HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-04-17 Public Comment - A. Udall - Black OliveI live at 202 Lindley Place and love Bozeman. I am in a unique situation in that I both have my permanent
residence and business located in the historic downtown area as I run a B&B in my home. I’ve seen first
hand how many people come to visit, explore and enjoy downtown Bozeman. I support well thought
out/planned development. I support forward thinking development and the movement to build
communities that allow more folks to use their car less. My husband and I share one car which does still
get used when we need to do more extensive grocery/household shopping, visit our other children that
live out of state, enjoy recreation in the gorgeous surrounding areas and when the weather is not
conducive to walking/biking.
As our community struggles with the Black Olive Development proposal (as well as many other
prospective developments) there are some areas that I would love to get clarification/further insight
from the city on are:
- Is there a concerted effort to entice another downtown grocery store since Heebs plans to move? If
you are serious about moving toward a carless/walking community this is something that must be
available for all the residents you’d like to see living downtown.
- Is there a plan to expand the Streamline routes so that folks that don’t work downtown can use this,
especially during the winter months, to get to work? How about routes that would allow people to
access Hyalite and Bridger Canyons easier (and more frequently) so that people who want to support
using cars less, but still want to be able to hike/bike/ski, would have options? This is also important for
people who are unable to bike/walk or are at risk for injury if they attempt to do this (especially during
the winter).
- Is there a plan to entice car sharing companies into Bozeman so that this is an option for residents
trying to live downtown and support a carless/walkable lifestyle? How about rent-a-bike companies you
see in other places? If you want residents to move toward going without a car, it will help a lot to have
companies that offer these types of things in the heart of Bozeman.
- What would the tipping point be to approve residential parking permitted neighborhoods in the
downtown area like you’ve done close to MSU? If a serious concern for residents is a lack of parking in
front of their own homes what is the city planning on doing to address this if they won’t approve
residential parking permits?
- Perhaps areas within the city guidelines that are somewhat vague need to be tightened up so that
there isn’t this ambiguity about some of the architectural elements/components of these proposed
developments.
- Are the parking studies being done in the winter months as well when the roads are far more
congested due to piled up snow or is data just being gathered during summer? How about in the fall
when the student population swells and adds car traffic?
- What are the city plans for the downtown parking lots they currently own? Is there a plan to build
another parking garage to accommodate the increase in businesses that would be locating downtown?
If the city is trying to entice downtown development, and allow special parking considerations, the
reality is this is going to be needed. We have a LOT of visitors that come to Bozeman, year round, that
will still require parking to utilize and enjoy the downtown area. There are a lot of residents who don’t
live within walking distance of downtown that are going to want to still enjoy all that downtown
Bozeman offers.
Thanks so much and I look forward to hearing these answers!
Alison