YIMBY Denver

YIMBY Denver showed up at every step—organizing testimony, meeting with lawmakers, and rallying support for housing reform statewide. I’m incredibly proud of the work we did and of the growing movement we’re helping to build here in Colorado.

We saw real progress this year as several priority bills passed. Legislation to legalize single-stair multifamily buildings (HB25-1273) passed, opening the door to more flexible, human-scaled apartments that have long been needlessly restricted. We also supported new limits (in HB25-1093) on local growth caps, pushing back against cities that try to shut the door on new residents. And we helped pass a bill (HB25-1211) to rein in exploitative tap fee practices, making it easier to build homes people can actually afford. All of those bills have been signed into law.

At the same time, some losses hit hard. HB25-1169, better known as Yes In God’s Backyard (YIGBY), which would have allowed unused church and school land to be used for affordable housing, failed to make it across the finish line in the Senate—despite being a thoughtful, balanced approach to expanding housing flexibility. And HB25-1004, a bill to ban rent algorithms that have led to savings of hundreds of dollars per renter, was vetoed by the governor.

These were real opportunities to make progress, and while losing them was a blow, our fight for housing reform is far from over. Every bill we fought for had more allies, more attention, and more public support than the year before. We’re picking up momentum,and we’re not backing down. YIMBY Denver will keep pushing for abundant, sustainable, and inclusive housing—because we know Colorado’s future depends on it.