HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-23-18 Public Comment - J. Sanford - Residential Parking Permit DistrictsJody Sanford
818 S 6th Ave
Bozeman, MT 59715
April 23, 2018
Honorable Mayer Andrus, Mayor of Bozeman
and Members of the Bozeman City Commission
PO Box 1230
Bozeman, MT 59771
RE: Action Item #3, April 23, 2018, Residential Parking Permit Districts
Dear Mayor Andrus and Members of the Bozeman City Commission,
I’m writing to voice my concern about proposed changes to the MSU residential parking permit district
(RPPD), specifically to allow short-term parking in the district by non-residents, and to urge you to not
make any changes to this district. We live in the 800 block of S 6th Ave, which is kitty-corner from
campus, and would be greatly impacted by any changes to the MSU RPPD.
The Bozeman Municipal Code states that the purpose of the RPPDs is:
. Promoting tranquility among commuters and residents;
. Reducing noise;
. Reducing traffic hazards
The changes you are considering to the MSU RPPD would undoubtedly decrease our tranquility, while
increasing noise and traffic hazards on our street and is therefore completely contrary to the BMC.
Because we live adjacent to campus, our street is already busy with cars, as well as lots of bikes and
folks on foot, traveling to and from campus. But the RPPD significantly reduces traffic because people
looking for a place to park don’t come here because they know that there is no parking here. With the
changes you are considering, we will have vehicles constantly circling our block looking for an open
parking space. I’ve spoken with neighbors who lived in the neighborhood prior to creation of the MSU
RPPD and they said that cars endlessly circling the neighborhood looking for free parking was a huge
problem. This problem will be especially acute on our block because we’re so close to campus.
An increase in traffic will negatively impact our safety, our quality of life and our property values. An
increase in traffic is of huge concern. We have a ten-year old who likes to play outside with her
neighborhood friends, some of whom live across the street. The kids are constantly crossing the street
to each other’s homes. It’s already scary for us as parents and will be even scarier with more cars
driving up and down our street. Our block has a steep hill and cars drive very fast up and down the hill.
There is so much emphasis on trying to get kids to play outside. But this is the sort of local regulation
that is contrary to this; we’ll have to worry even more about traffic and the safety of our kids.
Just in the 800 block of S 6th Ave, we have six grade-school-aged children, four middle-school-aged
children, three high-school-aged children and one toddler. That’s 14 kids in one block!
We’re also worried about the noise impacts associated with non-resident parkers coming and going.
Our tranquility and quality of life will be impacted by noise from engines starting, car alarms and doors
slamming.
Parking is already very tight on our block just from residents parking here. Most of my neighbors do
not have garages and almost everyone parks at least one car on the street. The house next to us is a
duplex where MSU students reside. There are eight people living in that structure and most, if not all,
have a car! We also have several high-school aged residents with their own cars. So, even if a house is a
single-family residence with a family living in it, it could still have three to four cars associated with it.
In our family, we have two cars and frequently park one of them on the street. We have a teenage son
who will be driving in a few years and intend to buy a car for him. He will need to park on the street.
The proposed changes assume that all of the resident-owned cars on our street disappear between
8am and 5pm. This is just not true. There are many MSU students who live on our block. Obviously,
they don’t move their cars between 8am and 5pm; they live here so they can walk to campus. Several
people, including myself, work at MSU. So, our cars don’t leave the neighborhood because we walk to
campus. The high-school-aged drivers drive their cars to school but are home after school. Where are
they supposed to park before 5pm? Finally, there are several people who work part-time, myself
included, who live on our block. I envision a scenario where I leave the neighborhood in my car in the
afternoon for errands, return home before 5pm and can’t find a parking space near my house or even
on my block, forcing me to circle other blocks looking for a parking space. This would be very
inconvenient and annoying since I’ve purchased a parking permit.
Above all, I’m frustrated that MSU is not doing an adequate job of addressing the parking demands
created by their ever-growing student body and the increases in faculty and staff needed to
accommodate those students. But I don’t think it’s right or fair that the safety and quality of life in our
neighborhood should suffer because of this. Our neighborhood is already being negatively impacted by
the increases in traffic associated with MSU’s growth; every year there are more and more cars. The
changes to the RPPD you are considering would heap even more traffic into our neighborhood. MSU
needs more convenient AND affordable parking on campus to keep pace with their growth. I’d urge
you to work with MSU to address this problem instead of making any changes to the MSU RPPD.
Thank you for considering my comments!
Warmest regards,
Jody Sanford