HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-15-23 Public Comment - Z. Osman - Deny city library grounds for proposed hotel MOUFrom:Zehra Osman
To:Susan Gregory
Cc:Terry Cunningham; Agenda
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Deny city library grounds for proposed hotel MOU
Date:Tuesday, November 14, 2023 11:34:21 PM
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To: Susan Gregory, City of Bozeman Staff Liaison to City Library Board of Trustees andDeputy Mayor Terry Cunningham, City Commission Liaison to the Library Board of Trustees
Subject: Deny use of the city public library grounds for proposed hotel MOU proposed by
Bozeman Hotel MM/LLC and Left Lane Development
Ms. Gregory and Mr. Cunningham,
I am writing to request that the referenced hotel proposal to be presented at the 11/15/2023
library board of trustees meeting be denied.
Our library is our community hub. It is where we come together to read, learn, and be inspired. It is also where our community comes together. It is one of our most valuable community
assets. In many cities, the library is the central organizing feature of community/public facilities in the city center. We are so fortunate that our library is adjacent to our downtown,
where we enjoy parades, Bite of Bozeman, Music on Main, and Art Walks. Our library is adjacent to Lindley Park, Bogert Park, Peets Hill and Burke Park. Families can have breakfast
onMain Street , take a hike on Peets Hill, and then settle into a comfy chair to read a book at the
library. There is nothing like it! It is in an amazing location for our residents. I can imagine our library being the central organizing feature for future community amenities as our town
grows.
Unfortunately, the proposal by the Bozeman Hotel MM/LLC and Left Lane Development is the antithesis to a community hub. It takes away parking for minimum of 75 years when
residents already struggle to find parking for library events. Its proposed hotel towers over the library bringing tourists within feet of where our children park their bikes. Let me repeat that
concern - the hotel is proposing to bring tourists within feet of where our kids park their bikes and enter the library.
The hotel proposal has a great deal of hubris to ask the community to allow it to spill over
onto our community hub. They then have the gall to propose that they would govern the library’s growth/activities of our community hub. These are our one-of-a-kind library
community grounds in a one-of-a-kind location. The hotel can be built somewhere else.
Additionally, the plans for a future library in the west part of town should absolutely not be used in any way as a bargaining chip to lure the board into giving up the existing downtown
library grounds.
To close, I’d like to state that it is wonderful to see the outpouring of community support to protect our beloved Bozeman Public Library and its grounds with a resounding rejection of the
hotel’s proposed take over of the library grounds. I hope the Library Board of Trustees feel the love and feel supported to deny the referenced Bozeman Hotel MM/LLC and Left Lane
Development proposal. The community has your back.
Sincerely,Zehra Osman, resident
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