bertha to Wellington. And now Missing Middle Housing is part of our lexicon. Everyone knows what it is. And District 6 has Missing Middle Housing. I remember in the mid-90s when we were doing city plan, And new urbanism was the big buzzy word. But District 6 is urbanism. That's what new urbanism was trying to emulate. But we already had it. I look at nature in the city. Our parkways and our street trees, that's nature in the city. Our tree canopy, our beautiful little neighborhood parks, that's nature in the city. Now, that can be embellished. Nature in the city is a connective tissue.

and there are parts of our district that need a little more connecting but we've

got a great little district it's it's it's in pretty good shape except for the

the economic issues for the small businesses and the mobile home parks and there's gentrification we have big houses next to little houses that's a

tough one that's a real tough one and it's in my neighborhood as well no real

clear answer on that we see that growth pays its own way the building permit on a house on Wood Street I just looked up is ninety five thousand there's one on

Grand Street that went for thirty five thousand these are building permit fees before shovel hits the ground and that's that's a gentrification challenge so in

fill redevelopment again trying to find some opportunities to solve the affordable housing issue. We've got the ADU issue. I think ADUs can be a real

asset. They're not that visible from the street. A lot of people thought it would

change the character of the neighborhood, but you can drive down the street and

not see them unless you drive down the alley. There are fire department concerns there if you're over 150 feet away, but there's new technology to

address that. So with these times that we're in, it's going to be interesting moving forward with these new policies, the acuteness of the issue, the citizens

allowing for their input, what we can accomplish in terms of our sustainability goals, our affordable housing goals, and growth management and creating great neighborhoods.

Well, thank you so much for your time tonight.

That's the end of your interview, and then we will take a five-minute break before our next one. Okay, thanks, everyone. So thank you so much.

Yep.

All right, welcome back. We are on to our fifth and final interview with Emily Galichot. So Emily just to remind you we have 30 minutes for your interview. You don't have to use the whole time if you want The yellow light will go on when you have five minutes left

And we estimate about three minutes for your open three minutes for the close and about five minutes for each question

Just to allow for a follow-up an additional question. So do you have any questions about the process? No? Okay, great We'll get started then and I will turn it over to you for your opening statement. Okay

Thank you mayor and council. My name is Emily Gallishote and I live in district 6 You may have heard these words before. Tonight though, instead of speaking on council business, I'm here to make my case to represent my district. I'm running for this seat because I care deeply about equity and building a Fort Collins that serves everyone. I'm passionate about the environment, our health, community, and being good stewards of this beautiful place. I moved here in 2019 for my work at the Center for Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases at CSU, and since then Fort Collins has become my home and that's why I'm speaking here tonight. Now I want to start by talking about building codes not because I have any experience or

background with these complex technical documents but because a trans friend expressed concerns to

me about safe bathroom access. This concern was shared by others at PFLAG events parents were worried for their kids. I met with a group of students at Fort Collins High School and they told me about their challenges accessing all gender restrooms within PSD and our broader community. I spent time on the phone with the Denver Community Planning and Development Office. I met with Marcus Coldiron, the city's chief building official, to learn how our codes can be updated while still aligning with their purpose and intent. I met with members of the city's Pride ADRG and with the women and gender equity advisory board our recommendations to council were recently passed increasing all gender restrooms across the city

In my seven years here. I've lived in three different places And this is not uncommon amongst renters given the precarity of housing My friends have struggled to find safe affordable housing and this sparked my passion for better protections for vulnerable populations

in 2021 i had a call with mayor francis at the time my council member talking about housing reform but learned much of this was made more difficult because the city

doesn't track many statistics like the actual number of renters and rental properties that

conversation inspired me to serve on the city's rental housing task force where i worked with marcy yoder our neighborhood services manager and megan overton the previous housing manager

Over the course of a summer, we learned, deliberated, and made a slate of recommendations, including a rental registry, which Council adopted.

While small, this is a critical dependency for many items in our housing strategic plan, especially the greatest challenges, number seven, like increasing affordable rental housing and establishing specific housing quality standards.

I've been fortunate to call District 6 my home for the last seven years. In that time, I've been a precinct organizer.

I ran the March 2020 caucus at Putnam Elementary.

So right.

Okay, great. Thanks, Emily. First question for you is what do you think is the largest issue facing our city and what ideas do you bring to help tackle that issue?

So I think housing is probably the biggest issue. Everyone needs housing and what that looks like for every given individual is different. And this has been a growing problem for many years. This is not something new that this previous or current council is facing. I think housing is incredibly complex and there's so many different ways to address this. I have experience working with the housing strategic plan when I served on that rental housing task force, which was one very specific way of tackling this much bigger issue. But I think ultimately one of the biggest ways council can address housing is by streamlining processes and permitting and zoning that allows for greater types of housing to be built, diversifying where that type of housing can be, especially incentivizing and finding ways to increase infill and density so that we can build more housing in the land within the city that we have. I think it's a really complex problem. We can also, of course, try and work to build more housing and especially affordable housing through all the various partners the city already works with. But I think right now a big part of housing is the cost that's required to build it, to update it, and all of that. So those are some of the many levers that I think council has to be able to impact just our overall housing supply and making sure Safe healthy affordable housing for everyone in our community

Thank you

So question number two What do you think are the biggest challenges facing district six?

And what what approaches would you take to ensure that you are representing the diverse needs and perspectives of district six residents?

Yeah, so I think District 6 is unique, but probably all districts are unique in their own way.

I think housing of course is going to be part of it as well.

We have a huge population of students and renters that live in District 6.

We're close to CSU.

And so again, the types of housing that are available there, and the demand for housing in that neighborhood, it's we're close to Old Town, it's a really desirable place to live understandably.

And so finding ways to make sure that people that want to live here can, while also we have some great neighborhoods.

And so being able to maintain, you know, the communities that people have lived in for a really long time, while also accommodating the fact that we're a growing city and we have have needs.

What else? We also have all sorts of different housing already in District 6.

We have various low income housing and mobile home communities in District 6. And so making sure that we have all of the resources available close to where people are living within our district.

It's pretty residential, but over the last handful of years, there have been updates for more types of multi-use space and zoning.

And so there's now coffee shops. We're in places where it used to be exclusively residential. And so making sure that people, wherever they are, kind of spread out within that district,

have access to all of their needs within the community and aren't having to travel further. I think we have some good transport service in District 6, and I know with some of the optimization studies, potentially losing one of the routes in District 6, which for people that use our bus system, if that's what council chooses to do, and as they go through the optimization implementation, I'm concerned about potentially losing one of the routes that goes down LaPort Avenue, especially that serves some Lor income and mobile home communities there. But the great thing about councils can always update policies if it turns out that's a really big need for that community There's been great bike infrastructure and road improvements in district six as well so that people who live there can take alternate Modes of transportation like especially thinking down LaPorte Avenue and so being able to really support people in district six to safely travel and

Live within their neighborhoods making sure they have all the amenities they need

um emily what core values or guiding principles will you lean into when navigating policy decisions

that don't have a clear right answer that's tough i think every policy decision probably is never a clean cut and dry answer and there's so much nuance to every decision that comes before council even the more simple ones. Over the last couple months, as I've been reflecting kind of on the city as a whole and my time with the city and the things I've worked on, it's been fun to think back. And I've realized in this time, equity has really been kind of a guiding thread in everything. And I think it can be such an important component to every decision the city makes. And so whether it's environmental decisions or climate decisions and policy choices equity is a huge part of that and that's obviously centered in our climate future plan housing has huge equity components access to the city voting rights everything I've kind of commented on really comes down to making sure that everyone that lives here that calls this place home is being served best by the community there's a ton of disparities that unfortunately exist and the city's been doing great work to try and address those. So making sure that any new policies aren't going to be increasing any disparities and especially are going to try and find ways to reduce the ones that already exist and really make sure that we're serving everyone well. I have a follow-up question about that.

So how do you handle situations where evidence may push against your initial view of something, And can you give an example of when this happened?

And so, yeah, and I guess from it, there's times where it might be very clear this is, you know, the best decision for everyone. But in practice, this isn't going to work. And so an example of something.

Oh, so one I'll talk about that I was really involved with was livable wages, increasing the wages here in Fort Collins. And this is not a unique problem to Fort Collins. It's a desirable place. And we have a lot of people that want to live here, but it's expensive to live here. And there is so much data that exists about, you know, the true livable wage and what we really need. And I think there's a lot of data that says, you know, this is if we want to achieve that, this is what we need to do. But in practice, it's not a simple decisions because there's impacts to all of our employers and our small businesses and the cost to, you know, even bigger employers in the city. And so I think I've really come to balance those decisions and understand, well, maybe what I strive for is this perfect ideal. It's often a lot more complex. And I think we can do good work to get partway there while still, you know, doing the best policy we can. without compromising our values but understanding that sometimes it's hard to get there

Thank you. That's all the questions council had. I just want to open up and see if anyone had any follow-up questions Okay, see none. You can go ahead and do your closing statement

Okay, so I see the role of City Council as a policy leadership position

It is not council's job to be an expert in any and every topic.

It's impossible given your scope. And that's ultimately staff's job. It is council's job to dig into the packets, really understand the materials, ask questions, find holes, offer alternatives, and ultimately shape that final policy.

I am not an expert in any of the topics that council works on, but I do have a broad understanding of council's work. I have immense respect and admiration for the commitment of all of our council members

because I know firsthand how much effort is required to serve.

From reading weekly, sometimes many hundred-page packets, spending countless hours in council

chambers, serving on subcommittees, meeting with constituents, it's a tireless job. For years, I've joined you in some of this labor, and while I've not experienced the full extent of your obligation, I know I'm prepared to take on this role. next week is a regular meeting and work session and in less than two weeks is the first day of your council retreat in february council's finalizing snow removal policies and in march the transport optimization implementation you'll be learning more about amongst so much more

while i of course will always have much more to learn from staff and from all of you i have a strong foundation of both the city's work and processes and believe i can be effective immediately. I have engaged closely and worked with staff on the housing strategic plan, our climate future, the equity plan, and much more. I've been part of proclamations, resolutions,

contributed materials to staff presentations, and commented on everything from plastic bags

to parking lots. I hope I'm able to hit the ground running and be effective fast in serving our community. It can be hard to assess me based on a short application, letters of support,

in this brief interview. And unlike our new council members, I didn't campaign for months or create a policy page on a website or speak at panels and events.

I've done my best to present my highlight reel of the last seven years here,

but in 20 minutes or so, I can really only scratch the surface. I wish we had more time today to talk about local food production and composting, worker protections, small business support, campaign reform, greenhouse gas emissions and more as a city council member I pledged to drive issues like these and others I'm incredibly proud to have the support of

so many members of our community including all three of the Fort Collins electeds in the state legislature and both Senator Kipp and representative

Biesen Ecker wrote about my long-standing commitments and to these issues in our community as a whole I look forward to continued collaboration

with our representatives either in my current position as a resident or as a

member of council thank you well thank you and thank you so much for your time tonight that brings us to the end of the interviews council will take a 15-minute

break and then read adjourn for the meeting to discuss thank you

okay welcome back everyone the time is now 8 19 p.m. and I call this special meeting of the Fort Con City Council to order the special meeting was called by counsel at the december 2nd 2025 regular council meeting will the clerk please call the roll

francis here hoven here paciandi here fudge here pinotero here conway here all right six of us are

here um because this is a special meeting there will not be general public comment individuals are welcome to comment on the specific uh item agenda so we do have some people signed up um and And just want to make sure that everyone's talking on the agenda item and not general, which it looks like they are. So will the city manager please review tonight's agenda?

Yes, thank you, Mayor. Quick review. There are no changes to the published agenda. We have just one discussion item, and that is the selection to fill the vacancy for your District 6 candidates.

Great. Thank you. Yes. Okay. We have eight people signed up tonight for public comment, so everyone will get three minutes. You will see your name on the screen, but we will call people down. So just as a reminder, please say your name, your general address. You'll see the green light to start. Yellow light, you'll have 30 seconds. And red light will kindly ask you to stop your comments. So first we have Nicole folLod by Claudia.

Hi, good evening. My name is Nicole Sosha, and my address is 1908 Cordgrass Drive, Fort Collins, Colorado, 80524. So good evening and thank you for the opportunity to speak. City Council and Mayor of Fort Collins as well. So I'm here tonight to express my strong and sincere support for Ann Nelson for City Council Member District 6. I met Ann through our professional work together. Like many professional relationships, it started with respect for her skills and expertise. Over time, that respect deepened into something more personal. I came to see not just how accomplished she is, but who she is. As a licensed architect, Anne brings a perspective that is incredibly valuable to city leadership. She understands how ideas move from vision to reality, and how many careful and often invisible decisions it takes along the way. She understands the regulatory, logistical, and financial considerations that shape our neighborhoods, public spaces, and infrastructures. This expertise allows her to see not just the design of projects, but the broader impact of policies on the people who live, work, and gather in our city. But what has always stood out to me most is how she works with people. Anne is one of the best listeners I know. I've watched her sit with clients, contractors, and colleagues, people with very different priorities, and truly hear what each person is saying. She has a remarkable ability to take complex, sometimes competing ideas and articulate a path forward that people can understand and feel part of. That kind of collaboration is not accidental. It comes from care, patience, and respect for others.

she leads naturally not by being the loudest voice in the room but by creating Not by being the loudest voice in the room, but by creating space for others and keeping the focus on the bigger picture.

! Underneath all of this is a deep and genuine passion for work, process, and most importantly, for the community. ! To me, this step towards City Council feels like the obvious next chapter. It is an opportunity for Ann to bring her wisdom, her dedication, and heart beyond individual projects and into the service of our entire city.

We need listeners who understand both people and process, who value collaboration, and who are more... need listeners who understand both people and process who value collaboration and who are motivated for the greater good i trust am i respect her deeply and i believe our city will be better with her voice and leadership for city council thank you so much for your time yeah all right

next we have claudia folLod by curtain hi there claudia boot 1221 west oak street fort collins 80521. Good evening, Mayor and Council members. I'm honored to speak in support of Ann Nelson today. I've known Ann as a community member, neighbor, and friend, and in all of her relationships, she shows up in the same way, thoughtful, prepared, and genuinely committed to the people around her. You've already heard from a variety of community members, like Nicole just now, um and technical expertise is extraordinary she knows how the decisions made in rooms like this turn into real buildings neighborhoods budgets and timelines she understands codes compliance development review and what it takes to move a project from idea to reality and that kind of knowledge is rare it would make this council even stronger smarter and more effective than it already looks like it will be. You've also heard about Ann's collaborative and grounded leadership style. Her leadership on the Housing Catalyst Board demonstrates she knows how to turn values into action and at the same time respecting public dollars and fiduciary responsibility. We know that Ann brings this deep knowledge of how communities are built with a principled approach that never loses sight of the people who live here. But now I want to talk about what Ann leaves behind when she's part of a project or a community. Ann doesn't just solve problems, she builds capacity. When she steps into a space, people get better at what they do. They understand the process more clearly, they feel more confident participating, and they know more when she leaves than they did when she arrived. I've seen this in community spaces and in advocacy work and shares knowledge instead of guarding it she believes that good systems work best when more people understand how they function that matters for City Council because the best leaders don't just make decisions they help the whole community understand how those decisions are made and how they can participate in the process and And while Ann is deeply competent, she's also deeply steady. She doesn't get rattled easily. She doesn't personalize disagreement. She stays focused on purpose, not position. That steadiness builds trust, which is at the foundation of good governance. Ann brings knowledge and leadership clearly, but she also brings something harder to measure. She makes the people and systems around her stronger. her and that's the kind of leader who doesn't just fill a seat but elevates the whole room

uh ann would be an extraordinary colleague that would serve the city of fort collins with

intelligence humility and heart and i strongly support her for city council and i hope you'll

give her the opportunity to thank you thank you next we have kurt

I cannot sing Kurt. We'll go on to Gregory and then we'll go to Mike.

Hello everyone. My name is Greg Frankowiak and I live at 601 Griffin Place 80521. For the last 10 years my wife and I have lived in Fort Collins and particularly we've always lived in District 6.

We are very fortunate because we have an awesome neighbor several blocks away, Ms. Leanne Warren, who I'm trying to support today. Not only do we know her as an outstanding member of our community and in our neighborhoods, but I'm also very fortunate to share the opportunity to support and participate in Fort Collins' local music and art scene as well.

Knowing Ms. Warren for several years now, my wife and I were sitting down and trying to come up with many of the attributes that we truly appreciate.

appreciate about her personal attributes this this uh this is comprised of being caring and

considerate very kind excited and passionate about so many things positive and optimistic and super supportive and always being willing to lend a hand her application to resume most

definitely speak for themselves and over time in the last several years i've got to see her go through graduate school, work with Emily Francis, get a project manager job, and I've also helped her pull a public event just last weekend. In all these opportunities I've got to work with her, I've got to see how dedicated, hardworking she is, always having a vision, always maintaining ideas,

while being accepting of other ideas of individuals as well. And she always works in a fast-paced working environment from what I see. Now, for a lot of us who are supervisors or leadership,

we see this as having an incredible organizational or leadership mindset, a growth mindset.

And that kind of mindset is something that I really want to see as someone as a city council who's going to represent me. She has quite the exceptional education and expertise,

but we really want somebody who's not going to just be able to tackle today's problems, But to be able to have that 30,000-foot view to tackle tomorrow's problems and foresee and try to prevent issues in the future.

We need that to keep Fort Collins to be maintaining itself as an incredible place.

Because let's face it, being able to address issues today and tomorrow are what civil servants need, servants of the people. And I know this because I myself, as a government employee, am serving in the civil servant sector. I have worked on local agencies, state agencies, and now pride myself on working for government agencies. And the qualities, the personal qualities and professional qualities that I've seen with this young individual are the qualities I hold my direct reports to, I hold myself to, my peers to, and what I really strive to see in my leadership and immediate supervisors.

I want to see it in my city council members as well.

So with that I have zero reservation of given the opportunity that Miss Leanne Warren will be able to exceed in performing the duties of the city council district 6 vacancy. So thank you so much for your time.

Thank you. Next we have Mike. Not seeing Mike. We'll go to Michelle and then Sydney.

I am Michelle Foster. I live in District 6 at 1701 West Mulberry Street, and I am the partner of Cat Steel,

and I am up here today with a unique perspective on how she lives her life and her ideals day to day.

Just this Monday, she came back from an appointment later than expected,

and when I asked what had taken so long,

she told me about a man who had gotten a ride service to his appointment and then found out that they did not provide a ride home.

When she came out of her appointment, he was still standing in the lobby

and she asked him if he needed help.

She ended up getting out of her way to give the stranger a ride home

just because he was in need. You hear about her notary business. This came to be after she struggled with confusion and difficulty with documentation. And she sat down and looked up, how do you become a notary? Researched it, took the test in the day. set up a website and start inviting people into our own living room to make it easier for them to take care of these processes that many people might take for granted. When I complained about mostly students around campus biking without lights at night, she suggested potentially putting a light library at the end of the driveway. way. She led a bike to the vote ride through town just to get excitement for people to come and participate in the civic process. She gave up a more lucrative IT position to work for the United Way to better live her values and serve the community and the United Way partners. She has gotten multiple years of the cheerleader award with the Fort Follies cycling team because of how much she uplifts everyone around her. There's so many things I can't even get in all of this, but in a world where people say, why is this my problem? She asked, what can I do? And she's not afraid of taking small actions to make people's lives better instead of getting stuck on the big glamorous picture and doing nothing.

Thank you. Next we'll go to Sydney and then we'll go to Charles remotely.

hello my name is sydney st rose veneer and i am here in support of liana warren's candidacy for the vacant district 6 city council seat i know you all have heard a lot about her credentials and background at this point but just in case you weren't convinced by these data points alone i'd like to explain to you all why it really is liana as a person that leads to all these successes and why it would lead to her success on city council as well. I'll start with a quick story about how I met Liana. Back in 2022, I had just been accepted to grad school and was attending a Zoom call the department put on for incoming students. While I was eager to attend, Zoom calls aren't always the most productive place for connecting with others, so I wasn't expecting much. However, I was pleasantly surprised when someone else on the call seemed to share my eagerness, which of course was Liana. In a space that was new and intimidating, Liana instantly had no problem voicing her opinions on social justice and environmental politics. She was observant of what was going on around her, always responding with kindness and empathy towards others' experiences. She had no problem raising her hand to voice a question the rest of us were just secretly hoping someone else would ask. Suffice it to say that by the end of that call, when Liana voiced that her goal was to one day run for local office, I was immediately ready to cast my vote. And I like to tell this story because these are the traits Liana still upholds today. These traits are the reason you get to hear all about her incredible credentials now. She works on such important topics because she is empathetic, because she listens to her community, and because she has no problem making a stance for what she believes in. She's been so successful on political campaigns because she is observant of what is needed and has the work ethic to follow through on these needs. Her curiosity allows her to be versatile and what she works on, and she is eager to dive into new problems. She has the important ability to have a voice for her community, and because she has no problem raising her hand to ask the questions that no one else wants to ask. And potentially the most incredible part of it all is that she remains just as eager to serve those around her as she was the day that I met her. As someone who also works in politics and policy, I know that Liana is more than qualified for the requirements of this position based on her credentials alone. However, as a citizen of Fort Collins, I want my city council members to be good people who will support their community without fail. To me, this is Liana. She continues to live out these traits daily. They are the cause of her successes, the reason behind her many impressive credentials, and how I know she would be successful in this position as well.

Thank you. Thank you. Next, would Charles remelt me? All right, Charles, go ahead.

Wonderful. Can you all hear me?

Yes.

Great. Thanks. My name is Charlie Shobe, and I'm a District 6 resident speaking tonight in support of Emily Galichot for the District 6 council seat. Many of you already know Emily and are familiar with her deep and extensive involvement, both with council specifically and with the broader Fort Collins community over the last five plus years. For the sake of your time, I won't recap what you've already read in Emily's many and varied letters of support, including from those who represent the people of District 6 at the state level. I'll just share a few personal examples arising from volunteer work during which I've had the great privilege to work with Emily. First, I've never, ever met anyone who comes to more council meetings and work sessions and engages so deeply with the issues discussed, especially when they're not actually a member of the council. Second, Emily has great enthusiasm for getting others engaged with the city to the point where she actually goes around on her own time delivering PowerPoint presentations to interested groups on how city government works and how to get involved. Third, I've seen firsthand Emily's deep willingness to engage in productive, respectful discussions with anyone, regardless of how much or little they might agree with any particular viewpoint on something. This is strong evidence of her commitment to equity that we heard about in her interview and that she's dedicated to making sure every voice is heard. In short, Emily can be counted on to represent District 6 with great dedication, enthusiasm, and empathy. Thank you very much.

! Thank you. That is all the public speakers we have tonight ! So I will turn it over to council for discussion and comments. ! I will start.

! I want to thank everybody who is here tonight ! I want to thank you ! I want to thank you the folks who are applying for this vacancy and who have taken the time to prepare and to interview with us and I was writing down some of my thoughts and the thing that struck me with all five of the me with all five of the folks that we interviewed tonight is that you made it very clear that local government is not about being a politician. It's about being a public servant. And I think every person that we interviewed tonight, it's clear that you were here because you like to do things to make this community better and that you have demonstrated that in your everyday life with your neighbors and your professional activities. It's just like I almost teared up hearing some of the stories and some of the examples of just what amazing residents you are of this community and pieces of this community and I hope you guys make best friends with each other because I think you have a lot in common but just wanted to show that it's an honor to have interviewed each and every one of you this is a really really tough decision because we're in the delightful yet painful situation of having so many folks who would do a great job in this position

but thank you all great other questions yeah council member yeah i'll start with a comment

just a bit of a sidebar because i know we received one email today and then there was someone who wanted to speak on public comment about this um i just want to say in some different words what i said last night about weighing those that reached out to meet with the council members and those that were running or those that had just won the election. So some thoughts on like why I chose to move forward with those specific four is, as I said last night, all of 13 written applicants were amazing in very different ways. And when you weigh all these different things, I like to think that a lot of what will help someone be successful at this job is curiosity and courage. And you can write about that all day long. But to actually reach out to a stranger and understand that being in public office means that you actually need to be accessible and have the courage to do that. And then everyone I met with, they actually weren't really introducing themselves to me. They wanted to know what it was like to be on council and so that showed real curiosity and so that for me is what helped move those folks to the top of the list um and then i also want to extend extend some grace to our newest council members who kind of folLod my lead i think in a lot of that this was their very first meeting people like the this is um it's not easy i've been doing this for seven years i still stumble over my words up here, especially if it's past 10 o'clock. Um, so, uh, yes, I just want to make sure we give them grace as well. So with that, moving on to thank you for all the interviews. Um, you hope interviews will make this easier, but they don't, they make it harder. Um, spoiler alert at this point, I'm not ready to, um, say a preference. I'm just going to talk through for me what stuck out about each person we interviewed tonight um i do want to say i hope that you all decide to run in two years uh district six would be lucky to have any one of you so this is my third time um being involved sort of with uh this process the first time um i was and I promise not to do any of this like Councilmember Olson I will try to keep it very short um the first time I was with the League of Women Voters and was observing uh council and that was when Councilmember Gutowski was appointed so in that case her um who she was replacing Bob Overbeck had been voted in and was serving as county assessor and then as I mentioned last night back in 2020 something 20 covid um when kristen stevens was elected to be county commissioner um we filled her uh her space on council and that was all online so it was very different as well so what is so unique about this time is we are filling a vacancy for someone who is actually here and gets to be part of making the decision and so for those of us who do not live in district 6 and we didn't have the benefit previously of having that voice at the table so I do hope at some point that Emily can help maybe the rest of us understand we all know our districts really well I do not know district 6 very well so I would love to hear your opinions on that at some point in our discussion.

So some common threads, of course, you all talked about housing.

You all seem like incredible human beings,

full of kindness and with a true passion

for the diversity of the community and what makes districts special.

So with Liana, I feel like her lived experience

of making her way through the system is so valuable. And her energy is, to someone over 50, I'm like, oh, I wish I had her energy. I love it.

Her environmental depth of knowledge, also I'm super impressed with, and especially the effects that environmental policies can have on vulnerable populations and that it doesn't have to be a zero-sum game. with Anne I so appreciate that you served on the board that had to make those incredibly hard decisions the for the school closures but what that tells me is you've got some grit and also thank you for bringing charts that reminded me of an episode from how I met your mother where he loves charts and I was that's one of my favorite episodes and I see you're a deep

thinker and a researcher cat thank you so much um your mindfulness and compassion show through and all of your answers and um i really appreciate what you talked about with other voices in the room and for ted um we have never met before oh there he is he would bring a wealth of institutional knowledge. And his ideas based on those were so impressive. So thank you. And then for Emily, you are probably the person I know the best. I met Emily when I first started on council and I was going to get a plastic bag ban come hell or high water. And Emily actually disagreed with me and showed me and we actually became friends after that because so I know she can disagree agreeably and that is a very great skill to have um it's true you have been entrenched in what the council has been doing and I know you could hit the ground running if chosen starting day one so these are the things that are going through my head as we discuss and more later so thank you All right, thank you any other comments Council's waiting for me to make comments as Julie talked about so You know this is a very awkward. I'll just acknowledge It's a very awkward position to be in because I actually know all five candidates And as Julie said the interviews do make it harder every one of you is a dedicated public servant to our city already in different capacities you are all so involved and passionate not only about the city but District 6 and it is so everyone brings such unique perspective and strengths and it is so difficult it's also really difficult to talk about people you know in public for to become your colleague so I just want to echo Julie I had many of the same notes and I just want to recognize that you are all amazing people I hold you all in the highest regard and I hope at the end of the night that you all stay engaged not only with the city but with me and just know that this is very uncomfortable so thank you for hanging in there so so what I really thought about and how I approached the vacancy is I was looking for a few things one is the way people talk about district 6 and what they think the most important issues are for district 6 everyone experiences district 6 in a different way and interacts with the district in a different way and for me as the representative for district 6 for almost 7 she had her almost 7 years I love hearing people talk about the

district because as for all of the applicants district 6 is the best district and you know it's just nice to feel reinforced in that but you know

When I think about district sex and the things that I think The district is still struggling with and the things that the district is still Needing to solve and work on and who that representative is Absolutely person for most its housing like the rest of the city that is not unique to district six But we have a unique situation and then that district six is really built out So the opportunities for district six and housing look different That's the first one two is affordability mainly because district 6 is the most diverse district in Fort Collins not only in terms of housing type but in terms of background education income age we are the most diverse district across the board so go us and then you know active modes is a big one because district 6 was already built out the infrastructure is already in place and retrograde in district 6 to have active modes is quite challenging because we don't often get new streets and so we don't get bike lanes we have to figure out how to put that in retroactively and finally I would say infrastructure because we don't get capital expansion fees we don't get dollars to build new things and so we have some infrastructure and assets that we may lose in district 6 because we don't have the funding in the city built in for that so these are things that I'm thinking of to hear about you know our question about what are the issues of district 6 and also just how well do people know district six and how much do they talk about it and how do they talk towards it these are things that i was really listening for the second one is housing and i say this one because i believe everyone up here who was elected was very pro-housing and i will say that everyone answered the question what is the most pressing is housing everyone in the city agrees that housing is the number one issue so i really looked at who can talk to housing and who Who has obviously spent time thinking about how we can solve this problem. Now, everyone talked about housing. I feel like I'm going on for a very long time, but just hang in with me. So I think I just have to start the process of narrowing it down for folks and talk about mine. So I would say that when I think about District 6 and the people who really, when they talk about the issues of District 6 and their understanding of District 6, The people who really for me kind of nailed that question was Ann Nelson, Kat Steele, and Ted Shepard. Probably the longest resident out of all of the applicants in there. And then, you know, when I focused, so those three I felt they understand District 6. I would say Ann and Kat to me really understood the issues in District 6 and what that was. and really talked about these things about the mix the diversity the need that it's an older district and and why it's important to still maintain the character of the district with limited funds and availability and then then when I start thinking about housing you know I will say everyone had great Ted had so many good ideas about housing and your expertise and planning was really shining tonight about those things we can do and you know cat brought just really great ideas especially with not having a ton of background in housing has obviously really thought about that but Ann Nelson has experience in going through the development review process and I just think you know with the two-year this is a two-year appointment we council has been really dedicated to housing and I think that if we really want to move into this and kickstart this I think having and expertise and being through the processes that I think I've heard everyone say we need to update is invaluable as somebody who has weighted into development review I only have a tiny insight into what that looks like but somebody who has been through that I think would be excellent to have to help and then in two years if we've gone too far that's what the voters are for so you know but we have such great experience across all of them but I thought I would just help with the conversation of how I was narrowing it down I think when I think about district six needs the focus on housing in the city and roast the top for me I think

I'll just stop there anyone else you know I just I just want to echo some of the sentiments that the other council members spoke on I mean I think I after tonight um i have no doubt that whoever we choose will um you know execute the duties of the office

extremely extremely well and will represent district six and fort collins um admirably

you know there's a reason why this council doesn't pick the the members and it's in fact the voters

who who choose um in a democratic election um every so every every so many years um and so when

was thinking through how to make this this kind of seemingly impossible decision between candidates

that have so many um such different experiences and so much uh excellent um uh knowledge and

passion and and expertise um you know

You know, I thought that one of the ways that might be helpful is looking to Mayor Francis who has been

! elected twice in District 6 and who has been elected twice in District 6 and who has been elected

! by the people of Fort Collins. !

And so,

um, again, like like Councilmember Piggy Natara said, um, Mayor Francis has, I think the best view

from this from up here to to know what the people of District 6 need and what the people of Fort

Collins need. So, um, that that weighs heavily in my in my needs so that that weighs heavily in my in my decision making around this process for sure

other questions yeah council member thank you um i also i think you understand d6 best and i think i i really am grateful that you took the time to really flesh out your problem solving process I really support the folks that you brought up. I also wanted to put in, you know, a vote of confidence for Emily Gallash out in that I think her engagement over the years does show that over the next two years, there would not be as sharp of a learning curve as there might be. That being said, I think everybody in this room could catch on to the job. You guys are all whip smart and hard workers but I did want to lend some credence to the fact that you know she has been in and around council for as long as I have been following council and I do think that that's a benefit but I I think that all of the candidates that you pointed out for the reasons that you you said stood out to me as

well. Council member Fudge. Sure I'll just echo what everyone else up here has said all of the candidates did a great job in your interview. You're all very accomplished, intelligent people that I would love to work with. I really respect your backgrounds, your perspectives. I think you could all hit the ground running and really be a pleasure to work with and help us get things done. As a newbie on the council, I also want to respect the knowledge of District 6 that Mayor Francis brings. You know, like Chris mentioned, she knows the district and maybe what would be the best fit there um if we were hiring for a position at work we'd probably have to go to another round of interviews honestly but um no you all did a you all did a fabulous job and i really

appreciate you coming here so thank you great councilmember hoven thank you very much um i too will make the comment that this is not an easy decision i am blown away by the quality of applicants, your experience, the number of letters that we've received on all of your behalf, your family, your friends, your co-workers love you very much and we are very lucky to have you in this community. I definitely respect Mayor Francis's position and her knowledge on District 6. I do want to make the comment that I, based on what I understand of the complexities of housing, I do believe that I will just make the statement that I believe Ted Shepard's experience is standing out to me. and again I say that in full respect of Mayor Francis's knowledge of her district and also in the company of all of the wonderful applicants too that are presenting such wonderful reasons why we should pick you so I just wanted to

share that so thank you thank you anyone else okay is there a motion

Yeah, I think I'm getting the gist. So I move approval of resolution 2026-008, making an appointment to fill a vacancy for council member for District 6 on the Fort Collins Council, submitting the name of Ann Nelson.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, I have a motion by council member Picnotaro and a second by council member Fudge. Is there any further discussion?

I just want to once again thank everyone for your applications, for the interviews, for your engagement. There are many ways to stay involved, so thank you all again. And with that, will the clerk please call the roll?

Francis? Yes. Hovind?

No.

Padiani?

Yes. Fudge? Yes. Pinotero? Yes. Conway? Yes.

Is that everyone? Yeah. Oh, thank you. All right.

Motion passes. Thank you.

That passes 5-1.

All right.

So with that, the meeting is now adjourned. Thank you, everyone. Good night, Fort Combs.