HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-15-24 Public Comment - A. Sweeney - Interesting discoveries in our municipal code...A.
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From:Alison Sweeney
To:Bozeman Public Comment; Emily Kiely
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Interesting discoveries in our municipal code...
Date:Friday, November 15, 2024 11:29:15 AM
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Attn: Neighborhoods Coordinator
Emily Kiely, here is an outline of those sections of code that were discussed in last night'sInter-Neighborhood Council meeting around the 57 minute time stamp. I know the otherneighborhood heads and our commission liaison Mr. Morrison was interested in having these. Thanks so much for passing this on to them.
Attn: City Legal, City Manager, and Community Development Department
There may very well be a legal reason why this process was abandoned, but as a representativeof my neighborhood I feel that I have obligations to my neighborhood spelled out in city codethat I (and all other reps) haven't been able to uphold because this process has fallen by thewayside. Please advise as to why the city is not currently in compliance with these sections ofcode. Thank you.
Interesting Discoveries in our Municipal Code...
Last night's Inter Neighborhood Council meeting was all about communication tools. You can
view the video and agenda here.At about 57 minutes the Chair of the Council, Emily Talago from Midtown, talks about
neighborhoods being notified about policy changes in a timely manner in order to informneighborhood residents and give them the opportunity to participate.
The truth is, we've been trying to understand for months now, why existing provisions in our
code about notifying neighborhoods when an application is submitted to the CommunityDevelopment Department have not been followed. Here's how this is supposed to work. I've
added highlights and underlining for emphasis.
In the Neighborhoods Recognition Ordinance section of our code 2.05.1110 it states thefollowing:
The city commission finds that there is a need to create and maintain effective channels of
communication with the citizens of Bozeman on matters affecting the livability of their
neighborhoods and the community in general. It is the intent of the city commission,through the recognition of neighborhood associations, to foster partnerships of open
communication between the city and its neighborhoods; to enhance the environment in
which citizens are afforded an opportunity to participate in local governmental decisions;
to foster cooperation and consensus among diverse interests; to assist the city andneighborhood residents in developing solutions to mutual problems; and to develop in the
citizens a sense of personal pride and responsibility for their neighborhood.
The city is charged with certain responsibilities to recognized neighborhood associationsdescribed in another section of code 2.05.1220 that includes the following:
The city liaison shall:
Provide notice to INC delegates regarding all applications received by the department of
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community development where notification guidelines require that notice be posted on
site, published in the local newspaper or mailed first class. Notification to the INCdelegates shall be sent via telephone, mail, email, or facsimile concerning all public
hearings associated with the application except those that have been postponed to a date
certain announced at a prior hearing.
This doesn't mean neighborhoods have to be notified for every kind of development, just the
big stuff. We're not worried about the ADU or small addition your neighbor's putting ontheir existing home, or the certificate of appropriateness for new windows in the
Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District. But we SHOULD be noticed at the verybeginning, before a project gains adequacy and is released for public comment, for large
developments like the Guthrie or the Block B development, or the Bozeman Yards Northdevelopment.
This would benefit the city by bringing in the affected neighborhood at the beginning of a
project before developers and city staff have spent months and considerable financialresources to bring a project to public review. By that time it's too late for public input to
influence or improve a project.
This process is further clarified in the next section of code describing the responsibilitiesof an applicant in section 2.05.1230:
In order for the city liaison to effectively perform their duties executing the intent and
purpose of this division, as defined in section 2.05.1110, the following shall be performed:
As part of any application to the department of community development, the applicantshall provide written notice via certified mail, email, facsimile transmission, and/or
personal delivery to the city liaison if notification guidelines require that notice be
posted on site, published in the local newspaper or mailed first class.
Such notice shall contain a complete set of application materials as submitted to thedepartment of community development.
Failure to provide proof of such mailing via certified mail, email and/or facsimile
transmission report to the most recent city liaison address, email address and/or fax
number of record, or an affidavit attesting hand delivery, shall result in an incompleteapplication.
So you see, we as a city, are not currently in compliance with our own code and haven't beenfor some time. This is potentially dangerous as it opens the city up to lawsuits. Since the pace
and scale of new development in existing neighborhoods is such a source of contention in ourcommunity, complying with this section of code would significantly reduce the potential for
outcomes like the proposed Guthrie last summer where the neighborhood had to lobby the citycommission to reclaim review authority, spend thousands of hours reviewing code and
compiling testimony for why the development didn't satisfy provisions of the NCOD andothers, and then we ended up with the developer filing suit against the city for denying a bad
project. Maybe all of that pain, anxiety, and resources could have been prevented if this codehad been followed in the first place.
Anyway, myself and probably several other members of INC would like to know what
barriers exist to following the process outlined in this code.
Thanks so much,
Alison SweeneyJandt Neighborhood INC representative and chair person