Boulder voters appear to have rejected a ballot measure that would have required a vote on the CU South annexation agreement as well as one that would have relaxed the city's occupancy limits.
However, with the third resident-initiated measure, the results remain too close to call. The Humane Clothing Act, which would ban the sale and manufacture of fur in Boulder, is currently failing but is within 200 votes, according to a 6:10 p.m. election results update posted by the Boulder County Clerk and Recorder's Office.
As of Wednesday evening, 43% voted in favor of Bedrooms Are For People, while 57% opposed it. Similarly, 43% supported Let the Voters Decide on Annexation of CU South, while 57% opposed it.
While campaign organizers with the CU South initiative conceded to opponents Wednesday night, those with Bedrooms Are For People said they're prepared to stick it out until all of the votes are counted.
"We know a lot of progressive votes are coming late," co-chair Eric Budd said. "We'll just have to be patient."
"(It's) still not clear how many people voted," he added.
The ballot measure would have relaxed the city's occupancy limits and allowed all housing units to be occupied by a number of people equal to the number of legal bedrooms, plus one additional person per home, provided relevant health and safety codes are met.
Supporters of the measure argued it would expand housing access and legalize what many already are doing due to the lack of affordable housing in Boulder.
Opponents, on the other hand, worried the initiative would lead to investors building dormitories in single-family neighborhoods.
"We look forward to working with the new City Council to create greater access to affordable housing while protecting our residential neighborhoods," Lisa Spalding with opposition group No on Bedrooms$ said.
Now that their measure has been defeated, the CU South campaign team is focused on its referendum effort. The referendum, which was deemed sufficient with 5,700 signatures, forces a vote on the Boulder City Council-approved annexation agreement meant to guide flood mitigation and potential development at the 308-acres site owned by the University of Colorado Boulder.
"It didn't go our way last night, but up and down the ballot, measures were defeated," PLAN-Boulder co-chair Peter Mayer said in a statement. "We had an uphill battle this fall and we also had to run a signature campaign."
He said the organizing team can take a lot from this election campaign and improve on it as it moves forward with the referendum process.
"Boulder is going to learn a lot about the CU South annexation agreement in the coming months," Mayer said.
But opponents of the CU South-related measure celebrated a win. They view the annexation agreement, which Boulder City Council approved in a 6-1 vote, as vital since it provides Boulder with the land it needs for the South Boulder Creek flood mitigation project.
"We are proud that Boulder has voted to ensure the safety of over 2,300 residents," Brian Frey with opposition group Protect Our Neighbors said Wednesday. "With the annexation approval from City Council and support from countless community organizations and leaders, we look forward to the protection of our neighbors from flooding, while improving equitable issues of housing and access to the environment."
Passage of the annexation agreement in September allowed Boulder to continue with permitting and design for its flood mitigation project, which community members have been pushing for since the area was severely impacted during the 2013 flood.
All of the city-initiated ballot measures were successful, including a 15-year extension of Boulder's 0.3% sales tax that will fund capital infrastructure projects in the city.
The Clerk and Recorder's Office will continue processing ballots on Thursday.
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