Boulder City Council · Meetings
Community and Council Forum
October 8, 2026 · Meeting · 3:02:53 of video
Council and residents discussed Boulder's power reliability roadmap, urging faster action and stronger pressure on Xcel; no votes were taken.
Boulder City Council held a Community and Council Forum on power reliability and resilience. Staff presented a draft roadmap with strategies in four groups: preparedness, community-led resilience, local energy systems, and large infrastructure. Staff said outages have been worse since late August and that 2026 may be worse than 2025. Participants then met in four breakout groups and reported back. Many said the 2035 goal is too far away and asked for stronger state regulation and incentives for Xcel. Staff will write a summary and bring the roadmap to council in February 2027. Council took no votes.
Summarized by a language model from the meeting transcript.
- 0 votes
- 1 agenda items
- 20 public comment speakers
Agenda
- 1Council Priority Project: Power Reliability and Resilience Community and Council Forum Staff Time: 30 Min Council Time: 150 Min▶ about 0:24:41Staff presented the draft power reliability and resilience roadmap, goals for 2030 and 2035, and strategies from preparedness to large infrastructure. Participants asked clarifying questions, met in four breakout groups, and reported back. Staff will return to council in February 2027 with the roadmap.
Conversations by topic
Wildfire and Xcel
Staff said outages have been very bad since late August. They tied reliability problems to aging equipment, public safety power shutoffs, and wildfire safety settings. Staff said the city works with Xcel on undergrounding along Highway 36 and Highway 93, and that Xcel is investing about half a billion dollars in wildfire mitigation in the area.
“certainly I think 2026 is is going to look worse. Um, and it's going to be less about wildfire and more about um, more equipment failure.”
A community member asked whether Xcel gave the city a credible plan with feeders and timelines. Staff said a solid plan exists for wildfire mitigation. Staff said newer systemic outage causes are still being planned, and more would be shared with Xcel in coming months. Staff asked participants to aim for historic reliability by 2030.
Residents debated who should pay and how to push Xcel. Some said Xcel and the legislature should pay and compel service. Others said the city should seek changes to state rules and incentives. Some also raised municipalization and low-cost city actions such as solar permitting and bulk buying.
City budget and finances
A participant asked what the dollar signs on the strategies mean. Staff said the lowest-cost strategies are already in the 2027 budget and work plan. Higher-cost items are not yet priced, and staff said possible funding includes an Xcel grant for resilience hubs.