TUESDAY, MAY 5, 2026
EYES ON ARVADA
A nonpartisan read on what your city council actually did this week.
6 MIN READ  · WATCH THE MEETING ↗
LEAD STORY

Council Delays Bylaw Vote After Chaotic Welby Gardens Hearing

The Arvada City Council met on May 5, 2026, with six members present (Councilmember Griffith was excused). The meeting opened with eight proclamations recognizing: Early Care and Education Provider Appreciation Day (May 8), Poppy Month, Mental Health Month, Economic Development Week, ALS Awareness Month, Drinking Water Week, Building Safety Month, and Affordable Housing Month. A presentation from the Arts and Culture Commission highlighted completed murals, a public art map, and plans for a new sculpture at the aquatic center. Public comment was dominated by two issues: several speakers urged adoption of the city's Climate and Sustainability Action Plan (KSAP), and multiple speakers addressed the failed Welby Gardens conditional use permit — with the project's developer (AvalonBay) formally requesting reconsideration at the next meeting, and both supporters and opponents of the project weighing in on housing access, traffic, and evacuation concerns in West Arvada.

On the formal business side, the council approved an intergovernmental agreement with Apex Park and Recreation District to designate their Wadsworth recreation center as a disaster resource center in emergencies — a preparedness measure modeled partly on lessons from the Marshall Fire. The council also approved an updated sidewalk repair assistance program (formerly the 50/50 program), which offers 100% financial assistance for low-income households and 50% assistance for others, with $300,000 budgeted for 2026. A rezoning first reading for a Candelas commercial property was approved, and the June 2 council meeting was canceled.

A notable procedural item: the council unanimously postponed indefinitely a resolution that would have formally adopted new council bylaws, after community criticism that a 'time pooling' provision for public testimony was used in a lopsided way during the April 21 Welby Gardens hearing. Staff acknowledged the process did not go as intended and committed to broader community engagement before bringing updated bylaws back to council.

THE MOTION
Excuse Councilmember Griffith from tonight's meeting
YES · 6   Simpson · Moorman · Ambrose · Lovisone · Fifer · Davis
Griffith was absent for all business this evening; all subsequent votes were 6-0.
“We need to be fair in how we are developing this city and not jam it all in just one place.”
— Judy Douglas (public commenter)
WORKSHOP · ARTS AND CULTURE COMMISSION ANNUAL PRESENTATION

Commission highlights completed public art map and murals; raises funding restrictions and staffing as key barriers

THE OPTIONS · AT A GLANCE
OPTION 1    Expand CIP funding flexibility  Commission's stated preference  Cost TBD
The commission noted that 99% of their budget is CIP funds, which carry a five-year project placement restriction. Loosening those restrictions would allow more types of projects.
OPTION 2    Add dedicated city staff support  Commission's stated preference  Cost TBD
The commission's public art manager currently holds a dual-role position. The commission noted that a full-time art manager would meaningfully expand program capacity.
OPTION 3    Pursue grants and business/AIDA partnerships for seed funding  Davis's suggestion  Cost TBD
Councilmember Davis suggested exploring seed funding through AIDA and local business partnerships to attract artists and fund projects, rather than relying solely on CIP funds.
OPTION 4    Explore maker/artist space (e.g., repurposing ECA building)  Moorman raised; Commission actively discussing  Cost TBD
Mayor Pro Tem Moorman raised the loss of Bird's Nest Art Gallery's location and noted Arvada is among few metro cities without a dedicated maker or open studio space. The commission confirmed this is under discussion, with vacant buildings like the former ECA school mentioned as possibilities.
“I would urge council to evaluate rezonings and proposed developments not only as individual parcels but as a cumulative evacuation and emergency access system.”
— Patty Shannon (public commenter), A West Arvada resident raising concerns about Highway 72 as the sole evacuation corridor for a growing number of developments in a wildfire-interface area.
WHIP COUNT

Where each member landed

Reach out — they answer to constituents.
COUNCILMEMBER VOTE ARTS AND CULTURE COMMISSION ANNUAL PRESENTATION POSITION
Lauren Simpson
Lauren Simpson
Mayor
720-961-3779
 Yes Expressed personal support for arts; noted the maker space idea has come up in multiple forums and may warrant further pursuit.
Randy Moorman
Randy Moorman
Mayor Pro Tem · District 1
720-772-6651
 Yes Raised the impending loss of Bird's Nest Art Gallery's space and the absence of a maker/open studio space in Arvada; asked the commission to bring policy suggestions to council.
Shawna Ambrose
Shawna Ambrose
Councilmember · District 2
970-425-3060
 Yes —
Rebecka Lovisone
Rebecka Lovisone
Councilmember · District 3
720-898-7000
 Yes Asked about biggest opportunities and barriers; inquired which 2026 goal the commission is most excited about (answer: public art map and aquatic center sculpture).
Bob Fifer
Bob Fifer
Councilmember · District 4
303-929-4278
 Yes —
Sharon Davis
Sharon Davis
Councilmember · At-Large
720-450-4825
 Yes Suggested overlaying the public art map with trails and bike maps from APAC and transportation committees; proposed exploring AIDA and business seed funding partnerships.
Michael Griffith
Michael Griffith
Councilmember · At-Large
720-898-7000
 Absent —
MORE QUOTES
“Working residents, renters, young households, people who would live in this project — they were not in that room. Not because they don't have opinions, because the process doesn't make room for them.”
— Robert Slay (public commenter)
A supporter of the Welby Gardens housing project arguing the April 21 hearing did not represent the full community, and advocating for online public comment tools.
“We are seeking the reconsideration so that we may provide new information as permitted by your rules of procedure.”
— Todd Nicotra (public commenter, AvalonBay)
The AvalonBay representative formally requesting that council place a motion to reconsider the failed Welby Gardens CUP at the next meeting, noting new studies on retail feasibility and traffic have been commissioned.
“We got one form for group time pooling on Sunday, I believe, prior to the hearing and then 13 additional requests for time pooling on the date of the hearing. So, it was far far in excess of what we thought we were going to receive.”
— Unidentified (City Attorney/City Clerk — identified as 'Miss Morris' in transcript)
Staff explaining how the experimental 'time pooling' provision for public testimony at the Welby Gardens hearing was overwhelmed, resulting in organized opposition groups testifying for over two hours before supporters could speak.
“It does feel like we've had sort of some agitation around this issue from very interested groups, but the broader public deserves to be able to know and frankly there's just more opportunity for council ourselves to be able to hash it out.”
— Lauren Simpson (Mayor)
Mayor Simpson explaining her support for postponing the council bylaws vote to allow wider community input on meeting procedures.
“I think as you know as a commission of the city, we would appreciate your input to us as the policy makers about what solutions we might want to be exploring there.”
— Randy Moorman (Mayor Pro Tem)
Moorman responding to the Arts and Culture Commission's discussion about the potential loss of Bird's Nest Art Gallery's space and the lack of a maker space for artists in Arvada.
WHAT'S NEXT

On the calendar

The most consequential upcoming item is AvalonBay's expected motion for reconsideration of the Welby Gardens conditional use permit at the June 16 meeting — the same meeting that will also include the Candelas commercial rezoning public hearing and the Barber Nichols annexation hearing, all touching West Arvada development and traffic concerns. Two council workshops are scheduled for the following week (week of May 12): one on wildfire mitigation and response strategies — directly relevant to the evacuation concerns raised in public comment — and one on 2027 water, wastewater, and stormwater rates and fees, which will be important context given the active Stage 1 drought restrictions currently in effect.

WORTH WATCHING
Unidentified (full council)
The council approved a first reading of a commercial rezoning (CB26-017) at the SE corner of Hwy 93 and Hwy 72 in Candelas — the precise corridor that multiple public commenters, including Patty Shannon, warned is already overburdened as the sole evacuation and emergency access route for West Arvada. The council asked no questions about emergency access or evacuation capacity during the rezoning vote, despite those concerns being raised in public comment earlier the same evening.
Unidentified (full council)
The council unanimously postponed the council bylaws indefinitely due to concerns about the fairness of the time-pooling process at the Welby Gardens hearing, yet the same evening heard the Welby Gardens developer request reconsideration. The council did not discuss or vote on that reconsideration request at this meeting (the developer explicitly asked them to wait until the next meeting when full membership would be present), but the interplay between procedural fairness concerns and the pending reconsideration was not directly addressed by council members on the record.
DELIVERED AFTER EVERY MEETING
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EYES ON ARVADA · TUESDAY, MAY 5, 2026
Independent, AI-assisted civic journalism. Not affiliated with the City of Arvada.

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