Former Candidate Steve Altschuler Among Applicants for Ward 2 Vacancy

City Council to Interview Candidates at Public Meeting on January 21

Photo by Adam Steininger

Marcia Martin’s tenure as the Ward 2 representative on the Longmont City Council ends today, December 31, leaving her seat vacant as the city prepares to appoint her replacement.

With applications submitted by interested residents before January 8, the City Council is set to interview applicants during a public meeting on January 21 before selecting and swearing in the new Ward 2 representative on January 28.

One of the applicants is Steve Altschuler. If that name sounds familiar, he ran for an at-large seat on the Longmont City Council in 2021, focusing his campaign on transparency, public safety, and infrastructure improvements.

“Actually, I technically filled out my form last night,” Altschuler began, reflecting in an interview on December 23, 2024, on his decision to apply.

Altschuler has lived in Longmont for 18 years, a fact that fuels his commitment to the city’s future and his active involvement in attending city council meetings as a resident as often as he possibly can. Having regularly attended meetings, he believes his insights are starting to resonate.

“At the beginning of every meeting, citizens can speak about anything they want to talk about,” Altschuler said. “I try to give a different perspective on whatever we’re talking about. They hear me, and sometimes they think, ‘Yeah, that’s not a terrible idea.’”

Altschuler commenced with his decades-long experience in business and property management, highlighting the value of building trust with customers.

“I stay busy managing a couple of properties… I have 35 years in my own businesses, years and years of practice making customers happy,” Altschuler said. “Remote control blinds, wood blinds—every kind of window cover—for 22 years, basically by referral. People gave out my name and number because they knew I did a good job and took care of customers.”

In discussing some of the challenges facing Longmont, Altschuler emphasized the need for financial education as a tool to combat poverty and homelessness. Altschuler thinks that money management skills are a critical part of addressing systemic issues, though not the sole solution.

“There are a lot of people that are downright poor. There’s a lot more people that are poor because they can’t handle their money. They spend it faster than they make it,” Altschuler said.

While acknowledging the complexity of homelessness, Altschuler expressed a pragmatic approach.

“You’re not going to cure homelessness. You can reduce it. Good luck figuring it out. You can make it less of a problem, but you’re never going to have a day when no one’s homeless,” Altschuler said.

A key issue Altschuler is passionate about is addressing the city’s approach to homelessness and low-income housing. He feels that current government policies are often focused on enabling people to remain in their current situation, rather than helping them improve their circumstances.

“Our government nationwide is taking the attitude of giving to people that don’t have, rather than helping them make it for themselves, or enabling people to stay where they’re at, rather than helping them get out of their situation,” Altschuler explained.

Altschuler also voiced concern about the impact of rising taxes on homeowners.

“There’s no law that says if your home is appraised at $400,000 and now the appraiser says it’s $800,000, the city or state can’t lower the mill levy. Why not lower that levy to three and a half percent or 3 percent? They have that ability, but they don’t because they want all the money they can get,” Altschuler said.

Altschuler critiqued the city’s fee structure for builders and how it affects home prices.

“If a builder is building a $500,000 home, the city charges them a 12 percent fee. The city is charging $60,000, and they have a choice to either sell 12 percent of the homes at a low-income value or give the city $60,000 per unit to start building low-income housing. But what the city has done is take that $500,000 home and made the builder sell it for $560,000. Now your house is 12 percent higher, and that creates inflation,” Altschuler said. “They complain about how expensive things are, but what they’re doing is raising the prices themselves.”

Addressing the city’s housing development and the balance between homes and apartments, Altschuler expressed his concern about Longmont’s future direction. He acknowledged the need for different types of housing but argued that the city should not solely focus on high-density apartment complexes.

“Longmont used to be a bedroom community with houses. I liked moving here because it was more of a home, bedroom community. I like having a yard... a lot of people do,” Altschuler said. “There are still some people that want to have a home...”

Altschuler similarly raised concerns about Longmont’s future growth. He pointed out that growth should not solely focus on population increases but also on thriving businesses and a strong economy.

“Do you want Longmont to have 200,000 people in the next 10 years, with all those condensed apartment buildings? Or do you want people to be able to ride their bikes or go to a park?” Altschuler said. “Growth doesn’t always mean more people… Growth can mean the businesses are doing well, thriving, and they’re hiring more people, and people are making more money.”

Altschuler raised a pressing issue: Longmont’s traffic. He believes concerns about this should be part of the broader conversation about the city’s future.

“One of the worst problems is the traffic on Ken Pratt right now. If we have 100,000 people now, what’s that going to look like in 10 years, with 200,000 people?” Altschuler said.

Altschuler suggested that rather than focusing on more condensed housing along Ken Pratt Boulevard, city planners should look toward expanding in other areas like 17th Avenue to help alleviate traffic congestion.

“You got to look down the road with that, you know, and maybe instead of building more condensed housing on Ken Pratt, or right here at the corner [South Hover Street and Pike Road], you go out a little bit to 17th, draw some of the traffic away,” Altschuler said.

Altschuler noted that achieving harmony on growth and development is challenging, especially as Longmont’s population continues to rise.

“Growth is great, but there’s got to be some point where you say, ‘You know what? You can’t do anything,’” Altschuler said.

Altschuler trusts his experience as a businessman gives him a distinct viewpoint.

“Different problems can have a multitude of solutions,” Altschuler said. “What I’m trying to point out is I have different ways of looking at problems than they do. They just look at it as, ‘We need to build low-income housing, so we’re going to charge the builders because builders are all filthy rich.’ But what they do then is make the homes more expensive for everyone else. Some of those people can’t afford a house, so they have to rent an apartment.”

Altschuler knows he doesn’t have all the answers but sees his role as an encouragement for diverse perspectives.

“Nobody on City Council, to my knowledge, has ever had their own business. At least three of them have been teachers. As a businessman, I come to it with a different perspective, and that’s what I’m hoping to do—to get people to think about things in a different way,” Altschuler said. “They may decide I’m right, they may decide I’m wrong, but there should be more ways of looking at a problem than having all seven people agree all the time.”

Altschuler, who has attended many city council meetings over the years, emphasized the importance of diverse viewpoints.

“I’m hoping to bring a different thought process… Maybe we’ll meet somewhere in the middle, I don’t know. It depends on the problem,” Altschuler said. “Well, the bottom line is, it’s always put up to a vote. So, I might have this opinion, they might have that opinion, and then we vote, you know, or sometimes we talk.”

Altschuler reflected on the complexities of governance, quoting John F. Kennedy’s interpretation of Abraham Lincoln’s words: “You can please all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you can’t please all the people all the time.”

Longmont residents can share their thoughts on candidates like Steve Altschuler by addressing the council in person at any meeting or emailing them beforehand.

To be considered for this role, candidates must submit an application and letter of interest by January 8, meeting requirements such as U.S. citizenship, being 21 or older, and having lived in Longmont’s Ward 2 for at least one year. While residents won’t vote on the appointee, the City Council will interview candidates during a public meeting on January 21, with the final selection expected that evening. The new council member will be sworn in on January 28 and serve until December 2, 2025.