The leaders of three of the largest cities in Colorado agree on at least a few things.
Among them: They want the state to pay for more juvenile detention beds in response to youth crime.
It was one of the top concerns highlighted by Mayor Yemi Mobolade of Colorado Springs, who is politically unaffiliated, Republican Mayor Mike Coffman of Aurora and Democratic Mayor Mike Johnston of Denver in a recent joint letter to Gov. Jared Polis and the General Assembly.
On stationary carrying the seals of the three cities, they also declared public safety, housing and economic vitality as "the most important concerns facing our cities."
The letter is dated Jan. 9, 2025, the day Polis delivered his annual State of the State address. It’s meant to show the cities' priorities for the 2025 legislative session that just began.
The mayors write that they support Polis' budget proposal to increase funding for bed space at juvenile detention facilities. The need, they said, is due to what they say is an uptick in young offenders committing more serious crimes.
"By increasing bed spaces," they write, "we can ensure youth are removed from situations that may cause additional harm and instead connect them to social services and programs to help, thereby decreasing the rate of re-offending."
In November, the city of Colorado Springs gathered city and community leaders and legislators for a summit aimed at addressing the issue. At the time, the Colorado Springs Police Department said the city had seen a 59 percent increase in juveniles suspected of violent crimes, compared to a 10 percent increase in overall violent crime. Statistics from the city also cited a 49 percent increase in the number of juvenile suspects with a gun during these crimes.
And in his State of the State address, Polis said his budget proposal also calls for more crime prevention measures and an expansion of resources for youth.
"Under my new proposal, youth offenders who are currently being sent all over the state will be able to stay closer to home and get the support they need faster," Polis said.
As for housing, the mayors back legislation aimed at encouraging condo construction by making it harder to sue builders. It’s been a perennial issue for the legislature. Mobolade championed a similar effort last year that ultimately failed. In his State of the State address, Polis said it was time to have a "meaningful conversation" about the issue.
The mayors did not weigh in on other proposals to increase housing construction by loosening development rules. For example, Polis is supportive of a proposal to allow “single-stair” apartment buildings, which create more space for housing by requiring fewer emergency exit paths.
The third identified priority comes under the label of "Safe Cities." Without giving specifics, the mayors want to ensure local municipalities can "retain the ability to implement solutions that are responsive to community concerns and assign appropriate sentences when crimes are committed."
It’s apparently a response to an effort to force municipal courts to follow the same sentencing practices as state courts. A recent Denver Post investigation showed how some municipal courts could jail people for nearly a year for minor crimes like trespassing. For those same crimes, defendants would face no more than 10 days in jail from a state judge.
Rep. Javier Mabrey told the Post that he wants the cities to follow the state’s lighter punishments in those cases, and also to establish a right to an attorney in municipal court. The American Civil Liberties Union also hopes to stop municipal courts from criminally punishing defendants who miss court dates, the Post reported.
As state lawmakers get to work this week, they're faced with a budget shortfall of nearly $700 million. Passing a balanced budget is the only constitutionally required action lawmakers need to undertake.
