Boulder Together – Recalibrated Business Priorities and Collaborative Solutions

Originally published by the Daily Camera, May 11, 2025. 

This past week, leaders from business, government, education, and community organizations gathered at Boulder’s famed eTown Hall to launch the next chapter of Boulder Together, a strategic initiative focused on addressing Boulder’s most pressing challenges through bold business leadership and community collaboration. This convening marked more than a milestone; it was a renewed commitment, a purposeful realignment and a defining moment for Boulder’s future.

Since its founding in 2017, Boulder Together, led by the Boulder Chamber and the Boulder Chamber Foundation, has delivered results that bridge the priorities of economic vitality and community well-being. From zoning reforms that enabled the creation of more than 6,000 workforce housing units, to the launch of industry-specific apprenticeships, to securing the CU South campus annexation, to infrastructure investments that are improving regional commuter mobility and have powered over one million micromobility trips. Such outcomes reflect the initiative’s ability to translate vision into execution and impact.

Every success Boulder Together has achieved is the result of partnership, grounded in shared purpose, driven by business and nonprofit leadership, and made possible through deep community collaboration.

However, despite notable successes, significant hurdles remain. Commercial spaces in key districts like Downtown Boulder face rising vacancy rates. Homelessness and public safety concerns affect community confidence and economic vibrancy. Boulder’s average home prices make them unaffordable to our middle-income workforce, challenging workforce retention and straining the community fabric.

These challenges, set against a backdrop of shifting demographic, economic, and social dynamics, called for a deliberate and data-informed reassessment of Boulder’s strategic priorities. In collaboration with the city of Boulder, the Boulder Together initiative conducted an extensive survey of businesses and nonprofit stakeholders at the close of 2024. With nearly 1,000 responses, the findings revealed a striking consensus: workforce shortages, unaffordable housing, rising homelessness, and public safety concerns are not isolated problems. They are interconnected pressures that threaten Boulder’s competitiveness, quality of life and long-term economic resilience.

Boulder is not alone in confronting these issues. Across the United States, cities struggle for meaningful change. What distinguishes Boulder Together is a deliberate focus based on current data, institutional coordination, and stakeholder input. The resulting framework encompasses creative strategies and demonstrated solutions, along with the determination to act. As John Tayer, Boulder Chamber President and CEO, stated during last week’s launch event: “We are not here to manage the status quo. True leadership means stepping forward, taking calculated risks, when conditions demand action.”

Inspired by that spirit of action, the recalibration of Boulder Together addresses our challenges head-on through seven strategic pillars, each grounded in data and designed for long-term impact:

BOULDER LIVING: Housing Affordability — Middle-Income Focus
BOULDER SECURE: Public Safety & Security — Supporting Law Enforcement
BOULDER WORKS: Workforce Development — Bridging Talent and Opportunity
BOULDER RESPONDS: Homelessness — Comprehensive Solutions
BOULDER LAUNCHES: Start-Up/Small Business Support — Vibrancy & Diversity
BOULDER THRIVES: Commercial Revitalization — Marketing & Conversions
BOULDER MOVES: Transportation — Regional Connectivity and Local Mobility

“These pillars are not just about economics, they are about people,” said Boulder Together Co-Chair and Regional Vice President of FNBO, Gretchen Wahl. “They reflect a commitment to making Boulder a place where everyone can afford to live with dignity, feel safe in their community, and trust that we are confronting big challenges with both compassion and bold action.”

The Boulder Together recalibration represents not a change in direction, but a sharpening of focus that is designed to deliver actionable outcomes for the regional economy. At its core there is a deep commitment to cultivating local talent and aligning it with opportunity, because the future of Boulder’s economy depends on how well we prepare the next generation to lead and thrive.

As Dean Vijay Khatri, Boulder Together Co-Chair and Rustandy Endowed Dean of the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder, shared: “The future of our economy depends on how we invest in talent and connect it with opportunity. Through joint efforts like Boulder Hires Buffs, a partnership between CU Boulder and Boulder Together, employers are building stronger talent pipelines, retaining local graduates, and positioning Boulder as a leader in workforce readiness for the industries of tomorrow.”

Stakeholders across sectors are encouraged to contact the Boulder Chamber and engage with this renewed Boulder Together framework, whether by supporting a specific pillar, aligning organizational strategies, or contributing subject-matter expertise. As Boulder continues to adapt to shifting regional and national conditions, Boulder Together serves as a structured platform for collective action, economic competitiveness, and long-term community benefit.

This is our moment. Let’s define Boulder’s future, together. Because we are … Boulder Together.