HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-20-24 Public Comment - K. Powell - Suggested Revisions to proposed Bozeman Affordable Housing OrdinanceFrom:KPowell & S Griswold
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Suggested Revisions to proposed Bozeman Affordable Housing Ordinance
Date:Monday, August 19, 2024 9:00:05 PM
Attachments:Suggested revisions AHO Bz 8-2024.docx
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 the City of Bozeman Commission
Attached are some suggested Revisions to the proposed Bozeman Affordable HousingOrdinance.
Please review and consider these suggestions in your work session at the City Commission
meeting 8/20/2024.
that you.
Kathy Powell1215 3rd Ave
406-600-1164powellgriz@icloud.com
August 19, 2024
To: Mayor Cunningham, Deputy Mayor Morrison, & Commissoners Madgic , Fisher and Bode
From: Kathy Powell, 1215 s 3rd Ave, Bozeman
RE: Bozeman Affordable Housing Ordinance Revisions
It makes sense for Bozeman to have an Affordable Housing Ordinance , but is the one currently
being proposed the right one and the right time to enact it?
Increasing density in neighborhoods to make more places affordable could be helpful provided
the Adjusted Median Income (AMI) is 60% and the increased building is compatible with existing
neighborhoods’ scale and proportions. In our R-1, R-2 neighborhood most people could live
with some increased density through duplexes, 2 story apartment buildings of 4 units each.
However, to have a project be proposed that uses the proposed shallow and deep incentives
that would allow the addition of 1 or 2 stories would not be compatible with the scale and
needs of our neighborhood and many other neighborhoods. Not addressing the I portance of
scale and impact of projects on a neighborhood will cause an uproar of significant magnitude
and concern about how much the City Commission cares about the importance and livability of
neighborhoods.
The city commission should review all proposed projects that want to utilize the shallow and
deep incentives and be able to deny the use of these incentives on a case-by-case basis.
Decisions wanting to use shallow or deep incentives should not be an only Administrative
review. This could avoid a lot of protests, anger as felt recently for the Guthrie project.
Clearly define what is a studio vs 1 bedroom. It should match up with the definition and use of
these terms in the UDC. Currently it does not. This would have avoided the uproar when a 350
sq ft room was deemed a 1 bedroom when it reality it was a studio. And that difference affects
AMI allowed rent, livability and marketing.
There are other areas of the proposed AHO that need more discussion and more public input.
Such as looking into how to preserve existing affordable homes rather than tear them down and
build luxury condos.
Either pause the current proposed Affordable Housing Ordinance or adjust the AMI to 60% and
designate what areas the shallow and deep incentives can be used in. Go neighborhood to
neighborhood to see what neighbors, the people who live there (many for decades) support
and get their input and buy in.