HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-11-24 Public Comment - P. McGown - being homeless in Bozeman is a crimeFrom:Patty McGown
To:Bozeman Public Comment; Takami Clark
Subject:[EXTERNAL]being homeless in Bozeman is a crime
Date:Thursday, October 10, 2024 11:42:52 AM
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Greetings city commissioners:
It is with a very heavy heart that I realize it is now a crime to be homeless in Bozeman after the City Commission
voted 3-2 to make it so.
This is not my Bozeman anymore. This is not representing me.
If density and infill created affordable housing, Bozeman would not be in the homelessness mess it’s in now. And I
can see that this has been in the works for more than 10 years. It’s heartbreaking.
The last 10+ years, Bozeman zoning has been shredded for the benefit of developers who filled the city with 5-6
story high rise luxury condos and expensive housing. These buildings were built at the unfortunate loss of affordable
housing. Real estate agents also benefitted greatly.
Now Bozeman is full of wealthy people who don’t want homelessness in their back yards. Now Bozeman is filled
with newcomers who are NIMBY’s.
Inaccurately, community members have labeled homeowners that have been in Bozeman for more that 10 years as
“NIMBY’s”, but that’s not true. The NIMBY’s are the wealthy newcomers. And outlawing homelessness indicates
that these wealthy newcomers have spoken. It is illegal to be poor and homeless in Bozeman. This is a sad, sad state
of affairs for the people of Bozeman.
It’s not what I want, but it’s what the new residents of Bozeman want. They raised the cost of living through
exclusivity, and in general they are not good neighbors, they don’t want to take care of the people who have lived
here before them, and they want to bring their lifestyles from the places they left, to Bozeman…and they have
succeeded. Bozeman has changed and NOT for the better. This is gentrification.
Upzoning and homelessness are directly related. City commissioners, it is solely your responsibility to see both
sides of the zoning issue. How Bozeman has changed in the past 10+ years has NOT been for the better for
everyone.
Going forward:
Please be honest about the fact that increasing building density does not create affordable housing. It is actually just
the opposite. Increasing density correlates directly to increasing homelessness. Density does create more housing
units that are unaffordable, unattainable and unsustainable for the working class of Bozeman. So much so, that it has
created severe homelessness and poverty, that continues to change the fabric of the community forever.
Please, develop zoning that empowers residents to create affordable housing in their existing neighborhoods. Entice
local residents to create affordable housing in houses that already exist. This is the affordable way. And it may take
10+ years to see this through. Please be brave and have the courage necessary to serve Bozeman differently, right
now, and support neighborhoods to help create affordable housing. Support something that actually works to create
affordability.
Remember back 20+ years when “skateboarding was a crime” and because of that, skateboarders were empowered
to convince municipalities to build skate parks!!! Now skateparks are an appreciated part of communities.
As such, homeless people and others unable to afford the luxury housing in Bozeman need Affordable housing and
this is not a crime. Solutions are available. Density is not a solution.
Standing by;
Patty McGown