HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-04-24 Public Comment - K. Marcinko - Support for Alison Sweeney for vacant Commissioner SeatFrom:Kathy Marcinko
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Support for Alison Sweeney for vacant Commissioner Seat
Date:Monday, June 3, 2024 9:42:47 PM
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Mayor Cunningham, Deputy Mayor Morrison, and Commissioners Madgic and Fischer,
I have lived in Bozeman for 44 years and raised my family here. I care deeply about Bozeman,preserving our community and special place, affordable housing, and the looming water
shortage. I strongly support Alison Sweeney and have no doubt that she is the best candidate
to fill the open commissioner position. Since I first heard Alison share her thoughts andconcerns regarding the proposed new UDC at a commission meeting fall of 2023, I have beenextremely impressed with her. I came home from that meeting impressed in her. She was
uniquely and impressively very articulate, knowledgeable, respectful, and brought a sense of
humor to a tense and heated issue and situation.
I have had the opportunity get to know Alison a bit better the past few months and have
found her to be intelligent, insightful, reasonable, well informed, deeply committed,motivated to dig into facts and info regarding other communities’ efforts to solve some of thesame challenges we currently face and outcomes of those efforts and always respectful. She is
a dedicated, hard worker with a passion for Bozeman who is honest and transparent. Sheactively listens to people with differing thoughts and opinions, brainstorms with others, andoffers solutions
She understands the need to balance the urgent affordable housing problem facing Bozemanbut also retain the heart, soul, and strong community that makes our town special. Alison wasborn and raised in Bozeman and would bring a missing millennial voice to the commission as
well as add a second woman to the table.
I believe that Alison will help with implementing a Neighborhood Friendly UDC that allows for
growth and development in appropriate areas while protecting existing neighborhoods –especially those that that lack protectionary covenants. She will work towards HistoricPreservation, protecting our urban forest, facing our impending water shortage, and balancingthe pressing need to attack our affordable housing crisis. Alison possesses the ability and
desire to look at these complex and intertwined issues and seek to move Bozeman forward ina way that balances the many sometime polarizing issues and preserve as much as we can thatmakes Bozeman the special place it is.
Regarding other candidates, I want to very strongly urge you not to appoint:
1. Jason Delmue who - as a developer - has an inherent conflict of interest and benttowards development. I am not opposed to change and development but based onwhat I have heard him say, he lacks motivation to work with balancing issues such ashistoric preservation, urban forest, keeping sun paths for solar, and maintaining
neighborhoods. He comes across as having a narrow pre-development agenda asopposed to a broader and balanced perspective.
2. Emma Bode who has voiced a belief that and “upzone and build, build, build” approach
is the path to solving the affordable housing crisis. Data shows that this is not the case.There are plenty of examples in other U.S. communities to that demonstrate justbuilding more luxury apartments and condos will) not help the working-class person.Emma also seems to lack a broad and inclusionary perspective.
Bozeman needs a commission that can broadly look at the many issues we face and develop
balanced solutions.
I strongly urge you to consider appointing Allison to the Commission.
Sincerely,
Kathy Marcinko