HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-31-25 Public Comment - P. McGown - In support of the Appeal #25033, Appeal of the GuthrieFrom:Patty McGown
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]In support of the Appeal #25033, Appeal of the Guthrie
Date:Monday, March 31, 2025 9:29:04 AM
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Dear City Commissioners:
Patty McGown
222 S 13th Ave
Jandt Neighborhood
I am writing in support of the Guthrie appeal application #25033, and request that the appeal be
approved and the Guthrie be denied.
It is beyond troubling, at this point in time, with the UDC rewrite in process, and the city indicating
that it is listening to the concerns of the residents, that city staff have used the boundaries of the
Midtown Neighborhood Association—a community liaison group with no legal authority—as a
reference for determining appropriateness of development. The word “Neighborhood” is not
defined in the Unified Development Code (UDC), AND the city’s own consultants, Metcalf
Archaeological Consultants, provided a rational framework through architectural surveys in 2019
and 2020, and the consultants explicitly recommend viewing the Karp and Violett Additions as
potential historic districts due to their integrity, architectural character, and postwar development
history. These are the “neighborhoods” that should inform context and compatibility—not broader
political or organizational boundaries.
I have serious concern over the continued misrepresentation and misapplication of
the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District (NCOD) Design Guidelines by city staff, particularly
in reference to development application #24493, aka the Guthrie. The NCOD is binding and must be
applied fully and correctly to any development within its boundaries. These guidelines are not
discretionary—they are adopted code. The binding nature of the NCOD must prevail.
Overlay districts like the NCOD are standard planning tools used across the country to
provide enhanced protections in sensitive areas—historic, ecological, or otherwise. They are meant
to supplement and, where necessary, override base zoning to preserve essential characteristics of a
community. In Bozeman, the NCOD was specifically created to protect the character and scale
of historic neighborhoods. The American Planning Association and long-standing zoning precedent,
not to mention Bozeman’s own code, affirm that overlay district regulations take precedence when a
conflict arises.
Section 38.110.010(B) of the City of Bozeman Municipal Code adopts the NCOD Design Guidelines by
reference, integrating them directly into law. Section 38.100.050(A) reinforces this by requiring that,
in cases of conflicting provisions, the more restrictive standard must govern. The NCOD, by design,
imposes stricter requirements than base zoning—and therefore must inform decisions on all
development. The most serious flaw in the city staff analysis is the that the NCOD Design Guidelines
are not mandatory. This is demonstrably false. The NCOD is not optional. It is law. And it must be
applied to development projects accordingly.
Why? Well, city staff’s rationale rests on a faulty interpretation of the term “should” and
misconstrues the intentional flexibility in the Design Guidelines, treating it as advisory. But the
Guidelines themselves clarify in Appendix B: “If the term ‘should’ appears in a design guideline,
compliance is required.” Interpretive flexibility exists only when the applicant can prove that the
core policy will still be met. This is not a semantic debate—this is the difference between legal
compliance and arbitrary discretion.
To claim otherwise—and to permit developments like the proposed Guthrie to move forward based
solely on base zoning—is not only an abandonment of the city’s obligations, it undermines public
trust in city officials and erodes decades of community-driven planning.
This is not about opposing growth or progress! This is about doing “growth” correctly, for all
interested parties. The Bozeman community has not rejected new development or even affordable
housing on this site. What residents rightfully demand is that any development within the NCOD
comply with the same standards that have guided all prior projects: compatibility, context, and
character.
Standing by,
Patty McGown