Gov. Polis’ land-use takeover disregards how people want to live

Colorado will celebrate its 150th birthday in 2026, and to celebrate Governor Jared Polis has proposed what he thinks is a “visionary” land-use and transportation plan. In fact, it is just a tired old rehash of recent urban planning fads that are based on obsolete views of how people want to live.

The plan is partly a repackaging of a bill the governor promoted in the last session of the state legislature that would have given cities housing targets and required them to build more multifamily housing to meet those targets. The bill was defeated thanks to strong opposition from city governments that didn’t want the state to preempt their zoning powers, but that didn’t sway Polis...

Meanwhile, one of the supporters of the Polis plan says the goal is to “navigate growth without forsaking the essence of our Coloradan identity.” Yet I hardly think that the essence of the Colorado identity is living in a cramped apartment in a four- or five-story complex that happens to be on a bus or rail line...

... people don’t move to Colorado from crowded cities like New York just so they can live in another crowded city whose mid-rise apartment buildings are inspired by New York’s Greenwich Village...

Unfortunately, Polis has been swayed by the smart-growth movement that wants to force Americans to live in high-density housing no matter what the cost.

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