HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-11-23 Public Comment - M. Shannon - Please Establish a Public Housing AuthorityFrom:McKeely
To:Agenda
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Please Establish a Public Housing Authority
Date:Saturday, December 9, 2023 3:11:59 PM
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.
Hi Bozeman Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and City Commissioners,
I support establishing a public housing authority in Bozeman! For the past 8 years, I've
called Bozeman home, and before that the Flathead Valley and Yaak River Valley. In 2015 Imoved to Bozeman to attend MSU, and have since then worked in the service industry, direct
service, and in education. Most jobs I've held in this community have been serving as asupport within the non-profit space for some of the most under-resourced populations in
Bozeman.
As a young professional who has worked in this community, and has also worked with someof the most under-resourced populations in Bozeman I can say without a doubt that there is a
lack of safe and sanitary housing within Bozeman. Myself, friends, loved ones, and folks Ihave worked with have all felt the tension of the only "affordable" housing to be foundbeing both unsafe and unsanitary.
A friend found an "affordable" trailer home to move into with their partner that was
disclosed as having a risk of radon as they were signing the lease. Yet, the landlordnever tested despite low cost kits being available from Healthy Gallatin and didn't want
this friend to test themselves despite them being willing to take on the cost themselves.Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.
Another friend lived in a house where their back stairs collapsed and the landlord didnot fix it within a timely manner. They decided to build stairs themselves (not to code)
out of scrap wood as there was no safe second exit without stairs in the back of theirhouse.
When a friend was looking to lower housing costs, they met with a couple who didn'twant them to sign a lease, and were offering for this friend to live on a cot in a pantry
that they would then fold up in the day so that the landlord wouldn't know there was athird person living in the building.
When I was in college, I lived in a basement apartment off of S 12th Ave. One night theelement in the oven broke, catching on fire. My roommate and I were able to put it out,
but once we pulled out both our oven and fridge to unplug them my roommate and Idiscovered that both appliances were plugged into an extension cord without a ground.
These are a few examples, but I could continue with example after example - radon exposure,fires, flooding, mold, overcrowding, and so much more. This is why I think due to the lack of
safe and sanitary housing that we need a Public Housing Authority (PHA). Once a PHA isestablished they could provide transparency and oversight to ensure developments remain
safe, sanitary and permanently affordable for young professionals, for retired folks, for youngfamilies, and for everyone who calls and claims Bozeman as their home.
With warmth and in community,
McKeely Shannon303 S 6th Ave
Bozeman MT 59715