Josh Fudge is the Director of Performance, Budget, and Strategy for Larimer County, with 20 years in local government. He holds degrees from the University of Wisconsin–Madison (BA, Economics) and George Mason University (MA). A Fort Collins resident for a decade, he is running for Fort Collins City Council in District 3.
Episode Summary:
Host Nick Armstrong interviews District 3 candidate Josh Fudge about budget pressures, housing affordability, and regional coordination. Fudge explains how Fort Collins’ heavy reliance on sales tax constrains services and argues for multi-agency collaboration among the City, County, CSU, PSD, and UCHealth to maintain quality of life as state and federal support tightens.
On housing, he supports increased density in transit-served corridors (Midtown/College Avenue, Harmony Corridor; mentions future commuter rail) and process improvements to reduce development delays and costs. On water, he favors conservation, xeriscaping incentives, and regional partnerships; he notes the City utility is generally positioned for growth but emphasizes cross-jurisdiction work. About growth, Josh points to past polarization around land use and density and seeks “common-sense” approaches that avoid reopening old conflicts. On climate and transportation, he prefers incentives over mandates in the near term, along with walkability, bikeability, and transit.
Fudge supports arts through grants (budget permitting) and city-provided spaces (e.g., legal walls for graffiti/murals). He highlights Fort Collins’ perfect HRC Municipal Equality Index score and emphasizes listening to LGBTQIA+ residents. He discusses ranked-choice voting (three-candidate District 3 race) and seeks broad appeal as a first- or second-choice candidate.
Key Takeaways:
- Budget: He argues the City’s sales-tax dependence limits services; proposes efficiency and interagency collaboration.
- Housing/Density: Supports adding homes in transit-served areas (Midtown/College/Harmony; future rail) to reduce sprawl and long commutes.
- Process & Business: Wants faster, clearer development and permitting; maintain standards but remove low-value hurdles.
- Transportation: Back free transit; make walking/biking/transit more viable to relieve corridor congestion (Harmony, Mulberry).
- Water: Promote xeriscaping and density to reduce lawn use; partner regionally on planning and conservation.
- Climate: Prioritize incentives over near-term mandates to avoid added costs for residents and small businesses.
- Arts & Inclusion: Maintain arts grants when possible; provide spaces for artists; continue inclusive practices and listening.
Notable Quotes:
- “Seeing the difficulties that the city’s budget is having…being in the decision-making chain for the city really kind of hit home for me.”
- “If we can bring more of our workers here closer to the city and make it walkable and make transit more feasible…”
- “The city can…play a strong role locally…making sure that the city is walkable, bikeable, and that transit is available and usable.”
- “I really want to find those common-sense solutions for housing that…don’t open up those old wounds.”
- “I’m happy to meet with just about anyone who…shares those values of being inclusive and common sense.”
Resources / Links:
Candidate site: https://fudgefortcollins.com
Poudre Libraries: https://poudrelibraries.org
More from Dear Fort Collins:
Dear Fort Collins website: https://dearfortcollins.com/
Dear Fort Collins YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@dearfortcollins
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