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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-11-21 Public Comment - L. Foust - Buffalo Run DevelopmentLUCAS J. FOUST FOUST LAW OFFICE 3390 SOUTH 30 TH AVENUE BOZEMAN, MT 59718 lfoust@foustlaw.net Web site: www.lucasfoustlaw.com (406) 587-3720 Phone (406) 879-4400 Fax January 11, 2021 City of Bozeman Department of Community Development ATTN: Chris Saunders P.O. Box 1230 Bozeman, MT 59771-1230 Re: Buffalo Run Development Dear Mr. Saunders: Let me begin by requesting that the hearing currently set for today’s date at 6 p.m. be allowed to continue until the next available date which appears to be January 25, 2021. The public notice for this hearing was not published until 3:30 p.m. on Friday January 8, 2021. This is a very significant project and local input is critical in this process. My wife Heather and I reside at 3390 South 30 th Avenue, adjacent to the proposed Buffalo Run Development. The request of the Buffalo Run Development to an R-5 district is completely inappropriate. While there is clearly a need for the City of Bozeman to expand, this proposal set out to develop this 20-acre parcel into 288 condominium units will have a devastating impact upon residents in our subdivision. The traffic nightmare this creates is ill-conceived and dangerous. Move the Monkeybars Every 88 minutes, a pedestrian is killed in a traffic crash in the United States according to the CDC. The increased traffic flow on Kirk Drive and the removal of playground equipment to make way for the Buffalo Run Development will make our neighborhood more dangerous. Amazingly, the plan calls for 31 st street to be added after the removal of playground equipment. A family neighborhood will become a more dangerous and deadly place if this Development is not rejected. A Country Mile The Buffalo Run Development is more than a mile from 19 th street, the nearest main roadway in the City of Bozeman. This is not what was envisioned when R-5 developments were created by the Bozeman City Commission. It is folly to believe that pedestrian travel will occur from Buffalo Run to 19 th Avenue. People will travel by cars, and lots of them! Traffic will be a nightmare and this ill-conceived plan will do nothing to further objectives of the City Commission. More Sprawl, Not Less Pursuant to 38.300.100 of the Bozeman Municipal Code, the intent and purpose of R-5 zoning is to provide development of “a geographically compact, walkable areas.” The code goes on to say that an R-5 zoning district is “appropriate for areas adjacent to mixed-use districts and/or served by transit to accommodate a higher density of residents in close proximity to jobs and services.” The Buffalo Run Development as proposed is contrary to this purpose. It will in fact make traffic worse without any of the benefit proposed by R-5 developments. Like a Good Neighbor In addition to rushing this development through this process and providing notice the Friday afternoon before this hearing, it is my understanding the developer has not found it important enough to contact the board of our HOA to explain this development. Although not required by law, at a minimum, contacting our neighborhood board of directors is the way business should be conducted in Montana. I join with my neighbors in opposing the Buffalo Run Development and encourage this group to recommend the proposed development be denied. Very truly yours, Lucas J. Foust Heather M. Foust Lucas J. Foust Heather M. Foust, Homeowners 3390 South 30 th Ave. Bozeman, MT 59718 cc: Meadow Creek Board of Directors