HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-06-19 Public Comment - P. Culver - Transitional and Emergency HousingFrom:paige culver
To:Agenda
Subject:Ordinance 1997
Date:Friday, December 06, 2019 11:24:21 AM
Dear Mayor,
First, I want to express that I respect and appreciate the position you hold as a leader in our
community. There is no doubt that the decisions our city leaders face as Bozeman grows atwarp speed are not always easily navigated. But nothing worth doing is ever easy, or so they
say.
As you may know, the issue of Transitional and Emergency Housing has been a popularsubject as of late with the push back regarding the proposed homeless shelter overflow
location on Westridge Drive. I was able to take a few moments to watch the portion of the3/19/18 City Commission meeting where the commission passed Ordinance 1997 in spite of
very well thought out concerns and requests from Commissioner Jeff Krauss who simply feltthe ordinance was "too blunt an instrument" and that there needed to be more specific outlines
to Special Use Permit requests based on the type of housing and the zone in which theapplication is being made. In other words, this was a sweeping, city-wide policy change with
very little controls and/or parameters. Mr. Mehl and Tom Rogers both mentioned a manual forsuch a purpose which was to be presented to the commission before the ordinance went into
effect.
I fully believe any guidelines for this type of use should have been made part of the ordinanceitself and the ordinance should not have passed without a thorough manual and a much longer
list of additional criteria to be considered within the ordinance. I would like to request a copyof the manual that was presented to the commission prior to the effective date of Ordinance
1997. As was stated in the video the additional criteria in the ordinance itself and theaforementioned manual would serve as a guideline for organizations prior to SUP application
so that there is a clear understanding of what will be permitted in certain zoning areas. In thecase of the Westridge location the two (and only two) additional criteria notated in Section 3
Part D of Ordinance 1997 to be considered ("within 1/4 of public transit" and "limitation onthe maximum occupancy and/or number of beds provided by the facility") were present and
known prior to HRDCs application for that location. This location and the number of bedsproposed in their management plan fails to meet both of those criteria and yet they purchased
the home and applied anyway.
I, and many in our neighborhood, do not have the confidence that this application would havebeen denied had adjoining neighbors/neighborhoods not caught wind of HRDCs intention for
this location in the 11th hour. I hope I am wrong in thinking that. Because of this ordinanceand the minuscule amount of "required communication" by the applicant for the Special Use
Permit... the onus is now on the residents of any residentially zoned area make sure they arehyper vigilant and prove to the city and HRDC as to why certain areas make zero sense for
this type of use. Precisely what the city should be doing. It hardly encourages a sense of trustwith our leadership or HRDC.
I urge you to revisit Ordinance 1997. I look forward to a copy of the manual which outlines
criteria for Transitional and Emergency Housing in various city zones based on intensity ofuse.
Thank you in advance for your time and service to the City of Bozeman.
Paige Culver