Golden Community Sustainability Advisory Board Regular Meeting – June 24, 2026

The Community Sustainability Advisory Board (CSAB) of Golden, Colorado, held its rescheduled regular business meeting on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, at City Hall, 911 10th Street, Golden, CO. The meeting convened at 3:03 p.m. (the agenda listed a 3:00 p.m. start) and adjourned at 4:10 p.m., at which point the Board moved into its annual strategic meeting, scheduled from 4:00 to 9:00 p.m. Members present were Carrie Atiyeh, Claybourne Clarke, Todd Collins, Jill Engel-Cox, and Martha Gerdes; Jillian Matheson and Adrienne Watts were absent. Staff present were Theresa Worsham (Sustainability Manager) and Samantha Neumeyer (Sustainability Coordinator). The agenda included routine approvals, one public comment, and staff updates on the Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) contract, the proposed Downtown Waste District, zero-waste services at special events, grants, and the draft 2024 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Inventory.

Consent Calendar

• Agenda approved unanimously: motion by Carrie Atiyeh, seconded by Jill Engel-Cox, approved at 3:05 p.m.
• Minutes of the May 27, 2026 meeting approved unanimously: motion by Jill Engel-Cox, seconded by Carrie Atiyeh, approved at 3:05 p.m.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Frank Biasi, founder of the Go Good travel guide app, longtime Golden resident, and board member of Sustainable Golden, presented the “Go Good Golden” pilot. He described the app as a sustainable travel guide featuring locally owned, authentic, sustainable businesses and experiences, and explained that businesses can complete a voluntary “stewardship scan”—a qualitative self-assessment of sustainability and community impact across 10 ESG dimensions. He expressed interest in collaborating with the City and aligning the pilot with Golden’s sustainability goals, and noted plans to launch “Go Good Colorado” statewide by the end of 2026, with more than 400 listings already created across Colorado. He stated the model involves a $10 per month or $100 per year listing fee, or a 10% commission on bookings, which destination organizations could subsidize to make participation free. Board members responded positively; Jill Engel-Cox offered to connect offline, citing her background in tourism and her work with the Colorado Association of Destination Management Organizations. Public comment closed at 3:21 p.m.

Discussion Items

• Residential Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) Contract: Staff reported that City Council awarded the next residential waste hauling contract to 5280 Waste Solutions, with service beginning September 1, 2026, and a cart transition period in August. Staff are finalizing the contract, coordinating cart exchange logistics, and syncing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) reimbursements so residents receive a net monthly rate on their utility bills. Staff noted that Council appreciated the Board’s emphasis on recycling and composting education but prioritized the financial impact to residents over five years when deciding against electric collection vehicles. Staff added that 5280 remains interested in grants and electric vehicle opportunities.
• Downtown Waste District: Staff provided an update on the proposed opt-in Downtown Waste District for multifamily and commercial customers, following the June 9 demonstration of a grant-funded electric trash truck. Program design must be completed before an RFP is issued to establish pricing. The proposed program would offer daily service, recycling for all participants, and additional services such as cardboard collection and oil/grease recovery. Staff reported grant funding of approximately $980,000–$990,000 over three years, including about $530,000 for the electric truck, with the remainder for carts and service subsidies. Downtown stakeholders, including Dean Valdez’s business group, have already asked when pricing will be available.
• Zero-Waste Services at Special Events: Staff shared that the City contracted with Tectonic to provide zero-waste staffing at larger special events as budget allows. The sole RFP bid was $130,000 for 11 events; available funding is about $75,000 ($50,000 from grants and $25,000 from the general fund), and staff negotiated Tectonic’s scope down to approximately $75,000. Tectonic performed well at the Arts Week festival, including clean recycling and compost streams, and will staff the 4th of July and Buffalo Bill Days events.
• 2024 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Inventory: Staff reviewed the draft 2024 community-wide inventory prepared by ICLEI—Local Governments for Sustainability USA under a $10,000 contract. It is Golden’s third inventory; the previous inventories used 2019 and 2009 data per the minutes and transcript, although the report text describes the prior inventories as using 2007 and 2019 data. The 2024 inventory reports total gross emissions of 333,364 metric tons CO2e, a decline of 48,337 metric tons (about 13%) from 381,698 metric tons in 2019. Transportation & Mobile Sources is the largest sector at 48% of emissions, followed by Commercial Energy at about 36% and Residential Energy at about 12%. Board discussion raised several concerns: (1) Xcel Energy’s “15x15 Rule” excludes data for three commercial natural gas accounts that may represent roughly 45% of business consumption, and board members found the gross-up math on the excluded accounts to be incorrect—potentially meaning commercial emissions increased rather than decreased; (2) new 2024 categories such as aviation, wastewater treatment, and electric vehicle data are not comparable to 2019 and should be reported separately while still being memorialized; (3) diesel emissions appeared to double from 2019 to 2024 even though diesel vehicle miles declined, requiring clarification; and (4) the appropriate cadence for future inventories. Board members agreed the next inventory should use 2028 data, in advance of updating the City’s 2030 goals around 2029. Staff noted the inventory is near completion and that ICLEI is willing to make corrections this week before the report goes through ADA accessibility review.
• Grants: Staff reported that grants are moving into implementation, with two of four grants signed, and that additional contractors will support education and outreach. The Board agreed to discuss grants in the context of 2027 planning at a future session.

Key Outcomes

• Unanimous approval of the agenda and the May 27, 2026 minutes.
• Board directed staff to work with ICLEI to correct data errors, particularly the 15x15 Rule commercial energy estimates, and to separate non-comparable new categories (e.g., aviation, wastewater) from the 2019–2024 comparison while keeping the data included in the report.
• Jill Engel-Cox agreed to meet with staff offline to review the commercial energy math and to draft a two-page summary for City Council once the final numbers are confirmed.
• Board agreed that the next GHG inventory should use 2028 data in advance of the City’s 2029 goal-update process.
• The regular business meeting adjourned at 4:10 p.m., and the Board proceeded to its annual strategic meeting (scheduled 4:00–9:00 p.m.).