Committee debates an Englewood-specific CPI and tasks members to study rents and occupancy

Council member Una Prang asked the Budget Advisory Committee to consider whether the city should develop a localized consumer price index rather than rely on the broader Denver regional CPI. Prang said the Denver metric "is very different than Englewood" and argued a more local lens could better inform revenue and budget assumptions.

Members debated feasibility and data sources: one member noted regional CPI covers 10 counties and small-area CPI may be statistically unstable, while others suggested peeling out specific components (notably rents and housing) for local analysis. A volunteer offered to produce an occupancy report across multifamily, office, industrial and retail categories so the committee could see whether occupancy or sales trends explain revenue changes. Staff and the budget advisory committee will explore which CPI components are practical to localize and report back in coming months.