Candidate Profile: Steve Rosenblum, Boulder City Council

BOULDER, CO — Ten candidates are running for five open seats on City Council in Boulder's Nov. 2 municipal election.

Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as Election Day draws near.

Steve Rosenblum is running for Boulder City Council.

Age: 42

Family

Wife Elena, Daughters Isa (12) and Ines (10).

Education

Columbia University (B.S. Mathematics, Economics, Computer Science, Magna Cum Laude, 2001).

Occupation

Finance, Housing, & Investments, 20 years.

Campaign website: www.steveforboulder.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

I’m running for council because I believe my unique skill set and experience will allow me to have a meaningful impact on Boulder's most critical issues such as housing, homelessness, climate, and our budget. I believe on these issues and so many more, there is so much common ground to be found and progress to be made, but only if we start talking to each other and listening to each other. And I think that our local conversation is increasingly broken. I strongly believe that we share common values and goals: to protect our climate, local environment, and our city from the ravages of global warming. To put our budget on a sustainable path while investing in our infrastructure and supporting our values. To bring forth the housing mix our city needs to foster a diverse community and promote opportunity. And to make our local government more responsive to our needs and priorities.

For the past twenty years, I’ve invested in communities, analyzed government budgets, and created housing for the elderly, disabled, and the unhoused. Throughout my career, I've successfully brought people with diverse backgrounds, different perspectives and strong opinions together to overcome complex problems, by listening, working hard, and treating people with respect. I look forward to bringing people together and doing my part in making Boulder a wonderful place to live, both today and for generations to come!

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

For all issues: I will listen to the community, conduct my own research, seek out the strongest arguments of those who most strenuously disagree with me and try to prove myself wrong. This is how we will arrive at the best policies and solutions for the community on the critical issues we face. From some of the other candidates, I hear slogans, inflexible ideology, an unwillingness to consider other perspectives, and proposals which will not serve the community, specifically on the important issues of public safety and homelessness.

How do you think local officials are performing in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

Our local government performed admirably by acting to protect lives and public health while balancing the needs of our local business and rapidly adapting to the shifting needs. I would have explored drawing deeper into our budget reserve funds rather than cutting city staff and essential services so deeply. I would have also been more vocal lobbying our state officials to distribute federal rental assistance and unemployment benefits, which had long delays and in many cases still hasn't reached those in need.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Public: We are facing epidemic of crime and dangerous drugs in our community. We need to restore our depleted police department and have them focus on solving and preventing crimes. Homelessness: Our public spaces are no longer safe and welcoming for residents and our local environment is suffering from abuse and degradation. We need to invest in mental health and substance abuse treatment programs and work harder to connect people with the services they so desperately need. Climate: we need to address the climate emergency by getting to net zero electricity generation, electrify our buildings, and reduce the carbon impact of our transportation as rapidly as possible. Parallel to these efforts, we must ensure that our community and local environment are resilient to a warming climate and extreme weather events. We need to protect residents from wildfire and flood risks by managing our forests, maintaining the green belt, refraining from building in flood plains, and reducing large-scale, land-disturbing activities. We need to protect our fragile native ecosystems from further disruption to increase their chance of coping with increased heat, drought, and erratic precipitation.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

My twenty years of experience in housing, financial services, and economics gives me the perspective and capacity to have a meaningful, positive impact on critical city issues. Throughout my career, I’ve successfully brought people with diverse perspectives together to overcome complex problems. (If ever there was a place dealing with diverse perspectives and complex problems, it’s Boulder, and I am determined to guide us toward solutions.)

I have lived, breathed, and studied housing markets from every aspect: as a renter, an investor, a financier, and studying housing research. For example, I was fortunate to invest in a building in Denver that was close to being condemned. I led the work to rehab it into a beautiful living space that became home to people from the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless. We found a way to provide opportunity for the most vulnerable while assuring the safety of the surrounding community. I’ll never forget how humbled and grateful I felt when I saw people cry at the sight of their names on their own mailboxes. I understand how city policies create or constrain housing and economic opportunity and have also learned that sometimes the best decision is not to build. The highest authority is what's best for the community. Having held leadership roles at leading financial services companies, I developed expertise in mortgage and municipal finance, budget sustainability, and regulation. The lesson: While government policies impact our housing markets, transportation infrastructure, and environments, it’s local action and passion for home that builds a true community.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

The future is not some place we are going, but one we are creating. The paths are not to be found, but made. And the activity of making them changes both the maker and the destination.