HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-23-2020 Public Comment - B. Cestero - Bridger View RedevelopmentFrom:Barb Cestero
To:Agenda
Cc:Tom Rogers
Subject:Bridger View Redevelopment
Date:Thursday, April 23, 2020 7:50:11 PM
April 23, 2020
Dear Planning Board,
I write in support of the Bridger View Redevelopment project and to encourage your approval
of the proposed Planned Unit Development when you meet on May 5th.
This innovative project is planned as a new, mixed-income neighborhood of modest, energy-
efficient, sustainably built owner-occupied homes. With smaller lots and smaller roads, the
neighborhood is designed to encourage walking, biking and interaction between neighbors,
just like many older, established neighborhoods in Bozeman.
Perhaps most importantly, of the 62 owner-occupied homes to be built, 31 will be priced
affordably for middle-income earners – our teachers, firefighters, nurses and more – to ensure
they have opportunities to purchase and own a home of their own in Bozeman. These are the
essential workers that keep our community the vibrant place it is, and they deserve the
opportunity to live in the community where they work.
I am currently helping with the initial planning and implementation of the newly forming
Headwaters Community Housing Trust. HCHT will ensure that these homes are and remain
affordable to these “missing middle-income” households – those who earn too much to
qualify for federal and state assistance programs but still cannot afford to buy a home in
Bozeman. Our town faces an urgent and growing shortage of housing affordable to
households in a broad range of incomes. The Bridger View Redevelopment project and the
HCHT offer a new tool in the toolbox to address this challenge in our community.
Because I remember that over 90 families were displaced from the Bridger View Mobile Home
Park when it was closed in 2007 to make room for a high-end single-family home subdivision,
this project also feels like the right thing to do.
I believe the Bridger View Redevelopment PUD should be approved, both because of its
innovative, compact neighborhood design and for its commitment to ensuring some
permanently affordable homes. We all benefit from a new neighborhood like this in Bozeman.
Sincerely,
Barb Cestero
Barb Cestero611 N. Bozeman AveBozeman, MT 59715406-579-0713