Six suburban mayors from across Colorado have teamed up to sue the state over new land use laws they say trample on their home rule authority. In a piece by Marianne Goodland of Colorado Politics, the mayors of Arvada, Aurora, Glendale, Greenwood Village, Lafayette and Westminster are challenging legislation passed under Governor Jared Polis that effectively tells local governments how to zone, where to put housing, and how much parking is too much for the state’s delicate sensibilities. The lawsuit isn’t just about density or parking—it’s a bold, coordinated punch in the face of state overreach, defending the fundamental right of local governments to govern… locally. Crazy concept, right?
The Bullet Point Brief
- Six Mayors, One Message: Back Off, Polis
Mayors across party lines have united to sue the state for strong-arming their zoning authority. This isn’t about NIMBYism—it’s about home rule. And these mayors aren’t playing mother-may-I with King Polis anymore. - Parking Minimums? Now It’s Personal
The state’s legislation removes local control over parking requirements. Apparently, Polis thinks a family of four in Greeley should ride scooters to school, work, and Costco (if they had one). - Home Rule or Home Fool?
These mayors argue that Polis and the legislature are bulldozing constitutional home rule protections. Polis’ idea of housing reform sounds less like planning and more like colonization—with Boulder-style policies parachuted into cities that didn’t ask for them. - Unfunded Mandates: The Hits Keep Coming
The state’s new requirements come without funding. So cities are told to build more housing, offer less parking, and absorb the chaos—all on their own dime. That’s not policy, that’s extortion in a business-casual blazer and bad tennis shoes. - Polis’ Dream: One State, Under Micromanagement
This governor doesn’t want empowered municipalities—he wants obedient subsidiaries. Local control? In Polis-world, that’s just a speed bump on the way to centralized control from under the golden dome.
My Bottom Line
I don’t care if it’s a fews days late, this story hits like a political earthquake—and I stand 110% with these mayors. Local government is supposed to be government by the people, for the people, closest to the people. Town councils and county commissioners aren’t just bureaucrats—they’re neighbors. You can walk up to them at the grocery store, yell at them at a town hall, or email them without 27 layers of staffers and interns running interference. That’s how democracy stays grounded. But Polis? No, no—he’s got delusions of Mount Olympus. He sees your zoning map and raises you a 1,000-page edict written by Boulderites who think every city should look like a Whole Foods exploded.
This state administration has been on a six-and-a-half-year power binge, slapping local governments with one unfunded mandate after another like it’s some sort of twisted drinking game. And now they want to tell cities how many parking spaces they can offer? That’s not planning, that’s paternalism. Polis doesn’t trust local leaders. He trusts his own central-planning ego—and the handpicked sycophants under the gold dome who nod along like bobbleheads on Xanax.
These mayors aren’t suing for headlines—they’re fighting for the right of their communities to shape their own futures. And they’re right to fight. Because if we let this top-down nonsense stand, it’s not just zoning that gets steamrolled—it’s the very principle of local control. If we’re serious about building strong communities that work for families, the last thing we need is some centralized control freak in Denver dictating what those communities should look like. The people of Weld and beyond didn’t move here to be governed like Denver-lite. They came for a say in their future. Let’s make damn sure they keep it.
