Heads Up Dec. 1, 2023

Update on regional minimum wage evaluation and collaboration

Earlier this year, the Boulder County Consortium of Cities agreed to consider raising the local minimum wage in their communities, as allowed by state law. Elected officials from various cities determined a need for public involvement and economic data in order to make an informed decision on such a change. To advance regional conversations on minimum wage, two multijurisdictional teams have been meeting since August to scope next steps including an economic analysis and community engagement. The scoping teams have included one staff member from each of the five participating communities, members of Chambers of Commerce, members of the Self Sufficiency Wage Coalition, and members of nonprofits.

Our four partner municipalities have been asked to consider a cost-sharing intergovernmental agreement (IGA) for the economic analysis request for proposals (RFP), for which Longmont will be the fiscal agent. To date, the Longmont City Council, Erie Board of Trustees, and Lafayette City Council have voted to support the Minimum Wage cost sharing IGA as written. The Louisville City Council is considering the IGA on Dec. 5. The analysis is projected to cost $125,000, and cost allocation for each community is based on 2022 total general revenues.

Longmont has released the request for RFP for a regional minimum wage economic analysis. This analysis, which will occur in the first half of 2024, will analyze potential economic effects of increasing regional minimum wage on local businesses, employers, workers, and overall local socio-economic indicators. The results of the analysis should also include recommended escalation schedules and indexing methods for consideration that will be presented in the summer of 2024.

The five communities will also be completing additional community engagement in 2024 to inform decision makers in each jurisdiction as they decide if and how to move forward with ordinances regarding local minimum wage. With these milestones approaching completion, partners are discussing implementation needs such as coordinating external communications, consultant management, and evolving collaboration structures among the municipalities.

The anticipated decision on raising the minimum wage would happen in the fall for implementation in January of 2025, if approved.

For more information, please contact Taylor Reimann, Circular Economy Senior Program Manager, at reimannt@bouldercolorado.gov.

City starts issuing citations for parking garage violations

On Oct. 1, the city transitioned to the Metropolis gateless system in all five downtown BoulderPark garages. Gateless allows for seamless entry and exit without waiting in line or keeping track of a physical ticket. Parking sessions begin and end when community members drive in and out of garages. Payment is automatically charged.

Community members have been encouraged to register for the system by visiting app.metropolis.io or by scanning QR code signage located throughout all garages. Since implementing gateless in October, a total of five-and-a-half weeks were given to allow community members time to sign up for the new system without being charged for parking violations. During the time before going live and throughout the first five-and-a-half weeks, 40,000 community members registered their vehicles with Metropolis.

On Nov. 8, Metropolis turned on citations for the garages. Individuals who park without registering their vehicle and setting up a payment method will receive citation letters in the mail. All first-time citations can be waived by following the dispute process with Metropolis and registering for an account. Subsequent violations will require community members to pay $30 plus the cost of the parking session in which their vehicle was in the garage. The $30 garage violation fee is equivalent to the fine for failure to pay for on-street parking.

For more information about gateless garages and parking citations, please contact Samantha Bromberg with Community Vitality at brombergs@bouldercolorado.gov.

Regards,

Nuria