The Hill is where CU’s campus and Boulder meet, a place tailored for students but also home to residents who are unaffiliated with the university. So when the CU student government discussed the prioritization of safety on The Hill during their first meeting of the school year, they did so alongside a larger initiative by the city.
The CUSG Legislative Council passed a resolution last week in support of Boulder Ballot Issue 2A, which will be voted on in November. The passing of 2A would increase sales tax in Boulder by .3 percent for three years in order to fund various municipal projects, including better lighting on The Hill. If the projected $27.6 million were to be raised, just over $3 million would be devoted to, among other things, streetlight placement and installation in the area.
With two months until city elections, CUSG’s President of Internal Affairs, Lora Roberts, said it was “game time” to collaborate with Boulder in making The Hill a safer environment.
Student government isn’t the only campus organization zeroing in on The Hill; CU’s Off Campus Student Services department begins their “Walk This Way” program Friday, September 5.
The new program puts volunteers on The Hill from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on weekends to steer any drunk college students they see away from residences and toward food trucks parked outside the UMC.
Normally the university prohibits food trucks, but the director of Off-Campus Housing and Neighborhood Relations, Susan Stafford, said the administration agreed to make an exception in this instance. Stafford said the deal will benefit both students and food truck owners, who aren’t allowed to operate past 9 p.m. and rarely frequent student-heavy areas.
“We’ll be getting food and hydration to students when they need it the most,” Stafford said.
“Walk This Way” will run through the end of September.
Contact CU Independent Breaking News Editor Sam Klomhaus at Samuel.klomhaus@colorado.edu.
