HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-15-16 Public Comment - J. Wilkinson - Black Olive D i
RE: Black Olive Apartment Building Site Plan Application 16432 DR)�A1 I'I lv�l?- OF
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To: Bozeman City Commissioners and the Department of Community Development'---�—
Date: November 13, 2016
From: Jeanne Wilkinson,415 South 3rd Ave., Bozeman
I am opposed to the Black Olive Apartment Building Site Plan Application 16432 as proposed for the
following reasons.
Parking
A downtown parking study needs to be conducted before SP 16432 should be considered. The project
includes 15 two-bedroom apartments, 24 one-bedroom apartments and 16 studio apartments.
Assuming at least one car, If not more, per bedroom, 70 parking spaces are needed. Instead,the
proposed project includes only 35 parking spaces and 3 carshare vehicles. There is no carshare vehicle
program in Bozeman at this time so why are carshare vehicle spaces allowed? Further, where will the
remaining 35 vehicles park? If you drive down Olive and Black in the middle of a business day today,you
will be hard-pressed to find parking for one vehicle much less 35 additional vehicles.
Staff Report for November 91h Design Review Board Didn't Go Far Enough
The 16432 Black Olive Site Plan Staff Report submitted for the November 9th Design Review Board
meeting recommended not approving the design presented in the application. The basis for this
recommendation was non-compliance with several sections of SubChapter 4-13 Guidelines for the B-3
Commercial Character Area, Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District Guidelines and guiding
principle 10 of the Downtown Improvement Plan. I propose taking the staff analysis several steps
further.
Non-Compliance with City"Growth Policy"
1. The staff analysis includes references to the Downtown Bozeman Improvement Plan to
rationalize the purpose of this project to achieve density and infill. When you consider
conformity with the Downtown Improvement plan,you must also consider the fact that it states
on page 38, regarding building heights, "consider reducing heights for some small distance
where a downtown district abuts a single family district.This is a common technique used in
many cities to ensure a comfortable transition from greater intensity to lower intensity."
2. The Downtown Improvement Plan is not the only guiding document. By Ordinance, your job is
to consider conformance of this project to the city's adopted growth policy. The entirety of the
City's growth policies must be considered, not just this one. In as much as the Bozeman
Community Plan of 2009 is the legal "growth policy",the following sections need to be
considered when deciding the appropriateness of proposal 16432:
a. Chapter 4 of Bozeman Community Plan Goal C-1 under section 4.3 states: Human Scale
and Compatibility—Create a community composed of neighborhoods designed for the
human scale and compatibility in which the streets and buildings are properly sized
within their context, services and amenities are convenient, visually pleasing and
properly integrated.
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b. Chapter 4 further states under Goal C-4.4 Objective C-4.4: Provide for the protection of
character and the enhancement of services in existing residential neighborhoods.
c. Chapter 5 states that it is the City's mission to carry out a historic preservation program
that protects and promotes Bozeman's historic resources so they remain surviving and
contributing pieces of our community.
Existing proposal 16432 does not satisfy the goals of these sections. The proposed design does
not fit within the context of the neighborhood which is primarily residential and historic. This
project detracts from the character of the existing residential historic neighborhoods because of
its size, mass and design. Without a Historic Preservation Officer,the city doesn't have anyone
on staff specifically tasked with Community Plan Chapter 5, leaving the historic preservation
impact of this project totally unaddressed.
Non-Compliance With Bozeman Unified Development Code—there were several sections of the UDC
that should be applied to this project that were never mentioned in the staff analysis related to the
Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District(NCOD)Article 16.
3. This project is located in the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District. The intent and
purpose of this district as stated in the Bozeman Unified Development Code 38.16.010.0
include: to stimulate the restoration and rehabilitation of structures, and all other elements
contributing to the character and fabric of established residential neighborhoods.... New
construction will be invited and encouraged provided primary emphasis is given to the
preservation of existing buildings and further provided the design of such new space enhances
and contributes to the aesthetic character and function of the property and the surrounding
neighborhoods or area. It further states the purpose of the NCOD designation is to enhance
property values through the stabilization of neighborhoods and areas of the city, increase
economic and financial benefits to the city and its inhabitants and promote tourist trade and
interests.
SP 16432, a 55 unit,five-story, residential apartment building built immediately next door to
single family homes and the impact such height and intensity would have on the greater
neighborhood does not comply with the intent and purpose of the NCOD. Its design, mass and
scale do not contribute to the aesthetic character and function of the property and surrounding
neighborhoods. This project is in direct violation of the UDC because it will have a major
destabilizing effect on the neighborhoods surrounding it in terms of reduction in privacy,
parking, pedestrian and biker safety, increased traffic and impacts on the infrastructure.
4. According to Sec 38.16.050 you, as the decision making authority, are required to consider
compatibility with and sensitivity to the immediate environment of the site and the adjacent
neighborhoods relative to architectural design, height, proportions of doors and windows,
relationship of building masses and spaces, roof shape, scale, directional expression,
architectural details, .... Further, Sec 38.16.050(C) states: "Contemporary, nonperiod and
innovative design of new structures and additions to existing structures shall be encouraged
when such new construction or additions do not destroy significant historical, cultural or
architectural structures or their components and when such design is compatible with the
foregoing elements of the structure and surrounding structures.
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Proposal 16432 does not satisfy the requirements of this section of the UDC. The mass and
scale of the design which includes a five story, multi-use footprint of over 15,000 feet with
minimal setbacks, is not compatible with adjacent single family homes in historic neighborhoods
nor is the design compatible with surrounding structures.
5. UDC Sec 38.16.050 D. incorporates the Bozeman Guidelines for Historic Preservation and the
Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District. On page 13 of these guidelines is a graph. It
directs you to the chapters that are applicable to the type of work being proposed. For"New
infill and construction in the NCOD but outside an historic district" it directs you to the
introduction, Chapter 2—Design guidelines for all properties, Chapter 4 if it is commercial, and
the appendices. The City seems to completely ignore Chapter 2 in its analysis. Chapter 2's
guidelines state :
a. Respect historic settlement patterns—site a new building such that it is arranged on it
site in a way similar to historic buildings in the area. This includes consideration of
building setbacks and open space.
b. Use a ratio of solid-to void similar to that found on historic structures in the district
c. Use building materials that appear similar to those used traditionally in the area
d. Use building materials that contribute to the traditional sense of scale of the block
i. This will reinforce the sense of visual continuity in the district
Proposal 16432 does not comply with these guidelines. The building site does not respect
historic settlement patterns because it is not arranged on the site similar to historic buildings in
the area. The building materials included in the proposal are not similar to those used
traditionally in the area nor do they contribute to the traditional sense of scale that will
reinforce the sense of visual continuity in the district.
6. The Bozeman Guidelines for Historic Preservation and the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay
District, Subchapter 4-13,Guidelines for the B-3 Commercial Character Area were amended in
May, 2015 with minimal if any public input. Even though the amendment contained what we
know are severe impacts to the NCOD and the historic neighborhoods,the Bozeman Historic
Preservation Advisory Board was not given the opportunity to provide input. As such, I question
the degree to which staff, in its analysis of project 16432, dismisses Section A.4 of this
Subchapter which states:
"Building sites that abut or are across an alley from a residential zone district shall be sensitive
to the interface where the properties meet by meeting the required setback from the
residentially zoned property and providing a transition zone. Along the interior side or rear
property line, commencing at a vertical height of 44 feet the building shall step back at an angle
no greater than 45 degrees."
The intent of this section was discussed during the November 9 Design Review Board meeting
and questions were asked about the intent versus the letter of this section. The City analysis
took a severe interpretation stating that because proposed project 16432 does not directly abut
a residential zone district(the surrounding properties contain single family homes but are zoned
B-3),this section does not apply. I disagree and encourage you to consider the intent versus the
letter of this guideline—especially considering the lack of public input to this guideline. By
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including this guideline in your decision making,you should require this project to provide
setbacks as described and a transition zone.
I urge you to carefully consider these points and the comments submitted by many of my
neighbors. There are several guiding documents and code/guideline references that support
downsizing this project to a more reasonable size—three stories with full parking provided and
designed to the level of permanence and quality appropriate for this location. Your decision will
impact future generations of our Bozeman community—it is important we get this right.
Thank you.
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