HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-08-19 Public Comment - J. and K. Drake - Cottonwood Road Construction PlanFrom:Jason & Kathy Drake
To:Agenda
Subject:Cottonwood Road Construction Plan
Date:Sunday, September 08, 2019 10:20:13 PM
City of Bozeman
Attn: City Commission
PO Box 1230
Bozeman, MT 59771
Bozeman City Commissioners,
Many members of our community’s daily commute have been impacted by the constructiondesigned to improve our roadways and public safety. We have all adjusted our commutes
without complaint knowing that once completed the Cottonwood road construction wouldbring much needed improvement to the condition of the street as well as what we understood
to be a better flow of traffic to a high traffic area of Bozeman. After speaking withadministrators at Petra we fear that decisions made to improve Cottonwood will actually
negatively impact these daily commutes to and from the school as well as increase traffic onDurston Rd.
Our family resides within the Valley West neighborhood and our children attend school at
Petra Academy. Last winter demonstrated the need for improvements to the stretch ofCottonwood immediately in front of the school. We were happy that the City made this a
priority and began improvements during the summer. However, after learning of the decisionto remove the option of making a left turn onto Classical Way we were highly concerned.
Within the Valley West neighborhood, we are surrounded by multiple schools, churches andBronken Field. Normally we see a great deal of traffic with the streets laid out as they are,
even with the ability to turn left onto Classical Way. If this option is taken away our family’scommute will nearly double due to having to make a left onto Durston, which is directly in
front of Meadowlark Elementary, another left onto Cottonwood and then right onto ClassicalWay. When taking our children to school over the past few days since school has resumed it
has been extremely difficult trying to make that left turn onto Durston with the backup ofpedestrians, vehicles coming in and out of Meadowlark, as well as commuters. As a
homeowner living within the Valley West community we are seeing many more drivers usingClifden to avoid the construction. Drivers are becoming used to speeding through our
community as the length of time for construction continues on. This highly concerns us as wehave many children in our neighborhood at risk. We worry that usage of these streets will
increase with the lack of left turns available onto Classical Way once construction hascompleted.
We love the community in which we live and understand the need for improvements.
However, the left onto Classical Way is much needed to both school goers and those utilizingBronken Field. We do hope you will reconsider the plan currently in place and make the
necessary adjustments to keep the current and future residents of Valley West safe.
Sincerely,
Jason and Kathy Drake