HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-16-23 Public Comment - M. Egge - Comments to Community Development Board re_From:Mark Egge
To:Agenda
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Comments to Community Development Board re:
Date:Monday, October 16, 2023 10:22:33 AM
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Community Development Board,
I support the draft UDC because it legalizes more housing and more
housing types in all neighborhoods, in accordance with the 2020
Community Plan.
I ask that you improve the draft code with the following amendments:
1. To ensure that new housing enabled by the draft code servescommunity members (not wealthy out of state buyers), replace the lotarea coverage maximums in R-A and R-B with a floor area ratio
maximum. For a single-story, single-family house, a FAR or 0.4:1 is
identical to a lot area coverage maximum of 40%.
Recommended Floor Area Ratios and the corresponding allowable unit
sizes (based on typical lot sizes) are shown in the table below.
Sometimes referred to as a "McMansion Ban," lower FAR requirementsdisincentivize tearing down middle class housing to build millionaire
housing. As a result of the FAR maximums suggested, the largest single-
family house that could be built on a 5,000 SF lot is 2,000 SF, the largest
duplex would be 1,500 SF per unit, and the largest fourplex would be1,000 SF per unit. The graphic below, from Portland's recent upzoning,
shows how a sliding scale FAR maximum can create more affordable units.
2) Please eliminate parking requirements within a half mile of
transit service. Anchorage recently eliminated all parking minimums;Spokane just eliminated parking minimums within a half mile of transit—
and for good reason. The "R3 Prototype Feasibility & Policy Sensitivity
Testing" analysis provided in your packet shows that the proposed "zoning
standards and certain market choices (which can be encouraged throughchanges to the UDC) could allow developments to reach substantially more
affordable rents without subsidy - as low as ~$2,200/month (affordable at
93% AMI) for smaller units" but this requires "reducing the parking to 1
per unit makes the project feasible."
3) If adopting staff's recommendation to reduce R-A to 4 units, then
please also borrow from Portland and Seattle's recent upzoning examplesand allow up to six units if half are “Affordable” (at < 80% AMI) orat least one unit meets standards for Universal Design and
Accessibility. This would provide a neighborhood scale complement to
our existing Affordable Housing Ordinance that is primarily targetedtoward larger scale developments. Units built to Universal Design
standards provide more options for Bozeman's elderly to age in place.
Thank you,
Mark Egge
1548 S Grand Avenue
Bozeman, MT 59715