What I learned from the article is that Boulder has no affordable housing. Sure, they have some units that they call affordable housing but it is clearly just a scam. Affordable housing is created by developers making the best use of the land. Regulations about preservation, walkability, or other such niceties get in way of development. The bottom line is you can take your pick, either affordable housing or the parts of DC that you like.
The sole reason for the expensive DC suburbs is federal pork, and that will go away as federal bankruptcy is slowly acknowledged. Developers have done what they can, but the proximity to billions of dollars has overwhelmed their ability to build. OTOH Fairfax has some barrios with very affordable rents. Those will spread when the local economy inevitably contracts.
It's this way in much of Colorado. Largely because of the influx of Californians. They come in cash rich, selling their overpriced Cali homes. They drive up property values and then immediately begin the process of voting to halt development.
I have a house outside of Durango. Same situation. Now they have started building eye sore "condominiums" along the rivers and mountains for more affordable housing. Meanwhile, they live in beautiful houses in the tony areas north of Durango.
Californians are like locusts.