The Rocky Mountain Collegian

Issue date: 4/14/09 Section: News

Media Credit: Rachel Dembrun Mayor Doug Hutchinson, who was re-elected as Fort Collins Mayor on April 7, stands in front of Fort Collins City Hall. Hutchinson is serving his third term as Fort Collins mayor.

Before entering the political arena in 2005, Doug Hutchinson never wanted to run for mayor.

He never studied political science or aspired to serve in public office. In fact, Hutchinson wasn't even his own first choice for the city position.

"Nobody in Fort Collins tried as hard as I did to find a good candidate for mayor," Hutchinson said.

Along with his wife and other members of the community, he asked 14 different prominent figures in Fort Collins to run for the position. Only after being told by each that they were too busy to run the city did he decide to run in that election himself.

Almost always seen around Fort Collins in a suit and tie, Hutchinson doesn't look like a man who runs a city. His moustache and square-rimmed glasses lend him the image of a local everyman -- he looks like anyone else you'd pass on the street.

While other city officials or candidates provide numbers that go straight to voicemail and reply with terse, straightforward answers, Hutchinson says he makes an effort to be open and transparent with the community, nearly always available to accept phone calls even outside of business hours.

Whatever his approach, it's working. Over two-thirds of almost 25,000 Fort Collins voters cast their vote to re-elect Hutchinson to his position last week. And this time, he was his own favorite, throwing his hat into the ring for the race in December.

Hutchinson has acted as the city's mayor since 2005 and was elected this year to his third and final term. In a voice that makes even the lengthiest discussions on local issues sound more like campfire stories than local politics, Hutchinson said the results of this year's election are a message from the city.

"They do want good governance, and they want balance," he said.



From 'cruising College' to running the city

 When Hutchinson graduated from CSU in 1965, Fort Collins was a city of less than 25,000 people.  Parking was always available within a city block of the campus, he said, and the most popular recreational activity was "cruising College (Avenue)."   

Continued...

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