HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-31-17 Public Comment - A. Totten - Black OliveFrom:Charlie Totten
To:Agenda
Subject:[SENDER UNVERIFIED]Black Olive
Date:Friday, March 31, 2017 8:54:15 AM
I would like to add my name to the large number of people who oppose Andy Holloran's Black Olive project. In my
view the M Block project was a successful project in terms of the scale and proper aesthetic for the surrounding
neighborhood. His latest two projects - the Element Hotel and 5 West - are massive eye sores. It was extremely
short sighted of the city to allow these buildings to be approved without giving any thought to contributing
something of lasting value to our historic downtown.
Having lived in the surrounding neighborhood for over twenty years I have watched as families have invested their
hearts and fortunes into preserving their homes and neighborhoods. The Black Olive does neither of these. This
project will not enhance the neighborhood values that we all share. It will only divide residents and cause more
friction due to the absolute lack of parking and the aggressive nature of the building Holloran is proposing. As a
rental unit, residents will make no attempt to invest in the neighborhood yet only put undue stress on the services in
this very confined area. Driving down Olive is already treacherous enough with cars parked on both sides of the
street - it is by default a one lane street yet cars somehow continue to bottleneck through this section. Garbage
collection down the tiny alleyways is already complicated enough - why add over 100 cars to this scenario? The
rental units are considered single dwelling - yet certainly every couple will have at least 2 cars, not to mention
extracurricular vehicles - boats, campers, etc.. Snow removal is bound to complicate matters even more.
While I understand the need for infill I would strongly appeal to the city commissioners to scale this project back
considerably for the sake of preserving the neighborhood and not allowing this sort of precedence in the historical
neighborhoods. Our historical neighborhoods deserve to be saved. This is what makes Bozeman unique. If Holloran
could create something comparable to the M Block projects I think this would be a better fit for this particular area.
What I love most about my neighborhood is creating long term friendships with those neighbors. There are plenty of
other areas where a large scale rental unit would be better suited - the abandoned hotel next to World Boards on
Main Street for example. Please consider this and do the right thing for the long term health of Bozeman.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Alison Totten
318 S Tracy Ave