HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-01-24 Public Comment - K. Garson - Site Plan 22047-Sundance SpringsFrom:Kimberly Garson
To:Agenda
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Site Plan 22047-Sundance Springs
Date:Tuesday, February 27, 2024 5:03:13 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.
To:
Bozeman City Commission
City of Bozeman
I have lived in Sundance Springs since 2005. I am very concerned over the
recent approval of Site Plan #22047 in the Sundance Springs Division.
The Director of Community Development erred in approving the plan. The
City has the obligation and authority to protect our open spaces, our trail
systems, and our neighborhoods from incompatible development. As a
resident in this neighborhood, I have had to follow all covenants, and it is
only fair that anyone coming in also has to follow PUD. While I am not
completely opposed to the plans, they need to follow the PUD that was put
in place to protect this neighborhood. I am extremely concerned about the
parking situation, especially for all the homeowners close to the future
development along with the safety of kids with so many cars parked
illegally on streets.
For 25 years, the City has enforced the Sundance Spring PUD, which
provides strong protection for the public open spaces that were
incorporated into the subdivision. Now, that the formal record of the PUD's
requirements is missing, suddenly, the City Attorney and Community
Development Director are redefining the terms of the PUD by hand-
selecting limited pieces of the public record (namely, just the Commission's
Conditions of Approval for the PUD's preliminary application) to represent
the terms of the PUD. Other evidence of the PUD's requirements in the
public record are being ignored.
The City Attorney's Office claims, without access to the PUD's Approved
Final Plan, that they know the terms of the PUD better than experienced
planners who actually reviewed the PUD's Approved Final Plan when they
made their determinations. Case and point is the 2020 Concept Review for
the Site Plan in question. In 2020, when the Approved Final Plans was
available to consult, the City Planner concluded that the PUD's Master Plan
implemented the B-1 District from the 1992 zoning ordinance. Now that
the Approved Final Plan is missing, the City Attorney claims, without
evidence, that the planner was in error, and the City attorney states that the
historical zoning does not apply.
When authoritative documents go missing, it is customary to look to the
remainder of the public record assuming it is factual and correct, in order
understand what the missing documents required. Instead, in the face of the
uncertainty associated with the loss of the Approved Final Plan, the City
has overturned its long-standing position on the Sundance Springs PUD.
For 25 years, while the Approved Final Plan existed, the City enforced the
Sundance Springs PUD Master Plan and Covenants & Development
Guidelines as binding requirements under the Unified Development Code.
Now that the Approved Final Plan is missing, the City has reversed its
long-held position and claims that the surviving elements of the Master
Plan map are simply a "concept Sketch" and that Covenants &
Development Guidelines are "private agreements" that need not be
enforced.
Bozeman feels to me like a lawless wild west of development, where
developers push the City relentlessly to ignore the purpose and intent of the
Unified Development Code and manage to force Staff to take a reductionist
approach to interpreting the code. Enough is enough. It's time to start
enforcing the code -- with the City calling the shots, not the developers. It's
time to put necessary teeth back in enforcement to ensure that
developments like Site Plan #22047 don't get approved until they are fully
compliant the the Unified Development Code. In this case, the Site Plan
only reached approval because the developer and the City are ignoring of
the requirements of the PUD and failing to consider important review
criteria that must be met before a departure from the Unified Development
Code can be granted.
Twenty-five years ago, the City Commission approved the Sundance
Spring PUD, and in doing so, provided assurances that the Master Plan and
Covenants & Development Guidelines would be enforced. For 25 years, the
City has followed up on that commitment with strong enforcement. Why is
the city reversing course now that the Approved Final Plan is lost.
There has been a lot of talk, lately, about the need for City Government to
rebuild trust with the residents of this City. Trust is built when government
does what it said it will do. Overturning an errant decision of the Director
of Community Development seems like a good place to start rebuilding
trust.
Under the unified development code, the City has all of the authority is
needs to protect open spaces, public trails and neighborhoods, and to
promote public safety while still allowing development that is consistent
with our shared vision for Bozeman as a vibrant and livable city. I am
asking you to make the decision to reassert your authority over the
management of growth in Bozeman. You can begin that process today by
overturning the approval of Site Plan #22047.
From:
Kimberly Garson
4428 East Graf Street
Bozeman, MT 59715