Boulder County

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Boulder County - February 16, 2007

CODE UPDATE WILL INCLUDE HOME SIZE REGULATIONS

Preserving rural character and promoting energy conservation is moving the issue of allowable home size in unincorporated Boulder County up in the priority issues to be part of the two-year land use code update scheduled for completion late this year. Over the past four years, the size of homes built in the County has doubled to more than 6200 square feet. Commissioners are unlikely to regulate an absolute maximum size (except in unique or historic areas like Gold Hill) but will consider establishing size thresholds beyond which a property owner will have to purchase additional development rights and/or invest heavily in energy conservation measures to gain additional square footage. In addition to code changes, the county will also amend the Boulder County Comprehensive Plan to add home size policies that may be adopted. The debate will begin in earnest during the second quarter 2007 and final decisions could be made as early as August.

BROOKINGS ECONOMISTS WARN OF IT JOB LOSSES

Brookings Institute economists released a report this month warning of significant potential Information Technology (IT) job losses in many parts of the country, including the Boulder-Longmont area. The report studied some 246 metropolitan areas and determined that 28 are ‘likely’ to lose IT jobs to overseas outsourcing. The study found that the most vulnerable IT jobs are those that are ‘routine or rules-based,’ like data entry or programming. The Boulder-Longmont area is projected to lose between 3.1 percent and 4.3 percent of its IT jobs to off-shoring by 2015. The report is considered more of an alert than a prediction of a future certainty.