Council Meetings 101

Study Sessions vs Regular Meetings

The Council meets the 1st through 4th Thursdays of each month from 6 pm to 10 pm. There are no meetings on the 5th Thursday when they arise. The 1st and 3rd Thursdays are Regular Meetings where the Council votes on issues and has opportunities for Public Comment. The 2nd and 4th Thursdays are Study Sessions, where the Council discusses specific projects' challenges, successes, and goals. There is no option for Public Comment at Study Sessions.

Sometimes, the Council needs to decide or vote on a timely issue, and then they will convert all or part of Study Sessions to a Special Meeting where they can vote and make decisions. 

E-mailing Council (and/or) Staff

Staff can address 99% of people's specific concerns and issues and are usually the most appropriate people to respond to them (e.g., a pothole, a fallen tree, or a question about how something within the city works). Use Inquire Boulder to report a specific issue.

You may submit an online form to e-mail staff and/or Council. Use this form to express your disagreement or support a particular council decision. Councilmembers typically read these e-mails even if they do not respond, especially if your message is brief.

Opportunities to Speak to Council

Open Comment

There is a limit of 20 speakers for Open Comment, in which you can speak on any topic you like. If more than 20 speakers sign up, a lottery determines which 20 people will speak. Open Comment is always near the start of the meeting, so it will generally be from ~6:15 to 7:15 pm. 

Speakers receive notice on the meeting day if they are selected to speak, including a list of the speaking order. In-person speakers always go first, followed by virtual speakers. Virtual speakers receive a Zoom link to join the meeting and will wait as muted participants until the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem calls their name. You must display your name as a virtual speaker via Zoom. In-person speakers sit in the audience at council chambers until the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem calls their names.

Please note that you should not speak about a topic that is scheduled for a Public Hearing at Open Comment.

Public Hearings

For Public Hearings, there is no limit on speakers and the timing can be variable because council questions usually follow a staff presentation before the public starts speaking. Very long Public Hearings mean people can sometimes wait hours to share their thoughts. The sooner you sign up following the 8 am opening for signups, the closer you will be to the start and the less time you will have to wait in person. Virtual speakers will still go at the end, though those who sign up earlier will go first for the virtual speakers' section.

You will receive a list of speakers in advance so you will know the speaking order. If you are participating virtually and need to put kids to bed or work or are otherwise occupied, having a friend who is watching the whole meeting and can text you when it is time for you to speak is a helpful thing to do.

If there is more than one public hearing on a given night, you may speak at all or just some of them. There is no limit on the number of public hearings you are allowed to speak at, nor is there a requirement that you speak at all hearings on a given night.

How to Sign up to Speak

The signup form(s) to speak at a given city council meeting opens at 8 am the Friday before the meeting and closes at 2 pm the Wednesday before. If you miss the 2 pm Wednesday deadline, you cannot speak.

The city has a website describing the process for participating in City Council meetings. 

Sign up here for Open Comment.

Sign up here for a Public Hearing.

Note that if there is no Public Hearing scheduled on a given night, there will be no signup for a Public Hearing. If there is more than one public hearing on a night, select the one you wish to speak about in the dropdown menu. If you want to talk at multiple public hearings on the same night, you must sign up for each one individually.

You should receive a confirmation within 15 minutes of clicking the "submit" button, whether you are signing up for Open Comment or Public Hearing. If you do not receive this confirmation, check your spam folder. If you do not see the confirmation, e-mail cityclerksoffice@bouldercolorado.gov before the signup window closes.

What to Expect When You Speak

Most often, speakers are given 2 minutes to speak (exception: if <7 people are signed up, everyone gets 3 minutes). There is a timer, and the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem will cut you off if you exceed 2 minutes. Writing down and/or practicing your speech beforehand will ensure you do not run out of time. 

In-person speakers will speak at a podium into a microphone, facing the Council. Virtual speakers will speak from their home or telephone without video.

For either Open Comment or Public Hearings, you can choose to pool your time with another speaker. Generally, I do not recommend this. Attention spans are short, and having multiple speakers can provide more emphasis on a given point.

While it is nice to see people in person, I feel there is not much difference between speaking in person or virtually. Virtual participation is often easier for workers and parents to manage. The important thing is speaking and making your voice heard, so whatever format enables you to speak will be best.

If you watch Regular Meetings, you can see how Open Comments and Public Hearings work to get an idea of what this looks like.

Translation can sometimes be available for Open Comment or Public Hearing.

Format of Regular Meeting

Call to Order and Roll Call

The Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem starts the meeting, and the City Clerk takes the roll to clarify for the public record who is present and not present for a particular meeting. Any declarations are read here, often with a member of a constituent group accepting the declaration (e.g., Pride Month, Black History Month, Small Business Saturday). 

Community Announcements

Meetings sometimes have a few minutes of updates/announcements for the community.

Open Comment

Before the Council gets into business, up to 20 people may have up to 2 minutes each to speak to the Council about whatever topic they want. This is a good time to talk about things that are coming up on the Council's agenda, that you'd like the community and Council to know about, or that have happened recently. You can deliver open comments in person at council chambers on the 2nd floor of the Tate Building (SW corner of Broadway and Canyon) or virtually. A random lottery determines who will speak if more than 20 people sign up to speak at Open Comment. 

Note: The speakers cannot use Open Comment time to comment on topics in public hearings (i.e., specific issues on the agenda for a given night under "Public Hearings").

Consent Agenda

Items that do not generate discussion are on the consent agenda. Examples include approving a legal settlement, approving notes from a previous meeting or study session, or approving something straightforward the City Manager is doing that needs the Council's signoff. 

Call-Up Check-In

Per city code, certain decisions made by boards and commissions and/or landmarking or larger development projects need to be run by Council (e.g., a new apartment building). At a call-up check-in, the Council decides whether a project should go to a council meeting for further discussion and feedback from the Council, or whether they are OK with things proceeding without their input. 

Certain boards, such as the Planning Board and Landmarks Board, may approve/deny projects on their own. If the Council agrees with their decisions, they most often do not raise issues.

Public Hearings

Public Hearings occur when the Council needs to vote on more significant issues requiring staff input and public discussion (e.g., the city budget, department strategic plan approval, more significant development projects, or departmental initiatives). There will be a staff presentation, and then the Council will have time for questions. The Council will hear public comments and then discuss and vote on the issue.

Matters from the City Manager

The City Manager runs the city's day-to-day operations. Council and city code (laws) set policy, and the City Manager works with relevant city departments to implement it. This section of the meeting is where departments may provide updates on their work and recommendations for the Council to consider and receive feedback from the Council. There may be a "nod of 5", where a majority of the Council's nine members indicate support for staff to proceed in a particular direction on a given project.

Matters from the City Attorney

The City Attorney advises the Council, boards, commissions, and city departments. The City Attorney's role is advisory when it comes to the Council – she doesn't prevent the Council from doing things but advises on the course most within local, state, and federal law. Sometimes, the City Attorney has operational issues she wants to bring before the Council for discussion and guidance/feedback, and that will show up here. Most conversations between council members, departments, boards, and commissions with the City Attorney happen offline. Like all other attorneys and clients, attorney-client privilege keeps most discussions confidential.

Matters from the Mayor and Members of Council

When councilmembers wish to discuss something, it will appear here. They may want to provide an update from a regional board they are serving on, debrief a conference they attended, or receive guidance on committee work. This section is for anything an individual council member wants to bring to the group's attention and/or get some feedback on.

Discussion, Debrief, Adjournment

At this stage, anything else that needs to be brought up, comments, or debriefs on how the meeting went will arise. Then, the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem will adjourn the meeting.

Boulder City Government 101

The Boulder Beat created a wonderful resource for learning about Boulder's local government structure (disponible en español).