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