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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-25-25 Public Comment - R. Walsh - Re_Sidewalks Staff ResponseFrom:Nicholas Ross To:renowalsh@gmail.com Cc:Bozeman Public Comment Subject:Response to Public Comment on Sidewalks Date:Tuesday, March 18, 2025 12:03:08 PM Good morning! With a thanks to City Clerk Mike Maas, I also wanted to take a moment to directly answer some of your questions that may not have been addressed. Regarding a reduction in minimum sidewalk width, the city establishes standards for clear width in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). We wouldn’t consider it prudent or legal to reduce width below what can adequately serve disability needs. We do allow sidewalks to both meander and be placed immediately next to the curb for exactly the reason of mature vegetation. Any locations where you see sidewalk directly adjacent to curb such as Rouse and Peach were likely done so for this very reason. The boulevard space is intended for street trees and snow storage. The allowance to remove the use of boulevard for its intended purpose tends to come with a warning that this will require significantly more effort by the property owner to maintain the sidewalk through the winter since snow plowed from the road must be cleared to the property beyond the sidewalk. We also remind the public that any trees currently planted in developed areas were once done so by humans, will have a finite life span, and can be done so again. It may be more beneficial for future generations of Bozeman to both build adequate sidewalks that require less maintenance burden and replant an equal or greater amount of trees than what was impacted. Thanks for taking the time to comment and please stay involved with any future discussions on the issue! -Nick Nicholas Ross, P.E. Director | Transportation and Engineering City of Bozeman C: 406-595-3437 O: 406-582-2315 nross@bozeman.net From:reno walsh To:Bozeman Public Comment Subject:Re: [EXTERNAL]Sidewalks Date:Monday, March 17, 2025 8:39:44 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. Thanks Mike, I appreciate the quick and thorough response. Reno On Mon, Mar 17, 2025 at 8:21 AM Bozeman Public Comment <comments@bozeman.net>wrote: Good morning, We will process your comment to the Commission and staff but, I thought I would give you somelevel of an answer. Back in September the City Commission held two work sessions related to this (September 10agenda); the first was the results of a pedestrian gaps analysis and the second was related to the funding of local street sidewalks. Here is a direct link to the video of those two work sessions, ifyou would like to review the video. Thank you, Mike Maas, MPA City of Bozeman | 121 N. Rouse Ave. | Bozeman, MT 59715 406.582.2321 Pronouns: he/him/his Have Questions? Ask BZN From: reno walsh <renowalsh@gmail.com> Sent: Saturday, March 15, 2025 10:42 AM To: Bozeman Public Comment <comments@BOZEMAN.NET> Subject: [EXTERNAL]Sidewalks 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. Commissioners, Does the City of Bozeman have a master plan that shares a vision and timeline for sidewalks and/or pedestrian pathways in areas of town that currently do not have sidewalks or where sidewalks are sporadic? An example of an area like this might be Aspen and Cottonwood Streets east of 7th and west of Rouse. Without a plan, or vision, and at the current pace sidewalks are being installed by owners, I can understand how it might be very difficult for a homeowner to understand why it makes sense to remove established trees and/or make the significant financial investment that is required to install a sidewalk today that will be a dead-end tomorrow and seemingly for many years to come. Has the city considered any of the following variances, or ideas, when the majority of adjacent lots do not currently have sidewalks? A sidewalk does not need to be installed unless or until an adjacent sidewalk on the same block is or has been installedSidewalks can be a minimum of 60% of the city’s current required sidewalk width Sidewalks can be installed without a boulevard along the entire length or parts of thelength of an owner’s lotSidewalks can meander up to five feet to accommodate established trees or vegetationthat is/are ten years old or older A friend and neighbor asked me to comment concerning: Application 24655/Comment inSupport of 701 N Montana Sidewalk Variance. Due to work and well, life, I have missed thedeadline for comments on this application. However, my question is still relevant and I'm interested to know if any of the presented ideas have been considered. I am a homeowner with maintained sidewalks. I improve and invest in the sidewalks asneeded and/or when cited and then required by the City of Bozeman to do so. There are nosidewalks on the lots immediately adjacent to our property on the east or west side. Thereare no sidewalks on the north side of our street. Thank you, Reno Walsh 724 N. Bozeman Ave City of Bozeman emails are subject to the Right to Know provisions of Montana’s Constitution (Art. II, Sect. 9) and may be considered a “public record” pursuant to Title 2, Chpt. 6, Montana Code Annotated. As such, this email, its sender and receiver, and the contents may be available for public disclosure and will be retained pursuant to the City’s record retention policies. Emails that contain confidential information such as information related to individual privacy may be protected from disclosure under law.