Civic data analysis

Analyzing public data for the public good.

Local Policy Op-Eds

I write op-eds about Boulder and Colorado politics with the sensibility of a researcher and the obligations of a resident. Local debates often run on inherited stories, selective anecdotes, and a sense of inevitability. I treat them as empirical questions. What do election returns, enrollment trends, permit data, vacancy rates, and basic budgeting signals show when you lay them side by side? I aim to replace heat with clarity, and to make the causal claims in local politics explicit enough that readers can disagree on values without arguing over facts.

My agenda is pro-abundance and pro-inclusion. I want Boulder to grow in ways that widen who can live here, age here, and build a life here. Housing policy sits at the center of this project because exclusion hides inside zoning, occupancy rules, and process. When a city restricts homes, it shifts costs onto renters, younger families, service workers, and newcomers, then calls the result “character.” I argue for expanding housing options across types and price points, pairing growth with walkability and transit, and planning for demographic change so schools, services, and budgets adapt rather than spiral into defensive austerity.

I also argue for democratic and governance reforms that reduce capture and widen participation. Turnout patterns, election timing, and institutional incentives shape who governs and whose preferences look “mainstream.” I support reforms that align elections with broader participation, increase transparency and accountability, and treat public service as work rather than a hobby reserved for people with surplus time and money. Across issues, I oppose politics driven by fear, scapegoating, and population-control revivalism, especially when it smuggles in nativist assumptions under the cover of environmental concern.

Each piece begins with a concrete claim that shows up in meetings, campaigns, or headlines. I then pull the simplest public evidence that bears on it and make the reasoning legible. I name definitions, units, and baselines. I flag uncertainty and competing interpretations, then translate the analysis into the policy levers that local institutions control. I try to keep the moral frame explicit. Evidence does not pick goals for us, but it does constrain what we can responsibly assert about causes, consequences, and tradeoffs. The work of an op-ed, as I see it, is to connect those constraints to choices that readers and decision-makers can own.

Topics

  • Housing and land use: supply, affordability, and the costs of exclusion.
  • Growth debates: what the numbers show versus common narratives.
  • Elections and governance: turnout, timing, representation, and accountability.
  • Demography: aging, school enrollment, and intergenerational politics.
  • Public space and mobility: walkability, downtown design, and economic activity.

Selected op-eds

2025

2024

2023

2022

Reuse

If you want to cite or republish, link to the original outlet page. If you want a dataset or a replication notebook for a specific piece, email me with the title and outlet.