HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-18-24 Public Comment - Z. Osman - Fowler Ave Connector - 30% Design comments for June 18, 2024 commission meetingFrom:Zehra Osman
To:Terry Cunningham; Joey Morrison; Jennifer Madgic; Douglas Fischer; Nicholas Ross; Takami Clark
Cc:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Fowler Ave Connector - 30% Design comments for June 18, 2024 commission meeting
Date:Tuesday, June 18, 2024 6:54:43 AM
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.
All,
I forgot to attach this pdf that illustrates my comments below. Please read these in addition tomy comments below.
Zehra
On Tuesday, June 18, 2024, Zehra Osman <zosman534@gmail.com> wrote:
(Please post in the public comment record)
Honorable Mayor, Deputy Mayor, City Commission Members, and City Staff,
Firstly, I’d like to thank Director Nick Ross for bringing the community together on a walk-through of the FowlerAvenue Connection project last week. Nick did a great job.
If you haven’t yet stood in the shade of the continuous riparian tree corridor along the length of the FAC projectwhile listening to the sound of the creek, you may want to take a quick drive before tonight’s commission meetingto do so. There are few places within the booming development of the west side where one can experience whatthe east side of Bozeman touts in the Gallagator or Peets Hill trails, where one may see pheasants and raptors.
There are a few decision points remaining at this 30% design stage of the FAC. I have read some excellentcomments written by members of Friends of Fowler Connector (FFC) and offer the following additions to theircomments:
1. As designed, the proposed two-lane road section of the southern two thirds of the FAC between Huffineand Durston has the ability to stay away from and preserve the mature-trees riparian corridor along theopen section line ditch because it is only one 11.5’ lane in each direction and has no raised median. Istrongly recommend the FAC project continue this approach between Durston and Oak by eliminating theraised median proposed for this northernmost third of the project. Not only are raised medians notnecessary through residential areas (such as on Willson Avenue), in the case of FAC, the raised medianpushes the development footprint over into the stand of mature trees of the riparian corridor, cutting intothe root zone of this living organism. This Durston to Oak section of the FAC design tries to do too muchwith TWO wide shared paths AND a raised median, AND wide roadside boulevards. Lets keep this thirdof the FAC consistent with the two thirds of the FAC the the south. Keep it simple, narrow, and avoidcutting into the riparian root zone.
2. Connecting Neighborhood Streets to the FAC: To our delight, Mr. Ross pointed out that there is a strongpossibility that Cascade Street will not be connected to the FAC. This is wonderful news as this decision avoidscutting through a thick portion of the riparian corridor and piping the open section line ditch, which would haveessentially cut off water to the adjacent mature trees. We applaud this decision! The neighborhoods on andadjacent to Cascade also cheer this decision because it means the threat of speeding traffic short-cutting throughthem is also eliminated.
Since each one-third of the FAC (Oak-Durston, Durston-Babcock, Babcock-Huffine) is only 0.5 miles, residential
street connectivity is not as much of a concern, especially when cutting these connections through the riparian
corridor cuts through the root zones of this organism AND causes the shared-use path to have to cross yet another
road. Let’s not have kids cross year another road! I strongly recommend that Annie Street also not cut throughand connect to FAC.
Please also consider also not connecting residential streets such as Oliver and Farmall, etc since (again) it is only0.5 miles between Oak, Durston, Babcock, and Huffine.
3. Bike Lane in the roadway vs on the shared use path: If we concentrate on one shared use path that is separatedfrom the roadway, rather than adding a bike lane in the roadway itself, we will have a bike path that kids andthose with disabilities can feel safe on. Sure we have ardent cyclists who are comfortable riding with traffic.However, in this case where we are looking for ways to reduce the development footprint of the FAC so we canpreserve the riparian corridor, let’s choose one shared-use path as an option that serves all members of thecommunity! This is not the place to have it all, but where we make decisions to coexist with nature. Additionally,this shared bike path will surely be an excellent N-S link to the GVLT’s Raptor Connector trail between 4cornersand the M trail. In fact, this riparian corridor could be the West-side’s version of the Gallagator trail or Peet’sHill! A public park along the riparian corridor of the FAC will be an excellent climate-friendly, kid-friendly, andcommunity friendly decisions we can make! Additionally, every place we can cut down on the overall width ofthe FAC, we avoid cutting into the root zone of the riparian corridor.
4. Speed limits and cross walks: The FAC goes through residential street and comes within a few feet of somehouses. It should be designated at slower speeds such as at Willson Avenue. Additionally, speed limits at ballparks, schools, and other parks (such as Bozeman Ponds) should be 15- mph zones as they are in all of Bozeman. Additionally, please map out how kids walk to school and provide crosswalks with pedestrian activated flashinglights at important junctions. These flashing and raised crosswalks should also occur where pedestrians cross FACto get to the Bozeman Ponds.
5. Finally, in order to truly understand the riparian corridor, its root zone, and necessary buffers, please employthe expertise of a qualified professional such as a biologist, plant ecologist, etc. Let’s add this important disciplineto the team!
Respectfully,Zehra Osman312 Sanders Ave
Attachment