HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/17/2024 - NATURAL RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD - AGENDA - Regular MeetingNatural Resources Advisory Board
REGULAR MEETING – April 17, 2024
Location: 300 Laporte Ave. and via Zoom - https://fcgov.zoom.us/j/94115567733
6:15 CALL TO ORDER / ROLL CALL
1.AGENDA REVIEW
2.COMMUNITY MEMBER PARTICIPATION
3.APPROVAL OF MINUTES – FEBRUARY & MARCH
4.NEW BUSINESS
6:15 – 7:45 Welcome New Members and Review 2024 NRAB Workplan
NRAB co-chair, Kelly Stewart, will lead an informal meeting to facilitate current and new member
introductions and build Board familiarity. City Council liaison, Kelly Ohlson, will join the Board to
discuss the role of the Natural Resources Advisory Board and how its 2024 Workplan aligns with
Council Priorities and the City’s Strategic Plan. A welcome packet with detailed information for
members has been published with this agenda. (Discussion)
5.OTHER BUSINESS / UPDATES
•Board Member Reports
•2024 Super Issues Meetings of Fort Collins Boards and Commissions will be held at the
Lincoln Center. The dates are as follows:
Monday, June 10th (Founder's Room)
Monday, September 9th (Founder's Room)
•In-person training for new board and commission members to take place in Council
Chambers on April 22nd. Current members welcome to attend.
Required: Code of Conduct and Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy
•Six Month Calendar Review https://www.fcgov.com/cityclerk/planning-calendar.php
•Revisit action items from previous meetings & preview of next meeting
City Websites with Updates:
•Natural Resources Advisory Board webpage: https://www.fcgov.com/cityclerk/natural-resources.php
•Our Climate Future: https://ourcity.fcgov.com/ourclimatefuture
6.ADJOURN
NRAB has identified the following areas of
specific interest in 2024, with an overall
view of integrating the principles of
sustainability in each target area:
Our Climate Future
Water Resources
Waste Reduction and Recycling
Night Sky Protection and Outdoor Lighting
Requirements
Rights of Nature for Cache la Poudre River
Equity and Environmental Justice
15-Minute City Concept Priority
Transportation Planning
Resilient Urban Forest
Circular Economy
Nature in the City
Local Agriculture
Oil and Gas
NATURAL
RESOURCES
ADVISORY
BOARD
The Natural Resources Advisory
Board (NRAB) serves as an
advisor to the Fort Collins City
Council regarding sustainability
policy and programs to achieve
the goals and visionary "Big
Moves" for Our Climate Future.
This board advises on many
aspects of community
resilience and sustainability
with a focus on water quality
and availability for fish, wildlife
and people, greenhouse gas
mitigation, waste reduction and
recycling, sustainable behavior
change, and supporting the
City's commitment to
environmental justice.
Scan for more info.
1. OPERATIONALIZE CITY RESOURCES
TO BUILD AND PRESERVE
AFFORDABLE HOUSING:
Not everyone in our community has
access to healthy, stable housing, and we
are currently not meeting our affordable
housing production goal. Limited highly
competitive funding, rapidly increasing
costs, long development timelines, and
historic under-production of housing units
have led to severe housing availability and
affordability issues in Fort Collins and many
areas around the State of Colorado.
2. IMPROVE HUMAN AND SOCIAL
HEALTH FOR VULNERABLE
POPULATIONS:
Obstacles and barriers exist that impede
access to services for our underserved
community members. We need to work
with our regional partners and invest in a
robust and accessible safety net to create
conditions where one is not needed.
Existing oil and gas wells in and around
Fort Collins cause harmful pollution and
have negative environmental and human
health impacts.
3. ADVANCE A 15-MINUTE CITY BY
IGNITING NEIGHBORHOOD CENTERS:
Market factors, limited tools and programs,
ownership patterns and rising development
costs hinder us from accelerating our goal
for everyone to have daily goods, services
and transit within a 15-minute walk or bike
ride from their home.
4. PURSUE AN INTEGRATED,
INTENTIONAL APPROACH TO
ECONOMIC HEALTH:
Good jobs and opportunities for
economic mobility are missing for many
in our community, particularly those
from underserved and underrepresented
populations. Processes related to doing
business in the City of Fort Collins can
be unclear, unnecessarily complex, and
unfriendly to business customers.
5. ACCELERATE ZERO WASTE
INFRASTRUCTURE AND POLICIES:
Fort Collins is currently missing the
nearby infrastructure needed to meet its
commitments to becoming a Zero Waste
and Carbon Neutral community. Policies
and programs for diverting material
away from landfills are dependent upon
viable, community-scale facilities for
recycling, composting, and other waste
diversion actions.
6. REDUCE CLIMATE POLLUTION
AND AIR POLLUTION THROUGH
BEST PRACTICES, EMPHASIZING
ELECTRIFICATION:
Building energy use accounts for over 2/3
of the community emissions inventory;
vehicle transportation emissions account
for 25%; small engines (such as lawn and
garden equipment) contribute to both local
Greenhouse Gas emissions and air pollution;
and the North Front Range is in a severe
non-attainment zone for air quality under
the Clean Air Act. Without significantly
reducing emissions from these sectors, it
will be impossible to improve air quality
and meet Council-adopted climate goals.
7. PROTECT COMMUNITY WATER
SYSTEMS IN AN INTEGRATED WAY
TO ENSURE RESILIENT WATER
RESOURCES AND HEALTHY
WATERSHEDS:
Resilient water resources and healthy
watersheds depend on complex systems
and a diverse network of relationships
and regional partners. The water utility of
the future must incorporate a One Water
approach to deliver equitable solutions to
meet the future challenges of water scarcity,
quality and affordability.
8. ADVANCE A 15-MINUTE CITY BY
ACCELERATING OUR SHIFT TO
ACTIVE MODES:
Multiple departments and funding
sources are necessary to implement the
Active Modes Plan and Vision Zero Plan,
with an emphasis on Safe Routes to School.
9. DEVELOP A HUGHES SITE
MASTER PLAN:
In accordance with the voter-approved
ballot measure, the City acquired the 164-
acre Hughes site in summer 2023. After
conducting initial general public outreach
and identifying conflicting interests and
desires, Council will engage in an inclusive
process to develop a site plan for future use.
10. MAKE GOVERNMENT MORE
ACCESSIBLE, APPROACHABLE
AND FUN:
Our evolving community and
ever-changing media/communications
landscape requires an innovative approach
to reduce barriers and ensure everyone
has access to timely, relevant and accurate
information and opportunities to connect
with their local government and community
in meaningful ways.
11. MODERNIZE AND UPDATE THE
CITY CHARTER:
Although small parts of the Charter get
reviewed and updated on a regular basis,
due to changes in state laws and election
procedures, there is a need to modernize
and update the City Charter, which has not
been done in a comprehensive way in over
25 years.
2024 - 2026 COUNCIL PRIORITIES
fcgov.com/council
24-26241
CONNECT WITH YOURCOUNCIL
24-26195
jarndt@fcgov.com
MAYOR
MAYOR PRO TEM
fcgov.com/council
Jeni Arndt
efrancis@fcgov.com
Emily Francis
DISTRICT 6
sgutowsky@fcgov.com
Susan Gutowsky
DISTRICT 1
jpignataro@fcgov.com
Julie Pignataro
DISTRICT 2
tcanonico@fcgov.com
Tricia Canonico
DISTRICT 3
mpotyondy@fcgov.com
Melanie Potyondy
DISTRICT 4
kohlson@fcgov.com
Kelly Ohlson
DISTRICT 5
Fort Collins City Councilmembers are your elected
representatives and they are eager to talk about the
issues that matter to you. Connect with your Council
representative by email, at their Listening Sessions,
or during public comment at City Council meetings.
We want to hear from you!
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HARMONY
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 1
2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
High Performing
Government
Environmental
Health
Safe
Community
Culture
& Recreation
Economic
Health
Neighborhood &
Community Vitality
Transportation
& Mobility
2 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 3
Contents
I. Introduction 6
II. Summary of Strategic Objectives 8
1. Strategic Outcome – High Performing Government 12
2. Strategic Outcome – Culture & Recreation 14
3. Strategic Outcome – Economic Health 16
4. Strategic Outcome – Environmental Health 18
5. Strategic Outcome – Neighborhood & Community Vitality 20
6. Strategic Outcome – Safe Community 24
7. Strategic Outcome – Transportation & Mobility 26
Appendix
A. Performance Measures - Community Dashboard 30
B. Long-Term Financial Plan 34
C. Glossary of Terms 38
4 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Acknowledgements
Jill Hueser
Chief Judge
Fort Collins City Council & Leadership
Jeni Arndt
Mayor
Emily Francis
(Mayor Pro Tem)
Councilmember, District 6
Julie Pignataro
Councilmember, District 2
Melanie Potyondy
Councilmember, District 4
Carrie Daggett
City Attorney
Susan Gutowsky
Councilmember, District 1
Tricia Canonico
Councilmember, District 3
Kelly Ohlson
Councilmember, District 5
Kelly DiMartino
City Manager
Strategic Plan Core Team
Tyler Marr, Deputy City Manager, Core Team Chair
Denzel Maxwell, Assistant City Manager
Travis Storin, Chief Financial Officer
Claudia Menendez, Equity & Inclusion Officer
Lawrence Pollack, Budget Director
Terri Runyan, Performance Excellence Program Manager
Lockie Woods, Graduate Management Assistant
Community Engagement
& Document Production
Tina Chandler, Graphic Designer
William Bevil, Communications & Engagement Manager
Amy Resseguie, Lead Communications Specialist
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 5
I am pleased to present the City of
Fort Collins 2024 Strategic Plan,
a guiding document that directs
how the City plans, resources and
delivers on our mission to provide
exceptional service to an exceptional
community.
The plan reflects the diverse
perspectives and contributions of
community members, businesses,
Councilmembers and City staff,
and informs the City’s budget and
workplans for the next several years.
It is a tool that clearly articulates our
near- and medium-term community
priorities and will set the direction
for the 2025-2026 City budget.
Fort Collins is a vibrant, desirable
community with many successes
and points of pride that the City
plans to continue and build upon.
At the same time, there are several
challenges for us to navigate in the
coming years. Housing affordability
and availability continues to be a top
priority for the community, and we
are seeing correlating demographic
shifts as many people look toward
other communities in Northern
Colorado for attainable housing. The
City has also set ambitious climate
action goals that require thoughtful
planning to achieve amidst a
changing environmental landscape.
This plan also reflects the importance
of community partnerships and
regional collaboration to address
collective needs in areas such as
transportation, infrastructure and
climate action to support a Northern
Colorado that continues to grow and
evolve.
Finally, through City Council’s
leadership, this year’s plan has been
simplified and streamlined, focusing
on the strategic outcomes that
we are working to achieve in the
community, while leaving flexibility
for specific operational decisions to
adapt as needed through the next
few years.
I’m confident this plan, along with
City Council’s adopted priorities and
the City’s budgeting process, will be
a foundation for the City to make
measurable progress in areas that
matter deeply to our community.
Sincerely,
Kelly DiMartino,
City Manager
6 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Introduction
The City of Fort Collins is a full-service
municipal organization dedicated to
providing exceptional service for an
exceptional community of 175,000
residents, 8,000 businesses, and numerous
institutional partners.
Incorporated in 1873 and located in Northern
Colorado, Fort Collins is home to Colorado
State University (CSU), outstanding public
school and healthcare systems, several large
high-tech employers and leading businesses
in the craft brewing industry. Fort Collins
offers exciting recreational opportunities,
unique cultural offerings and amenities, and
is a regional center for employment and
commerce. Both the City organization and
community at large are frequently recognized
for our quality of services and amenities,
sustainable management practices, and a
forward-thinking, innovative culture.
The City is committed to thoughtful planning
and to public participation in government;
community input is a vital component
that helps shape the City’s Strategic Plan,
comprehensive plan (City Plan), biennial
budget, and many individual plans, projects
and initiatives. It is important that the work
we do as a representative local government
reflects the values of the community.
While City Plan articulates a long-term
community vision and growth framework,
the Strategic Plan outlines short- and
mid-term objectives, influences the
City’s budgeting process, and guides
the implementation of the City’s full
range of services, including public safety,
neighborhood quality, economic vitality,
environmental services, parks and open
spaces, utility services, transit and
transportation infrastructure, engineering
and building services, and much more.
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 7
Exceptional Service for an
Exceptional Community
Mission
Vision
We foster a thriving and engaged
community through our operational
excellence and culture of innovation.
Value s
PARTNERSHIP
SERVICE
SAFETY & WELLBEING
INTEGRITY
BELONGING
SUSTAINABILITY
The 2024 Strategic Plan outlines key
objectives and strategies that link the City
Plan vision with the City’s organizational and
operational priorities.
• The strategic objectives are not listed
in priority order, and it should not be
interpreted that a strategic objective early
in the list is of a greater priority than one
later in the list.
• Each strategic objective includes
supplemental bullets that help to define
and provide context for the objective; they
are intended to be representational but not
all-encompassing.
• At the end of most outcome areas, you will
find “Connections to related objectives.”
These are meant to highlight the linkages
between different objectives.
8 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
HIGH PERFORMING GOVERNMENT (HPG)
HPG 1 Provide an exceptional customer
experience to the community and increase
the City’s effectiveness by simplifying
processes and delivering modern
technologies.
HPG 2 Build trust with our increasingly
diverse community through meaningful
engagement and by providing timely
access to accurate information.
HPG 3 Deliver an exceptional employee
experience by attracting, developing and
retaining diverse talent and fostering a
culture of employee safety, belonging and
empowerment across the organization.
HPG 4 Incorporate a management strategy
for all new and existing City assets that
addresses deferred maintenance and
accessibility.
CULTURE & RECREATION (C&R)
C&R 1 Make City arts, cultural and recreational
programming more inclusive to reflect the
diversity of our community.
C&R 2 Implement criteria and prioritization to
manage assets and replace equipment
that will revitalize parks and recreational
facilities, as the planned buildout of the
parks and trails system continues.
ECONOMIC HEALTH (ECON)
ECON 1 Foster diverse and attractive employment
opportunities, remove barriers to local
businesses and bolster economic mobility
by facilitating workforce development
that aligns businesses drivers with worker
capability.
ECON 2 Deliver City utility services in response
to climate action objectives and
opportunities and targeted reliability and
resiliency levels, and make significant
investments in utility infrastructure while
communicating and mitigating cost
impacts to the community where possible.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (ENV)
ENV 1 Implement the Our Climate Future Plan to
advance the City’s greenhouse gas, energy
and waste goals; reduce air pollution; and
improve community resilience.
ENV 2 Sustain the health of the Cache la
Poudre River and regional watersheds
while delivering a resilient, economically
responsible and high-quality water supply
for all Fort Collins residents.
ENV 3 Expand, restore and maintain the Natural
Areas land portfolio to improve habitat
conditions across the community and
ensure equitable access to nature.
Summary of Strategic Objectives
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 9
NEIGHBORHOOD & COMMUNITY VITALITY (NCV)
NCV 1 Increase housing supply, type, choice
and affordability to address inequities
in housing so that everyone has healthy,
stable housing they can afford.
NCV 2 Support community partner efforts to
address priority human service issues like
poverty and mental health, and to make
homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring.
NCV 3 Identify and remove systemic barriers
and advance equity so that persons of
all identities, including race, ethnicity,
religion, sexual orientation, gender
identity, gender expression, age, mental
and physical abilities, and socioeconomic
levels can access programs and services
with ease and experience equitable
outcomes.
NCV 4 Remove obstacles to build interconnected
Neighborhood Centers to accelerate
progress toward our goal for everyone to
have the daily goods and services they
need and want available within a 15-minute
walk or bike ride from their home.
SAFE COMMUNITY (SAFE)
SAFE 1 Enhance overall community safety and
foster increased trust in public safety
services and the municipal justice system
through innovative service delivery
models.
SAFE 2 Enhance safety and security on public
and private property and protect City
infrastructure and sensitive data from
emerging security threats.
TRANSPORTATION & MOBILITY (T&M)
T&M 1 Make significant progress toward the
City’s Vision Zero goal to have no serious
injury or fatal crashes for people walking,
biking, rolling or driving in Fort Collins.
T&M 2 Increase Transfort access and ridership by
ensuring the City’s transit services provide
safe, reliable and convenient alternatives
to driving.
T&M 3 Transform the parking system to better
align supply and demand and incentivize
sustainable outcomes in a place-based
manner across the city.
10 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
OUTCOMES
AND STRATEGIC
OBJECTIVES
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 11
12 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
For the City of Fort Collins, being a high-performing
government means delivering exceptional
services to our community. The City accomplishes
this through sound financial management,
public outreach and collaboration, creative and
resourceful problem-solving, efficient project
management, and by attracting, retaining and
developing remarkable talent. The foundations of
all these efforts are the City’s mission, vision and
values, which guide staff every day in how to do
their work.
High performance begins with excellent customer
service. Streamlining processes and implementing
new technologies will help ensure that customers
can receive the service they need quicker and
easier than before. The City also places significant
emphasis on transparency and public engagement.
The community should be well-informed about the
City’s activities and have meaningful opportunities
to provide input that improves outcomes for all.
Of course, none of this is possible without the
talented City staff who perform the work. A high-
performing government requires that its staff
are safe, feel a strong sense of belonging and are
empowered to do meaningful work. The City must
also take care of the tools, facilities and other
assets that are essential to providing exceptional
service today, tomorrow and fifty years from now.
Strategies for replacing or renewing aging City
assets are critical to maintaining high performance.
The City strives for high performance in
everything that it does. These HPG objectives
address overarching issues that impact the entire
organization and serve as a foundation for meeting
the City’s remaining strategic objectives.
HPG 1 Provide an exceptional customer
experience to the community and
increase the City’s effectiveness by
simplifying processes and delivering
modern technologies.
• Council Priority: Make Government More
Accessible, Approachable and Fun
• Council Priority: Modernize and Update
the City Charter
• Inconsistent and overly complicated City
processes negatively impact the customer
experience.
• Updates to the City’s website and other
digital platforms provide an opportunity
to ensure that they are accessible to the
entire community.
• As our flexible work practices continue to
adapt and evolve, the City is committed
to providing exceptional and reliable
customer service.
HPG 2 Build trust with our increasingly
diverse community through meaningful
engagement and by providing timely
access to accurate information.
• Council Priority: Develop a Hughes Site
Master Plan
• The voices and perspectives of
marginalized community members have
been historically underrepresented in the
City’s public engagement efforts.
• The evolving media and communications
landscape requires pursuing innovative
avenues of engaging with and informing
our community.
HIGH PERFORMING GOVERNMENT (HPG)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 13
• Effective and meaningful public
engagement includes listening and
responding to input and depends on
establishing mutual understanding with
those who choose to participate.
• Increasing voter turnout provides insight
into the opinions of residents through the
democratic process.
HPG 3 Deliver an exceptional employee
experience by attracting, developing
and retaining diverse talent and
fostering a culture of employee safety,
belonging and empowerment across the
organization.
• The City continues to face challenges with
attracting and retaining talent in certain
sectors.
• The region’s high cost of living increases
pressure on competitive pay.
• Developing a diverse talent pool and
increasing representation in both
the broader workforce and at the
management level remains a major focus.
• The City’s efforts to simplify processes
and deliver modern technologies will
have beneficial impacts on the employee
experience.
HPG 4 Incorporate a management strategy
for all new and existing City assets that
addresses deferred maintenance and
accessibility.
• As the City’s assets age, renewal and
replacement are critical to maintaining
and elevating service standards.
• Developing and implementing an asset
management strategy is fundamental
to the long-term sustainability of City
services.
• Successful and efficient asset
management requires improved
coordination among City departments on
capital projects.
• New funding provides an opportunity
to perform necessary maintenance and
replace deteriorating assets.
• Renewing the ¼-cent street maintenance
tax will help maintain the high quality of
the City’s transportation network.
• Asset management includes preserving
and maintaining a safe, healthy and
resilient urban canopy.
14 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Cultural and recreational opportunities are
elemental to Fort Collins’ community identity and
help create a desirable community where people
can live and play. Residents consistently place
a high value on these programs and services,
believing the City should continue its strong
investment in these amenities. The City’s park
and trail systems are highly valued and heavily
used. The planned buildout of the trail system is a
high priority for residents and will create further
connectivity across Fort Collins and throughout
Northern Colorado. Additionally, the City believes
that connecting residents to nature is fundamental
to a high quality of life.
Cultural and recreational facilities and programming
provide residents opportunities to lead enriched
and healthy lives and support overall community
wellness. Arts and culture are enjoyed by residents
and visitors alike. Similarly, parks, trails and
natural areas provide beautiful public spaces that
foster physical activity and create opportunities
for creativity, reflection and leisure. The quality
of parks, trails and natural areas, as well as arts,
culture and recreation programs and opportunities
create a sense of pride among residents, while
also drawing visitors and revenue into Fort Collins.
Open space and access to nature are defining
characteristics of Fort Collins, supporting physical
and mental health while strengthening the long-
term resilience of the region and its population.
C&R 1 Make City arts, cultural and recreational
programming more inclusive to reflect
the diversity of our community.
• In the 2023 Community Survey, 63% of
respondents reported the quality of arts
and cultural opportunities as good or
very good, which is a recent increase, but
below historical averages.
• Programming can be within City facilities,
as well as throughout the community.
• Artistic and cultural opportunities
are essential to a vibrant and creative
community; engaged and equitable
participation and inclusion in those
opportunities are core community values.
• Effective communication strategies are
necessary to help residents understand
how to learn about and access currently
available programming.
• Emerging trends and opportunities for all
ages and abilities need to be considered
as the community evolves.
• Consultation and collaboration with local
and regional community organizations are
a key success factor to identifying gaps
and opportunities.
• The City maintains a strong commitment
to enhancing access to nature.
CULTURE & RECREATION (C&R)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 15
C&R 2 Implement criteria and prioritization to
manage assets and replace equipment
that will revitalize parks and recreational
facilities, as the planned buildout of the
parks and trails system continues.
• Parks, trails, and cultural and recreation
opportunities are highly valued and used
by residents.
• Utilize new dedicated funding to make
necessary improvements and updates
to meet design standards and maintain
these as highly valued neighborhood
amenities.
• Aging parks should periodically undergo
a redesign or comprehensive upgrade
to respond to new park standards and
changing community expectations.
• Equipment replacement and overall
asset management should include
understanding modern service
expectations as the community evolves.
Connections with related objectives
NCV 3 Equitable access can be improved
across cultural and recreational
facilities and programs, including
natural areas.
SAFE 2 Safety concerns have been
rising across City facilities, parks,
natural areas and the paved trail
system, as reflected in the 2023
Community Survey.
16 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Fort Collins benefits from a resilient local
economy with strong existing businesses and
industries combined with diverse and evolving job
opportunities and business formation. We strive
to create programs and resources that enable the
local economy to withstand and lessen outside
pressures, bounce back from downturns quickly,
and potentially avoid the impact of regional,
national and global economic forces. We take pride
in our thriving local businesses, entrepreneurs and
innovators who create wealth and opportunity
retained in our community.
The economic health of a community impacts
income, education, employment, community
safety, quality of life and social support. A strong,
healthy economy means community members have
better access, choices and opportunities. Those are
essential to our community’s social, environmental
and economic wellbeing. The ability for businesses
and industries to start, sustain and renew within
Fort Collins creates long-term resiliency.
In late 2023, City Council approved the 2023
Economic Health Strategic Plan. This ambitious
plan aims to redesign economic health on a triple-
bottom-line basis, develop a “both/and” approach
to Main Street businesses and Primary employers,
support underserved/underrepresented business
owners, redefine the City’s role in supporting
workforce development, apply the City’s
commitment to equity and inclusion to economic
resilience, and champion the global and local
impact of innovation in industries like life sciences
and climate technology.
The City works collaboratively with local and
regional partners to create an environment that
supports necessary conditions for economic vitality.
Delivering efficient and transparent City services
coupled with strategic infrastructure investment
supports economic resilience. The City remains
committed to continuously improving processes
that impact our local businesses, including the
development review and permitting process
and City utility services, including Connexion
broadband service.
ECON 1 Foster diverse and attractive
employment opportunities, remove
barriers to local businesses and bolster
economic mobility by facilitating
workforce development that aligns
businesses drivers with worker
capability.
• Council Priority: Pursue an Integrated,
Intentional Approach to Economic Health
• To support a better customer experience
during business creation and mitigate the
rising regulatory cost of doing business
in Fort Collins, the City can evaluate
removing barriers for business by
streamlining processes and becoming less
siloed in its communication.
• Life sciences, clean energy, biotech and
other industries in close alignment with
City values and goals can be important
drivers of innovation and contributors to
the local economy.
• Collaboration with educational and
institutional partners is needed to create
and execute a unified regional workforce
and economic mobility opportunities.
ECONOMIC HEALTH (ECON)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 17
• The Economic Health Strategic Plan
establishes goals to increase business
owner demographic representation,
increase five-year business survivability,
add 1,800 jobs in targeted sectors and
increase representation within those
sectors.
• Continuing to expand the City’s
Connexion services while finding
innovative ways to leverage the network
across Fort Collins and in the region can
be a business attraction tool.
ECON 2 Deliver City utility services in response
to climate action objectives and
opportunities and targeted reliability
and resiliency levels, and make
significant investments in utility
infrastructure while communicating
and mitigating cost impacts to the
community where possible.
• Maintaining reliability is critical as PRPA
implements its Integrated Resource Plan
and distributed energy resources are
integrated into the electric grid.
• Water storage capacity is needed to
ensure water rights can be fully utilized
to meet future demand and drought
resiliency needs.
• The benefits of reliable infrastructure
such as water distribution, wastewater
collection/treatment, and flood
protection extend well beyond economic
impact and have ties to community safety
and environmental health.
Connections with related objectives
HPG 1 Connexion’s customer experience
is a critical success factor for
customer acquisition and
retention and can both learn
from other departments and
contribute to their learnings.
NCV 1 The cost of housing, including
utility services, is becoming
a workforce issue with many
industries not able to keep pace
with their compensation levels.
18 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Fort Collins prioritizes a healthy and sustainable
environment. The City takes the lead in innovative
environmental programs, including watershed
stewardship, water efficiency, urban development
with minimal impact, stormwater management, tree
preservation and energy policies. Other initiatives
involve natural areas, river restoration, waste
reduction, air quality, climate action, sustainable
purchasing, dark sky preservation, distributed
energy resources and high-performance buildings.
The City has set ambitious climate goals: an 80%
reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and carbon
neutrality by 2050. The Our Climate Future (OCF)
Plan guides us toward a carbon-neutral,
zero-waste and 100% renewable electricity
future while enhancing equity and resilience.
We’re intensifying efforts to achieve these goals,
including an 80% reduction in 2030 greenhouse
gas emissions, providing 100% renewable electricity
by 2030, and reaching zero waste by 2030.
Given our semi-arid climate and the increasing
impact of climate change on our watersheds,
we recognize the importance of resilience and
adaptation. Fort Collins Utilities and other
utility districts are dedicated to protecting local
watersheds and adhering to regulatory standards.
The City’s Natural Areas Program continues to
conserve natural areas and open lands. It prioritizes
stewardship, including habitat restoration and
visitor experience. The focus is on local, foothills,
community separator and regional areas.
ENV 1 Implement the Our Climate Future
Plan to advance the City’s greenhouse
gas, energy and waste goals; reduce
air pollution; and improve community
resilience.
• Council Priority: Accelerate Zero Waste
Infrastructure and Policies
• Council Priority: Reduce Climate Pollution
and Air Pollution Through Best Practices,
Emphasizing Electrification
• Actively working together and building on
existing partnerships with local, regional,
state and national affiliates is necessary
to achieve desired Our Climate Future
goals and outcomes such as: decrease
greenhouse gas emissions by 80% below
2005 baseline levels by 2030; ensure
100% renewable electricity provision
by 2030, utilizing both grid and local
sources; and attain zero waste, or achieve
100% landfill diversion, by 2030.
• Engaging all parts of the community in
solutions to increase accessibility and
community consciousness of recycling,
xeriscaping and other environmental
programs can raise participation.
• Implementing mode shifts advances the
City’s climate and Vision Zero goals by
reducing the number of vehicle miles
traveled.
• Accelerating building electrification aligns
with the City’s pursuit of clean energy
sources and lowering building energy
consumption, which is responsible for
more than two-thirds of the community’s
emissions.
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (ENV)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 19
ENV 2 Sustain the health of the Cache la Poudre
River and regional watersheds while
delivering a resilient, economically
responsible and high-quality water
supply for all Fort Collins residents.
• Council Priority: Protect Community
Water Systems in an Integrated Way to
Ensure Resilient Water Resources and
Healthy Watersheds
• Collaborating with partners and attaining
regional commitments to assess and
support river and watershed health is
crucial for success.
• Proactively managing the high costs
of acquiring water rights and storing
raw water ensures the provision of an
adequate and affordable water supply for
everyone.
• The Water Efficiency Plan and Water
Shortage Action Plan guide strategies for
water demand management and water
conservation.
• The health of the river requires collecting
wastewater and ensuring it is treated
safely.
ENV 3 Expand, restore and maintain the Natural
Areas land portfolio to improve habitat
conditions across the community and
ensure equitable access to nature.
• Amidst escalating costs, the City must
actively seek partnerships with local,
regional and national organizations to
bolster land conservation and restoration
efforts.
• The City is challenged to maintain
investments in restoration and built
infrastructure to fulfill stewardship
responsibilities for the existing land
portfolio amidst budget constraints
and changing environmental conditions.
• Programs like Nature in the City can
continue efforts to protect and
expand naturalized landscapes on
City-owned properties and throughout
the community.
Connections with related objectives
NCV 3 Expanding equitable access
to nature requires removing
systemic barriers to enable
individuals of all identities to
enjoy access to natural amenities.
ECON 1 Business partnerships and
collaboration with educational
and other institutional partners
are needed to advance the City’s
ambitious climate objectives.
ECON 2 Reliable infrastructure for
electricity, water, wastewater
and flood protection is critical
to ensure community resiliency
amidst a changing climate.
T&M 1 Mode shifts and achieving
many of the City goals outlined
in the Our Climate Future Plan
will require increasing transit
ridership.
20 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
In Fort Collins, neighborhood and community
vitality means building strong communities
that foster a sense of belonging, connectedness
and provide a supportive environment where
diversity is celebrated and everyone can thrive.
Vibrant neighborhoods offer opportunities
for social interaction, collaboration, collective
problem-solving, empowerment and ownership
among residents. Vibrant neighborhood centers
attract investment and resources, leading to
improved infrastructure, amenities and economic
opportunities for residents.
Housing affordability has been a priority in Fort
Collins for decades and, as highlighted in City Plan,
is a key element of community vitality. As Fort
Collins continues to grow, many are struggling
to afford stable, healthy housing within the city.
Implementing the strategies of the Housing
Strategic Plan, adopted in 2021, will address high
priority outcomes such as increasing the overall
housing supply, mix of housing type, preserving
the affordable housing we have, increasing housing
stability and advancing toward equitable outcomes,
especially for historically excluded community
members.
The concept of 15-minute cities emphasizes the
importance of proximity and accessibility in
everyday living and urban design. In a 15-minute
city, essential human services, amenities and
recreational opportunities are all within a short
walking, cycling or riding distance from one’s home,
promoting sustainability, community engagement
and quality of life. Moreover, the 15-minute city
model promotes economic resilience by supporting
local businesses and entrepreneurs, as well as
improving accessibility to job opportunities for
residents of all socioeconomic backgrounds.
NCV 1 Increase housing supply, type, choice
and affordability to address inequities
in housing so that everyone has healthy,
stable housing they can afford.
• Council Priority: Operationalize City
Resources to Build and Preserve
Affordable Housing
• Fort Collins’ population is expected to
grow to 250,000 by 2040, which will
drive significant need for housing units
throughout the community. The Housing
Strategic Plan provides guidance on next
steps.
• Fort Collins is focused on enhancing the
quality of life and sense of belonging in all
neighborhoods by connecting neighbors
to each other and to City services,
building social equity, inclusion, and
fostering harmonious relationships.
• The challenge of keeping up with
affordable housing options necessitates
that the City support efforts to preserve
and enhance mobile home parks as a
source of affordable housing and to
create a safe and equitable environment
for residents.
• The City continues to address the
need for regulations and procedures
to be clear and predictable to ensure
new development efficiently advances
adopted City plans and policies.
• The City will need to advance
development efforts in the Growth
Management Area in order to see a
measurable increase in housing supply
and type, and to meet the goal of building
282 units per year to have 10% of all
housing inventory as restricted affordable
housing by 2040.
NEIGHBORHOOD & COMMUNITY VITALITY (NCV)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 21
NCV 2 Support community partner efforts to
address priority human service issues
like poverty and mental health, and to
make homelessness rare, brief and
non-recurring.
• Council Priority: Improve Human and
Social Health for Vulnerable Populations
• The social issues that partner agencies
address are wide-ranging, complex
and systemic. A strategic, collaborative
approach will ensure programmatic
effectiveness and efficiencies, add agency
capacity, eliminate redundancy, and
identify and better serve disadvantaged
areas and groups.
• The City’s core role has been and
continues to be strengthening
partnerships, funding programs and
developing policy in coordination with
community agencies that provide a
wide range of human services and
homelessness services.
• According to the Homeless Management
Information System (HMIS) that is
administered by the Continuum of Care,
as of January 2024, approximately 530
community members are experiencing
chronic homelessness in Fort Collins.
This indicates that chronic homelessness
declined about 16% in 2023. Despite this
progress, efforts need to be coordinated
to address the myriad challenges that
lead to homelessness.
• Continued innovative, collective efforts
across agencies are needed to reduce
incidents of, and impacts from, disruptive
and unwanted behaviors, working closely
with the community’s partner agencies
to offer creative approaches that balance
compassion and consequences.
Connections with related objectives
HPG 2 Identifying and removing
systemic barriers will require
targeted engagement with
historically marginalized
community members.
T&M 1 & T &M 2
Ensuring community members
have the amenities they need
and want within a 15-minute
walk, bike or transit ride requires
creating safe road conditions
for all users and a robust public
transit system.
22 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 23
NCV 3 Identify and remove systemic barriers
and advance equity so that persons of
all identities, including race, ethnicity,
religion, sexual orientation, gender
identity, gender expression, age, mental
and physical abilities, and socioeconomic
levels can access programs and services
with ease and experience equitable
outcomes.
• Council Priority: Improve Human and
Social Health for Vulnerable Populations
• Identifying and actively working to
remove systemic barriers will help
address the historical root causes that
have created generational inequities for
vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.
• As the cost of living in Fort Collins
increases, low- and moderate-income
households are struggling to afford
necessities and participate in City
programs and services.
• Related to the high cost of living,
increased and targeted outreach efforts
and supportive customer experiences are
needed to assist community members
in participating in income-qualified
services, improving accessibility to City
and community programs for low- and
moderate-income households.
• There is an increase in requests from
community members eager to build a
sense of belonging for the City to commit
resources to creating experiences that
promote inclusion and celebrate cultural
diversity in the community.
• As there are sections of the community
that do not have access to digital equity
services, the City is developing methods
to prioritize connectivity services to
under-resourced neighborhoods.
• To advance equity for all and apply a
data-informed approach to making
policy, program and service updates,
City teams are growing their practice
to systematically gather, analyze and
interpret qualitative and quantitative
data, disaggregated by racial and social
identities and additional equity indicators,
to identify barriers, decrease inequities
and increase access for all.
NCV 4 Remove obstacles to build
interconnected Neighborhood Centers
to accelerate progress toward our goal
for everyone to have daily goods and
services available within a 15-minute
walk or bike ride from their home.
• Council Priority: Advancing a 15-Minute
City by Igniting our Neighborhood
Centers
• Innovative neighborhood outreach and
engagement efforts that help gather data
from a diverse range of communities on
needs, interests and expectations will be
necessary for teams to develop strategies
and actions for implementing adopted
plans.
• Preparing to build 15-minute
neighborhood centers, City teams will
need to analyze neighborhood-level
geographic data to assess hyper-local
needs. It is important to understand
population density and demographics;
locations of essential amenities; public
spaces; and the quality, safety and
accessibility of walking, biking and public
transit networks.
• In developing 15-minute neighborhood
centers, City planning initiatives will have
the opportunity to assess environmental
health impacts such as how to increase
walking and biking mobility options,
lower emissions and increase healthy
opportunities for residents through
reduced air pollutants.
• Building physical neighborhood
connectivity will require the City
to consider complex infill and
redevelopment projects that offer
significant opportunity to contribute
to vibrant walkable and bikeable
neighborhoods and centers.
• According to the National League of
Cities, “the goal of the 15-minute city is to
provide convenient and equitable access
to necessities like healthcare, schools,
grocery stores, jobs, and greenspace.”
24 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Fort Collins takes pride in its commitment to
cultivating a secure and thriving community, a
place where individuals can seamlessly live, work
and enjoy life. We are dedicated to creating a
community that prioritizes safety, resilience and
inclusivity with a forward-thinking approach that
aligns with the aspirations of our community
members.
The integration of cutting-edge technology is
a cornerstone in the City’s strategy, aimed at
elevating preventative measures, investigative
techniques and communication channels. The
emphasis on cybersecurity underscores the City’s
dedication to safeguarding the digital infrastructure
and data of its residents.
The City places a premium on the immediate
actions taken by entities such as Police Services
and Poudre Fire Authority, recognizing their
substantial contribution to residents’ perception of
safety and overall community wellbeing. A well-
functioning Municipal Court and judicial system are
recognized as integral components in maintaining
the high standards of safety expected in our
community.
Furthermore, the City prioritizes the development
and maintenance of reliable infrastructure,
encompassing flood protection systems and water
storage, treatment and distribution facilities.
Emergency preparedness is approached with a
strategic lens, incorporating best management
practices and long-term planning to ensure the
resilience of critical infrastructure.
Community education plays a vital role, covering
diverse aspects such as community policing,
emergency prevention and preparedness, fire
prevention and awareness, and regulatory
frameworks alongside strategic infrastructure
investments. Collaboration with regional, state and
federal partners is a key component, fostering a
comprehensive emergency management system
aimed at minimizing and effectively responding to
emergency situations.
SAFE COMMUNITY (SAFE)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 25
SAFE 1 Enhance overall community safety and
foster increased trust in public safety
services and the municipal justice system
through innovative service delivery
models.
• Ongoing partnerships support key
enforcement and education programs,
such as mental health, substance
abuse prevention, detoxification, victim
assistance, youth programs, bike safety,
county jail management, efforts to reduce
repeat crimes, fire safety and animal
control.
• A diverse community requires new
communication strategies and non-
traditional partnerships to build trust
and help residents understand available
resources for safety.
• Utilizing local, regional and federal
resources is crucial to comprehensively
address safety issues.
• As Fort Collins continues to grow,
the City will need to innovate and
adapt to meet evolving community
expectations for public safety services,
including law enforcement, fire and
rescue, and comprehensive emergency
communication and preparedness.
• Innovative service delivery means coming
up with new and clever ways to provide
services. Fresh ideas, smart strategies
and new technology can help improve
services and customer satisfaction.
SAFE 2 Enhance safety and security on public
and private property and protect City
infrastructure and sensitive data from
emerging security threats.
• The physical safety of residents in
public spaces and on private property is
paramount.
• The City’s reliance on evolving technology
for core operations and service delivery
underscores the need for robust
cybersecurity measures to safeguard City
assets, information and customer privacy.
Cybersecurity involves cyber audits,
awareness training and digital access
control.
• The Community Survey indicates that
fewer residents feel safe at parks and
recreation facilities than before the
pandemic. The City is committed to
enhancing the community’s safety across
public amenities to help ensure a secure
and enjoyable environment for residents.
• Providing and maintaining reliable utility
services and infrastructure directly
preserves and improves public health and
community safety.
Connections with related objectives
T&M 1 Advancing the City’s Vision Zero
goal will significantly enhance
overall community safety.
NCV 2 Addressing human service needs
across the city will improve the
community’s overall sense of
safety.
26 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
The transportation system is a key component of
nearly all aspects of the City of Fort Collins. The
system provides the connecting fabric among
residences, employment, schools and shopping.
It is critical for economic success and commerce,
interconnected with land use, and impacts the
City’s Our Climate Future and healthy living goals.
It is also a key aspect of advancing City priorities
around access and equity. The success of a high-
quality and well-functioning multi-modal system is
a community differentiator and reflected in quality-
of-life performance measures.
The Transportation Master Plan, approved by City
Council in 2019, describes six core components
of a sustainable transportation network, all of
which are intended to guide Fort Collins toward
realizing the overall transportation vision over 20
years. These components provide a comprehensive
framework for assessing current network conditions
and inform where Fort Collins can enhance its
mobility programs and investments to achieve
broader-reaching outcomes. These components
were closely evaluated and used to inform these
strategic objectives, focusing on near-term actions.
The six core components are:
1. Transportation Infrastructure
Planning a physical transportation network that
supports multimodal travel.
2. Mobility & Travel Choices
Considering the role each transportation mode
plays in shaping the Fort Collins mobility
network.
3. Health & Equity
Ensuring the transportation network plays a key
role in advancing social outcomes.
4. Innovation
Understanding emerging technologies and how
new trends are influencing the movement of
goods and people.
5. Safety
Eliminating serious injuries and fatalities on
Fort Collins’ roadways.
6. Sustainability & Resiliency
Shifting transportation away from creating
harmful environmental impacts toward being a
resource for improving environmental outcomes.
TRANSPORTATION & MOBILITY (T&M)
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 27
T&M 1 Make significant progress toward the
City’s Vision Zero goal to have no serious
injury or fatal crashes for people walking,
biking, rolling or driving in Fort Collins.
• Council Priority: Advance a 15-Minute City
by Accelerating Our Shift to Active Modes
• The City adopted a goal in 2016 to
have no fatal or serious injury crashes
within the transportation network. This
requires appropriate programs, policies,
educational resources and infrastructure
improvements that work to reduce the
overall number and severity of crashes.
• In 2023, City Council adopted the Active
Modes Plans, which lays out the needed
investments to ensure that alternatives
to driving—which include biking, walking
and rolling—are safe and accessible to all
residents.
• In 2023, City Council also approved
10-year transportation capital project
priorities that identify the key corridor,
intersection and crossing improvements,
and other projects that will directly work
to increase the safety, efficiency and
equitable operation of the transportation
network for all modes of travel.
• Quality infrastructure that is in a good
state of repair is necessary for the safe
operation of the transportation network.
The City has relied on dedicated funding
from the street maintenance tax, due to
expire in 2025, as a primary way to ensure
a consistent street quality standard.
• Working closely with local schools is
necessary to implement strategies that
will ensure safe routes to school and
protect our student population.
• Ensuring our transportation network
is safe for everyone requires enforcing
traffic and other laws with targeted and
innovative strategies in priority areas.
Connections with related objectives
HPG 4 Asset Management is critical to
the City providing a safe and
reliable transportation system for
all modes of travel.
SAFE 2 Safety concerns about using
Transfort have been rising, as
reflected in the 2023 Community
Survey.
28 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Connections with related objectives
HPG 4 Asset Management is critical to
the City providing a safe and
reliable transportation system for
all modes of travel.
SAFE 2 Safety concerns about using
Transfort have been rising, as
reflected in the 2023 Community
Survey.
T&M 2 Increase Transfort access and ridership
by ensuring the City’s transit services
provide safe, reliable and convenient
alternatives to driving.
• The Transit Master Plan was updated
in 2019, but the realities of operating a
transit agency have changed substantially
since the COVID-19 pandemic; ridership
still has not returned to pre-pandemic
numbers. The plan should be optimized to
reflect post-pandemic realities, including
new strategies to achieve the transit
vision while still considering frequency
and prioritizing key routes.
• Fort Collins voters approved a new sales
tax to support transit initiatives through
2050. These resources will provide
significant funding support toward some
of the capital projects needed to increase
transit frequency and stabilize operations.
• The Community Survey indicates that
fewer residents always or usually feel
safe on Transfort than did before the
pandemic. Increasing ridership will
require ensuring that transit is a safe
transportation alternative.
• Colorado State University students
account for a critical portion of Transfort’s
ridership. Continued partnership with the
university and students will be critical to
achieving increases in ridership.
• Achieving many of the City goals outlined
in City Plan, Our Climate Future and
the Housing Strategic Plan will require
increasing transit ridership.
T&M 3 Transform the parking system to better
align supply and demand and incentivize
sustainable outcomes in a place-based
manner across the city.
• A strategic approach to the City’s
parking system and requirements can
help achieve many other goals related
to housing, climate and transportation.
Incentivizing behaviors to make progress
in these spaces requires a context-specific
approach based on a number of factors
including density, economic activity and
availability of structured parking.
• In Downtown specifically, the existing
parking model incentivizes additional
vehicle trips as the spaces that are ideal
for longer-term parking (garages) cost
more than the spaces better suited for
short stays (on-street). This results in a
revenue model that is not sustainable for
the long-term maintenance of the parking
structures or the Parking Services team
and increases congestion Downtown.
• Successfully implementing transportation
demand and targeted land use strategies
can reduce automotive congestion
and the increasing need for associated
parking across the community.
• In 2023, City Council supported
advancing a workstream to look at new
models for pricing Downtown parking.
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 29
30 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
The City of Fort Collins is committed to being a
data-informed organization.
Using quantifiable data and analysis, the City
tracks and measures success in achieving the Key
Outcomes and Strategic Objectives defined in this
plan. This includes establishing appropriate targets
for each metric, tracking the actual performance
of each one over time, and regularly reviewing and
discussing the performance.
Community Dashboard
The City’s focus on tying metrics to specific
outcomes began in 2013. Staff, working with City
Council, developed the Community Dashboard
where each of the seven outcome areas has four
to seven performance metrics that track, at a
high level, the City’s progress in achieving the
desired outcome. Every measure on the dashboard
is measured against a target. The Community
Dashboard is updated quarterly and can be found
online at fcgov.com/dashboard. The measures
listed below within each outcome are current as of
publication of this document. Definitions of each
measure can be found on the dashboard.
APPENDIX A
PERFORMANCE MEASURES
View Current
Performance Metrics
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 31
High Performing Government Measures
Accuracy of Cumulative Budgeted Expenses ($ millions)
Actual Cumulative Revenue Compared to Budget ($ millions)
Average Response Time of Cases Submitted to Access Fort Collins
City Employee Cumulative Turnover Rate
City Employee Safety – Days Away Restricted or Transferred (DART) Rate YTD
City Employee Safety – Total Recordable Injury Rate (TRIR) TYD
Culture & Recreation Measures
Gardens on Spring Creek – Total Cumulative Participation
Golf Courses – Total Cumulative Participation
Lincoln Center – Total Cumulative Participation
Museum of Discovery – Total Cumulative Participation
Natural Areas Programs – Cumulative Participation per Capita
Paved Trails - Cumulative Number of Visits
Recreation Programs – Total Cumulative Participation
Economic Health Measures
Commercial Vacancy Rates
Electric System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI) in Minutes
Local Unemployment Rate
# Business Establishments per Capita (Larimer County)
32 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Environmental Health Measures
Community Electricity Use per Capita (kWh/quarter)
Community Water Use per Capita
Outdoor Air Quality Index (AQI)
Wastewater Treatment Effectiveness Rate (%)
Neighborhood & Community Vitality Measures
Affordable Housing Inventory
Homelessness Data, Chronic Homelessness and # Chronic Homeless Housed
Fort Collins’ Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) Compared to Western States Region HOI
Response Time to Graffiti Removal
Voluntary Code Compliance
Voluntary Speed Compliance
Safe Community Measures
Average Response Time to Police Priority I Calls
Drinking Water Compliance Rate (% Days)
Number of Injury/Fatal Crashes
Part 1 Crimes in Fort Collins (per 1,000 population)
Percent of Time Fire PFA Intercedes Before Flashover (contained to room of origin)
Percent of Time PFA Fire Personnel are On-Scene Within 7 Minutes 20 Seconds in the Urban Area
Transportation & Mobility Measures
Average Travel Speeds/Times on Arterial Streets
Cumulative Lane Miles of Roadway Pavement Improved
Transfort Ridership (in thousands) and Passengers per Hour
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 33
34 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Overview
The City updates the Long-Term Financial
Plan (LTFP) outlook every two years as part
of the Strategic Planning Process. The scope
of this biennial update is limited to the City’s
governmental services, which excludes utilities
enterprise funds. The utilities enterprise funds
update their long-term plans in a separate but
concurrent exercise. The objective of the LTFP
update is to highlight potential challenges facing
the City and aid in decision-making on strategies
that span the longer term (5-10+ years). These
planning and scenario exercises then inform the
biennial Budgeting for Outcomes (BFO) process
through which specific services, programs and
projects are funded.
Over the past two years, the City continued
recovery from the economic challenges associated
with the COVID-19 pandemic that began in
2020. The negative revenue impacts that were
experienced in 2020 and 2021 continued to
improve in 2022 and 2023, as the overall economy
benefitted from the large federal stimulus aid
packages. These favorable revenue outcomes were
balanced out on the expense side, as many sectors
of our local economy experienced inflationary
pressures, leading to higher labor, supply and
capital costs. Additionally, supply chain disruptions
and persistent labor shortages also contributed to
higher costs and schedule adjustments. Overall,
the City’s finances remain in excellent condition.
Moody’s once again re-affirmed the City’s Aaa
credit rating in the fall of 2023 (ranking in the top
5% nationally).
Background
The 2024 LTFP Baseline Scenario assumes
most likely outcomes under current operating
conditions and service delivery levels. Unidentified
productivity increases, process improvements and
technology savings are not included in the baseline
scenario. Additionally, no outlier impacts (e.g.,
natural disasters, unanticipated severe recession,
war, civil breakdown) are forecast to happen. The
impacts of the higher costs and higher revenues
experienced over the past few years during the
pandemic recovery are factored into the 2024 LTFP
update. The underlying analysis utilizes historic
data from the past 20 years, macroeconomic
outlooks, correlation analysis and unique drivers
at departmental and functional levels to provide a
view of what leadership needs to plan around for
long-term growth.
Outlook
Although the City has stabilized the organization’s
near-term financial position, it still faces continued
pressure to balance the longer-term needs with
the limited sources of funding options. During
the previous LTFP update, the City had identified
significant challenges associated with future
funding for park life-cycle and maintenance costs,
transit/transportation infrastructure, affordable
housing options, ambitious climate and energy
goals, and other Council priorities. The City has
continued to add personnel capacity to keep up
with the demand for services from our community
of residents, businesses and visitors. The adopted
two-year budget for 2023 and 2024 included
approximately 42 additional full-time equivalent
(FTE) employees to help serve these ever-
increasing community needs.
APPENDIX B
LONG-TERM FINANCIAL PLAN
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 35
Similar to the 2022 LTFP update, the 2024 LTFP
contemplates the impacts of taking on these
additional expenditures and explores options to
fund these programs and services. The 2024 LTFP
analysis continues to provide a Baseline Scenario
and also builds up a Gap Closure Scenario that
factors in four additional sets of assumptions:
1. Adjustments for historic budget underspend
2. Addition of new expenditures for currently
underfunded programs and services
3. Longer-term growth-related programs and
services
4. Addition of identified and potential revenue
sources to close the funding gap
Baseline Scenario
The Baseline Scenario forecast includes the following primary revenue and expenditure assumptions:
Primary Revenue Assumptions
• Sales Tax
Gowth of 2.5% based on taxable sales historical
average, increased taxable sales base and
reduced near-term inflationary impacts
• Use Tax
Growth of 3.6%, similar to prior forecasts
• Property Tax
Incorporates steep valuation increases from 2020
to 2024 that have significantly increased the
base; growth of 2.0% moderates with Consumer
Price Index (CPI)
• Capital Grants
2.0% increase, very project specific; tied to
long-term CPI growth
• Shared Revenues
County and State distributions, 1.3% growth,
similar to historical rate for past 15 years
• Cultural, Park, Recreation and Natural Areas Fees
In line with average historical rate of 3.4%
Primary Expenditure Assumptions
• Salaries and Wages
Combined growth rate of 3.7%; includes CPI-
driven wage increases plus projected FTE
increases
• Benefits
Combined growth rate of 4.7%; includes 1% over
CPI-driven rate increases plus projected FTE
increases
• Professional and Technical
Growth of 3.3%, correlated to CPI and sales tax
• Supplies and Other Purchased Services
2.1% growth
• Infrastructure
5.5% growth rate, correlated to sales and use tax
The 2024 LTFP Baseline Scenario (see Exhibit 1) shows our projected revenues, expenditures and
future estimated year-end fund balances. Overall, long-term revenues are expected to increase at an
approximately 2.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). Expenditures are expected to grow by 3.3%
CAGR over this same period. The projected gap between revenues and expenditures could exceed $40 to
50 million per year by 2032, with the cumulative effect of this deficit spending eroding fund balances to
less than $20 million.
36 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Exhibit 1
REVENUES & EXPENDITURES
ALL FUNDGROUPS - WITH TRANSFERS: Baseline Scenario Year End Balance
KEY:Revenue
Expenditures
$50M
$0
$100M
$150M
$200M
$250M
$300M
$350M
$400M
$450M
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
$170M
$265M
$17M
$327M
2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032
$500M
$550M
$650M
$600M
$382M
$370M
$348M
Baseline Scenario Growth Rates
Revenues: +2.5% per year
Expenditures: +3.3% per year
$571M
$628M
Closing the Gap
The City is required to balance the budget during
the biennial BFO process and cannot deficit spend
beyond the utilization of anticipated revenues and
existing available fund balances. Historically, there is
an approximately 5% average underspend in actual
expenditures compared to budgeted expenditures
each year. Given the requirements of the City’s
budgeting process, this result is expected and
provides a requisite cushion level against potential
revenue shortfalls in the short-term. As in the prior
LTFP update, this 5% amount was removed from
the Gap Closure Scenario forecast, providing a more
normalized view of expected expenditure levels for
existing services and programs.
During 2022 and 2023, City staff and the Council
worked to refine the longer-term ongoing needs of
the City as well as reflect updated Council priorities.
The Gap Closure Scenario adds projected costs to
account for identified needs for parks and recreation,
transit additions, affordable housing programs and
climate initiatives. The annual requirement for these
items has been estimated at more than $40 million
per year, with cumulative expenses totaling over
$350 million by the year 2032.
The staff and Council update included a rigorous
analysis of potential funding alternatives and trade-
offs. The culmination of these efforts was placing
two funding options on the November 2023 ballot:
1. A 0.50% sales tax increase to fund parks and
recreation programs, climate initiatives and
transit projects
2. A property tax increase to fund affordable
housing needs
The sales tax initiative was approved by the voters
with an effective date of January 1, 2024. While
not projected to cover all the estimated needs of
the covered programs, these funds are the basis for
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 37
Exhibit 2
2028 2029202220232024202520262027 2030 2031 2032
REVENUES & EXPENDITURES
ALL FUNDGROUPS - WITH TRANSFERS: Gap Closure Scenario Year End Balance
Baseline
KEY:
Year End Balance
Gap Closure
Revenue
Gap Closure
Expenditures
Gap Closure
$100
$200M
$300M
$0
$400M
$500M
$600M
$700M
Through a combination of Expenditure controls and Revenue
enhancements, the City will be able to fund additional service
area projects, priorities and asset maintenance needs while
maintaining stable reserve balances.
$265M
$453M
$447M
$17M
$255M
$527M
$519M
specific project planning and funding consideration
for the BFO process later this year. The property
tax initiative was not approved by the voters and
the affordable housing shortfalls currently remain
unfunded. This new sales tax revenue stream is
included in the Gap Closure Scenario.
In addition to the current maintenance and program
expenditure shortfalls, Fort Collins’ continued
growth will bring on additional needs for funding.
Specifically, identified areas of potential need are
the Civic Center Master Plan, developing future
community and neighborhood parks, and potential
annexation costs related to the East Mulberry area.
These expenditures may approach $15 to 20 million
per year by 2032.
The City organization will continue to look for
ongoing cost containment strategies to combat the
growth and inflationary impacts. However, staff will
need to continue looking for other funding sources
– some potential combination of taxes, fees and/or
grant revenues. For illustrative purposes in the Gap
Closure Scenario, a combination of unidentified
new sources was estimated at $25 million per year
beginning in 2028.
The Gap Closure Scenario is highlighted in Exhibit 2,
which provides greater stabilization of fund
balances over the longer-term time horizon.
Summary
The City made significant strides during 2023
and 2024 in addressing some of the funding gaps
identified in prior Strategic Plan and LTFP updates,
but many challenges remain. Prioritizing programs
and services will be key to delivering the highest
value-added services to the community. Active
cost containment will remain a vital component of
maintaining our ability to deliver desired levels of
service.
38 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN
Budgeting for Outcomes (BFO)
A system driven by goals and performance
to relate budgeting to planning and outputs/
results. Its purpose is to better align the
services delivered by the City with the things
that are most important to the community.
City Plan
A comprehensive plan that guides how the
community will grow and travel in the next
10-20 years. City Plan describes our
community’s vision and core values and
provides policy guidance and implementation
actions to achieve both. City Plan includes
guidance on future land use and transportation
and was coordinated and developed alongside
an update to Fort Collins’ Transit Master Plan.
Community Dashboard
A quarterly snapshot of the community’s
progress in attaining key outcomes.
The Dashboard reinforces the City’s
steadfast commitment to accountability
and continuous improvement.
Low to Moderate Income
Households whose incomes are below
95% of the area median income (AMI),
as determined by the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD), with
adjustments for smaller or larger families.
Manufactured Housing
A preconstructed dwelling unit meeting the
construction standards of the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development,
which also includes mobile homes.
Master Plans
Long-term vision documents in each service area.
Our Climate Future (OCF)
A community guide to creating the carbon-
neutral, zero-waste and 100% renewable
electricity future we desire while increasing
equity and resilience in our community.
Outcome
A result; the effect that residents want from
government programs and activities (e.g., safety
is the result or outcome that residents want
from police and fire programs or activities).
Seven key outcomes make up the City’s
strategic planning and budgeting processes.
Strategic Objective
Statements providing direction for
accomplishing the outcome. They contain
meaningful planning challenges and result
from organizational input analysis.
Transportation Master Plan
Long-term vision document that defines
the long-term multimodal system that
Fort Collins desires in the future and
serves as a comprehensive reference
guide regarding transportation issues.
APPENDIX C
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
CITY OF FORT COLLINS 39
40 2024 STRATEGIC PLAN 24-26321
Robert’s Rule of Order
Cheat Sheet
Making a Motion
Board members must discuss one issue at a time to keep order. The board chair should only allow one
person to speak at a time. Any member who wants to make a motion must request the floor —and be
granted it — before speaking.
6 Categories of Motions
1. Main motion: Introduces a new item
2. Subsidiary motion: Changes or
affect how to handle a main motion
(vote on this before the main motion)
3. Privileged motion: Brings up
an urgent or essential matter unrelated
to pending business
4. Incidental motion: Questions
procedure of other motions
5. Motion to table: Kills a motion
6. Motion to postpone: Delays a vote
(can reopen debate on the main
motion)
Motion Steps
1. Motion: A member rises or raises a
hand to signal the chairperson.
2. Second: Another member seconds
the motion.
3. Restate motion: The chairperson
restates the motion.
4. Discussion: The members discuss
the motion.
5. Vote: The chairperson restates the
motion, and then first asks for
affirmative votes, and then negative
votes.
6. Announce the vote: The chairperson
announces the result of the vote and
any instructions.
Points in Robert’s Rules of Order
Certain situations need attention during the meeting, but they don’t require a motion, second,
discussion, or voting. Board members can declare a Point of Order, Point of Information, Point of
Inquiry, or Point of Personal Privilege.
• Point of Order: A member draws
attention to a breach of rules, improper
procedure, breach of established
practices, etc.
• Point of Information: A member can
ask for a point of information if they want
more information on a motion. This
should not be used as a means to
present information.
• Point of Inquiry: To ask for clarification
in a report to make better voting
decisions.
• Point of Personal Privilege: To
address the physical comfort of the
setting such as temperature or noise.
Members may also use it to address the
accuracy of published reports or the
accuracy of a member’s conduct.
Welcome to the City of Fort Collins Boards and
Commissions!
4-8-2023Davina Lau –Boards and Commissions Coordinator
2Thank You from the Mayor
Mission, Vision & Values
3
Exceptional Service for an
Exceptional Community
We foster a thriving and
engaged community through
our operational excellence
and culture of innovation.
PARTNERSHIP
We believe in
shared decision-
making and invest
authentically in
relationships.
We are welcoming,
solution-oriented
and supportive of
each other and
our community.
SERVICE
We work to
understand the
diverse needs of
our customers
and evolve with
the community
to implement
innovative, people-
centered solutions
to provide
outstanding
service.
SAFETY &
WELLBEING
We are
committed to
physical and
psychological
safety in the
workplace
and throughout
the community.
SUSTAINABILITY
We are entrusted
and accountable
to protect and
enhance the
social, economic
and environmental
resiliency of our
community and
organization for
present and future
generations.
INTEGRITY
We earn the trust
of our community
by exemplifying
the highest
standard of ethical
behavior. We
demonstrate
respect, honesty,
inclusivity and
transparency.
BELONGING
We strive to build
equitable, inclusive
and supportive
work environments
that cultivate a
sense of belonging
for employees
and community
members of
all identities to feel
safe and valued.
4What is the purpose of our Boards and Commissions?
•From City Ordinance: “acquiring and
studying information in specific areas and
to make recommendations to City Council on
issues within the board's area of expertise."
•Boards and Commissions bridge the gap
between the public and Council. They provide
valuable perspectives and insight to the topics
they discuss. It is important for Council to
hear their voices and recommendations to
gain an idea of the impact the policies that
Council enacts will have.
•Giving residents a voice through Boards and
Commissions allows them to shape the
quality of life where they live.
5Being an Effective Member of a Board or Commission
2. Learn what you can about the City and its structure, including:
•How the budgeting process works and what the Strategic Plan says.
•Major projects or objectives the organization considering over the next few years.
•What role the major adopted plans play in work plans and budgets.
1. Educate yourself on the role of your Board (and your role as a Board member).
•You should understand the board's role and responsibilities in relation to guiding the City toward the realization of
its mission, goal, and objectives.
•Understand:
-The scope of the board's authority.
-The matters that typically come before the board.
6Being an Effective Member of a Board or Commission
3. Exercise care when making decisions and voting by informing yourself, asking questions, and expecting answers.
4. Take time to prepare for meetings in advance; read the materials that are distributed and think about the issues on the agen da.
5. Always act in the best interest of the public.
6. Consider your ethical responsibilities and follow the Anti -Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy and the Code of Conduct.
7. Operate in compliance with the Colorado Open Meetings Law.
7Our Form of Government
The City of Fort Collins is a Council/Manager form of
government. This is different from other cities such as
Denver or Colorado Springs.
The Council-Manager form of government recognizes
the critical role of elected officials as policy makers,
who focus on mapping out a collective vision for the
community and establishing the policies that govern it.
The City of Fort Collins has six different voting districts,
and the residents of each district elect a
Councilmember to represent them for four years.
The Mayor is elected by the community at large to
serve a two-year term.
Our Council has oversight over three city employees:
the City Manager, the City Attorney, and the
Municipal Judge.
Mayor and Council 8
Council Liaisons
Mayor
Jeni Arndt
Councilmember
Susan Gutowsky
Councilmember
Julie Pignataro
Councilmember
Tricia Canonico
Councilmember
Melanie Potyondy
Councilmember
Kelly Ohlson
Councilmember and
Mayor Pro Tem
Emily Francis
•Water
Commission
•Energy Board
•Economic
Advisory Board
•Art in Public Places
Board
•Citizen Review Board
•Parks and Recreation
Board
•Senior Advisory Board
•Transportation Board
•Building Review
Commission
•Land use Review
Commission
•Human Services and
Housing Funding Board
•Women and Gender
Equity Advisory Board
•Historic Preservation
Commission
•Affordable Housing
Board
•Disability Advisory
Board
•Youth Advisory Board
•General Employee's
Retirement
Committee
•Land Conservation
and Stewardship
Board
•Air Quality Advisory
Board
•Natural Resources
Advisory Board
•Active Modes
Advisory Board
•Human Relations
Commission
•Planning and Zoning
Commission
•Cultural Resources
Board
Types of Boards and Commissions 9
Advisory Boards - Type 1 Advisory Boards - Type 2 Quasi -Judicial Commissions
Type 1 advisory boards make
recommendations to the City Council and
City staff on areas of knowledge or
expertise. Recommendations made by
advisory boards are formal opinions to the
City Council on items and subjects that are
on the boards' approved workplans. These
recommendations are limited to advisement
and are not decisive actions.
In addition to serving an advisory function to
the City Council and City staff, the assigned
functions of Type 2 advisory boards give them
the authority to make decisions on certain
matters specified in the City Code. These
decisions then serve as formal
recommendations to City Council or City staff
for their consideration and adoption.
Quasi-judicial commissions are non-judicial
bodies that use formal procedures to
objectively determine facts, interpret the law,
and draw conclusions to provide the basis of
an official action. Decisions of quasi-judicial
commissions are subject to appeal to the City
Council or the courts.
•Active Modes Advisory Board
•Affordable Housing Board
•Air Quality Advisory Board
•Disability Advisory Board
•Economic Advisory Board
•Energy Board
•Land Conservation and Stewardship Board
•Natural Resources Advisory Board
•Parks and Recreation Board
•Senior Advisory Board
•Transportation Board
•Women and Gender Equity Advisory Board
•Youth Advisory Board
•Art in Public Places Board
•Citizen Review Board
•Cultural Resources Board
•Human Services and Housing Funding Board
•Building Review Commission
•Historic Preservation Commission
•Human Relations Commission
•Land Use Review Commission
•Planning and Zoning Commission
•Water Commission
City Charter, Ordinances, and Resolutions 10
The Fort Collins City Charter and Code
provides the basic laws our City follows. Any
changes made to the Code are accomplished
through Ordinances adopted by Council.
Ordinances must be voted on twice – there
will be a first and second reading and must
be Publicly Noticed .
Council will also pass Resolutions. A
Resolution demonstrates Council’s policy
intent and is adopted after a single reading.
Resolutions do not change City law.
The City Charter and Code can be accessed
through the following link: Municipal Code |
Fort Collins, CO | Municode Library
Your Support System 11
Staff Liaisons
Staff Support
Other Board
and
Commission
Members
Your Attorney
Liaisons
(answer legal
questions
and provide
training on legal
issues for a
board or
commission)
Public
Engagement
Specialist
12What does a meeting look like?
Meeting Process
Fixed Order of Business (Typical Example)
1 Call to order.
2 Roll call of members present.
3 Review & Adoption of previous meeting minutes.
4 Member reports.
5 Unfinished business.
6 New business.
7 Announcements.
8 Adjournment.
Motions – How do they work?13
Voting on a Motion
Methods used to vote:
1.By Voice -- The Chair asks those in favor to say,
"aye",those opposed to say "no". Any member may
move for an exact count.
2.By Roll Call -- Each member answers "yes" or "no"
as their name is called. This method is standard, and
each vote must be recorded (Sec. 2-78 "A record
shall be made of each vote by which a board or
commission takes formal action.")
a.Roll call is required if there are any remote
participants of boards/commissions present.
Making Effective Motions
•Allow motions that are in order.
•Obtain the floor properly.
•Speak clearly and concisely.
•Obey the rules of debate.
Most importantly,BE COURTEOUS.
The Chairperson of the Board or Commission 14
The Chair oversees the meeting in an impartial manner with
support from vice or co -chair.
Duties:
•Opens the meeting session.
•Calls members to order.
•Announces the purpose and topics of
the meeting which will be discussed.
•Recognizes members on the floor who are going
to speak.
•Announces results of the vote.
•Keeps the meeting from straying off topic.
•Manages disruptive/distracting actions
and conduct that may arise to ensure business
can proceed.
Attributes
•To maintain impartiality, should not make proposals or
motions unless necessary to carry out the business of
the board or commission.
•Has the ability to vote.
•Has the ability to intervene when necessary.
•Chairperson is an elected person from the group.
•Whenever there is a vote from the group,
the chairperson is then obligated to rule on a motion
based on a majority vote.
Quorum 15
A Quorum is
the minimum number of
voting members who
must be present of a
“deliberative assembly
necessary to conduct the
business of that group”
(Quorum,2013).
How Many Members Constitute a Quorum?
Four members
**These boards and commissions have 7 members, and a quorum
is the four-member minimum majority of membership
• Affordable Housing Board
•Art in Public Places Board
•Citizen Review Board
•Cultural Resources Board
•Building Review Commission
•Planning and Zoning Commission
•Land Use Review Commission
•Women and Gender Equity Advisory Board
Five members
**These boards and commissions have 9 members, and a quorum
is the five -member minimum majority of membership
• Active Modes Advisory Board
• Air Quality Advisory Board
•Disability Advisory Board
•Economic Advisory Board
•Energy Board
•Land Conservation and Stewardship Board
•Natural Resources Advisory Board
•Parks and Recreation Board
•Senior Advisory Board
•Human Services and Housing Funding Board
•Historic Preservation Commission
•Human Relations Commission
•Water Commission
*Because the Youth Advisory Board (“YAB”) may change in size from time to time, a quorum for the YAB shall be
dependent on the size of the Board. A quorum for the YAB shall be as follows:
•For a five (5) member board, a quorum shall be three (3) members; and
•For a six (6) to nine (9) member board, a quorum shall be half the number of members, rounded up to a
whole number.
Minutes
Minutes should be taken at every meeting.
The staff liaison or their designee is responsible
for taking minutes at any meeting of a board.
Board members are responsible for approving
the previous meetings minutes at each regular
meeting. A motion should be made and
seconded to approve the minutes of the last
meeting. Minutes should be approved and
dated by the board.
16
[Board/Commission Name]
REGULAR MEETING
Day, Month XX, 20XX – X:XX PM
[Location/Address]
1. CALL TO ORDER: X:XX PM
2. ROLL CALL
a. Board Members Present -
b. Board Members Absent -
c. Staff Members Present -
d. Guest(s) -
3. AGENDA REVIEW
4. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
7. NEW BUSINESS
8. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS
9. STAFF REPORTS
10. OTHER BUSINESS
11. ADJOURNMENT
a. (TIME ENDED)
Minutes approved by the Chair and a vote of the Board/Commission on XX/XX/XX
Signature:
X/XX/XX– MINUTES Page 1
Attendance Policy
If a member fails to attend regular board or commission meetings, the chair of the board (of if the chair is
the person experiencing the attendance problems, then the vice chair) should contact the Boards and
Commissions Coordinator in the City Clerk’s Office so that they can work with the Council liaison to the
affected board to address the issue.
Any of the following shall automatically cause a member’s appointment to be terminated and shall create a
vacancy on the board:
(1) Two absences from regularly scheduled meetings of the board in any calendar year if, prior to the
meetings where the absences occurred, the member did not submit written notification of such
absence to the staff liaison.
(2) Absence from more than twenty-five (25) percent of regularly scheduled meetings of the board in
any calendar year, with or without written notification to the staff liaison, unless the member has discussed
one or more temporary impediments to attendance with the board chair before this absence threshold is
met.
See Fort Collins Municipal Code § 2-79. The City Council may approve an exception to these attendance
requirements for good cause shown if the affected board member files a written request with the City
Clerk's Office prior to an absence that would trigger a vacancy under this policy.
17
Work Plans & Annual Reports 18
Annual Reports
•The City Code requires all boards to prepare
an annual report on or before January 31st of
each year for the previous year.
•Annual reports should directly correspond to
the work plan prepared by the board for the
year.
Work Plans
•The City Code requires all boards to file
work plans on or before November 30th
for the following year.
•Work plans should set out major projects
and issues for discussion for the following
year.
•A Board’s projects are limited to what is in
its work plan unless it consults with the
City Manager and its Council Liaison first.
Membership Limitations
•No person may serve on any one board for more than eight consecutive years. If a vacancy
occurs on a board, it shall be filled by the City Council for the remaining unexpired portion of
the term unless otherwise specified by the City Council.
•No person will be appointed by the City Council to serve concurrently on more than one board.
This limitation does not apply to committees deemed to be temporary in nature.
•All persons appointed, or reappointed, to any board shall reside within the Fort Collins Growth
Management Area during their service on the board. Any member serving on a board who
relocates outside of the Growth Management Area during their term of service on a board,
regardless of their date of appointment or reappointment, shall resign their membership. These
limitations shall not apply to applicants for, or members of, the General Employees Retirement
Committee.
The Growth Management Area Map can be found here:
http://www.fcgov.com/growth-management-area
19
20
2024 City Council Strategic Objectives
Neighborhood &
Community Vitality
Culture & Recreation
Economic Health
Environmental Health
Safe Community
Transportation & Mobility
High Performing Government
City Attorney’s Office 21
City Attorney – Carrie Daggett
17 Attorneys
(includes Prosecutors)
3 Paralegals
5 Support Staff
City Attorney’s Office 22
The City Attorney is the legal advisor to the City Council and City
employees in matters relating to their official powers and duties, and is
responsible under the City Charter for:
•representing the City in all legal proceedings;
•drafting all ordinances and preparing all other legal documents for the City;
•attending all Council meetings;
•and performing all services related to the position as required by the City Charter, the
ordinances of the City or the Council.
Each City department has one or more attorneys assigned to assist it.
The City Attorney’s Office also provides legal advice and training to all Boards and Commissions,
ande Each Board or Commission has an assigned attorney.
Home Rule City 23
•City Charter: voter approved, as local “constitution”
•City Code: laws enacted by the City Council
City Charter and Code 24
The Charter describes how the City Council may establish Boards and
Commissions and limits what Council and Boards can do:
•Public meetings
•Public records
•Conflicts of interest
•Limit on Council interference with administrative services
The City Code clarifies, describes and builds on these requirements.
Boards and Commissions’ specific powers and functions are established
in the City Code.
Violations of the Charter or the Code are misdemeanor offenses.
Legal Issues for Boards and Commissions 25
✓Liability and indemnification
✓Open meetings
✓Open records
✓Ethics rules
•Conflicts of interest
•Use of confidential information
•Requests for special treatment
•Accepting payments/gifts
✓Speaking in public on your own
behalf vs. on behalf of the Board
26Liability and Indemnity
•City Code Sec. 2-611 – The City assumes liability for and will defend its officers
and employees from civil claims if:
•The claim arises from something the employee did during the performance
of their duties and within the scope of their employment
•The employee’s actions weren’t “willful and wanton”
•Let us know immediately if someone sues or threatens to sue you for your
actions as a Board or Commission member
Open Meetings 27
Meeting = a gathering of a quorum or three or more members, whichever is fewer, of any board
or commission, or any committee of such board or commission, at which any public business is
discussed or at which any formal action may be taken.
Notice must be given to the public before holding a meeting of a board, or committee of a board, if a quorum may be in
attendance or formal action could be taken.
o In-person
o Conference calls
o Zoom meetings
o Email exchanges
•Two members of a board or subcommittee may email each other about public business unless two is a quorum of the
board or the subcommittee.
•Board members may also exchange emails about scheduling and other administrative matters.
•Avoid group emails discussing the substantive business of the board.
•Also, don’t email or text each other during a public meeting about matters being discussed in that meeting – such
discussions should occur in public.
•Emails and texts about City business are subject to disclosure under the Colorado Open Records Act.
Open Meetings Exceptions 28
•Chance meeting or social gathering where you aren’t discussing public
business.
•Executive sessions – limited purposes under the Code:
•Meet with attorneys about litigation or how existing or
new laws may affect the City
•Consideration of potential conflicts of interest
•Real property acquisitions and sales by the City
•Personnel matters
•Certain utility matters
•Citizen Review Board – subcommittee meetings
There are special processes to follow for holding an executive session.
✓The Staff Liaison and Board Chair should ask the City Attorney’s Office for advice and
assistance in advance of trying to hold an executive session.
Colorado Open Records Act (CORA)29
Public records = all writings made, maintained or kept by the City.
Includes photos, videos, recordings, digital data, emails.
•Many exceptions, including attorney-client
privilege.
•Generally, if it relates to public business
the City must disclose it if requested.
•This may include emails sent from your
personal account if they are about your
board’s business.
Conflicts of Interest - Financial 30
See Charter and City Code provisions regarding Conflict of Interest:
•City Charter Article IV, Section 9; City Code Section 2 -568
Financial Interest:
•Any interest associated with money or its equivalent.
•Relevant exceptions:
▪The interest that you or your relative has as an owner or employee of a business, in
a decision of any public body, when the decision financially benefits or otherwise
affects such business but entails no foreseeable, measurable financial benefit to
you or your relative.
▪The interest that you or a relative has as a nonsalaried officer or member of a
nonprofit corporation or association or of an educational, religious, charitable,
fraternal or civic organization in the holdings of such corporation, association or
organization.
Conflicts of Interest - Personal 31
Personal Interest:
•Any interest (other than a financial interest) by reason of which you or a relative would,
in the judgment of a reasonably prudent person, realize or experience some direct and
substantial benefit or detriment different in kind from that experienced by the general
public.
•Relevant exceptions:
▪the interest that you or your relative has as a member of a board, commission,
committee, or authority of another governmental entity or of a nonprofit corporation
or association or of an educational, religious, charitable, fraternal, or civic
organization.
▪the interest that you or a relative has in the receipt of public services when such
services are generally provided by the city on the same terms and conditions to all
similarly situated citizens.
Conflicts of Interest - Disclosure 32
A board member who has, or whose relative
has, a conflict cannot:
•vote on an issue
•attempt to influence; or
•otherwise participate in that decision in any
manner.
Any financial or personal interests must be
disclosed to the Board and to the City Clerk.
•Disclosure form is in the Boards and
Commissions Manual, as is a checklist related
to ethical conduct.
Conflict of Interest – What do I do?33
What do I do if I think I have a conflict?
•Review the Charter and Code language – available online.
•Review the checklist in the Boards and Commissions Manual.
•If you are still unsure, talk through it with your Board’s Staff Liaison or attorney
liaison.
If you decide you have a conflict:
•File a disclosure statement with the City Clerk’s Office.
•Do not communicate with or try to influence the Board in any way on the item or
issue for which you have a conflict (except to protect a strictly personal interest, in
the same way the public would communicate.)
•There is also a process for requesting a variance from the City Council.
Additional Ethical Rules 34
Confidential Information:
•Officers and employees may not use confidential information for their own or
others’ personal or financial gain.
•Don’t disclose any confidential information, including information received in
executive session, to anyone inside the City whose duties are unrelated, or
outside the City organization, unless it is necessary to protect the City from
mismanagement of public funds, abuse of governmental authority, or illegal or
unethical practices.
Requests for Special Treatment:
•The City’s Personnel Policies require employees to report to their manager if any
City officer, an officer’s relative, or a related entity requests special consideration,
treatment or advantage.
Additional Ethical Rules 35
Payments, Gifts, Honoraria:
•Don’t accept payment for speeches, debates or other public events or accept any gift or favor which, in the
judgment of a reasonably prudent person, would tend to impair your independence of judgment in the
performance of your official duties.
Exceptions:
•Awards from nonprofits in recognition of your service;
•reimbursement of actual expenses;
•perishable or nonpermanent items insignificant in value, like meals, tickets to events;
•payment of your salary from your “real” job (unless it creates a financial conflict of interest.)
Quasi-Judicial Commissions
City Commissions are “quasi-judicial,” which
means they have decision-making powers
within their areas of expertise.
Commissions apply established City Code or
Land Use Code standards to facts presented
at a public hearing to reach a decision.
Quasi-judicial decisions are appealable to the
City Council or the courts.
Quasi-judicial commissions have special
rules of procedure they must follow.
The City Attorney’s Office provides additional
training for commissions on these
procedures.
36
Speaking on Behalf of the Board 37
Are you representing the Board or speaking on your
own behalf?
✓Identify yourself
✓Acknowledge that you are a Board member
✓Only claim to speak for the Board if the Board has approved the
message and appointed you to deliver it
QUESTIONS?
38
Questions?
Boards and Commissions Manual 39
This has been a general overview.
For more information, please refer to the Boards and Commissions Manual:
https://www.fcgov.com/cityclerk/pdf/boards/bcmanual.pdf
For Questions or Comments, Please Contact:
THANK YOU!
Davina Lau
Dlau@fcgov.com/(970)416-2525
1
City Council
300 Laporte Avenue
P.O. Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522
Code of Conduct
Purpose:
Fort Collins aspires to be a city that addresses the needs of all members of our community and
strives to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to thrive. As a community, we commit to
building a healthy, equitable, and resilient city – for our families, for our neighbors, and for future
generations. The high quality of life we enjoy requires a city that is safe and where all individuals
are treated with dignity and respect. The Mayor and City Council are committed to providing an
environment that exemplifies the highest standards of behavior and is known for its honesty,
inclusivity and transparency. Our elected officials and those they appoint believe that how they
treat others is a direct reflection of our collective character.
Application:
This policy applies to board and commission members appointed by the City Council. The Council
also adopts this policy to establish standards for Councilmember interactions with board and
commission members, staff, and amongst Councilmembers. The term “Appointees” refers to
appointed board and commission members. The term “Members” refers to both appointees and
City Council.
The City Council appoints individuals who:
• Comply with both the letter and the spirit of the laws and policies affecting operations of
boards and commissions.
• Are independent, impartial, and fair in their judgment and actions.
• Participate in assigned duties and functions for the public good.
• Conduct public deliberations and processes openly, unless legally confidential, in an
atmosphere of respect and civility toward each other, City staff, and members of the public.
• Learn and understand the legal and ethical requirements that apply to public officials and
processes.
Therefore, members commit to the following:
1. To uphold the standards of integrity and honesty with the intention of using true and
accurate evidence and/or statements in the decision-making process, and making decisions
based on the best interest of the city and its residents.
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2. To conduct business of their board or commission that is within the scope of the specific
board or commission functions as described in the Fort Collins Municipal Code.
3. To perform Council liaison assignments and duties as described in the Fort Collins
Municipal Code.
4. Familiarize themselves with, adhere to, and comply with established policies and laws, as
applicable:
• The City of Fort Collins Boards and Commissions Manual
• Colorado’s Sunshine Laws regarding open meetings and public records – as outlined in
the Council Resource Guide
• The City of Fort Collins Charter and Municipal Code; specifically, the ethical rules of
conduct and the open meetings, remote meetings, notice and minutes of meetings,
board or commission action and attendance requirements (see Fort Collins Municipal
Code §§2-71 through 2-79)
• The City Council-adopted Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy, which
prohibits harassment, discrimination and retaliation based on a person’s protected
characteristics.
5. Avoid all ex parte communications (communications with anyone about a pending issue
including communication with City staff) about quasi-judicial matters.
6. To be aware of the open records requirement that applies to written notes, calendars,
voicemail messages, and e-mail. All written or recorded materials including notes,
voicemail, text messages, and e-mail that discuss or touch on public business or the
functions of the board or communication will likely be subject to disclosure to a requesting
party.
7. Appointees are encouraged to meet with their Staff or City Council liaison to discuss any
concerns regarding work that may be outside the scope of designated functions, conflicts
of interest, appearance of impropriety, ex parte communications, or gifts. Appointees must
make disclosures to the City Clerk’s Office as appropriate under the circumstances.
8. Make decisions based on the merits of the issue, while treating all persons and decisions
in a respectful and equitable manner and committing to conducting business in a way that
exemplifies transparency and open communication.
9. Respect the legitimacy and authority of decisions that have been finalized –regardless of
personal position on the matter.
10. (For Appointees) Strive to represent the official policies and positions of their board or
commission when serving in the member role. When presenting their personal opinions or
positions in a public meeting, such as a City Council meeting, Appointees shall explicitly
state that they are not representing their board or commission or the City.
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11. (For Appointees) Avoid actively participating in matters that interfere with a quasi-
judicial commission member’s ability to remain impartial in making decisions.
12. Continue respectful behavior among Members and City staff when communicating in
private. The same level of respect and consideration of differing points of view should be
maintained in private conversations.
13. To use public resources (e.g., staff time, equipment, supplies, or facilities) appropriately
and in a manner that fosters stewardship of the taxpayer and ratepayer dollar.
14. Attend meetings of your board or commission. Because contemplation, deliberation, and
decision-making require collaboration and participation, Appointees are expected to attend
their meetings. Appointees must comply with attendance requirements described in Fort
Collins Municipal Code § 2-79. Appointees commit to attend any required trainings and
even suggested trainings that enhance a member’s ability to serve.
15. To respect fellow Members, staff, and the public by treating all with patience, courtesy,
and civility at all times during the performance of official duties, regardless of differences
of opinion.
16. Avoid making personal, profane, vulgar, slanderous, humiliating, intimidating, or
harassing remarks that disturb, disrupt, or impede the conduct of the meeting or the
completion of the meeting agenda. Similarly, abusive language, intimidation, threats of
violence or harm, or racial or ethnic slurs directed at any person or group of persons are
prohibited. Members are expected to know that problematic behavior can cause the targets
of behavior to feel threatened, humiliated, or intimidated and such conduct is detrimental
to the proper functioning of a public body. Members are expected to avoid publicly
ridiculing or insulting fellow Members, members of the public, and City staff.
17. Act in furtherance of the principle that healthy discourse occurs when individuals of all
backgrounds and personalities are allowed to respectfully speak candidly about matters of
interest, ask difficult questions, challenge ideas and propositions, and work together toward
optimal solutions in a respectful manner.
18. Explain to a person who engages in disrespectful treatment that the behavior is
disrespectful and, if the person who is the target of the behavior feels comfortable doing
so, ask that they discontinue the behavior. If this does not change the behavior the person
who believes they are being treated disrespectfully is strongly encouraged to report the
behavior using the process described in Fort Collins Municipal Code §2-580.
19. Report behavior that is disruptive, humiliating, intimidating, or threatening or otherwise in
violation of this Code of Conduct in the performance of City business, at City-sponsored
events, and in all interactions between members, City staff, or the public to the staff liaison
and the Boards and Commissions Coordinator. Complaints of such behavior will be
processed following procedures in the Fort Collins Municipal Code.
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Appointees may not be reappointed and are subject to censure or dismissal by the appointing
authority for misconduct, nonperformance of duty, or failure to comply with this Code of Conduct,
applicable policies, and the Fort Collins City Charter and Municipal Code.
I have read and understand the City of Fort Collins Code of Conduct and agree to abide by and
uphold this code to the best of my ability at all times while serving as an appointed or elected
official of the city.
I understand that I may not be reappointed, and may be suspended, censured or removed from my
appointment if my conduct falls below these standards.
Signature: Date:
Printed Name:
1
City Council
300 Laporte Avenue
P.O. Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522
ANTI-DISCRIMINATION AND ANTI-HARASSMENT POLICY
Introduction:
Fort Collins aspires to be a city that addresses the needs of all members of our community and
strives to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to thrive. As a community, we commit to
building a healthy, equitable, and resilient city – for our families, for our neighbors, and for
future generations.
The Fort Collins City Council is committed to providing and maintaining an environment that
encourages mutual respect and promotes equality, dignity, and respect. This Policy embodies
the City Council’s commitment to prevent and address discrimination; harassment, including
sexual harassment; and retaliation. Discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in the
workplace are against the law and will not be tolerated.
Through adoption, implementation, and enforcement of this Anti-Discrimination and Anti-
Harassment Policy (“Policy”) and through continuing education and training provided by or
through the City Clerk’s Office, the Fort Collins City Council will seek to prevent, address,
and correct behavior that violates this Policy.
Application:
This policy applies to all members of the City of Fort Collins City Council and Appointed
Officials in the performance of City governance or operations, at City sponsored activities,
and in all interactions between members of City Council, Appointed Officials, and City
employees and contractors (defined herein as “Related Interactions”). Appointed Officials
include the City Manager, the City Attorney, the Chief Municipal Judge, any appointed
employee including municipal judges, and any City board or commission member. Nothing in
this Policy is intended or should be read to alter the terms and conditions of the at-will status
of Appointed Officials.
It is important for all to keep in mind that the Mayor and City Council are committed to
providing an environment that exemplifies high standards of behavior, treats others with
dignity and respect, and is known for its honesty, inclusivity, and transparency. Conduct
that does not clearly fall into the realm of conduct prohibited by this Policy but is
inconsistent with these values may be a violation of the Council-adopted code of conduct.
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Prohibited Conduct
I. Discrimination Strictly Prohibited
Policy
The City Council strictly prohibits discrimination based on protected characteristics and will
take prompt and appropriate action in response to good faith complaints or knowledge of an
alleged violation of this Policy.
Definitions
• “Protected characteristics” means a person’s race, color, religion, creed, national origin or
ancestry, sex, sexual orientation (including perceived sexual orientation), gender identity and
expression, disability, age 40 years or older, pregnancy or related condition, genetic
information, and, in certain specific circumstances, marital status, marriage to a coworker or
any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.
• “Discrimination” occurs when a person covered by this policy experiences an adverse official
action based on one or more of that person’s protected characteristic(s). Adverse official
actions include, but are not limited to, termination, suspension, involuntary demotion, failure
to promote, and opposition, rejection or failure to appoint to committee or leadership role.
Adverse official actions that are taken for any reason other than the protected characteristic(s)
of a person covered by this policy are not discrimination.
Examples of Discrimination
• A Councilmember harshly criticizes City staff and the municipal clerk notes he
disproportionally criticizes her and other women.
• A female candidate for city attorney, city manager or chief judge is selected for a position over
a more qualified male candidate because she is a woman.
• A community member is not considered for a board or commission appointment because he
is homosexual.
• A candidate is not chosen for a promotion to an open City position by an appointee because
the candidate does not share the appointee’s religious beliefs or does not have religious
beliefs.
• A direct report receives an unfavorable, unjustified pay decision because they are disabled.
II. Harassment, Including Sexual Harassment, Strictly Prohibited
Policy
The City Council strictly prohibits harassment, including sexual harassment, and will take prompt
and appropriate action in response to good faith complaints or knowledge of an alleged violation
of this Policy. Please note that this Policy does not address conduct that could constitute a violation
3
of criminal law. Any person who believes a violation of criminal law has occurred should report
the conduct to Fort Collins Police Services or other appropriate law enforcement agency.
Definitions
• “Harassment” means any unwelcome conduct or communication directed at an individual or group
because of that individual’s or group’s actual or perceived protected characteristic and such
conduct or communication is subjectively offensive to the individual alleging harassment and the
conduct is objectively offensive to a reasonable individual who is a member of the same protected
characteristic.
It is not necessary for a complaining party to be a member of a protected characteristic to file a
complaint.
Harassment is a violation of this policy if:
• Submission to the conduct is explicitly or implicitly made a term or condition of employment or
appointment;
• Submission to, or objection to, or rejection of the conduct is used as a basis for employment or
appointment decisions; or
• The conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with the individual’s work
performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment or in related
interactions.
Petty slights, minor annoyances, and lack of good manners are not included in the definition of
harassment, unless they meet the definition of harassment above when taken individually or in
combination and under the totality of the circumstances. The totality of the circumstances considered
includes:
• The frequency, duration and location of the conduct or communication; and
• The number of individuals involved; and
• The type or nature of the conduct or communication; and
• Whether it is threatening, involves epithets or slurs, or reflects stereotypes; and
• Whether there is a power differential between the individual or group and the subject of the
complaint.
Examples of Harassment
No policy can provide an exhaustive list of behaviors that may rise to the level of harassment.
Harassment encompasses a broad range of conduct that may be verbal, visual, or physical in nature.
Specifically prohibited conduct includes, but is not limited to:
• Verbal conduct such as epithets, derogatory comments, and slurs directed at someone because of
their protected class;
• Insisting on giving hugs to all women encountered at a recurring meeting;
• Repeatedly not using a person’s preferred pronoun(s);
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• Visual conduct such as derogatory posters, photographs, cartoons, drawings, or gestures directed
at someone because of their protected class;
• Mocking someone’s accent or disability;
• Acts or jokes that are hostile or demeaning toward a protected class;
• Racially offensive words or phrases;
• Written or graphic material that insults, stereotypes, or shows aversion or hostility to an individual
or group because of a protected class that is placed on walls, bulletin boards, email, or elsewhere
on the premises of the workplace;
• Displays of symbols, slogans, or items that are associated with hate or intolerance towards any
select group, such as swastikas or nooses;
• Pranks or hazing someone because of their protected characteristic; and
• Physical aggression or gestures based on someone’s protected characteristic.
In addition to the examples listed above, an aggregation of a series of incidents can constitute
harassment, even if one of the incidents considered separately would not rise to the level of harassment.
Harassing conduct does not have to rise to the level of an unlawful hostile work environment to warrant
corrective action under this policy.
Sexual Harassment
Because sexual harassment raises issues that are to some extent unique in comparison to other types
of harassment, the City Council believes it warrants separate emphasis. The City Council strongly
opposes sexual harassment and inappropriate sexual conduct. Sexual harassment can involve persons
of any gender identity or sexual orientation being harassed by another individual.
Examples of sexual harassment include, but are not limited to, the following conduct:
• Inappropriate commentary, such as sexual epithets, jokes, written or verbal references to sexual
conduct, gossip regarding a person’s sex life, comments regarding a person’s body or sexual
activity deficiencies or prowess;
• Sexually suggestive comments about a person’s clothing, vocal activity like catcalls or whistles,
leering or staring at a person or part of a person’s body, obscene letters, emails, text messages,
photographs, cartoons, or other written or pictorial materials of a sexual nature, or sexting or
posting sexual messages or images on social media;
• Direct sexual propositions including persistent requests for dates, drinks, or other personal contact
after being informed that the interest is unwelcome, inappropriate sexually themed communication
in person, online or via mobile devices;
• Explicit or implicit requests for sexual activity in exchange for reward, position, or career
advancement, support of legislative initiatives, introductions, special access invitations to
exclusive events, support for candidacies, position stability, or any other such condition or
potential benefit;
• Sexual contact including unwanted physical touching, blocking or impeding movements, groping,
or kissing.
Inappropriate sexual conduct that could lead to a claim of sexual harassment is expressly prohibited
by this policy. This policy prohibits opposite sex and same sex harassment.
5
Sexual harassment may be obvious or subtle. Some behavior that is appropriate in a social setting may
not be appropriate in the performance of City governance, City operations, at City sponsored activities,
or in Related Interactions, particularly considering the Council’s stated values noted above in the
Introduction.
III. Retaliation Strictly Prohibited
Policy
The City Council strictly prohibits retaliation. The City Council will take prompt and appropriate
action in response to good faith complaints of retaliation or knowledge of a violation of this Policy.
Definitions
“Retaliation” means an act of punishment, reprisal, or revenge that is taken against a person because
he or she reported a form of harassment prohibited under this Policy, prevented unlawful practices, or
participated in an investigation of an alleged act of harassment. For purposes of retaliation, an action
is materially adverse if it is harmful to the point that it would dissuade a reasonable employee from
making a complaint of discrimination.
Examples
Retaliation can take place on City locations or elsewhere. Harassing conduct does not have to rise to
the level of an unlawful hostile work environment to warrant corrective action under this policy.
Examples of retaliation after a person makes a complaint or raised a concern may include, but are not
limited to:
• Granting access to that person differently in a manner that negatively affects the person’s business
or ability to perform work (i.e., a Councilmember refusing to meet with a complaining party after
the party filed a complaint);
• Removing that person from an assignment;
• Change in support for Council action proposed by, or supported by, that person in their
professional capacity;
• Disparaging that person to colleagues or peers;
• Changing that person’s role, responsibilities, managerial or legislative authority;
• Newfound scrutiny of that person’s work performance by a supervisor manager or
Councilmember;
• Denial of a promotion for that person, or demoting, suspending, or terminating them, when such
acts are not otherwise justified;
• Issuing that person warnings, reprimands, or poor performance evaluations that are not otherwise
justified;
• Excluding that person from beneficial networking or other opportunities, or from team or coworker
events;
• Encouraging shunning by other Councilmembers;
• Workplace or legislative sabotage;
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• Assigning that person a disproportionate workload;
• Disparaging that person to others or in the media;
• Disparaging that person to potential new employers;
• Threatening that person with legal action;
• Threatening that person with immigration action; or
• Abusive verbal or physical behavior towards that person.
Formal Complaint and Resolution Process
The City Council encourages the reporting of all perceived incidents of discrimination, harassment or
retaliation, as described above, regardless of the position of the alleged offender. The following
processes will be used when a reporting party reports a violation of this Policy. The formal resolution
process will be used when someone makes a good faith report of discrimination, harassment, or
retaliation in a manner that makes clear that the Reporting Party intends to make a complaint of a
policy violation.
Definitions
• “Reporting Party” means a person who has been subjected to or who has witnessed another person
be subjected to behavior that violates this Policy. A Reporting Party may be a member of the City
Council, a City staff member, a member of the public, a City contractor or vendor, an Appointed
Official, a contractor, or a person whose employment gives them access to or contact with the Fort
Collins City Council.
• “Complaint Contact” means:
• The Mayor;
• Any City Councilmember;
• A representative of Human Resources including the Human Resources Executive, the Human
Resources Director, or a Human Resources Business Partner;
• The City Manager, Deputy City Manager, Assistant City Manager, Service Area Director,
Service Unit Director
• The City Attorney, Deputy City Attorney
• Lead Specialist, Office of Equity & Inclusion.
• The staff liaison or attorney liaison to a board or commission
While the reporting party should contact anyone on this list, the following guidance is provided for
“Complaint Contact:”
• For a complaint about the City Manager, City Attorney and Chief Judge, contact the Mayor or the
Human Resources Executive.
• For a complaint about a City Councilmember, contact the Human Resources Executive.
• For a complaint about a Board and Commission member, contact the City Manager, Deputy City
Manager, Assistant City Manager, Service Area Director, Service Unit Director, City Attorney, or
Deputy City Attorney.
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• “Respondent” means a person who is alleged to have violated this Policy and includes members
of the City Council, Appointed Officials, and persons who are under contract with the City of Fort
Collins.
Confidentiality and Privacy Interests
An essential duty of the City Council and Appointed Officials is to be accountable to the public
they serve. Members of the public deserve to have access to some information about complaints
and complaint trends, but this must be balanced with the needs of the parties to have a safe, fair,
and impartial process with appropriate confidentiality. The complaint resolution process is a
confidential process. Complaint contacts must ensure that reporting parties can communicate
privately and confidentially with them in discussing their complaints. Complaints and information
about the investigation must be kept confidential by all parties, witnesses, those who handle the
complaints, and those who recommend discipline or remediation, to the fullest extent possible.
The confidential investigation report or any records of complaints of sexual harassment, and any
sexual harassment investigations shall not be disclosed pursuant to an open records request except
in accordance with Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-72-204.
Complaints Against a Member of the City Council
Complaint Process
The Fort Collins City Council encourages any person who is the subject of or witness to a violation
of this Policy by a City Councilmember to immediately bring the violation to the attention of the
Fort Collins City Council, via the complaint contacts listed above, so it may take proper steps to
investigate and address the issue. The report should contain all facts available to the Reporting
Party regarding the alleged Policy violation.
Action by Complaint Contact
A Complaint Contact who receives a report from a Reporting Party must document the date, time,
the form of communication that the complaint was received (in person, by phone, email, text etc.),
substance of any communication about the complaint and any steps taken. The Complaint Contact
must transmit complaints that fall under the Policy to the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion
Office of the City and the City Attorney. A screening process will be used to ensure that the alleged
misconduct falls within the scope and purpose of this Policy, assuming the allegations are true. A
Complaint Contact must take actions described in this Policy promptly upon becoming aware of a
complaint.
Screening Process
The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City Attorney or their
designee will contact the Reporting Party and obtain a complete description of the conduct that
allegedly violates this Policy. The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee,
the City Manager or their designee and the City Attorney or their designee will determine whether
the alleged misconduct, if true, violates this Policy. Unless the alleged violation clearly does not
8
fall within this Policy, the allegations will be referred for investigation. If the alleged violation
clearly does not fall within this Policy, a confidential written summary of the basis for not referring
the matter for investigation is placed in the file. If the allegations are not referred for full
investigation, the complaining party will be notified both in person and in writing that the
allegations were reviewed as a screening matter and determined not to fall within the scope of this
Policy. If any of those involved in the screening the complaint believes the alleged misconduct, if
true, violates this Policy, the allegations will be referred for investigation and the complaining
party will be notified.
Investigation
Complaints against a Councilmember that, if true, violate this Policy must promptly be referred to
a third-party investigator retained by the City Attorney’s Office. The City Attorney must inform
the City Council that an investigation is underway and retain an independent outside investigator
(preferably a lawyer that specializes in workplace investigations) to conduct interviews with the
Reporting Party and other individuals with knowledge of relevant facts, and to perform such other
actions as are necessary to ensure a complete investigation of all allegations and a fair process for
all involved. Once the investigation is deemed complete by the investigator and the City Attorney,
the investigator shall prepare a written report indicating whether the allegations in the complaint
are sustained or not sustained and shall provide such confidential investigation report to the City
Attorney.
Timeline for Investigation
Every effort will be made to complete an investigation in 60 days.
Disciplinary and Remedial Action
Upon completion of the investigation by a third-party investigator, the City Attorney will inform
the Human Resources Executive, the City Manager, the Reporting Party and the Respondent of
the pertinent findings. The City Attorney, the Human Resources Executive and the City Manager
will send the confidential investigative report to each member of the City Council with a cover
letter that contains recommendations to remedy the harassment, discrimination, or retaliation.
Alternatively, the City Attorney shall present the investigator’s written report to the City Council
in executive session. Upon receipt, the Respondent must immediately endeavor to comply with
recommendations.
The City Council may consider and direct any or all of the following actions in response to a
finding that a complaint of harassment, discrimination or retaliation is sustained:
1. Adopt a resolution finding that an individual covered by this policy violated this policy;
2. Direct or encourage additional corrective training;
3. Such other action as is consistent with its authority under applicable state statutes, the City
Charter, ordinances, resolutions, or rules and policies of the City Council.
Any Councilmember at any time may initiate a motion for censure of a Respondent
Councilmember.
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Complaints Against an Appointed Official
Reporting
The City Council encourages any person who is the subject of or witness to a violation of this
Policy by an Appointed Official to bring the violation to the attention of the City Council
immediately, so it may take proper steps to investigate and address the issue. The report should
contain all facts available to the Reporting Party regarding the alleged Policy violation.
The Reporting Party is encouraged to take the following actions:
• If the Reporting Party is comfortable addressing the issue directly with the Respondent, the party
may explain to the Respondent that the behavior is offensive to the Reporting Party, and request
that such behavior be discontinued.
• If the behavior recurs, the Reporting Party is strongly encouraged to immediately report the
behavior to a complaint contact listed above.
• If the Reporting Party is not comfortable addressing the issue directly with the Respondent, the
Reporting Party should immediately report the offensive behavior to a Complaint Contact listed
above.
Action by Complaint Contact
A Complaint Contact who receives a report from a Reporting Party must document the date, time,
the form of communication that the complaint was received (by phone, in person, email, text
message, etc.), substance of any communication about the complaint, and any steps taken. The
Complaint Contact must transmit complaints that fall under the Policy to the Human Resources
Executive, the City Attorney, unless the City Attorney is the Respondent and the City Manager,
unless the City Manager is the Respondent. If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the Complaint
Contact must transmit complaints that fall under the Policy to the Human Resources Executive
and the City Manager. A screening process will be used to ensure that the alleged misconduct falls
within the scope and purpose of this Policy, assuming the allegations are true. A Complaint Contact
must take actions described in this Policy promptly upon becoming aware of a complaint.
Screening Process
The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City Attorney or their
designee, if the City Attorney is not the Respondent, will contact the Reporting Party and obtain a
complete description of the conduct that allegedly violates this Policy. The Lead Specialist, Equity
and Inclusion Office or their designee, the City Manager or their designee, if the City Manager is
not the Respondent, and the City Attorney or their designee, if the City Attorney is not the
Respondent, will determine whether the alleged misconduct, if true, violates this Policy. Unless
the alleged violation clearly does not fall within this Policy, the allegations will be referred for
investigation. If the alleged violation clearly does not fall within this Policy, a confidential written
summary of the basis for not referring the matter for investigation is placed in the file. If the
allegations are not referred for full investigation, the Reporting Party will be notified both in person
and in writing that the allegations were reviewed as a screening matter and determined not to fall
10
within the scope of this Policy. If any of those involved in the screening the complaint believe the
alleged misconduct, if true, violates this Policy, the allegations will be referred for investigation.
If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the City Council will use outside legal counsel to engage
in the screening process as described herein. If the Respondent is the City Manager, the Lead
Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and City Attorney will engage in the
screening process.
Investigation
Complaints against an Appointed Official that warrant investigation must promptly be referred to
a third-party investigator retained the City Attorney’s Office, unless the Respondent is the City
Attorney. Unless the Respondent is the City Attorney, the City Attorney must inform the City
Council that an investigation is underway and retain an independent outside investigator
(preferably a lawyer that specializes in workplace investigations). If the Respondent is the City
Attorney, the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee will retain the services
of outside counsel to retain an independent outside investigator (preferably a lawyer that
specializes in workplace investigations) and the City Manager must inform the City Council that
an investigation is underway.
An outside investigator will conduct interviews with the Reporting Party and other individuals
with knowledge of relevant facts, and to perform such other actions as are necessary to ensure a
complete investigation of all allegations and a fair process for all involved. Once the investigation
is deemed complete by the investigator and the City Attorney or outside counsel, the investigator
shall prepare a written report indicating whether the allegations in the complaint are sustained or
not sustained, and shall provide such confidential investigation report to the City Attorney, unless
the Respondent is the City Attorney. If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the confidential
investigation report will be provided to the outside counsel who will forward the report to the Lead
Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City Manager.
The confidential investigation report and findings, along with a recommendation, will be provided
to the City Manager and the City Council.
Timeline for Investigation
Every effort will be made to complete an investigation in 60 days.
Disciplinary and Remedial Action
Any Respondent found to have engaged in harassment, discrimination, or retaliation prohibited by
this Policy is subject to appropriate disciplinary action. The City Council shall consult with the
Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City Attorney, if the City
Attorney is not the Respondent, regarding disciplinary actions that are commensurate with the
severity of the offense. If the City Attorney is the Respondent, the City Council shall consult with
the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and outside employment counsel
about disciplinary actions that are commensurate with the severity of the offense. Disciplinary
11
action can include, but is not limited to, demotion or termination. Other remedial measures may
include:
• Verbal or written direction to cease the offensive behavior;
• A written or verbal apology to the Reporting Party if the Reporting Party consents to the apology;
• Resources and support to Reporting Party; or
• Education and training for the Appointed Officials.
In any case, a written record of any action taken on the complaint, or any determination to take no
further action on the complaint, shall be prepared in consultation with the City Attorney or such
other legal counsel appointed by City Council in connection with a given complaint and kept with
the report of investigation.
Training
All members of City Council shall participate in training regarding harassment, discrimination and
retaliation every two years and in conjunction with the orientation provided to new City Council
members. All Appointed Officials shall participate in such training every two years.
Annual Reporting and Review
The Assistant City Manager will publicly report, on an annual basis, the total number of complaints
under the Policy, and the resolution of each complaint, appropriately redacted to protect the
confidential personnel decisions and party identities. The Assistant City Manager will maintain a
publicly available list of Councilmembers and Appointed Officials who have attended mandatory
and voluntary trainings.
2023 Manual
1
Boards and Commissions Handbook
Last Revised: September 8, 2023
City Council
Jeni Arndt, Mayor
Emily Francis, Mayor Pro Tempore, District 6
Susan Gutowsky District 1
Julie Pignataro, District 2
Tricia Canonico, District 3
Shirley Peel, District 4
Kelly Ohlson, District 5
City Manager
Kelly DiMartino
City Attorney
Carrie Daggett
City Clerk
Anissa Hollingshead
Public Engagement Coordinator – Boards and Commissions
Davina Lau
2
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION TO CITY GOVERNMENT ............................................................................................. 3
Fort Collins’ Mission, Vision, and Values .............................................................................................................. 3
City Council and the Council-Manager Form of Government ............................................................................. 4
INTRODUCTION TO THE ROLES AND TYPES OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS............................. 5
General Overview of the Roles of Boards and Commissions ............................................................................. 5
Types of Boards and Commissions ....................................................................................................................... 6
Advisory Boards – Type 1 .................................................................................................................................. 6
Advisory Boards – Type 2 .................................................................................................................................. 6
Quasi-Judicial Commissions ............................................................................................................................ 6
THE ROLES OF BOARD MEMBERS AND COUNCIL/STAFF SUPPORT CONTACTS ......................... 7
Board Members ........................................................................................................................................................ 7
City Council Liaison Role ........................................................................................................................................ 7
Staff Liaison Role ..................................................................................................................................................... 8
City Attorney Role .................................................................................................................................................... 8
MEMBERSHIP RESPONSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS ........................................................................ 9
Orientation and Training ......................................................................................................................................... 9
Attendance Policy .................................................................................................................................................... 9
Remote Participation ........................................................................................................................................... 9
Membership Limitations ........................................................................................................................................ 10
CONDUCTING BOARD/COMMISSION MEETINGS .............................................................................. 11
Election of Officers ................................................................................................................................................ 11
Conduct of Meetings .............................................................................................................................................. 11
Rules of Procedure ............................................................................................................................................ 11
Public Input ............................................................................................................................................................. 12
Open Meetings........................................................................................................................................................ 12
Agenda .................................................................................................................................................................... 14
Minutes .................................................................................................................................................................... 15
Executive Sessions ................................................................................................................................................ 15
“Super Issue” Meetings ......................................................................................................................................... 15
REPORTING REQUIREMENTS – WORK PLANS AND ANNUAL REPORTS ...................................... 16
Work Plans .............................................................................................................................................................. 16
Annual Reports....................................................................................................................................................... 16
BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS YEARLY PLANNING CALENDAR ..................................................... 17
3
Annual Review Schedule ....................................................................................................................................... 17
Promotional Guidelines ......................................................................................................................................... 18
Frequently Asked Questions: ......................................................................................................................... 18
RULES OF CONDUCT ........................................................................................................................... 20
Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy ............................................................................................... 20
Ethical Conduct and Conflicts of Interest ........................................................................................................... 20
Conflicts of Interest ........................................................................................................................................... 20
Contracts with the City ..................................................................................................................................... 21
Disclosure of Confidences .............................................................................................................................. 22
Gifts and Favors ................................................................................................................................................. 22
Indemnification ................................................................................................................................................... 22
Ethics Complaints .............................................................................................................................................. 23
Abuse of Public Office ...................................................................................................................................... 25
Checklist ............................................................................................................................................................... 25
APPENDIX A: BREAKDOWN OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ....................................................... 26
APPENDIX B: CODE OF CONDUCT ..................................................................................................... 32
APPENDIX C: ANTI-DISCRIMINATION AND ANTI-HARASSMENT POLICY ....................................... 36
WELCOME
Welcome to the City of Fort Collins (the City)! Your selection as an active member of a board or commission provides
you with a valuable opportunity for genuine public service, and we thank you for your contribution. Although the specific
duties of each board or commission vary widely, there are certain responsibilities common to all board or commission
members. These guidelines will assist you in maximizing your contribution to our community through your service on a
board or commission. For ease of reference throughout this Manual, boards and commissions may at times be referred
to as a “board” or “boards.”
INTRODUCTION TO CITY GOVERNMENT
Fort Collins’ Mission, Vision, and Values
The City is a dynamic and continually evolving organization. However, the vision for the City, its mission, and its
core values remain a constant that help all employees focus on the primary goal: service to our community
members.
Mission: Exceptional Service for an Exceptional Community
Vision: We foster a thriving and engaged community through our operational excellence and culture of
innovation.
Values: Partnership | Service | Safety & Wellbeing | Sustainability | Integrity | Belonging
4
City Council and the Council-Manager Form of Government
The City Council is comprised of seven members, six of whom represent a geographic Council district for terms of
four years. The only exception is the Mayor, who is elected at large by the entire City’s electorate and serves a two-
year term. The Mayor and Councilmembers are elected in nonpartisan races. The Council itself selects its Mayor
Pro Tempore (Mayor Pro Tem) from among its six district representatives. The Mayor Pro Tem assumes the duties of
the Mayor in their absence.
The City of Fort Collins is governed by the principles of the Council-Manager form of government, the most common
structure for governing municipalities in the Western United States. Under Fort Collins’ City Charter, the Council-
Manager system requires that elected officials (City Council) are responsible for policy decisions and for hiring and
supervising their direct employees: the City Manager, City Attorney, and Chief Judge. City Council serves as the
community’s legislative body, responsible for enacting City ordinances, appropriating funds to conduct City business
in the City’s formal budgeting process, and providing policy direction to City staff through the City Manager.
The City Manager is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the organization and gives direction to the staff
members who are their employees. Functions of the City Manager include but are not limited to:
- Implementing policy decisions and legislative actions taken by the City Council
- Making recommendations to City Council
- Overseeing the operations of the City
- Preparing the City Manager’s recommended City budget
The philosophy behind the Council-Manager form of government is to create an administrative organization that is
separate from the political process and which is run by professional staff members who are trained in municipal
government administration. The City Manager is thus responsible to the City Council for the actions of staff in each
of the City’s departments, except the attorneys in the City Attorney’s Office and Municipal Court staff.
City Council City Manager
Responsible for:
Policy Decisions
Day-to-day operations
Hires and Leads/Manages:
City Manager
City Attorney
Chief Judge
All other City staff
members/employees
(excl. Atty staff)
5
INTRODUCTION TO THE ROLES AND TYPES OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
General Overview of the Roles of Boards and Commissions
Details about each individual board may be found in Article III, Chapter 2 of the City Code or in Appendix A to this
handbook. The City Council may, by ordinance, establish appointive boards to advise on various issues and perform
functions as the Council may designate. An ordinance establishing each board defines the powers, duties, operating
procedures of the board and terms of offices for the board members. City Council ordinances may be amended at
any time through formal Council action.
Boards are composed of community member volunteers appointed by the City Council. The role of most of these
boards and commissions is to advise City Council on issues related to a specific subject matter. They assist the Council
in its policy-making role by reviewing issues or proposals and providing recommendations to City Council about actions
that it is considering. Examples of this kind of work might include reviewing proposed master plans, ordinances, or
other projects and providing a community member viewpoint on proposals. In addition to this advisory role, specific
boards designated as “quasi-judicial” are each vested with certain decision-making responsibilities such as building
and development in the community. The three types of boards and commissions are explained in greater detail in the
City Code §§2-100 through 2-178.
In addition to the regular functions of all boards and the duties specified in the City Code for each individual board,
boards are authorized to participate on a case-by-case basis in the review, discussion, and advisement of Council
regarding any policy or program matter upon the request of the City Council or the City Manager. Participation includes
“Super Issue” meetings which engage a cross-section of board members in discussions of broader policy issues and
interests of the City.
The following organizational chart situates boards and commissions in a reporting relationship to City Council to
denote that they exist to assist Council with their policy development responsibilities.
6
Types of Boards and Commissions
As explained above, boards and commissions are established for the purpose of reviewing information and making
recommendations to City Council and City staff on City policy issues. Specific duties and functions are established
individually for each board or commission. Most boards and commissions are advisory to the City Council and/or City
administration. Boards and Commissions are divided into three categories as follows:
Advisory Boards – Type 1
Type 1 advisory boards make recommendations to the City Council and City staff on particular areas of
knowledge or expertise. Recommendations made by advisory boards are formal opinions to the City Council
on items and subjects that are on the boards’ approved workplans. These recommendations are limited to
advisement and are not policy setting.
- Affordable Housing Board
- Active Modes Advisory Board (pending)
- Air Quality Advisory Board
- Disability Advisory Board
- Economic Advisory Board
- Energy Board
- Land Conservation and Stewardship Board
- Natural Resources Advisory Board
- Parks and Recreation Board
- Senior Advisory Board
- Transportation Board
- Women and Gender Equity Advisory Board (pending)
- Youth Advisory Board
Advisory Boards – Type 2
In addition to serving an advisory function to the City Council and City staff, the assigned functions of Type 2
advisory boards give them the authority to make decisions on certain matters specified in the City Code. These
decisions then serve as formal recommendations to City Council or City staff for their consideration and
adoption.
- Art in Public Places Board
- Citizen Review Board
- Cultural Resources Board
- Human Services and Housing Funding Board
Quasi-Judicial Commissions
Quasi-judicial commissions are non-judicial bodies that use formal procedures to objectively determine facts,
interpret the law, and draw conclusions to provide the basis of an official action. Decisions of quasi-judicial
commissions are subject to appeal to the City Council or the courts.
- Building Review Commission
- Historic Preservation Commission
- Human Relations Commission
- Land Use Review Commission
- Planning and Zoning Commission
- Water Commission
7
THE ROLES OF BOARD MEMBERS AND COUNCIL/STAFF SUPPORT CONTACTS
City Councilmembers and City staff serve a variety of roles and provide several resources for board and commission
members. The following subsections detail the roles of board members, City Council Liaisons, Staff Liaisons, the City
Attorney, and the City Clerk in the operation of the City’s boards and commissions.
Board Members
Members of all City boards and commissions are expected to contribute to the roles and functions ascribed to the
board by ordinance of the City Council. These duties will vary based upon the purpose of each individual board, but
individual members are integral to each board or commission’s ability to serve its purpose effectively and efficiently.
Particularly in the context of a City Council meeting, board members making recommendations or expressing views
that have not been approved by a majority of the board should indicate they are expressing individual opinions and
are not speaking on behalf of the board or the City. Please see the Code of Conduct attached hereto and incorporated
herein by reference as Appendix B.
Public statements made with the required approval of the majority of the board or commission at a public meeting
should be within the scope of the functions assigned to the board or commission and should not contain assurances
or statements that may be construed to be binding on a board, staff, or the City Council. When making a public
statement, members should remind listeners that board actions are recommendations (unless otherwise provided by
law) and that final action will be taken by the City Council. Remember that your actions and statements as a board
member assume special significance, and if not responsibly discharged, could result in a situation detrimental to the
City’s best interests.
City Council Liaison Role
Every two years, following the election of Councilmembers, the Council selects its liaisons to the boards. City Code §§
2-82 and 2-568 (8) describe the role of a City Council liaison, which is summarized below:
• Communicating with the board when Council communication is needed and serving as the primary two-way
communication
• Taking the lead in filling vacancies by reviewing applications and conducting interviews with candidates
• Making decisions about recommendations for appointment, keeping in mind the need for fresh perspectives
and not primarily on liaison’s personal preferences
• Serving as the primary Council contact for the board
• Helping to resolve questions the board may have about the role of Council, municipal government, and the
board
• Establishing contact with chair and effectively communicating the role of the liaison
• Reviewing the annual work plan of the board and making recommendations to Council regarding the work
plan
• Identifying and helping to resolve any problems with the support of CCO, CMO, CAO and staff liaison that may
exist with respect to the functioning of the board
• Deciding whether to grant a request from their assigned board to hold a joint meeting with other boards
With respect to any Councilmember serving as a liaison to a board or commission, such Councilmember must not
direct the board in its activities or work. A liaison’s role is to serve as a contact rather than an advocate for or ex-officio
member of the board or commission.
8
Staff Liaison Role
Each board is assigned a staff member as a liaison for the board and are responsible for the following tasks, including
but not limited to:
- Uploading yearly meeting dates to the Event Calendar on www.fcgov.com.
- Preparing the agenda and reviewing it with the chair prior to distribution.
- Sending the meeting agenda to the City Clerk’s Office
- Recording meeting minutes. Board members shall not be responsible for recording meeting minutes to allow
said members to actively participate in the meeting. The length and content of minutes will vary with the
needs and legal requirements of each board.
- Distributing a copy of the approved minutes to the Boards and Commissions Coordinator.
- Handling logistics regarding meeting scheduling and setup.
- Coordinating the board’s annual work plan.
- Ensuring new members are oriented to the board, including procedures and projects.
- Tracking attendance and volunteer hours through Engage or other approved software and submitting a
monthly confirmation to the Boards and Commissions Coordinator.
- Ensuring the election of officers is held during May or June of each year and informing the Boards and
Commissions Coordinator of the results of each election.
- At the request of the Boards and Commissions Coordinator, providing information to the board regarding
policy changes and distributing updated information to all members.
- Notifying the City Clerk’s Office when a member resigns, or a vacancy exists for other reasons.
- Advising board or commission members if a planned action is impermissible or inadvisable.
- Advising appropriate City staff if a board or commission’s planned action does not align with City Code or
policy.
- Staying apprised of City department budget for support of assigned board or commission and making
expenditure decisions consistent with the board or commission’s annual work plan.
It should be noted that staff liaisons are not authorized to:
- Override a decision of the Council liaison (regarding a request by the board).
- Serve as a resource for projects not on the board’s work plan.
- Serve as a communications link between the City Council and board members. (This is the role of the
Council liaison.)
City Attorney Role
The City Attorney is the legal advisor to the officers and employees of the City in connection with their roles in the
organization. There are several attorneys in the City Attorney’s Office, each with areas of assignment, and an attorney
is assigned to advise each board and to assist the staff liaison, chair, and members of the body with legal questions
and concerns. They also provide appropriate training.
City Clerk Role
The City Clerk supports the organization by maintaining City records; producing and distributing City Council agendas
and minutes; administering the boards and commissions program; maintaining the City Code, Land Use Code, and
Traffic Code; and conducting municipal elections. The Clerk’s Office also responds to citizen inquiries for
information, proactively provides information via the City’s website, and administers liquor and marijuana
business licensing.
9
MEMBERSHIP RESPONSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS
Orientation and Training
City staff provides yearly training on the structure and operation of City government and the legal and ethical duties
and responsibilities of board members. All members of City boards are required to attend the training, either in person
or in such other fashion as the City Clerk’s Office, City Manager and City Attorney may deem appropriate (such as
viewing a training video). This requirement must be fulfilled within six months of the appointment of any member.
Board and commission members are required to review the organization-wide volunteer handbook which can be
found at https://www.fcgov.com/volunteer/pdf/volunteer-handbook-2015.pdf?1449784884. They are also
required to review and become familiar and comply with the Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy and Code
of Conduct attached to this Manual and complete the online training assigned.
Attendance Policy
Upon the effective date of appointment, board members are obligated to attend meetings. A “meeting” shall mean
any gathering of a quorum or three or more members of any board of the City, or any committee of such board, at
which any public business is discussed or at which any formal action may be taken but shall not mean any chance
meeting or social gathering at which the discussion of public business is not the central purpose. (City Code § 2-79)
If a member fails to attend regular board or commission meetings, the chair of the board (of if the chair is the person
experiencing the attendance problems, then the vice chair) should contact the Boards and Commissions Coordinator
in the City Clerk’s Office so that they can work with the Council liaison to the affected board to address the issue. Any
of the following shall automatically cause a member’s appointment to be terminated and shall create a vacancy on
the board:
- Two absences from regularly scheduled meetings of the board, if prior to the meetings where the absences
occurred, the member did not submit written notification (an e-mail is sufficient) of such absences to the staff
liaison.
- Absences from more than 25% of the regularly scheduled meetings of the board in any calendar year, with or
without written notification (an e-mail is sufficient) to the staff liaison, unless the member has discussed one
or more temporary impediments to attendance with the board chair before this absence threshold is met.
- For subcommittee meetings of the Citizen Review Board, two consecutive absences from scheduled
subcommittee meetings or three absences from scheduled subcommittee meetings in a calendar year, if prior
to the meetings where the absences occurred, no written notification (an e-mail is sufficient) of any such
absence has been submitted to the staff liaison.
If such a vacancy occurs, the staff liaison shall immediately notify the City Clerk's Office so that the vacancy can be
filled by the Council. The City Council may approve an exception to the attendance requirements in this section for
good cause shown, if the affected board or commission member files a written request with the City Clerk's Office
prior to an absence that would trigger a vacancy under subsection (a).
The City Council may approve an exception to these attendance requirements for good cause shown if the affected
board member files a written request with the City Clerk's Office prior to an absence that would trigger a vacancy
under this policy.
Remote Participation
Detailed requirements about boards and commissions holding remote meetings are found in City Code § 2-73 and
summarized partially below. Board and commission members must comply with these requirements.
10
• Quasi-judicial meetings may be conducted in whole or in part by remote technology. However, a member must
be present in person to participate in and vote on quasi-judicial matters.
• For boards and commissions that are not quasi-judicial, meetings may be conducted in whole or in part by
remote technology. Remote participation of a member will count towards establishing a quorum and remote
participation is allowed. All votes must be conducted by roll call.
Membership Limitations
The following limitations and requirements (City Code § 2-76) are applied to board membership):
- No person may serve on any one board for more than eight consecutive years. If a vacancy occurs on a board,
it shall be filled by the City Council for the remaining unexpired portion of the term unless otherwise specified
by the City Council.
- No person will be appointed by the City Council to serve concurrently on more than one board. This limitation
does not apply to committees deemed to be temporary in nature.
- All persons appointed, or reappointed, to any board shall reside within the Fort Collins Growth Management
Area during their service on the board. Any member serving on a board who relocates outside of the Growth
Management Area during their term of service on a board, regardless of their date of appointment or
reappointment, shall resign their membership. These limitations shall not apply to applicants for, or members
of, the General Employees Retirement Committee or the Affordable Housing Board appointees made by the
Housing Catalyst.
- Service by employees on any board or commission referenced in Division 2, 3 of 4 of the Article III of the Fort
Collins Municipal Code is governed by the City’s Personnel Policies.
Boards do not have the authority to add additional members to the board or invite members of the public to sit on
subcommittees.
11
CONDUCTING BOARD/COMMISSION MEETINGS
Election of Officers
The election of officers should be held each year during the regular meeting in May or June or at such time as any
annual appointments become effective. This time frame follows the annual appointment of new members before
officer elections. The Clerk’s Office suggests that new board members attend at least one meeting prior to election
of officers taking place.
Conduct of Meetings
It is important that boards conduct their meetings in a manner that is procedurally effective, efficient, and equitable.
Fort Collins’ City Code specifies that “each board or commission shall conduct its business in accordance with the
Charter and the Code” and that “additional procedures and requirements for boards and commissions may be listed
in a Boards and Commissions Manual [the present document]” (City Code § 2-78).
The City Code provides that all type 2 advisory boards and quasi- judicial commissions may adopt rules of procedures
which are not inconsistent with the Charter, the Code or other policies that may be established by the Council,
including this Manual, and must be submitted to the City Attorney’s Office for review prior to adoption. Boards or
commissions that wish to adopt rules of procedure should work with their staff liaisons and the City Attorney’s Office
to prepare or amend rules of procedures. A copy must be filed with the City Clerk for City Council reference
immediately after adoption, and they may be subject to the approval of the City Council. Boards and commissions no
longer have bylaws, as the City Code governs the subjects that would typically be included in the bylaws of a board.
The Rules of Procedure described in this section of the Boards and Commissions manual are a simplified version of
Robert’s Rules of Order. The instructions and information that follow are by no means a comprehensive guide, but
they should orient new board and commission members to the general rules of procedure used by many boards and
commissions. Staff liaisons and board/commission chairs will explain these in more detail at each meeting with new
board and commission members, including any modifications to the procedures included here.
Rules of Procedure
The following Rules of Procedure should help boards and commissions facilitate meetings more effectively by
requiring the board or commission to consider one item at a time and ensuring that everyone who would like
to speak may do so.
The chairperson of each board will facilitate by calling the meeting to order, presenting items for the group to
consider based on the agenda, ushering the group through the agenda, and concluding the meeting when all
business on the agenda has been considered by the group.
In general, board and commission members participate in meetings by one person making a motion and, if a
second person seconds the motion, engaging in discussion about the item and then taking a vote of all
members. Amendments to a motion may also be made. The following table describes these actions in greater
detail.
12
Motion Meaning
Second Motions require that a second member of the group agrees to
consider the proposal to ensure that it is meaningful to more than
one person.
Amend If a member would like to slightly change the wording of the item
being debated, the member may state, “I move that we amend the
item by…” and indicating the exact changes they would like the
group to consider. In order for the approved amendment to be
considered, the motion to amend must be seconded by another
member of the group and then voted on. If the motion to amend
passes, then the original motion has been successfully amended,
but separate debate and voting on the original motion (as newly
amended) is still required.
Participate in Debate Any time the chair introduces an item for the group’s consideration,
all board and commission members are invited and encouraged to
make a motion. Once a motion is made and seconded or a motion
is amended as described above, the chair will call on board
members who wish to speak, and the group will discuss and debate
the motion until all who wish to speak have spoken and a vote
takes place. Importantly, chairs of City boards are permitted to
participate in the debate of matters considered by the board and
to vote on all motions made to the same extent and with the same
effect as other members.
Voting on a Motion The five methods used to vote are:
By Voice – The Chair asks those in favor to say, “aye”, those
opposed to say “no”. Any member may move for an exact count.
By Roll Call – Each member answers “yes” or “no” as their name is
called. This method is standard, and each vote must be recorded
(Sec. 2-78 “A record shall be made of each vote by which a board
or commission takes formal action.”). Roll call is required if there
are any remote participants of boards/commissions present.
Public Input
Each board shall, at or near the beginning of each of its regular meetings, afford members of the public an opportunity
to speak to any matter coming within the purview of the board, regardless of whether such matter is scheduled for
consideration at that particular meeting. Time limitations for public input may be set by the chair of the board at the
start of each meeting as necessary to conduct the business of the board in a timely and efficient manner.
Open Meetings
Open to Public
The City Code specifically requires that all meetings of a board, and all meetings of any committee of a board, shall
be open to the public at all times. The only exception to this rule is when the board is meeting in a validly convened
executive session, in which the board is permitted to meet privately to discuss certain, specific matters described in
the City Code.
The term “meeting” is defined as a gathering of a quorum or three or more members, whichever is fewer, of any
board, or any committee of such board, at which any public business is discussed or at which any formal action may
be taken. It is important to remember that the open meeting requirements apply to more than just in-person
gatherings. They also apply to telephone conference calls, social media communications, or any other means of
13
communication where communication between more than two members about any public business takes place.
However, the term “meeting” does not include a chance meeting or social gathering at which the discussion of public
business is not a central purpose.
Board and commission members must avoid email exchanges that discuss public business or any matter related to
their City Council-established functions, unless it is a one-on-one dialogue or regarding scheduling. Board or
commission business should not be conducted outside of meetings. An email exchange between two board or
commission members may be subject to disclosure under the Colorado Open Records Act.
Notice Requirement
The notice requirement for meetings is slightly different from the public openness requirement. Full and timely notice
to the public must be given prior to the holding of any meeting of a board (or committee of a board) at which a majority
or quorum is in attendance or is expected to be in attendance or at which formal action could be taken. Therefore, a
gathering of three members of a seven-member board to discuss board business would be open to the public but
there would be no notice requirement if a quorum of the board was not expected to be in attendance and no formal
action to occur.
The City Code defines full and timely notice for regularly scheduled meetings as providing a statement with the City
Clerk’s Office with the regular meeting dates, times and locations. For special meetings, irregularly scheduled
meetings, or rescheduled meetings, notice of the meeting must be filed with the City Clerk’s Office and posted at
least 24 hours before the time of the meeting. The City’s website is designated as the proper place for the posting of
public notice of any meetings of any City boards or their committees, for which public notice is required to be given
by the provisions of the Code. When possible, such notices should also be available at the City Clerk’s office at City
Hall West, 300 Laporte Avenue. All meeting notices shall include information about the availability of agenda
materials. The staff liaison for each board, or their designee, shall be responsible for the posting of such notice.
14
Quorum Requirements
For a board to conduct any business or take any formal action, it is necessary that a quorum of the membership be
present at the meeting. A quorum consists of the majority of the total number of members specified by the City Code
to comprise the board. This quorum requirement does not change even if a position on the board is vacant, and the
City Council has not yet appointed a replacement. If a quorum is not present for a meeting, those present can adjourn
the meeting to a later date and time. Unless otherwise provided in the City Code, members present at the meeting by
remote technology shall be counted toward establishing a quorum and may participate and vote in non-quasi-judicial
portions of meetings. Attendance by remote technology for purposes of establishing a quorum or participating and
voting in the meeting is not permissible in quasi-judicial portions of meetings. The quorum for a board subcommittee
shall be a majority of those appointed to the subcommittee unless the Charter, City Code, or the board establishing
the subcommittee specifies otherwise.
How Many Members Constitute a Quorum?*
Four members
**These boards and commissions have 7 members, and a
quorum is the four-member minimum majority of membership
- Affordable Housing Board
- Art in Public Places Board
- Citizen Review Board
- Cultural Resources Board
- Building Review Commission
- Planning and Zoning Commission
- Land Use Review Commission
- Women and Gender Equity Board (pending)
Five members
**These boards and commissions have 9 members, and a
quorum is the five-member minimum majority of membership
- Active Modes Advisory Board
- Air Quality Advisory Board
- Disability Advisory Board
- Economic Advisory Board
- Energy Board
- Land Conservation and Stewardship Board
- Natural Resources Advisory Board
- Parks and Recreation Board
- Senior Advisory Board
- Human Services and Housing Funding Board
- Historic Preservation Commission
- Human Relations Commission
- Water Commission
- Women and Gender Equity Advisory Board
*Because the Youth Advisory Board (“YAB”) may change in size from time to time, a quorum for the YAB
shall be dependent on the number of the appointed board members at the time of the meeting. A
quorum for the YAB shall be a majority of the number of appointed board members.
Agenda
The staff liaison is responsible for creating and distributing the agenda with relevant supplemental documents and
presentations for any meeting of a board (or committee of a board). The agenda must be open to public inspection,
and a copy must be filed with the City Clerk. A summary agenda must also be filed with the City Clerk’s Office.
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Minutes
The staff liaison or their designee is responsible for taking minutes at any meeting of a board (or committee of a
board) at which the adoption of any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, regulation, or formal action occurs or
could occur. The minutes must be open to public inspection, and a copy must be filed with the City Clerk upon
approval. Section 2-75 of the City Code requires that approval of minutes shall occur no later than the next regular
meeting of the board or committee, except in those instances when an audio or video recording has been made and
maintained. Discussions that occur in an executive session shall be subject to the same audio recording requirements
and related procedures and regulations as are contained in Section 2-33 of the City Code pertaining to executive
sessions of the City Council and its committees. The minutes of a meeting during which an executive session is held
shall reflect the topic of the discussion at the executive session.
Approval of Minutes
Board members are responsible for approving the previous meeting’s minutes at each regular meeting. If
board members would like to make any additions, deletions, or corrections to the minutes, they should
present these changes during the agenda time slotted for approving the minutes. A motion should be made
and seconded to approve the minutes of the last meeting as amended. The minutes should contain the
date that they were approved by the board.
Executive Sessions
The holding of an executive session is the only time that a meeting of a board may lawfully be conducted privately.
Because of the strong interest in maintaining an open and public government, the City Code and the courts have
strictly limited the use of executive sessions to certain predetermined situations involving sensitive or private
information (i.e., ongoing litigation, conflicts of interest, property acquisitions, personnel matters, competition in the
electric utility industry, etc.). For most boards, the use of executive sessions is rare, and board members should obtain
advice in advance from their City staff liaison and the City Attorney’s Office if they contemplate holding an executive
session.
“Super Issue” Meetings
The City Code sets out a process for engaging boards and commissions in discussion of broader policy issues and
matters not specifically identified in the stated function of each board or commission. These meetings have been
dubbed “super issue” meetings, providing an opportunity for boards and commissions to come together to learn
about and discuss key topics or issues.
All members of boards and commissions are invited to attend super issue meetings. No formal action is taken at
these meetings. It is possible that three or members of any particular board or commission may be in attendance at
these meetings. Meetings are open to the general public; however, the public is invited to observe but not participate.
Currently, super issue meetings are scheduled on an as-needed basis.
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REPORTING REQUIREMENTS – WORK PLANS AND ANNUAL REPORTS
Work Plans
The City Code requires all boards to file work plans on or before November 30 for the following year. Work plans are
filed with the City Clerk.
Work plans should set out major projects and issues for discussion for the following year. Timelines and scopes of
review should be provided when possible. If appropriate, a prediction of the action the board plans to take should be
included. Work plans should be concise and easily readable. The City Council will review the work plan for each board.
It is important for work plans to include all items that the board or commission intends to work on due to the additional
administrative processes that must take place when boards request City staff support for items not listed on their
annual work plans. To request that staff initiate and dedicate time to policy investigation, consideration of an
ordinance, or other significant projects not on the board’s work plan:
- The request must be supported by a majority of the entire board.
- If a majority agrees, the board should first contact the City Manager and Council liaison.
- The City Manager and Council liaison will work with the board to seek direction from the Council
subcommittee or the full Council on the appropriateness of the request and will provide direction on whether
staff should proceed.
Annual Reports
Each board is required, by City Code, to prepare an annual report on or before January 31 of each year for the previous
year.
Annual reports should directly correspond to the work plan prepared by the board for the year. The status of each
item identified on the work plan should be included, along with other items of business conducted by the board.
Annual reports are filed with the City Clerk for distribution to the City Council.
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BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS YEARLY PLANNING CALENDAR
The following calendar summarizes annual deadlines and functions:
Board/Commission Deadlines
January Annual Report due January 31 (Required by City Code)
February Interviews for new board and commission members
March Appointment of new members
April
Schedule Periodic Review to meet June or July deadline
(NOTE: This is required once every 4 years per board – Clerk’s Office will contact
applicable boards)
May Election of officers (May or June)
July Review adopted Council Priorities and Initiatives
August Begin creating or modifying Work Plans
September Annual Review begins in September
October Annual Informational Session Event (TBD)
November Work Plan due November 30 (Required by City Code)
December
Begin working on the Annual Report
Recruitment opens
Note: This calendar is not meant to be all-inclusive.
Annual Review Schedule
The Public Engagement Specialist in the City Clerk’s office will begin a high-level review and assessment of boards
and commissions in September. A report will be provided to City Council.
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COMMUNICATION, MEDIA, AND PROMOTIONAL EVENTS
The City’s Communications and Public Involvement Office (CPIO) may offer support to Boards when public education
or promotion is outlined as a function of a Board’s duties as outlined in the City Code. Before a board may seek the
support of the CPIO, it must have the prior consent of the staff liaison in their sole discretion.
According to Article III of Chapter 2 of the City Code, the following boards and commissions have Council-designated
public education or promotional functions:
- Affordable Housing Board
- Disability Advisory Board
- Human Services and Housing Funding Board
- Human Relations Commission
- Historic Preservation Commission
- Natural Resources Advisory Board
- Parks and Recreation Board
- Senior Advisory Board
- Youth Advisory Board
If you have questions about whether the proposed outreach is within the scope of your authorized functions under the
City Code, your staff liaison should contact the City Attorney’s Office for guidance.
Promotional Guidelines
If the City Code permits a Board to engage in promotional activities set forth in these guidelines, members must work
through their staff liaison to discuss publicity options and whether there are City budget dollars available to City staff
before issuing any promotion, advertising, marketing materials, or similar communications.
If the staff liaison determines it is warranted, they may contact CPIO for review/approval of any communication,
including both content and graphics, that will be external facing. Unfortunately, CPIO does not have funding for
advertising, marketing materials or other paid promotional requests for individual Boards. CPIO may decline requests
for promotional support due to time constraints and lack of capacity. If CPIO cannot offer support, CPIO may approve
and recommend consulting a third party on a case-by-case basis.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Can Boards pursue social media communications?
- Individual social media accounts are not permitted for individual boards and commissions. Boards
are encouraged to work with their staff liaisons to have City sponsored/approved content shared on
existing, established City social media accounts.
How can Boards communicate through webpages?
- Boards should utilize their current City Boards webpage instead of creating external webpages.
How can Boards promote events?
- Boards are encouraged to create flyers or other promotional materials in coordination with their staff
liaisons and link them to their existing City Boards webpage as the City does not create individual
webpages for such events.
How can Boards request video?
- Video requests should be coordinated through your staff liaison and FCTV.
How can Boards request photography or posters for public events?
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- Boards can file requests through their staff liaison, and assistance from CPIO will depend on capacity
and availability.
How do Boards secure funding for outreach?
- Funding, if available, is the responsibility of the staff liaison’s department.
How can Boards pursue advertising services?
- If the budget provides funding for Board activities that are permitted by their charter, the Board may
pursue advertising, working with the staff liaison. Any advertising involving the City organization
should always be reviewed by CPIO.
How should Boards use their logo?
- If communication comes directly from a Board (rather than some other part of the organization), the
City Board logo should always be used.
Can Boards advocate for the passage or defeat of a state or local ballot issue?
- Once a measure has been placed on the ballot, no Board can use public funds, resources, or City
time to advocate for passage or defeat of the measure, including City equipment, materials or staff
time. This does not apply to personal activities of Boards members on their own time when not
representing the City.
What are the guidelines for boards hosting an educational or promotional event?
- For event booking, Boards are strongly encouraged to prioritize City venues over spaces managed by
other organizations. City venues meet various accessibility standards that alternative facilities may
not meet. City venues also have a vetted audio/visual setup, which decreases the likelihood of
technical complications or limitations. Please consult the list of available rental facilities and spaces
for booking details for City venues.
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RULES OF CONDUCT
The success or failure of the efforts of a board often depend on cooperation among the individual members of the
body, other board members, City staff, and the public. City boards and commissions are comprised of individuals
with diverse backgrounds with different communication styles, and members should be sensitive to the physical
differences, sexual orientation, gender expression, political ideology, and even different personalities in their
group. Expectations about how appointed members should conduct themselves are described in the Code of
Conduct. The process for filing complaints or seeking resolution under the Code of Conduct is described in the City
Code § 2-580.
Members shall not make personal, impertinent, profane, vulgar, slanderous, intimidating, or harassing remarks
that disturb, disrupt, or impede the conduct of the meeting or the board or commission’s completion of its business.
Similarly, threats of violence or harm, or abusive language, and racial or ethnic slurs directed at any person or
group of persons, are prohibited.
All board and commission members are expected to abide by the standards set forth in the organization’s Anti-
Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy, revised in 2023, City Council’s rules for their own meetings, and the
City’s guidelines for ethical conduct regarding conflicts of interest.
Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy
In February 2019, the City Council adopted the Respectful Workplace Policy. The policy addresses respectful conduct
by City Councilmembers and by those appointed by City Council (including direct report employees and board and
commission members). In 2023, the Council considered and approved amendments to that policy, including a change
to the name of the policy to the Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment Policy (“ADAHP”). The ADAHP establishes the
City Council’s policy related to harassment, discrimination, and retaliation; the process to be followed when a
complaint is made; and the alternatives available for a complaining party to report an alleged violation of the Policy.
It identifies possible outcomes or options available in the event harassment is substantiated. The ADAHP shown in
Appendix C is attached hereto and incorporated herein by this reference.
Ethical Conduct and Conflicts of Interest
The members of City boards are subject to certain rules of ethical conduct established by the City Charter and Code.
The following summary highlights the primary areas of concern addressed by these rules. Members should read and
become familiar with the Ethical Rules of Conduct in their entirety, which apply to all board and commission members,
and are found at City Code §§ 2-575 through 578. When in doubt, a board member should consult with the City
Attorney’s Office for clarification of any applicable regulations. Also, a board’s Council liaison is permitted under the
City Code to submit an inquiry to the Ethics Review Board on behalf of a board member for an advisory opinion and
recommendation. Ultimately, each member is responsible for their own compliance with all applicable laws and
regulations.
Conflicts of Interest
A board member must refrain from voting on or attempting to influence any decision in which they have a
financial or personal conflict of interest. Additionally, when a conflict exists under the rules contained in the
City Charter, the member should file with the City Clerk’s Office a written statement of disclosure as soon as
the conflict of interest is discovered. A copy of the disclosure form is included with these materials and
additional forms may be obtained from the City Clerk’s Office.
Generally, a board member has a financial interest in a decision when the decision entails some foreseeable,
measurable financial benefit to the individual member or relative.
Even if a member does not have a financial interest in a decision or recommendation, a personal interest
may also create a conflict of interest. The test for a personal interest is whether, in the judgement of a
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reasonably prudent person, the board member would realize or experience some direct and substantial
benefit or detriment different in kind from that experienced by the general public. In applying this test in a
business context, a board member should check with the City Attorney’s Office before participating in any
decision which directly and substantially benefits a business in which the member either has a substantial
financial interest or is engaged as a consultant or representative. Or, if a decision of the City might directly
and substantially affect a particular business to its economic detriment, and a board member has a
substantial financial interest in a competing firm, the member should also exercise caution in deciding
whether to participate in the decision.
In any action in which a board member declares a conflict of interest, that member shall not communicate to
or attempt to influence the board regarding that item, in any capacity, except that:
- The member may communicate with the board to protect a strictly personal interest, in the same
or similar ways in which the public is permitted to communicate with the board;
- The member may prepare materials on behalf of another for a project in the normal course of
business or operation, so long as the purpose of those materials is not directly and substantially
related to advocacy before the member’s board. Those materials may be included in materials
submitted by another to said member’s board so long as they fall within this exception. For
example, such materials may include architectural plans, technical studies, and engineering
designs.
- If a member has declared a conflict of interest in a matter in accordance with the City Charter and
City Code, and so is prevented from participating in or influencing the decision of the board, the
member may request a variance from these limits from City Council, in the following
circumstances and manner: the member must submit a variance request to the City Clerk on a
form provided by the Clerk, the member must demonstrate that without the variance, the member
would suffer hardship, and that no reasonable alternative exists that would allow for the hardship
to be avoided or substantially mitigated, and the City Council must act by resolution to approve or
disapprove the variance.
- These limitations do not apply to other members, partners, or other parties of the member’s firm
or entity, who may continue to work on the project and may advocate to the member’s board,
provided that the member has declared the conflict of interest and refrains from participating in
the matter consistent with the applicable limitations.
Nothing prohibits a board member from interacting with City staff regarding a particular matter, after declaring
a conflict of interest regarding that matter, so long as the member is not:
- Acting in their role as a board member; or
- Seeking special consideration, treatment or advantage in the interpretation, administration, or
enforcement of the Charter, Code, any City regulation, policy, or program or in the provision of
public services.
If a board member has declared a conflict of interest, the disclosure of related confidential information to that
member is prohibited.
Certain exceptions to the general rules pertaining to financial and personal conflicts of interest are contained
in Article IV, Section 9(a) of the City Charter.
Contracts with the City
The Charter prohibits board members and their relatives from having a financial interest in sales to the City,
but only if they exercise, directly or indirectly, any decision-making or supervisory authority regarding the goods
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or services to be sold to the City. (City Charter art. IV, § 9).
As to purchases from the City, such purchases are permitted only when the property is offered for sale at an
established price and not by bid or auction, and the purchase must be on the same terms and conditions as
would be available to all members of the general public.
Disclosure of Confidences
Board and commission members sometimes receive confidential information from City staff, including but
not limited to attorney-client privileged communications. Such information must not be disclosed to any
person who is not an officer or employee whose official duties are unrelated to the subject matter of the
confidential information. Also, such information should not be used for the private benefit of the board
member or any other individual. Additionally, disclosure of the information is prohibited and permissible in
specific circumstances described in City Code § 2-568.
Gifts and Favors
The acceptance of honoraria (compensation for speech or participation in public events as an official of the
City) is prohibited. The acceptance of any other gift or favor from persons doing business with the City or
desiring to do business with the City is also prohibited if the gift or favor might reasonably be construed as
compensation for an official decision or as something that would tend to impair the board member’s
independence of judgment in the performance of their official duties. The following specific items are
excluded from the definition of prohibited gifts or favors and may be accepted:
- Nonpecuniary (non-monetary) awards presented by a nonprofit organization in a public setting
and in recognition of public service.
- Reimbursement for expenditure for travel-related expenses and subsistence at which a member
is scheduled to participate.
- Reimbursement or acceptance of an opportunity to participate in a social function or meeting
offered to the member and which is not extraordinary when viewed in the light of the position held
by the member.
- Perishable or nonpermanent items that are insignificant in value, such as meals, lodging, travel
expenses, and tickets to sporting, recreation, educational or cultural events.
- Payment of salary.
- Campaign contributions reported as required by Chapter 7, Article V of City Code.
For more information, see City Code § 2-568(c)(4).
Indemnification
Board and commission members may face the possibility of lawsuits being filed in connection with their
actions taken as board or commission members. In certain circumstances described in City Code, the City is
obligated to pay the costs of defense of such suits and to pay for all judgments and the settlement of claims.
In general, the risk of a lawsuit is reduced when members act within the scope of their power granted by the
City Code, engage in informed and deliberative decision-making, consult with City staff as necessary, and
operate within their ethical obligations. See City Charter art. IV, § 9 and City Code §§ 2-568 and 2-611.
This protection does not apply when:
- A member acts outside of their official capacity or outside the scope of powers granted to the
member by the City Code.
- A member acts in a willful or wanton manner, meaning the member’s conduct is purposefully
committed and the member realizes the conduct is dangerous, done heedlessly and recklessly
without regard to consequences or of the rights or safety of others.
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- A member compromised or settled a claim without the City’s consent.
- A member fails to notify the City of a lawsuit within 15 days of service if the City is not a named
party.
- The claim against the member is criminal or related to a contract issue.
A complete list of exceptions to this protection can be found in City Code § 2-611(1) – (7). For more
information, members may contact the City Attorney’s Office.
Ethics Complaints
Any Councilmember may ask the Ethics Review Board to evaluate an inquiry related to how ethical rules of
conduct apply to any actual or hypothetical situation of a Councilmember or board member.
In addition, any person who believes a board member has violated any provision of state law, the Charter or
Code pertaining to ethical conduct may file a complaint with the City Clerk, who shall immediately notify the
chairperson of the Ethics Review Board, the board member named in the complaint, the City Council and the
City Attorney. Each complaint shall name only one board or commission member as its subject.
The City Clerk must schedule the complaint for consideration by the Ethics Review Board as soon as
reasonably practicable. The Review Board will meet and consider the complaint within thirty (30) working days
after the date of filing of the complaint. If extenuating circumstances arise in the scheduling and preparation
for such a meeting, the Review Board must meet as soon as reasonably practicable.
The City Clerk gives written notice of the scheduled meeting for initial review of the complaint to the board or
commission member named in the complaint, as well as the complainant, the chair of the board or
commission of which the subject of the complaint is a member, and the City Council, at least three (3) working
days prior to the meeting. A notice of the complaint, including the identity of the complainant, is also posted
along with the meeting notice.
Upon receipt of any such complaint, the Review Board, after consultation with the City Attorney, must decide
by majority vote whether to formally investigate the complaint. In making such determination, the Review
Board must consider the screening criteria set out below. If the Review Board determines that the complaint
does not warrant investigation, the Review Board sends written notice to the complainant of its determination
and the reasoning behind that determination, and provides a copy of the notice, together with a copy of the
complaint, to the board or commission member named in the complaint, as well as the chair of the board or
commission of which the subject of the complaint is a member, and the City Council.
If a complaint proceeds to investigation after the initial review, in performing its review and investigation of
any complaint or inquiry submitted, the Review Board must afford all affected board and commission
members an opportunity to present their interpretations of the facts at issue and of the applicable provisions
of law before rendering its opinion and recommendation. Prior to reaching a decision on the merits of a
complaint, the Review Board must provide the complainant an opportunity to present facts and argument in
support of the complaint; however, it is not necessary for the Review Board to conduct a full public hearing
and take public input on a complaint.
The Review Board may also request such additional materials or information from City staff or members of
the public which it considers reasonably necessary or helpful to its deliberations. In addition, the Review
Board shall have the power to compel by subpoena the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the
production of such documents as the Review Board may consider necessary to its investigation. After
investigation, the Review Board must promptly issue an opinion and recommendation to the City Council, to
be filed with the City Clerk and available for public inspection. Then, the opinion and recommendation are
submitted to City Council for consideration at a regular City Council meeting, at which time the City Council
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either adopts the opinion as a final ethics opinion of the Council, or chooses not to adopt it.
The determination as to whether a complaint merits investigation and further action shall be made on the
basis of one or more of the following considerations:
i. The City Council has no jurisdiction over the individual(s) alleged to have violated the relevant ethics
provision;
ii. The alleged violation, even if true, would not constitute a violation of the relevant ethics provisions;
iii. The allegations of the complaint were previously asserted in another complaint that is already being
considered or was resolved by the Review Board and/or City Council;
iv. The alleged violation, even if true, is minor in nature and fails to justify the use of public resources to
investigate or prosecute;
v. The allegations of the complaint involve actions or events that occurred more than one (1) year prior to the
date of the filing of the complaint and, due to the passage of time and the likely unavailability of evidence,
witnesses, and witnesses' recollections, investigation and prosecution of the complaint will not justify the use
of public resources, except that complaints based on conduct resulting in a criminal conviction (regardless of
the type of plea entered) or entry into a plea agreement subject to a deferred prosecution, deferred judgment,
or deferred sentencing agreement may be referred to an appropriate enforcement agency;
vi. The complaint is, on its face, frivolous, groundless, or brought for purposes of harassment;
vii. The alleged violation is unlikely to be proven by the required standard of preponderance of the evidence
due to the evidence consisting of conflicting oral testimony and unverifiable statements;
viii. The person who is the subject of the complaint has admitted wrongdoing and made or committed to make
sufficient redress or remedy satisfactory to Review Board or City Council;
ix. The matter has become or will become moot because the person who is the subject of the complaint is no
longer a board or commission member or will no longer be a board or commission member prior to the
conclusion of any consideration or investigation of the allegations in the complaint;
x. The person who is the subject of the complaint previously obtained an advisory opinion under this code of
ethics that identified the conduct as not being in violation of the code of ethics; or
xi. The City Council has elected to refer the complaint to another agency with jurisdiction of the allegations of
the complaint and such referral will better serve the public interest (e.g., law enforcement, district attorney,
state or federal attorney general; or department of justice).
The City Attorney advises the Review Board and prepares and executes all advisory opinions and
recommendations of the Review Board.
Compliance with the ethics provisions of the Charter and Code and state law, as well as decisions regarding
the existence or nonexistence of conflicts of interest and the appropriate actions to be taken, is the
responsibility of each individual board and commission member.
An opinion adopted by the City Council under Subsection (e) of § 2-569 of the City Code constitutes an
affirmative defense to a civil action or possibly a criminal action or any other sanction against a
Councilmember or board or commission member acting in reliance it.
More information can be found in City Code § 2-569.
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Abuse of Public Office
In addition to the requirements mentioned above, there are also state criminal statutes that make it an offense
to abuse public office. In general, state law prohibits a public servant, which includes any person performing
a governmental function or appointed to perform a governmental function, from soliciting, accepting, or
agreeing to accept a bribe intended to influence their vote, opinion, etc. See Colorado Revised Statutes §§
18-8-301 to 18-8-308. State law also generally prohibits a member from misusing official information to their
financial benefit. See Colorado Revised Statutes §§ 18-8-401 to 18-8-409.
Violations of these laws may subject the board or member to criminal prosecution by the District Attorney and
may result in criminal penalties.
Checklist
The following questions are suggested when examining a potential conflict of interest or question of ethical
conduct. If the answer to the question is “yes,” the board or commission member should avoid participating
in the decision or engaging in the proposed transaction:
☐ Sales to the City: Will I or my relative or my business receive some foreseeable, measurable
financial benefit? Am I involved in procurement or supervision for the sale?
☐ Purchases from the City: Am I, or is my relative, buying this at auction? Are we buying it under any
different terms and conditions than would be available to members of the general public?
☐ Financial Interest in a Decision: Will I or my relative or my business receive some foreseeable,
measurable financial benefit?
☐ Personal Interests: Would a reasonably prudent person believe that I or my relative will realize or
experience some direct and substantial benefit or detriment from this decision that is different in
kind from that experienced by the general public? Will the business that either of us represents
directly and substantially benefit? Will a competing firm be directly and substantially harmed?
☐ Gifts or Favors: Is this gift or favor being offered to me because of a decision I have made or am
about to make? Would a reasonably prudent person think that this gift or favor would impair my
independence of judgment? (Before deciding to accept a gift, it should fit under one of the
exemptions in City Code § 2-568(c)(4).)
☐ Confidences: Am I about to use or disclose a confidence which, in the judgment of a reasonably
prudent person, would injure the interests of the City? Will I be using it for private gain, either for
myself or for another person? Is this information marked as confidential? Is this information subject
to the attorney-client privilege? For other examples of confidential information, see City Code § 2-
568.
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APPENDIX A: BREAKDOWN OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Active Modes Advisory Board
Effective January 1, 2024, the Active Mode Advisory Board advises the City Council and City staff on all matters
pertaining to active modes of transportation. The Board advises and makes recommendations to City staff and the
City Council concerning the expenditure of City funds for active modes of transportation. The Board periodically
coordinates its work with the Transportation Board to support the City’s efforts to create a balanced transportation
network. This coordination is intended to provide an integrated review of transportation issues. The Board also
promotes public use of active modes and public education on City-wide active modes issues.
Affordable Housing Board
The Affordable Housing Board advises the City Council and City staff on all matters pertaining to affordable housing
issues of concern to the City; advises and makes recommendations to City staff, the Human Services and Housing
Funding Board, and the City Council concerning the expenditure of City funds for affordable housing; aids and guides
the development of City-wide affordable housing programs to address currently existing and potential affordable
housing issues; promotes citizen participation and public education on City-wide affordable housing issues; and is
to be aware of and coordinate with the various other City boards, commissions and authorities, City departments,
and other organizations and entities whose actions may affect affordable housing in the community.
Air Quality Advisory Board
The Air Quality Advisory Board advises the City Council regarding policies, plans and programs to improve and
maintain the city's air quality. The Board may, without limitation, biennially review air quality indicators; review and
recommend revisions as needed to the Air Quality Policy Plan, and to any other City plans that may have significant
impacts on air quality; and advise the Governor-designated lead agency for air quality planning on matters
pertaining to the Fort Collins element of the State Implementation Plan. The Board may also convene ad hoc citizen
task groups to provide additional technical expertise to the Board for the planning of specific strategies. The Board
coordinates its work with the Transportation Board, Natural Resources Advisory Board and the Planning and Zoning
Commission.
Art in Public Places Board
The Art in Public Places Board advises and makes recommendations to the City Council regarding incorporation of
works of art into construction projects and regarding expenditures from the art in public places reserve account for
artists, works of art and sites for placement of works of art, following established and published guidelines; advises
and makes recommendations to the City Council regarding the acceptance of offers to donate art to be placed in
public areas; and advises and makes recommendations to the Community Services Director and the City Council as
to rules, regulations, guidelines, policy, administrative and budgetary matters pertaining to the Art in Public Places
Program.
Building Review Commission
The Building Review Commission is charged with the responsibility to hear appeals and requests for variances
related to the Fort Collins building codes and contractor licensing regulations. The BRC hearing provides a formal
recourse to building permit and contractor license applicants who disagree with an interpretation or ruling by the
Fort Collins Building Official. The BRC is authorized to rule in favor of the applicant and to approve alternative
building methods and materials that are not specifically prescribed in the building codes. This board may also revoke
or suspend a contractor license when it determines that a licensee has violated the building codes or licensing
rules. In an advisory capacity, the BRC makes recommendations to City Council concerning the revision of existing
codes or the adoption of new building codes and contractor regulations.
Citizen Review Board
At the request of the City Manager or the Chief of Police the Citizen Review Board makes recommendations
concerning interpretation of police policies and procedures. The Board reviews internal investigations where a
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peace officer is alleged to have used force, discharged a firearm, committed a crime, when a person sustained
severe injury, death, or alleged their civil rights were violated by a peace officer, or other investigations requested
by the City Manager or Police Chief. Use of deadly force would be a mandatory review by the Board even if no
complaint is filed. The Citizen Review Board also offers reviews for other law enforcement agencies operating within
the City and makes annual reports to the City Council and City Manager concerning activities and recommendations
of the Board.
Cultural Resources Board
The Cultural Resources Board’s functions are to advise and make recommendations to the Director of Cultural
Services and Facilities and the City Council as to rules, regulations, policies, administrative and budgetary matters
pertaining to the Cultural Services Department's programs, services and facilities (which include the Lincoln Center,
Museum of Discovery and The Gardens on Spring Creek); to review proposals for funding from the Cultural
Development and Programming Account and the Tourism Programming Account (Fort Fund), following established and
published guidelines, and to submit recommendations regarding such proposals to the City Council to be approved by
the City Council by resolution; to advise and make recommendations to the City Manager regarding any proposed
revisions to the guidelines used by the Cultural Resources Board to make Fort Fund recommendations and to assist,
advise and make recommendations to the Director of Cultural Services and Facilities and the City Council on arts and
culture related matters and regarding opportunities to promote awareness, understanding, and appreciation for, the
value of cultural resources in the community.
Disability Advisory Board
The Disability Advisory Board serves as an advisor to the City Council to provide recommendations to assure
compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the 1990 Americans with Disability Act (ADA), the
Fair Housing Act and other legislation relating to persons with disabilities. In its role as an advocate for citizens
with disabilities, the Disability Advisory Board develops educational programs to acquaint citizens with issues
affecting individuals with disabilities; forms special committees to review and address particular issues;
communicates with other board to generate ideas helpful to the City Council; educates City employees about access
issues affecting individuals with disabilities; recommends to the City design requirements that ensure accessibility;
helps the City establish conditions and practices that contribute to employing individuals with disabilities; and
serves as advocates among City employees, private businesses and the community on behalf of individuals with
disabilities.
Economic Advisory Board
The duties and functions of the Board are to advise the City Council on matters pertaining to the economic health
and sustainability of the City, including, events and trends occurring outside the Fort Collins community that may
affect the local economy, immediate and long-term threats to the local economy, ways in which to enhance the
City's competitive position in relation to other communities, and possible partnerships with other public and private
entities; to recommend programs and strategies that may enhance the economic health and sustainability of the
City; to be aware of and coordinate with other City boards whose actions may affect the economic health and
sustainability of the City; and to advise Council on existing or proposed policies, practices or regulations of the City
that may affect the local economy.
Energy Board
The duties and functions of the Board are to advise the City Council and staff regarding the development and
implementation of the City’s energy policy; advise the City Council and staff in developing City policies that
encourage the incorporation of energy conservation and efficiency, carbon emissions reduction, and renewable
energy into the development and provision of City utility services, the design and construction of City transportation
projects, and the way in which the City impacts the overall built environment within the City; to advise the City
Council and staff regarding the alignment of energy programs and policies with City, ratepayer and community
values and service delivery expectations; to advise the City Council and staff regarding the recommendations for
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improvements to City energy systems; to coordinate with other City boards regarding energy issues; to advise the
City Council and staff regarding budgetary, rate-making and operational matters related to the electric utility; and
to annually review and provide advice to City Council and staff on the City’s Legislative Policy Agenda regarding
energy and energy-related carbon issues.
Historic Preservation Commission
The Commission performs all duties relating to preservation of historic landmarks as set out in Chapter 14 of the
Code, including the designation of sites, structures, objects or districts as landmarks and the review and approval
or rejection of plans for the construction, alteration, demolition or relocation of any such site, structure, object or
district. Decisions of the Commission are final unless appealed to the City Council. The Commission also performs
the following additional functions: (1) to promote awareness and understanding of, and appreciation for, the value
of historic resource preservation in contributing to the quality of life in the City, and actively encourage property
owners to voluntarily designate their properties as historic landmarks; (2) To advise the City Council and City staff
with regard to the identification and evaluation of historic resources within the Growth Management Area and
provide information regarding the significance of the resources, the nature and degree of threat to their
preservation, and methods for their protection; (3) to advise the City Council and City staff with regard to appropriate
policies, incentives and regulations for encouraging and/or requiring preservation and rehabilitation of historic
resources; (4) to coordinate with the various other City boards and City staff members whose actions may affect the
preservation of historic resources in the community; (5) to provide advice and, if required under the Land Use Code,
written recommendations to the owners of eligible historic properties, and of properties located near eligible historic
properties, regarding historically appropriate design and site planning for additions, alterations, and new
construction in the City; and (6) To provide advice and written recommendations to the appropriate decision maker
and/or administrative body regarding plans for properties containing or adjacent to sites, structures, objects or
districts that have been determined to be individually eligible for local landmark designation or for individual listing
in the State or National Registers of Historic Places, are officially designated as a local or state landmark, or are
listed on the National Register of Historic Places; or are located within an officially designated historic district or
area.
Human Services and Housing Funding Board
The HSHF Board advises the City Council and City staff on matters pertaining to the Department of Housing and
Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and Home Investment Partnership (HOME)
Programs, and on all matters pertaining to human services issues of concern to the City; it assesses the community
development needs of low- and moderate-income individuals and families and suggests programs to meet those
needs; and provides recommendations to the City Council and City staff concerning the expenditure of federal and
City funds for human services and affordable housing, including CDBG and HOME funds received from the
Department of Housing and Urban Development, and City Human Service Program and Affordable Housing Fund
moneys, taking into consideration the City's Strategic Plan objectives.
The City receives about $1.5 million from HUD and just under $1 million from the General Fund annually. Program
funds are typically used for housing, human services, and community development programs, projects, and
activities.
Human Relations Commission
The Human Relations Commission was established by City Council to promote the acceptance and respect for
diversity through educational programs and activities, and to discourage all forms of discrimination based on race,
religion, age, gender, disability, etc. The commission’s functions are (1) to promote positive interaction among all
City residents and to discourage all forms of discrimination based upon the diversified values and individual
differences of such residents by: developing and promoting educational programs and activities that advocate
awareness and respect for diversity, cooperating with and providing leadership and support for other groups
interested in promoting value and respect for diversity and positive intergroup relations, educating City residents
about existing local, state and federal laws dealing with discrimination and diversity, reviewing proposed legislation,
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policy changes or other governmental action at the federal, state or local level which may affect human rights in the
City and making recommendations to the City Council regarding the same, and recommending to the City Council
such actions as may be necessary or advisable to achieve equal employment opportunities, housing opportunities
and public accommodation opportunities for all persons, and positive community relations in all fields of
governmental endeavor; (2) to assist residents of the City in utilizing the complaint procedure under the human
relations provisions of the Code and to hear appeals from decisions of the City Manager under such provisions (3)
to facilitate the review of citizen complaints concerning the actions of City police officers or community service
officers; and (4) to make periodic reports to the City Council concerning the activities and recommendations of the
Commission.
Land Conservation and Stewardship Board
The Land Conservation and Stewardship Board advises City Council regarding policy and budgetary matters
pertaining to the Natural Areas Program, including but not limited to the expenditure of Open Space, Yes! and
Larimer County Help Preserve Open Space dedicated sales tax revenues, advises Natural Areas Program staff and
the City Council in connection with the proposed acquisition or disposition of land, interests in land, interests in
water and other interests in real property for the Natural Areas Program; advises Natural Areas Program staff
regarding the development of management plans and public improvements for Natural Areas Program properties;
upon request of the City Manager or at the direction of the City Council, advises City Council regarding any positive
or negative impacts that particular plans or projects of the City or of other public or private entities may have on
Natural Areas Program properties or properties that may be of interest to the Natural Areas Program; and upon
request of the City Manager or at the direction of the City Council, advises City Council in connection with the
proposed acquisition or disposition of land, interests in land, interests in water and other interests in real property
for City programs other than the Natural Areas Program.
Land Use Review Commission
The Land Use Review Commission has the authority to hear and decide appeals from and review any order,
requirement, decision or determination made by an administrative official charged with enforcement of the
regulations established by the Land Use Code, and to authorize upon appeal variances from certain provisions of
the Land Use Code.
The Commission may grant variances when the members determine that there is some unusual feature of a
property or some other exceptional situation unique to a property which creates an unfair burden to the applicant.
Such features may include physical conditions like exceptional narrowness, shallowness, or topography.
Additionally, the Commission may grant a variance upon finding that the proposal will promote the general purpose
of the standard for which the variance is requested equally well or better than would a proposal which complies
with the standard for which the variance is requested. No variance can be granted which is determined to be a
substantial detriment to the public good.
Natural Resources Advisory Board
The Natural Resources Advisory Board advises City Council on all matters pertaining to natural resources and
environmental protection issues of concern to the City; analyzes various natural resources issues and aids and
guides the development of city-wide natural resources programs to address currently existing and potential natural
resources and environmental issues; promotes citizen participation and public education on city-wide natural
resources and environmental protection issues; and coordinates with the various Sustainability Services technical
advisory committees.
Parks and Recreation Board
The Parks and Recreation Board advises and makes recommendations to the Community Services Director and
the City Council on rules, regulations, policies, administrative and budgetary matters pertaining to parks and
recreation (including golf courses and excluding cemeteries); assists the City in cooperating with the Poudre School
District and other organizations and individuals interested in the City's parks and recreation programs; and
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promotes community awareness and understanding of, and appreciation for, the value of parks and recreation as
a resource contributing to the quality of life in Fort Collins.
Planning and Zoning Commission
The Planning and Zoning Commission’s responsibilities include advising the City Council on zoning, annexations,
major public and private projects and any long range planning activities (such as City Plan or subarea plans) that
require Council approval. The Commission can cooperate with school, county and any other planning and zoning
commissions and, with the approval of the City Council, enter into agreements to promote uniform planning and
zoning within and without the City. The Commission also takes final action to approve, disapprove or approve with
conditions planning items in accordance with the City Code and Charter subject to appeal to the City Council.
Retirement Committee
The General Employee’s Retirement Committee’s charges are: manage/administer the Retirement Plan for
members and retirees and manage accumulated Retirement Fund money; determine the eligibility in credited
service of members under Plan rules; interpret the Plan’s provisions; and authorize payment of retirement benefits
and bills for expenses of Plan and Committee. The Committee sets the policies and procedures for these
responsibilities and directs staff personnel and actuarial consulting firm to carry out the functions. The Committee
also: seeks information and advice to benefit the Plan and members; recommends Plan changes to City Council
for approval; recommends to City Council enhancements to the Plan’s provisions and benefits; educates
Committee’s and Plan’s members; keeps abreast of legislation that could affect the Plan; keeps the members
informed of their current/projected benefits; encourages Plan members to accumulate other sources of retirement
income; and provides minutes of each meeting and files documents as required.
Senior Advisory Board
The Senior Advisory Board is comprised of individuals of all ages who share a concern for the aging members of
our community. The Board serves as a supporting agency for all senior citizen services and activities in the City;
publicizes and supports present senior citizen services and activities in the community; investigates and makes
recommendations regarding new senior citizen services and activities; encourages new senior citizen programs
and, if asked to do so, participates in the planning and development of such programs; encourages and supports
widespread opportunities for more meaningful and useful participation of senior citizens in community activities
and programs; establishes and maintains communication with local, state and national groups and government
agencies concerning senior citizens; advocates policies and practices within the community that respect and
consider the needs and interests of senior citizens; and works to dispel stereotypes about aging through education
and awareness activities.
Transportation Board
The Transportation Board advises the City Council on the City's transportation policies and system, including, but
not limited to, transportation planning, alternative modes planning (including bikeways, pedestrian facilities,
transit, air transportation and van- and car-pooling), capital improvement projects, downtown parking management
and other transportation issues as identified in the Board work plan; and reviews the City's interaction with federal,
state and county government, as well as North Front Range Transportation and Air Quality Planning Council,
Colorado State University and Poudre School District on transportation-related issues. The Board also coordinates
with other City boards on projects and issues. The Board includes the Bicycle Advisory Committee, which advises
the Board on bicycling-related issues.
Water Commission
The City Water Commission advises the City Council regarding water, wastewater and stormwater policy issues
such as water rights, planning, rates and fees, acquisition and management, conservation and public education,
floodplain regulations, storm drainage and development design criteria, and local, state and federal legislation. At
times, the Board acts as a quasi-judicial body on floodplain regulation variances, stormwater fee disputes, and
storm drainage design criteria variances. It cooperates with regional entities to coordinate planning and maintain
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a dialogue on regional water issues. The Board is also involved in master planning and provides advice and citizen
input regarding proposed policies and actions affecting Utilities customers.
Women and Gender Equity Advisory Board
Effective January 1, 2024, the purpose of the Women and Gender Equity Advisory Board is to enhance the status
of and opportunities for all women, transgender, and gender non-binary and gender non-conforming persons (“all
genders”) in the City. The Board will document, understand, and prioritize issues of importance for all genders in
the City; as well as coordinate and facilitate educational programs in the Fort Collins community to increase public
awareness and sensitivity to the needs and capabilities of all genders. The Board will review proposed legislation,
policy changes or other governmental action at the federal, state or local level that would enhance or otherwise
affect all genders in the City and make recommendations to the City Council regarding the same; and recommend
to the City Council the adoption of local legislation or policies that would achieve equity for all genders in the City.
Youth Advisory Board
The Youth Advisory Board gathers information from, other groups, organizations and agencies regarding youth-
oriented issues and problems; documents and discusses issues of importance to youth in the Fort Collins
community, specifically as they affect City-operated services; reviews and discusses legislation that may affect
youth; and recommends to City Council local legislation and policy actions or changes which would enhance the
status of youth in the Fort Collins community.
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APPENDIX B: CODE OF CONDUCT
Code of Conduct
Purpose:
Fort Collins aspires to be a city that addresses the needs of all members of our community and
strives to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to thrive. As a community, we commit to
building a healthy, equitable, and resilient city – for our families, for our neighbors, and for
future generations. The high quality of life we enjoy requires a city that is safe and where all
individuals are treated with dignity and respect. The Mayor and City Council are committed to
providing an environment that exemplifies the highest standards of behavior and is known for its
honesty, inclusivity and transparency. Our elected officials and those they appoint believe that
how they treat others is a direct reflection of our collective character.
Application:
This policy applies to board and commission members appointed by the City Council. The
Council also adopts this policy to establish standards for Councilmember interactions with board
and commission members, staff, and amongst Councilmembers. The term “Appointees” refers to
appointed board and commission members. The term “Members” refers to both appointees and
City Council.
The City Council appoints individuals who:
• Comply with both the letter and the spirit of the laws and policies affecting operations of
boards and commissions.
• Are independent, impartial, and fair in their judgment and actions.
• Participate in assigned duties and functions for the public good.
• Conduct public deliberations and processes openly, unless legally confidential, in an
atmosphere of respect and civility toward each other, City staff, and members of the
public.
• Learn and understand the legal and ethical requirements that apply to public officials and
processes.
Therefore, members commit to the following:
1. To uphold the standards of integrity and honesty with the intention of using true and
accurate evidence and/or statements in the decision-making process, and making
decisions based on the best interest of the city and its residents.
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2. To conduct business of their board or commission that is within the scope of the specific
board or commission functions as described in the Fort Collins Municipal Code.
3. To perform Council liaison assignments and duties as described in the Fort Collins
Municipal Code.
4. Familiarize themselves with, adhere to, and comply with established policies and laws, as
applicable:
• The City of Fort Collins Boards and Commissions Manual
• Colorado’s Sunshine Laws regarding open meetings and public records – as
outlined in the Council Resource Guide
• The City of Fort Collins Charter and Municipal Code; specifically, the ethical
rules of conduct and the open meetings, remote meetings, notice and minutes
of meetings, board or commission action and attendance requirements (see
Fort Collins Municipal Code §§2-71 through 2-79)
• The City Council-adopted Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment
Policy, which prohibits harassment, discrimination and retaliation based
on a person’s protected characteristics.
5. Avoid all ex parte communications (communications with anyone about a pending issue
including communication with City staff) about quasi-judicial matters.
6. To be aware of the open records requirement that applies to written notes, calendars,
voicemail messages, and e-mail. All written or recorded materials including notes, voicemail,
text messages, and e-mail that discuss or touch on public business or the functions of the board
or communication will likely be subject to disclosure to a requesting party.
7. Appointees are encouraged to meet with their Staff or City Council liaison to discuss any
concerns regarding work that may be outside the scope of designated functions, conflicts of
interest, appearance of impropriety, ex parte communications, or gifts. Appointees must
make disclosures to the City Clerk’s Office as appropriate under the circumstances.
8. Make decisions based on the merits of the issue, while treating all persons and decisions
in a respectful and equitable manner and committing to conducting business in a way that
exemplifies transparency and open communication.
9. Respect the legitimacy and authority of decisions that have been finalized –
regardless of personal position on the matter.
10. (For Appointees) Strive to represent the official policies and positions of their board or
commission when serving in the member role. When presenting their personal opinions
or positions in a public meeting, such as a City Council meeting, Appointees shall
explicitly state that they are not representing their board or commission or the City.
11. (For Appointees) Avoid actively participating in matters that interfere with a quasi-
judicial commission member’s ability to remain impartial in making decisions.
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12. Continue respectful behavior among Members and City staff when communicating in
private. The same level of respect and consideration of differing points of view should be
maintained in private conversations.
13. To use public resources (e.g., staff time, equipment, supplies, or facilities) appropriately
and in a manner that fosters stewardship of the taxpayer and ratepayer dollar.
14. Attend meetings of your board or commission. Because contemplation, deliberation, and
decision-making require collaboration and participation, Appointees are expected to attend
their meetings. Appointees must comply with attendance requirements described in Fort
Collins Municipal Code § 2-79. Appointees commit to attend any required trainings and even
suggested trainings that enhance a member’s ability to serve.
15. To respect fellow Members, staff, and the public by treating all with patience, courtesy,
and civility at all times during the performance of official duties, regardless of
differences of opinion.
16. Avoid making personal, profane, vulgar, slanderous, humiliating, intimidating, or
harassing remarks that disturb, disrupt, or impede the conduct of the meeting or the
completion of the meeting agenda. Similarly, abusive language, intimidation, threats of
violence or harm, or racial or ethnic slurs directed at any person or group of persons are
prohibited. Members are expected to know that problematic behavior can cause the
targets of behavior to feel threatened, humiliated, or intimidated and such conduct is
detrimental to the proper functioning of a public body. Members are expected to avoid
publicly ridiculing or insulting fellow Members, members of the public, and City staff.
17. Act in furtherance of the principle that healthy discourse occurs when individuals of
all backgrounds and personalities are allowed to respectfully speak candidly about
matters of interest, ask difficult questions, challenge ideas and propositions, and work
together toward optimal solutions in a respectful manner.
18. Explain to a person who engages in disrespectful treatment that the behavior is
disrespectful and, if the person who is the target of the behavior feels comfortable doing
so, ask that they discontinue the behavior. If this does not change the behavior the person
who believes they are being treated disrespectfully is strongly encouraged to report the
behavior using the process described in Fort Collins Municipal Code §2-580.
19. Report behavior that is disruptive, humiliating, intimidating, or threatening or otherwise
in violation of this Code of Conduct in the performance of City business, at City-
sponsored events, and in all interactions between members, City staff, or the public to
the staff liaison and the Boards and Commissions Coordinator. Complaints of such
behavior will be processed following procedures in the Fort Collins Municipal Code.
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Appointees may not be reappointed and are subject to censure or dismissal by the appointing authority for
misconduct, nonperformance of duty, or failure to comply with this Code of Conduct, applicable policies,
and the Fort Collins City Charter and Municipal Code.
I have read and understand the City of Fort Collins Code of Conduct and agree to abide by and
uphold this code to the best of my ability at all times while serving as an appointed or elected
official of the city.
I understand that I may not be reappointed, and may be suspended, censured or removed from
my appointment if my conduct falls below these standards.
Signature: Date:
Printed Name:
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APPENDIX C: ANTI-DISCRIMINATION AND ANTI-HARASSMENT POLICY
ANTI-DISCRIMINATION AND ANTI-HARASSMENT POLICY
Introduction:
Fort Collins aspires to be a city that addresses the needs of all members of our community and strives to ensure that
everyone has the opportunity to thrive. As a community, we commit to building a healthy, equitable, and resilient city
– for our families, for our neighbors, and for future generations.
The Fort Collins City Council is committed to providing and maintaining an environment that encourages mutual
respect and promotes equality, dignity, and respect. This Policy embodies the City Council’s commitment to prevent
and address discrimination; harassment, including sexual harassment; and retaliation. Discrimination, harassment, and
retaliation in the workplace are against the law and will not be tolerated.
Through adoption, implementation, and enforcement of this Anti-Discrimination and Anti- Harassment Policy
(“Policy”) and through continuing education and training provided by or through the City Clerk’s Office, the Fort
Collins City Council will seek to prevent, address, and correct behavior that violates this Policy.
Application:
This policy applies to all members of the City of Fort Collins City Council and Appointed Officials in the performance
of City governance or operations, at City sponsored activities, and in all interactions between members of City
Council, Appointed Officials, and City employees and contractors (defined herein as “Related Interactions”).
Appointed Officials include the City Manager, the City Attorney, the Chief Municipal Judge, any appointed employee
including municipal judges, and any City board or commission member. Nothing in this Policy is intended or should
be read to alter the terms and conditions of the at-will status of Appointed Officials.
It is important for all to keep in mind that the Mayor and City Council are committed to providing an
environment that exemplifies high standards of behavior, treats others with dignity and respect, and is known for
its honesty, inclusivity, and transparency. Conduct that does not clearly fall into the realm of conduct prohibited
by this Policy but is inconsistent with these values may be a violation of the Council-adopted code of conduct.
Prohibited Conduct
I. Discrimination Strictly Prohibited
Policy
The City Council strictly prohibits discrimination based on protected characteristics and will take prompt and appropriate
action in response to good faith complaints or knowledge of an alleged violation of this Policy.
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Definitions
• “Protected characteristics” means a person’s race, color, religion, creed, national origin or ancestry, sex,
sexual orientation (including perceived sexual orientation), gender identity and expression, disability, age 40
years or older, pregnancy or related condition, genetic information, and, in certain specific circumstances,
marital status, marriage to a coworker or any other status protected under federal, state, or local law.
• “Discrimination” occurs when a person covered by this policy experiences an adverse official action based
on one or more of that person’s protected characteristic(s). Adverse official actions include, but are not limited
to, termination, suspension, involuntary demotion, failure to promote, and opposition, rejection or failure to
appoint to committee or leadership role. Adverse official actions that are taken for any reason other than the
protected characteristic(s) of a person covered by this policy are not discrimination.
Examples of Discrimination
• A Councilmember harshly criticizes City staff and the municipal clerk notes he disproportionally criticizes
her and other women.
• A female candidate for city attorney, city manager or chief judge is selected for a position over a more
qualified male candidate because she is a woman.
• A community member is not considered for a board or commission appointment because he is
homosexual.
• A candidate is not chosen for a promotion to an open City position by an appointee because the candidate
does not share the appointee’s religious beliefs or does not have religious beliefs.
• A direct report receives an unfavorable, unjustified pay decision because they are disabled.
II. Harassment, Including Sexual Harassment, Strictly Prohibited Policy
The City Council strictly prohibits harassment, including sexual harassment, and will take prompt and appropriate action in
response to good faith complaints or knowledge of an alleged violation of this Policy. Please note that this Policy does not
address conduct that could constitute a violation of criminal law. Any person who believes a violation of criminal law has
occurred should report the conduct to Fort Collins Police Services or other appropriate law enforcement agency.
Definitions
• “Harassment” means any unwelcome conduct or communication directed at an individual or group because of
that individual’s or group’s actual or perceived protected characteristic and such conduct or communication is
subjectively offensive to the individual alleging harassment and the conduct is objectively offensive to a
reasonable individual who is a member of the same protected characteristic.
It is not necessary for a complaining party to be a member of a protected characteristic to file a complaint.
Harassment is a violation of this policy if:
• Submission to the conduct is explicitly or implicitly made a term or condition of employment or appointment;
• Submission to, or objection to, or rejection of the conduct is used as a basis for employment or appointment
decisions; or
• The conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with the individual’s work performance or
creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment or in related interactions.
Petty slights, minor annoyances, and lack of good manners are not included in the definition of harassment, unless they
meet the definition of harassment above when taken individually or in combination and under the totality of the
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circumstances. The totality of the circumstances considered includes:
• The frequency, duration and location of the conduct or communication; and
• The number of individuals involved; and
• The type or nature of the conduct or communication; and
• Whether it is threatening, involves epithets or slurs, or reflects stereotypes; and
• Whether there is a power differential between the individual or group and the subject of the complaint.
Examples of Harassment
No policy can provide an exhaustive list of behaviors that may rise to the level of harassment. Harassment
encompasses a broad range of conduct that may be verbal, visual, or physical in nature. Specifically prohibited conduct
includes, but is not limited to:
• Verbal conduct such as epithets, derogatory comments, and slurs directed at someone because of their protected
class;
• Insisting on giving hugs to all women encountered at a recurring meeting;
• Repeatedly not using a person’s preferred pronoun(s);
• Visual conduct such as derogatory posters, photographs, cartoons, drawings, or gestures directed at someone
because of their protected class;
• Mocking someone’s accent or disability;
• Acts or jokes that are hostile or demeaning toward a protected class;
• Racially offensive words or phrases;
• Written or graphic material that insults, stereotypes, or shows aversion or hostility to an individual or group
because of a protected class that is placed on walls, bulletin boards, email, or elsewhere on the premises of the
workplace;
• Displays of symbols, slogans, or items that are associated with hate or intolerance towards any select group, such
as swastikas or nooses;
• Pranks or hazing someone because of their protected characteristic; and
• Physical aggression or gestures based on someone’s protected characteristic.
In addition to the examples listed above, an aggregation of a series of incidents can constitute harassment, even if one
of the incidents considered separately would not rise to the level of harassment. Harassing conduct does not have to
rise to the level of an unlawful hostile work environment to warrant corrective action under this policy.
Sexual Harassment
Because sexual harassment raises issues that are to some extent unique in comparison to other types of harassment,
the City Council believes it warrants separate emphasis. The City Council strongly opposes sexual harassment and
inappropriate sexual conduct. Sexual harassment can involve persons of any gender identity or sexual orientation being
harassed by another individual.
Examples of sexual harassment include, but are not limited to, the following conduct:
• Inappropriate commentary, such as sexual epithets, jokes, written or verbal references to sexual conduct, gossip
regarding a person’s sex life, comments regarding a person’s body or sexual activity deficiencies or prowess;
• Sexually suggestive comments about a person’s clothing, vocal activity like catcalls or whistles, leering or
staring at a person or part of a person’s body, obscene letters, emails, text messages, photographs, cartoons,
or other written or pictorial materials of a sexual nature, or sexting or posting sexual messages or images
on social media;
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• Direct sexual propositions including persistent requests for dates, drinks, or other personal contact after being
informed that the interest is unwelcome, inappropriate sexually themed communication in person, online or via
mobile devices;
• Explicit or implicit requests for sexual activity in exchange for reward, position, or career advancement, support
of legislative initiatives, introductions, special access invitations to exclusive events, support for candidacies,
position stability, or any other such condition or potential benefit;
• Sexual contact including unwanted physical touching, blocking or impeding movements, groping, or kissing.
Inappropriate sexual conduct that could lead to a claim of sexual harassment is expressly prohibited by this policy.
This policy prohibits opposite sex and same sex harassment.
Sexual harassment may be obvious or subtle. Some behavior that is appropriate in a social setting may not be appropriate
in the performance of City governance, City operations, at City sponsored activities, or in Related Interactions,
particularly considering the Council’s stated values noted above in the Introduction.
III. Retaliation Strictly Prohibited
Policy
The City Council strictly prohibits retaliation. The City Council will take prompt and appropriate action in response
to good faith complaints of retaliation or knowledge of a violation of this Policy.
Definitions
“Retaliation” means an act of punishment, reprisal, or revenge that is taken against a person because he or she reported
a form of harassment prohibited under this Policy, prevented unlawful practices, or participated in an investigation of
an alleged act of harassment. For purposes of retaliation, an action is materially adverse if it is harmful to the point
that it would dissuade a reasonable employee from making a complaint of discrimination.
Examples
Retaliation can take place on City locations or elsewhere. Harassing conduct does not have to rise to the level of an
unlawful hostile work environment to warrant corrective action under this policy. Examples of retaliation after a person
makes a complaint or raised a concern may include, but are not limited to:
• Granting access to that person differently in a manner that negatively affects the person’s business or ability to
perform work (i.e., a Councilmember refusing to meet with a complaining party after the party filed a
complaint);
• Removing that person from an assignment;
• Change in support for Council action proposed by, or supported by, that person in their professional capacity;
• Disparaging that person to colleagues or peers;
• Changing that person’s role, responsibilities, managerial or legislative authority;
• Newfound scrutiny of that person’s work performance by a supervisor manager or Councilmember;
• Denial of a promotion for that person, or demoting, suspending, or terminating them, when such acts are not
otherwise justified;
• Issuing that person warnings, reprimands, or poor performance evaluations that are not otherwise justified;
• Excluding that person from beneficial networking or other opportunities, or from team or coworker events;
• Encouraging shunning by other Councilmembers;
• Workplace or legislative sabotage;
• Assigning that person a disproportionate workload;
• Disparaging that person to others or in the media;
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• Disparaging that person to potential new employers;
• Threatening that person with legal action;
• Threatening that person with immigration action; or
• Abusive verbal or physical behavior towards that person.
Formal Complaint and Resolution Process
The City Council encourages the reporting of all perceived incidents of discrimination, harassment or retaliation, as
described above, regardless of the position of the alleged offender. The following processes will be used when a
reporting party reports a violation of this Policy. The formal resolution process will be used when someone makes a
good faith report of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation in a manner that makes clear that the Reporting Party
intends to make a complaint of a policy violation.
Definitions
• “Reporting Party” means a person who has been subjected to or who has witnessed another person be subjected to
behavior that violates this Policy. A Reporting Party may be a member of the City Council, a City staff member,
a member of the public, a City contractor or vendor, an Appointed Official, a contractor, or a person whose
employment gives them access to or contact with the Fort Collins City Council.
• “Complaint Contact” means:
• The Mayor;
• Any City Councilmember;
• A representative of Human Resources including the Human Resources Executive, the Human Resources
Director, or a Human Resources Business Partner;
• The City Manager, Deputy City Manager, Assistant City Manager, Service Area Director, Service Unit
Director
• The City Attorney, Deputy City Attorney
• Lead Specialist, Office of Equity & Inclusion.
• The staff liaison or attorney liaison to a board or commission
While the reporting party should contact anyone on this list, the following guidance is provided for “Complaint
Contact:”
• For a complaint about the City Manager, City Attorney and Chief Judge, contact the Mayor or the Human
Resources Executive.
• For a complaint about a City Councilmember, contact the Human Resources Executive.
• For a complaint about a Board and Commission member, contact the City Manager, Deputy City Manager,
Assistant City Manager, Service Area Director, Service Unit Director, City Attorney, or Deputy City Attorney.
• “Respondent” means a person who is alleged to have violated this Policy and includes members of the City Council,
Appointed Officials, and persons who are under contract with the City of Fort Collins.
Confidentiality and Privacy Interests
An essential duty of the City Council and Appointed Officials is to be accountable to the public they serve. Members of
the public deserve to have access to some information about complaints and complaint trends, but this must be balanced
with the needs of the parties to have a safe, fair, and impartial process with appropriate confidentiality. The complaint
resolution process is a confidential process. Complaint contacts must ensure that reporting parties can communicate
privately and confidentially with them in discussing their complaints. Complaints and information about the investigation
must be kept confidential by all parties, witnesses, those who handle the complaints, and those who recommend discipline
or remediation, to the fullest extent possible. The confidential investigation report or any records of complaints of sexual
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harassment, and any sexual harassment investigations shall not be disclosed pursuant to an open records request except in
accordance with Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-72-204.
Complaints Against a Member of the City Council
Complaint Process
The Fort Collins City Council encourages any person who is the subject of or witness to a violation of this Policy by a City
Councilmember to immediately bring the violation to the attention of the Fort Collins City Council, via the complaint
contacts listed above, so it may take proper steps to investigate and address the issue. The report should contain all facts
available to the Reporting Party regarding the alleged Policy violation.
Action by Complaint Contact
A Complaint Contact who receives a report from a Reporting Party must document the date, time, the form of
communication that the complaint was received (in person, by phone, email, text etc.), substance of any communication
about the complaint and any steps taken. The Complaint Contact must transmit complaints that fall under the Policy to the
Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office of the City and the City Attorney. A screening process will be used to ensure
that the alleged misconduct falls within the scope and purpose of this Policy, assuming the allegations are true. A Complaint
Contact must take actions described in this Policy promptly upon becoming aware of a complaint.
Screening Process
The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City Attorney or their designee will contact
the Reporting Party and obtain a complete description of the conduct that
allegedly violates this Policy. The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee, the City Manager or their
designee and the City Attorney or their designee will determine whether the alleged misconduct, if true, violates this Policy.
Unless the alleged violation clearly does not fall within this Policy, the allegations will be referred for investigation. If the
alleged violation clearly does not fall within this Policy, a confidential written summary of the basis for not referring the
matter for investigation is placed in the file. If the allegations are not referred for full investigation, the complaining party
will be notified both in person and in writing that the allegations were reviewed as a screening matter and determined not
to fall within the scope of this Policy. If any of those involved in the screening the complaint believes the alleged
misconduct, if true, violates this Policy, the allegations will be referred for investigation and the complaining party will be
notified.
Investigation
Complaints against a Councilmember that, if true, violate this Policy must promptly be referred to a third-party investigator
retained by the City Attorney’s Office. The City Attorney must inform the City Council that an investigation is underway
and retain an independent outside investigator (preferably a lawyer that specializes in workplace investigations) to conduct
interviews with the Reporting Party and other individuals with knowledge of relevant facts, and to perform such other
actions as are necessary to ensure a complete investigation of all allegations and a fair process for all involved. Once the
investigation is deemed complete by the investigator and the City Attorney, the investigator shall prepare a written report
indicating whether the allegations in the complaint are sustained or not sustained and shall provide such confidential
investigation report to the City Attorney.
Timeline for Investigation
Every effort will be made to complete an investigation in 60 days.
Disciplinary and Remedial Action
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Upon completion of the investigation by a third-party investigator, the City Attorney will inform the Human Resources
Executive, the City Manager, the Reporting Party and the Respondent of the pertinent findings. The City Attorney, the
Human Resources Executive and the City Manager will send the confidential investigative report to each member of the
City Council with a cover letter that contains recommendations to remedy the harassment, discrimination, or retaliation.
Alternatively, the City Attorney shall present the investigator’s written report to the City Council in executive session.
Upon receipt, the Respondent must immediately endeavor to comply with recommendations.
The City Council may consider and direct any or all of the following actions in response to a finding that a complaint of
harassment, discrimination or retaliation is sustained:
1. Adopt a resolution finding that an individual covered by this policy violated this policy;
2. Direct or encourage additional corrective training;
3. Such other action as is consistent with its authority under applicable state statutes, the City Charter, ordinances,
resolutions, or rules and policies of the City Council.
Any Councilmember at any time may initiate a motion for censure of a Respondent Councilmember.
Complaints Against an Appointed Official
Reporting
The City Council encourages any person who is the subject of or witness to a violation of this Policy by an Appointed
Official to bring the violation to the attention of the City Council immediately, so it
may take proper steps to investigate and address the issue. The report should contain all facts available to the Reporting Party
regarding the alleged Policy violation.
The Reporting Party is encouraged to take the following actions:
• If the Reporting Party is comfortable addressing the issue directly with the Respondent, the party may explain to
the Respondent that the behavior is offensive to the Reporting Party, and request that such behavior be
discontinued.
• If the behavior recurs, the Reporting Party is strongly encouraged to immediately report the behavior to a complaint
contact listed above.
• If the Reporting Party is not comfortable addressing the issue directly with the Respondent, the Reporting Party
should immediately report the offensive behavior to a Complaint Contact listed above.
Action by Complaint Contact
A Complaint Contact who receives a report from a Reporting Party must document the date, time, the form of
communication that the complaint was received (by phone, in person, email, text message, etc.), substance of any
communication about the complaint, and any steps taken. The Complaint Contact must transmit complaints that fall under
the Policy to the Human Resources Executive, the City Attorney, unless the City Attorney is the Respondent and the City
Manager, unless the City Manager is the Respondent. If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the Complaint Contact must
transmit complaints that fall under the Policy to the Human Resources Executive and the City Manager. A screening
process will be used to ensure that the alleged misconduct falls within the scope and purpose of this Policy, assuming the
allegations are true. A Complaint Contact must take actions described in this Policy promptly upon becoming aware of a
complaint.
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Screening Process
The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City Attorney or their designee, if the City
Attorney is not the Respondent, will contact the Reporting Party and obtain a complete description of the conduct that
allegedly violates this Policy. The Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee, the City Manager or their
designee, if the City Manager is not the Respondent, and the City Attorney or their designee, if the City Attorney is not the
Respondent, will determine whether the alleged misconduct, if true, violates this Policy. Unless the alleged violation
clearly does not fall within this Policy, the allegations will be referred for investigation. If the alleged violation clearly
does not fall within this Policy, a confidential written summary of the basis for not referring the matter for investigation is
placed in the file. If the allegations are not referred for full investigation, the Reporting Party will be notified both in person
and in writing that the allegations were reviewed as a screening matter and determined not to fall within the scope of this
Policy. If any of those involved in the screening the complaint believe the alleged misconduct, if true, violates this Policy,
the allegations will be referred for investigation. If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the City Council will use outside
legal counsel to engage in the screening process as described herein. If the Respondent is the City Manager, the Lead
Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and City Attorney will engage in the screening process.
Investigation
Complaints against an Appointed Official that warrant investigation must promptly be referred to a third-party investigator
retained the City Attorney’s Office, unless the Respondent is the City Attorney. Unless the Respondent is the City Attorney,
the City Attorney must inform the City Council
that an investigation is underway and retain an independent outside investigator (preferably a lawyer that specializes in
workplace investigations). If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their
designee will retain the services of outside counsel to retain an independent outside investigator (preferably a lawyer that
specializes in workplace investigations) and the City Manager must inform the City Council that an investigation is
underway.
An outside investigator will conduct interviews with the Reporting Party and other individuals with knowledge of relevant
facts, and to perform such other actions as are necessary to ensure a complete investigation of all allegations and a fair
process for all involved. Once the investigation is deemed complete by the investigator and the City Attorney or outside
counsel, the investigator shall prepare a written report indicating whether the allegations in the complaint are sustained or
not sustained, and shall provide such confidential investigation report to the City Attorney, unless the Respondent is the
City Attorney. If the Respondent is the City Attorney, the confidential investigation report will be provided to the outside
counsel who will forward the report to the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and the City
Manager.
The confidential investigation report and findings, along with a recommendation, will be provided to the City Manager and
the City Council.
Timeline for Investigation
Every effort will be made to complete an investigation in 60 days. Disciplinary and
Remedial Action
Any Respondent found to have engaged in harassment, discrimination, or retaliation prohibited by this Policy is subject to
appropriate disciplinary action. The City Council shall consult with the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or
their designee and the City Attorney, if the City Attorney is not the Respondent, regarding disciplinary actions that are
commensurate with the severity of the offense. If the City Attorney is the Respondent, the City Council shall consult with
the Lead Specialist, Equity and Inclusion Office or their designee and outside employment counsel about disciplinary
actions that are commensurate with the severity of the offense. Disciplinary action can include, but is not limited to,
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demotion or termination. Other remedial measures may include:
• Verbal or written direction to cease the offensive behavior;
• A written or verbal apology to the Reporting Party if the Reporting Party consents to the apology;
• Resources and support to Reporting Party; or
• Education and training for the Appointed Officials.
In any case, a written record of any action taken on the complaint, or any determination to take no further action on the
complaint, shall be prepared in consultation with the City Attorney or such other legal counsel appointed by City Council
in connection with a given complaint and kept with the report of investigation.
Training
All members of City Council shall participate in training regarding harassment, discrimination and retaliation every two
years and in conjunction with the orientation provided to new City Council members. All Appointed Officials shall
participate in such training every two years.
Annual Reporting and Review
The Assistant City Manager will publicly report, on an annual basis, the total number of complaints under the Policy, and
the resolution of each complaint, appropriately redacted to protect the confidential personnel decisions and party identities.
The Assistant City Manager will maintain a publicly available list of Councilmembers and Appointed Officials who have
attended mandatory and voluntary trainings.