Running for Boulder City Council · 2026
Lee Gilbert
Gilbert is an engineering consultant running for council for the first time.
Money (city clerk; Thursday before election report, filed Oct. 29, 2026; retrieved Oct. 30, 2026): raised $0 · spent $80 · matching funds received $0.
About this candidate
Gilbert is an engineering consultant running for council for the first time. He focuses his campaign on reviewing major transportation projects, especially the Baseline corridor.
- Occupation: Engineering consultant
Bio sources: boulderreportinglab.org, lee4boulder.com
Source availability is narrower than for questionnaire respondents; silence is not a policy position.
In their own words
Short passages from questionnaires, interviews and the campaign website, by topic. If a topic is missing, we have no quote on it. That says nothing about their view.
Downtown
This is an important question.
Source: Better Boulder · questionnaire · 2026-09-13 · 2026 City Council Candidate Questionnaire
Governance
To be clear I am running as a single-issue candidate.
Source: Better Boulder · questionnaire · 2026-09-13 · 2026 City Council Candidate Questionnaire
Housing
No. It would depend on well the design would fit into a neighborhood, mostly related to size and if it is single story.
Source: Better Boulder · questionnaire · 2026-09-13 · 2026 City Council Candidate Questionnaire
Transportation
No. Absolutely not. The Baseline Project has resulted in more congestion and less safety for cars and bikes and is the reason for my campaign.
Source: Better Boulder · questionnaire · 2026-09-13 · 2026 City Council Candidate Questionnaire
Pause feasibility, engineering work, and grant proposals for new major road projects until they are reevaluated.
Source: Campaign website: Lee Gilbert · campaign website · Profile source: Lee Gilbert
What reporters wrote
These are the reporter's words about the candidate, not the candidate's own.
Lee Gilbert, a longtime resident of Boulder who moved to the town in the 1960s, was very clear that the one issue he prioritized was to improve the transportation development along Baseline for cyclists.
Yellow Scene · 2026-09-05 · Profile source: Lisa Ann Jacobs
Endorsements
Each line says where the endorsement comes from.
What the labels on each endorsement mean
- Endorser's own statement
- The organization or person announced it themselves (their site, their press release, or a news story reprinting that release).
- “X campaign lists Y”
- Only the candidate's (or ballot campaign's) own website says so. We didn't find the endorser saying it. It may be true, but it is the campaign's claim.
- City filing
- A committee's registration with the city clerk names the candidate or measure it supports.
- News listing
- A news outlet lists the endorsement, but we did not find the endorser's own statement.
Titles (e.g. “U.S. Representative”) are as printed on the cited page and describe the person, not an endorsement by their office. A blank title means the source did not give one.
No endorsements on file. That is not opposition.
At the forums, in their own words
Short passages from 2026 candidate forums, by topic, with the question and a link to that moment in the recording. Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. If a topic is missing, we have no quote on it. Compare answers to the same question.
Housing
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
What specific policies, development strategies, funding approaches, or partnerships would you pursue to increase or preserve housing affordable to families at approximately 30 to 40 percent AMI? (submitted by co-sponsor EFAA)
I'm not knowledgeable on this issue
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 45:45 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
Ballot issue 2J, the residential vacancy excise tax, would be a tax of approximately $4,000 on residential property vacant for more than half the year. Do you support this tax and will it generate enough income to pay for administering this complex program? (30 seconds)
No yes/no label: Says he leans toward yes; a lean is not labelled.
I lean towards the yes.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 1:28:03 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
Budget, debt and the 2K bond
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
Boulder voters are being asked to authorize $400 million in new debt through additional property taxes for recreation, public safety and other city facilities as part of ballot issue 2K. Do you support this measure? Why or why not?
No on 2K (the $400 million bond), in their words below.
I'm also a no on the issue.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 57:27 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
Transportation
Boulder Chamber forum · August 26, 2026
If elected, name your top three priorities. And do you believe the city is moving in the right direction or wrong direction on those top priorities?
I have one single priority and that is to oppose transportation projects that make things worse.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 15:49 · 2026 | Boulder City Council Candidate Forum (Boulder Chamber, YouTube)
Boulder Chamber forum · August 26, 2026
If elected, name your top three priorities. And do you believe the city is moving in the right direction or wrong direction on those top priorities?
the changes they made on baseline are absolutely terrible. They ignored accident data and they made it more dangerous for bicycles than it was before.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 16:06 · 2026 | Boulder City Council Candidate Forum (Boulder Chamber, YouTube)
Boulder Chamber forum · August 26, 2026
Tell us one city issue on which you changed your position after considering new evidence or another perspective.
I would not have funded RGB so many years ago if I knew that they weren't going to actually get service to Boulder.
Transcript note: 'RGB' = RTD (Whisper).
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 59:56 · 2026 | Boulder City Council Candidate Forum (Boulder Chamber, YouTube)
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
Opening statement (one minute)
A vote for me is a vote of no confidence in Boulder's road projects.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 8:29 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
If elected, name your top three priorities, and do you believe the city is currently moving in the right direction on those priorities?
These projects are expensive. They're not efficient. They're not needed. And the city never allows a public vote on these issues.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 34:03 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
What are your feelings about the bus-only lanes and the core arterial network (CAN)? Should Boulder continue prioritizing protected bike lanes?
I call it the Folsom fiasco
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 1:08:43 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
Tell us about one city issue on which you changed your position after considering new evidence or another perspective. What changed your mind?
the RTD tax, where we were promised rail service, I was supported that. I definitely would not support it now.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 1:35:17 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
Empower Our Future council climate forum · October 13, 2026
Council opening introduction, climate and energy forum (one minute)
My platform is simple. A vote for me is a vote of no confidence in Boulder's road projects. I'm a single issue candidate.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 7:21 · Empower Hour 2026-10-13 Boulder City Council Candidates on Energy and Climate (Empower Our Future, YouTube)
Empower Our Future council climate forum · October 13, 2026
Climate hushing: political leaders now seem reluctant to connect negative everyday experiences to climate change and its driver, carbon pollution. How do you plan to be vocal and lead on climate?
we might want to have ways to look at possibilities of RTD for that, for example, having electric vehicles that are very small vehicles,
Speaker identified from speaking order; the moderator did not name them.
Transcript note: The moderator's cue before this answer is transcribed as 'Robert.' Lee Gilbert is the only council candidate at this forum not otherwise named in this round, and the speaker describes getting around by bike and on foot, as Gilbert did in his opening.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 26:35 · Empower Hour 2026-10-13 Boulder City Council Candidates on Energy and Climate (Empower Our Future, YouTube)
Climate and wildfire
Empower Our Future council climate forum · October 13, 2026
Xcel says it will deliver 100% clean electricity by 2050, not Boulder's 2030 goal, and has presented no concrete plan under the 2020 franchise agreement. What remedies would you propose for Xcel's failures to deliver, at the city level, at the PUC, or at the state level? And would you be open to inviting cities that have gone to market for their electricity to come to Boulder to educate us about life after Xcel?
As far as finding out from other communities about switching to market things, I think that's a very good idea.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 42:03 · Empower Hour 2026-10-13 Boulder City Council Candidates on Energy and Climate (Empower Our Future, YouTube)
Empower Our Future council climate forum · October 13, 2026
Xcel is preparing a decade-long remediation of nearly 2 million tons of coal ash at the Valmont power station. Should Boulder use its franchise and partnership agreements with Xcel to require strong, independent air quality monitoring throughout the cleanup? And if so, how specifically would you do this?
I liked what Rachel had to say. So I haven't looked into the issue, but it sounds like she's pretty much on top of it.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 1:07:52 · Empower Hour 2026-10-13 Boulder City Council Candidates on Energy and Climate (Empower Our Future, YouTube)
Other topics
Boulder Chamber forum · August 26, 2026
What specific strategies would you recommend that the City of Boulder initiate to recruit and retain businesses in our community? What kinds of industries or businesses would you target?
I work on strategies to reduce the cost, both in terms of permitting and also in terms of local tax districts and things.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 1:26:46 · 2026 | Boulder City Council Candidate Forum (Boulder Chamber, YouTube)
League of Women Voters forum · September 26, 2026
Do you agree or disagree that our city council is adequately representative of the social, political and economic interests of Boulder? Would you support a study session on proportional representation?
Well, clearly the council is not representative of the people.
Quoted from an automatic transcript. Check the recording. Watch at 1:19:48 · September 26, 2026 League of Women Voters of Boulder County Candidate Forum (City of Boulder, YouTube)
No earlier questionnaire answers on file.
Money
- $0Raised
- $80Spent
- $0Matching funds received
- $-80Cash on hand
2026 · Lee4Boulder · Thursday before election report, filed Oct. 29, 2026; retrieved Oct. 30, 2026.
0 contribution lines, 1 expenditure. City clerk, not TRACER. Clerk statements · Everyone.
Spent on: all 1 expenditure lines
| Payee | Purpose | Date | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thor Ronemus | Website design and support | 2026-10-04 | $80 |
Campaigns
| Year | Office | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Boulder City Council · campaign | on the ballot |
Forum attendance
- 2026-10-13 Empower Hour: Climate and Energy Forum with Boulder City Council Candidates — attended · recording
- 2026-09-26 League of Women Voters of Boulder County City Council and Mayoral Candidate Forums — attended · recording
- 2026-08-26 Boulder Chamber City Council and Mayoral Candidate Forum — attended · recording