MEET LILLY
As a mother and longtime community leader focused on sustainability and as the Executive Director of the local nonprofit, Slow Food Denver, I’m dedicated to building a vibrant and resilient Edgewater rooted in community and collaboration. My time serving Edgewater started as the chair of the Edgewater Sustainability Committee that drafted the original Sustainability Plan in 2019 followed by chairing the first Sustainability Board.
Serving on City Council since 2021, I have been honored to work on the creation of the Mental Health Plan, the Urban Forest Master Plan, and the 2025 Strategic update of the Edgewater Sustainability Plan. In addition, I’ve been able to continue my work with Sustainability Board as the Council Liaison, and I thoroughly enjoy participating in City Council & community meetings to listen, learn, discuss, and make collaborative decisions about what will work best for Edgewater. It is a humbling role and I’d be honored to earn your vote for Edgewater City Council this November 4th.
Lilly Steirer
LILLY'S VIEWS ON EDGEWATER
Sustainable Edgewater
At the start of 2020, I became the chair of the Sustainability Board after writing the Sustainability Plan with the committee in 2019. While serving as chair, the Sustainability Board led efforts for a more vibrant community and sustainable future. Here are a few of the efforts over the last few years:
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Conducted a composting pilot, March-August 2020
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Set up a permanent composting service with Scraps
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Garden compost pick up events every spring through Scraps
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Offering $50 rebates for Energy Audits
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Started a Fall Leaf Drop Off program
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Led the Eco-Edgewater Event
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Developed the Sustainable Ambassador program- sign up to become an ambassador!
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Joined the CC4CA to work on state legislation around air quality and other climate action issues.
As City Council Liaison since 2021, I supported the Sustainability Coordinator and Board with their many important efforts including the strategic update of the Sustainability Plan.
Walkability
While the Sustainability Plan was being developed in 2019, the Mobility Plan was also under construction. As a resident, I attended meetings and charrettes with my family to talk about how to make our community a safer place to walk, bike, play, and drive. Like many cities that boomed mid-century, our roadways were built with automobiles in mind.
I look forward to being part of the conversations that will bring the Mobility Plan into fruition with safer roads, easier street crossings, and hopefully more trees and vegetation to offer shade, traffic calming, flood mitigation, and vibrant ecosystems for our community.
Local Business Community
As an entrepreneur since 2004, I understand the delights and challenges of running my own business. Edgewater is blessed with thriving businesses that continue to get better every year. During the Mobility Plan meetings, I was fascinated by the idea that when a person is able to walk to a business, they are more likely to patronize it and they will even spend more money. In an effort to see our local business community thrive, I believe that safer roads and infrastructure for bikes and pedestrians will be key.
In addition, I am excited to work with the Sustainability Board to bring the Green Business Program to life to offer new resources and opportunities to our local businesses.
Education
My work as a cooking instructor for the non-profit Slow Food Denver has brought me into our local Edgewater schools to connect children to their food source, gardens, and to teach them to creatively prepare their own food. In addition, I work with the Edgewater Collective in a variety of ways including at the previous Jefferson High community garden.
As our three schools are built up with new infrastructure and transition through this pandemic time, I look forward to working with City Council to rise up to meet any needs the schools have to flourish. Collaborating with our schools has the potential to foster a more resilient next generation as we work with students to serve their future.
Housing
In Edgewater, everyone feels like a neighbor. This unique sense of community is fostered by our small geographic size, but also by those who are drawn to our city. Despite our small town feel, we have urban problems that will need to be addressed while I serve on council.
Housing costs continue to rise in our small city, pushing out people who could have otherwise stayed. The increased costs to buy or rent, is preventing the employee base, who serve our community, schools, and businesses, from being able to live near their work. While housing has been discussed on City Council in the past, I am ready to join the dialogue, to listen and research how to bring more housing affordability into our community.