HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-15-23 Public Comment - M. Kaveney - Left Lane MOU proposal- for Library Board of TrusteesFrom:Marcia Kaveney
To:Susan Gregory
Cc:Agenda; Terry Cunningham
Subject:Re: [EXTERNAL]Left Lane MOU proposal- for Library Board of Trustees
Date:Tuesday, November 14, 2023 6:06:18 PM
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Thank you!Marcia
On Tue, Nov 14, 2023 at 6:38 PM Susan Gregory <SGregory@bozeman.net> wrote:
Thank you, Marcia! I’ll send to our Library Board Chair, Stew Mohr, right now.
Susan
Susan F. Gregory
Director
Bozeman Public Library
Bozeman, MT 59715
sgregory@bozeman.net
(406) 582-2401
From: Marcia Kaveney <marciakaveney@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, November 14, 2023 3:24 PM
To: Agenda <agenda@BOZEMAN.NET>
Cc: Terry Cunningham <TCunningham@BOZEMAN.NET>; Susan Gregory
<SGregory@BOZEMAN.NET>
Subject: [EXTERNAL]Left Lane MOU proposal- for Library Board of Trustees
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Please find here my comments for the Board of Trustees regarding the Left Lane MOU
proposal and an additional attachment called Cashinlieutolibrary. Please forward bothattachments to the Library Board of Trustees in time for their consideration before their
Wednesday Nov. 15th, 2023 meeting.
Thank you,
Marcia Kaveney
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Dear Library Trustees-
After reviewing the Left Lane MOU documents, I cannot find any benefits for either the library
or the community, and therefore urge you to reject this proposal in its entirely, without further
negotiation. Frankly, I'm shocked this faulty proposal has qualified for your serious
consideration, but since it has, I urge you to unanimously reject it and by doing so send a
message to all developers considering similar proposals that you will not be lured into an
agreement under the false pretenses of it being in the best interest for the Bozeman community.
Their proposal is disingenuous as a shared use because it clearly only serves the best interests of
the NYC/Delaware global market developers while simultaneously diminishing the lives of
Bozeman residents. If they remain serious about their hotel, they can propose underground
parking on their own future site plan.
My main reasons for opposing this request are the following and I hope you’ll agree with me that
they offer enough substance to reject it out of hand.
1) The sheer magnitude of insensitivity to our community and arrogance that would lead
one to present such an “offer” that not only greatly limits the library’s future flexibility,
but also removes one of our most interesting and accessible greenspaces that was
carefully developed, while impairing access and accessibility to the library by offering
paid, rather than the current free, parking.
2) The exceptionally regressive lack of environmental precautions by the implied removal
of 75 mature trees from our already stressed urban forest, and the gall to propose an
elevated and no doubt, watered, effectually private rooftop garden replete with shrubs and
trees in a community with permanent water restrictions and a closed watershed with no
proposed water capture provisions.
3) The ill-advised legal separation of the parking lot property from the library property
making it vulnerable to a future city sale- a ploy, I believe, to take control of the land
away from the purview of the LBOT and making it potentially more available to other
development.
4) It would essentially be a second ‘taking’ of greenspace from the Northeast Neighborhood
Association (NENA); the first being the controversial 2008 cash-in-lieu of parkland
transfer whereby the city transferred the $272,000 that came from The Village
Downtown developers to the library’s construction fund, rather than providing park space
on the north side of Main Street for the NENA neighborhood- which continues to be
largely devoid of park spaces. (See attachment.)
5) The ill-advised request by Left Lane to request the City not only approve but also provide
incentives for the disturbance and subsequent removal of the now safely capped asbestos
material creating an increased health hazard for the community is beneath contempt. Not
to mention the small amount of money Left Lane is proposing to contribute to the
Community Housing Fund in no way offsets the losses to the community in general.
The details supporting these objections are throughout the text of the MOU, but I believe any
line-by-line analysis might lead you to the erroneous conclusion that I believe a negotiation of
terms with this MOU is possible. I do not. If the library trustees perceive a need for either
expansion or a parking structure in the future, then we, the community, will find a way. But this
is not the way. I believe this MOU results in only losses for the community and should be
unanimously opposed including no revisiting of it in the future.
Sincerely,
Marcia Kaveney