HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-18-20 Public Comment - A. Kennedy - Ordinance 2047From: Alicia Wilson
To: Chris Mehl; Dennis Taylor; Agenda
Subject: Public Comment - Emergency Meeting
Date: Wednesday, March 18, 2020 8:43:11 AM
Members of the Bozeman City Commission,
I am writing to you from afar as I have been watching how Bozeman responds to this pandemic. I am a citizen of
Bozeman that is proud of our strong local economy and the spirit of entrepreneurship that is alive and well in our
community. We are fortunate to have a city that thrives on these businesses and the services they offer. Many of the
individuals I know also rely on these businesses for their family’s income.
I just learned of Bozeman’s intent to hold an emergency meeting to vote on an emergency ordinance which will
“indefinitely” suspend advisory board meetings and limit people congregating in groups of 50 or more - among
other things. This is not the 14-day quarantine that people almost enthusiastically embraced, this is a death sentence
to our local economy. As our local businesses are laying off employees, we are learning that amazon is opening up
100,000 jobs. Are we going to fall in line and allow this to happen? With a promise that our state and federal
governments will be there to help build us back up? This will decimate our construction industry, food industry,
tourism and more.
I am writing to you from Moab where code enforcement officers are already patrolling the streets as businesses are
forced to close their doors, hotels are forced to cease operations, camp grounds are being emptied and state parks are
unstaffed. We can no longer even find “distance” in our public lands as the infrastructure that supports them is being
torn apart in a matter of days.
Many small businesses can not withstand a 2-week closure, let alone a closure with no foreseeable end.
We are responding to this pandemic with a flash of fear and lack of rational thinking. There are ways to limit crowds
and encourage distance without shuttering our businesses if we feel this necessary. This ‘pandemic’ is a new issue
with mortality numbers that are not conclusive. I urge you to reconsider the implications of this ordinance.
-Alicia Kennedy
2791 Fen Way - B
Bozeman, MT 59718
302-753-8469
Sent from my iPhone