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Home My WebLink About04-02-23 Public Comment - T. & M. L. Heriza - 4840 Fowler Lane annexation and ZMA 223823 commentsFrom:Thomas Heriza To:Agenda Subject:4840 Fowler Lane annexation and ZMA 223823 comments Date:Sunday, April 2, 2023 8:08:33 PM Attachments:Heriza Annexation letter 22383 April 2023_v2.docx CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. City of Bozeman Department of Community Development April 2, 2023 ATTN: Tom Rogers PO Box 1230, Bozeman MT 59771-1230 agenda@bozeman.net RE: 4840 Fowler Lane Annexation and Zone Map Amendment Application: 22383 Dear Advisory Board / Zoning Commission, We are the owners of a farm to the north and directly contiguous to property in question. This farm owned by Tom and May Heriza has been an active and productive farm for over 100 years. Please see our website 4daughtersfarmmt.com for details about our farm. Regarding the project narrative, we take issue with being described as ‘underdeveloped farmland’. Point in fact we are proud to be a fully functioning albeit small-scale farm. The acreage in question is proximal to farmland and open space only and not residential communities. The photo provided by the developers shows this fact. The City of Bozeman’s Annexations Goals, Spot Zoning Criteria, and ZMA Approval Criteria have clear requirements that this annexation request does not meet: Annexations Goals 2. The City encourages all areas that are totally surrounded by the City to annex. • The property in question is not surrounded by annexed land. In fact, the only land from the photo provided by the developers that has structures and buildings suggesting urban development (sw corner of Stucky and 19th) and clearly surrounded by city is unincorporated county land. Annexations Goals 6. The City of Bozeman encourages Annexations to make the City boundaries more regular rather than creating irregular extensions which leave unannexed gaps between annexed areas or islands of annexed or unannexed land. • The property in question is bordered by the city on one side. The developers refer to this as a “peninsular” extension of the city. The city requests annexation boundaries that do not create irregular extensions. Annexations Goals 7. The City of Bozeman encourages Annexations which will enhance the existing traffic circulation system or provide for circulation systems that do not exist at the present time. • City of Bozeman encourages annexations which will enhance the existing traffic circulation or provide systems that do not exist at the present time. When queried whether the new zoning will influence motorized and non-motorized transportation systems the applicants respond that this is “likely”. A response such as this is known as a soft pedal or an effort to play down or de-emphasize something that should be obvious to all. The current volume of traffic on Stucky road prevents us and our neighbors from safely collecting our mail. Entering and leaving our properties is becoming increasingly dangerous. Increased traffic on Fowler will further add to this risk. Spot Zoning Criteria A. Are the requested zoning designation and potential uses significantly different from the prevailing uses in the area? • Yes they are. This criterion has not been met despite the developers creative and illusionary effort to say otherwise. • The developers state that it is difficult to see how annexation and zone amendment to R-4 will negatively impact the surrounding landowners. They state that development will “conceivably benefit the surrounding neighborhood as a whole”. • Please note annexation and R-4 zoning will have serious and negative impacts on the surrounding area while only benefiting the developer and his team of architects. Landowners proximal to 4840 Fowler are involved in agricultural endeavors or the land is open space. Nearby properties are single family homes and farms. High density development is incompatible with the surrounding area. The developer has yet to stop by to fully outline and specifically describe what those neighborhood benefits look like. ZMA Approval Criteria h. Does the new zoning promote the character of the district? How? • Per applicant and developer, most of the area in question is agricultural and “the character of the area has not been fully realized”. Furthermore “it is hard to foresee significant and negative impact on community character.” The use of this aforementioned language in addition to comments such as “hope” and “hopefully” when promoting obtainable / affordable housing should be taken with a pinch of salt and understood as pander. • Currently “underdeveloped” farmland whose character is fully “realized” has resulted in a net loss of over 11 million arable farm acres in the United States from 2001 to 2016. Death by a thousand developments and massive urban sprawl. One wonders whether Ferguson Farm (a development off Huffine) is the epitome of a well-developed farm in the eyes of the applicants. Gallatin Valley Sensitive Lands Protection Plan – Agriculture Heritage Former EPA administrator William K. Reilly said it best in 1997 when speaking to the American Farmland Trust. “No issue will be more important to 21st century America than how we use our dwindling land resources. The competition for land—especially productive agricultural land— will intensify as our population grows and communication technologies make it easier for us to live and work in widely dispersed communities. The irreplaceable land that produces our food and provides us with scenic open space, wildlife habitat, and clean water is increasingly at risk from urban sprawl and rural subdivisions. To ensure a prosperous future, we must save our farmland. “ The property seeking annexation sits on prime farmland. Land that has been described by USGS soil scientists over the years as the most productive in the entire intermountain West. It also can see unusually high levels of precipitation over 20 inches per annum another rarity in an otherwise arid West. The soils in question are 457A Turner Loam and 510B Meadowcreek Loam. According to a custom soil resource report for Gallatin County these soils represent prime agricultural ground. No surprise our land grant university placed their farms where they did. Interestingly these tend not to be ideal soils for development. Meadowcreek loam is very limited in its rating class for local road development primarily due to severe frost action/heaving. Note worsening buckles and heaves on Stucky road to better appreciate this fact. These soil features in addition to a very high-water table make these areas of the valley a poor choice for annexation and development. These limitations can only be overcome with major soil reclamation, special design or expensive installation procedures per authors. Smart growth is possible. Ideally it should not be based on whether an unincorporated area makes physical contact with an incorporated area. This seems to be a recipe for urban sprawl, fragmentation, and greater infill creation. A more nuanced approach taking into consideration soils, prime farm ground and open space would lead to better contiguous compact design and development that is mindful of agricultural viability and local food production. Demand for high quality locally produced agricultural products is growing dramatically. Most local foods and farm products are produced by small farms near urban centers. Developing and thus destroying our best soils drives production to more marginal lands requiring more input costs and less overall viability. The other all too common alternative is that farmers leave the Valley of the Flowers all together. Sincerely, Thomas and May Lee Heriza 4Daughtersfarmmt.com