Boulder — Dozens of residents, nonprofit leaders and planners gathered for a Modus Playback Theater event hosted as part of outreach on the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan, sharing personal stories and priorities for the plan and pressing officials for clear next steps and equitable outreach.

The two-hour session combined theater-style “playback” performances of audience stories with small-group conversations. City Manager Nuria Rivera Vandermeid opened the program and said the initiative was intended to “make the city inclusive” for future generations. Modus organizers led warm-ups and staged re-enactments of audience members’ reflections.

Why it matters: The comprehensive plan will help guide land use, housing, transportation and climate policy across the Boulder Valley. Attendees at the Modus event used personal testimony to surface the kinds of issues they say should drive the plan: housing and density, threats to immigrant and trans communities, climate resilience and water supply, the needs of mobile-home residents and seniors, and mistrust that engagement will reach decision-makers.

Several participants tied housing and affordability to other needs. Emily Reynolds, who said she lives in Boulder, asked the city to “limit our development quite severely” and to let neighborhoods decide density, saying the valley lacks water and infrastructure to support large-scale growth. A mobile-home resident identified as Peggy said her 60-year-old community includes about 30 seniors and warned that without a connection to city wastewater the residents “may lose their homes,” adding, “these people will be on the street. They’ll be crazy. They’ll be dead on the street.”

Immigrant and frontline voices were prominent. Elsa Cardona, a registered nurse, said immigrant families “belong here,” noting that immigrant residents pay taxes and work on the front lines. Several speakers expressed frustration that cultural testimony and Indigenous voices could be minimized by performance formats; Rashaun Edison, a nonprofit program coordinator, said the playback sometimes felt “performative” and urged organizers to ensure decision-makers actually see and act on the material shared.

Speakers also raised climate and safety concerns. Participants asked the plan to address wildfire risk, water availability and air quality. One attendee urged planners to treat food as a utility rather than a charity, arguing for accessible, culturally appropriate food and simpler, dignified access for people in need.

City staff described how the input will be used and listed further engagement opportunities. Brad Mueller, who identified himself as a planner supporting the city’s Planning and Development Services department, told the audience, “Your voices are being heard, they’re being recorded, they’re being taken down by staff, they’re being consolidated, they’re being synthesized.” He listed upcoming events, urged continued participation and pointed attendees to the project website, boulderfuture.org, for schedules and ways to comment.

Organizers and several nonprofit representatives asked the city to do deeper outreach to low-income and frontline communities, and to make engagement pathways that do not require extensive time or travel. Andrea Nwaji, executive director of Harvest of All First Nations, said attending the event carried a cost for community organizations and asked organizers to recognize limited time and resources when scheduling and budgeting outreach.

What happened next: Staff and organizers said the event is one of many formats for public input. Mueller referenced scheduled open houses and pop-up events and encouraged attendees to submit written feedback at staffed tables before leaving. Organizers said they will email participants with follow-up opportunities and that additional Modus playback sessions focused on storytelling are planned for March 1 and April 5.

The meeting did not include any formal votes or decisions about plan language. Instead the session functioned as a community-listening event intended to surface lived experience and priorities to inform later technical and policy phases of the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan.

Looking ahead: Attendees urged the project team to demonstrate how public testimony will influence the plan and to ensure that Indigenous histories and frontline community needs are centered in planning work. City staff and organizers encouraged participants to continue engaging through the project website and upcoming public meetings.

(Selected direct quotations are attributed to participants who spoke at the event; all other descriptions summarize the public conversation.)