HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-13-25 Public Comment - B. MacFawn - CPN Addendum AFrom:Beth MacFawn
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Cc:Erin George; Terry Cunningham; Joey Morrison; Emma Bode; Douglas Fischer; Jennifer Madgic
Subject:[EXTERNAL]CPN Addendum A
Date:Sunday, May 11, 2025 2:36:34 PM
Attachments:CPN Addendum A.pdf
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Hello Erin, Terry, Joey, Emma, Douglas and Jennifer,
Please find the attached Centennial Park Neighborhood, Addendum A.
This documents how our proposal aligns with Montana Code Annotated 2023 and theBozeman Community Plan 2020.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Beth MacFawn
605 N. Tracy
May 10, 2025
To: Community Development Director Erin George, Mayor Terry Cunningham, Deputy Mayor Joey
Morrison, Commissioner Emma Bode, Commissioner Douglas Fischer, and Commissioner Jen Madgic.
From: Bozeman residents (listed in last name alphabetical order)
Re: Centennial Park Neighborhood Conservation in Action: A Resident-led Proposal
Thank you for your continued consideration of the Centennial Park Neighbors (CPN) zoning change
proposal. We are heartened by the outpouring of encouragement from our fellow Bozeman residents and
the Inter-Neighborhood Council. We trust you have seen the growing body of support letters in our
assigned Centennial Park Neighborhood Conservation in Action Proposal folder.
We are grateful for the Community Development Department’s assistance in bolstering our proposal. In
response to Chris Saunder’s email dated April 22, 2025, we have conducted further research related to
our zoning request and now share it with you in the attached addendum for the public record.
Thank you for your sustained attention to our shared vision for R-A zoning designation. Resident-led
grassroots efforts like ours in Centennial Park and the Bon Ton neighborhood ignite hope for Bozeman’s
common future as a whole.
Attached is an addendum to our original proposal. It documents how our proposal aligns with
Montana Code Annotated 2023 & Bozeman Community Plan 2020.
Sincerely,
Zoe Hallowell, 5 East Aspen Street
Angie Kociolek, 620 North Tracy Avenue
Dan Krza, 620 North Tracy Avenue
Beth MacFawn, 605 North Tracy Avenue
Jane Mangold, 820 North Tracy Avenue
Susie Mathre, 624 North Tracy Avenue
Paul Rishel, 617 North Black Avenue
Christopher Spogis, 613 North Tracy Avenue
Mary Ellen Spogis, 613 North Tracy Avenue
Hadley Stonecipher, 604 N Tracy Avenue
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Centennial Park Neighborhood Conservation in Action:
A Resident-led Proposal
ADDENDUM A
We understand that our zoning change proposal must meet two criteria to be fully considered by
Bozeman’s Community Development Department and approved by the Bozeman City
Commission. It was recommended that we research and illustrate how our resident-led
proposal, submitted on April 8, 2025, meets the following requirements:
1) It must be consistent with Montana Code Annotated (MCA) 2023 (state law) sections
76-25-302 and 76-25-304, and
2) It must be in alignment with the Bozeman Community Plan (BCP) (growth policy/land use
plan).
Research-based Justification
Applicable MCA and BCP sections (green) clearly illustrate alignment with our proposal.
[Our comments follow in black].
Justification (1)
MONTANA CODE ANNOTATED 2023
TITLE 76. LAND RESOURCES AND USE
CHAPTER 25. MONTANA LAND USE PLANNING ACT
Part 3. Zoning
76-25-302. Encouragement of development of housing. (1) The zoning regulations
authorized in 76-25-301 must include a minimum of five of the following housing strategies,
applicable to the majority of the area, where residential development is permitted in the
jurisdictional area:
[The following five state-approved housing strategy options (a, d, e, f and j) are directly in
alignment with CPN’s zoning parcel and are equally applicable to the majority of Bozeman’s
residential jurisdictional area as a whole.]
76-25-302.
(a) allow, as a permitted use, for at least a duplex where a single-unit dwelling is permitted;
(d) eliminate impact fees for accessory dwelling units or developments that include multi-unit
dwellings or reduce the fees by at least 25%;
(e) allow, as a permitted use, for at least one internal or detached accessory dwelling unit on
a lot with a single-unit dwelling occupied as a primary residence;
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(f) allow for single-room occupancy developments;
(j) provide for zoning that specifically allows or encourages the development of tiny houses,
as defined in Appendix Q of the International Residential Code as it was printed on January
1, 2023.
76-25-304. Adoption and amendment of zoning regulations. (1) (a) The governing body
shall adopt or amend a zoning regulation or map only after consideration by and on the
recommendation of the planning commission. [We take this to mean that the “planning
commission,” in our case, Bozeman’s Community Development (Advisory) Board (CDB) would
have to consider our proposal and recommend it to the Bozeman City Commission.]
(b) An amendment to an adopted zoning regulation or map may be initiated:
(i) by majority vote of the governing body; [A majority vote would equal three (3) of the
five-member City Commission as part of the Unified Development Code (UDC) Update
decision.]
(ii) on petition of at least 15% of the electors of the local government jurisdiction to which the
regulations apply, as registered at the last general election; or
(iii) by a property owner, as related to an application for any zoning, subdivision, or other land
use permit or approval. [We represent multiple property owners applying for a zoning approval.]
(2) Prior to making a recommendation to the governing body to adopt or amend a zoning
regulation or map, the planning commission shall: [“Shall” means legally required.]
(a) provide public notice and participation in accordance with 76-25-106; [Reasonable.]
(b) accept, consider, and respond to public comment on the proposed zoning regulation,
map, or amendment. All public comment must be part of the administrative record transmitted to
the governing body. [Reasonable.]
(c) make a preliminary determination as to whether the zoning regulation and map as
proposed or as amended would be in substantial compliance with the land use plan, including
whether the zoning regulation or map: [See (Justification 2) below.]
(i) accommodates the projected needed housing types identified in 76-25-206; [We note the
code includes “rehabilitation,” and “improvement,” in addition to “development” of the number of
housing units needed.]
(ii) contains five or more specific strategies from 76-25-302 to encourage the development of
housing within the jurisdiction; [See that 76-25-302 a, d, e, f, j (from above) fulfill this
requirement.]
(iii) reflects allowable uses and densities in areas that may be adequately served by public
safety, emergency, utility, transportation, education, and any other local facilities or services
identified by the local government in 76-25-207; [Our zoning request reflects allowable uses and
densities in an area that would be adequately served by public safety, etc. Indeed, the nature of
our request arguably puts less of a burden on public safety/emergency response. In 2024 it was
reported that emergency response time in Bozeman was four minutes over the national
standard of six minutes. On April 17, 2025, response time to a Bozeman fire was more than 15
minutes. Given the failed mill levy and general obligation bond in November 2024, public
resources in their current form would be overextended should future development under existing
zoning be fully realized.]
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(iv) allows sufficient area for existing, new, or expanding commercial, industrial, and
institutional enterprises the local government has identified in 76-25-208 for targeted economic
growth in the jurisdiction; [Not applicable]
(v) protects and maximizes the potential use of natural resources within the area, as
identified in 76-25-209; [Our proposal puts value on and seeks to protect extant natural
resources (i.e. trees and other mature vegetation as well as solar access) within our area.]
(vi) minimizes or avoids impacts to the natural environment within the area, as identified
in 76-25-209; and [Our proposal seeks to avoid and minimize impacts to the natural
environment within our area.]
(vii) avoids or minimizes dangers associated with natural hazards in the jurisdiction, as
identified in 76-25-209; and [Not applicable]
(d) preliminarily determine whether the proposed zoning regulation, map, or amendment
results in new or increased impacts to or from local facilities, services, natural resources, natural
environment, or natural hazards from those previously described and analyzed in the
assessment conducted for the land use plan. [Not applicable, or our proposal would not result in
new or increased negative impacts.]
(3) If the planning commission finds new or increased impacts from the proposed regulation,
map, or amendment, as provided in subsection (2)(d), the local government shall collect
additional data and conduct additional analysis necessary to provide the planning commission
and the public with the opportunity to comment on and consider all potential impacts resulting
from adoption of the zoning regulation, map, or amendment. [Not applicable]
(4) After meeting the requirements of subsections (2) and (3), the planning commission shall
make a final recommendation to the governing body to approve, modify, or reject the proposed
zoning regulation, map, or amendment. [We are confident that our proposal meets the
requirements and carries the burden of proof. Additionally, we have demonstrated broad support
– i.e., 40 public comment letters as of this writing. As such, we are hopeful the CDB would make
a recommendation to the City Commission to approve our proposed zoning change – e.g.,
downzone from R-4/R-C to R-2/R-A.]
(5) (a) The governing body shall consider each zoning regulation, map, or amendment that
the planning commission recommends to the governing body. [Reasonable.]
(b) After providing public notice and participation in accordance with 76-25-106, the
governing body may adopt, adopt with revisions the governing body considers appropriate, or
reject the zoning regulation, map, or amendment as proposed by the planning commission.
[Reasonable.]
(c) The governing body may not condition an amendment to a zoning regulation or map.
[Reasonable.]
(d) The governing body may not adopt or amend a zoning regulation or map unless the
governing body finds that:
(i) the regulation, map, or amendment is in substantial compliance with the land use plan;
and [Reasonable, see (Justification 2) below]
(ii) the impacts resulting from development in substantial compliance with the proposed
zoning regulation, map, or amendment have been made available for public review and
comment and have been fully considered by the governing body. [Not applicable]
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(6) After the zoning regulation, map, or amendment has been adopted by the governing
body, there is a presumption that:
(a) all permitting in substantial compliance with the zoning regulation, map, or amendment is
in substantial compliance with the land use plan; and [Reasonable.]
(b) the public has been provided a meaningful opportunity to participate. [Reasonable.]
History: En. Sec. 21, Ch. 500, L. 2023.
Justification (2)
BOZEMAN COMMUNITY PLAN 2020
A term search and review of the Bozeman Community Plan 2020 (and its Table of Contents)
with regard to the Montana Code Annotated, future land use of our area, zoning amendments,
and housing types yielded the following applicable sections:
Terms searched:
“Montana Code Annotated” = 3 matches
1. Related to plan amendments, pg. 65
2. Related to subdivision review (2), pg. 67
● Note: Pg. 71 also names Montana Code Annotated citing section 76-25-301, but it did
not come up as a match in the (Apple command F) term search within the document.
MCA 76-2-301 will be discussed in zoning amendments below.
“Future Land Use”
Pg. 50 “Part of Bozeman’s appeal is its distinct character. Its character comes from the natural
setting and includes the sense of place created by constructed landmarks… Continuing
Bozeman’s character as a unique place rather than “Anywhere, USA” is important. There is
increasing evidence that sense of place is an important influence on economic development and
overall community health… As Bozeman continues to evolve, promoting this landscape diversity
will be important to maintaining the community character that people know and love… Land use
categories are not regulatory. Each category description can be implemented by multiple zoning
districts.”
Pg. 52 “1. URBAN NEIGHBORHOOD. This category primarily includes urban density homes in
a variety of types, shapes, sizes, and intensities. Large areas of any single type of housing are
discouraged… Applying a zoning district to specific parcels sets the required and allowed
density.”
See the extent of the CNP zoning parcel showing “Urban Neighborhood (which includes all
Residential (R-) zoning types, tan)” and Public Institutions (PLI, blue). (Figure 1)
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Figure 1. Community Plan Future Land Use – screenshot from the City’s GIS Viewer
“Zoning Amendment Review”
Pg. 71 This section is very applicable to our case. Rather than copy and paste multiple pages of
text here, we refer you to the entire Zoning Amendment Review section:
Pg. 73 “The City Commission must evaluate whether the applicable criteria are met, not
applicable, or if the benefits of the change offset negative impacts. Below is the state statute
that provides the criteria and guidelines for zoning decisions:
“76-25-304. CRITERIA AND GUIDELINES FOR ZONING REGULATIONS.
1. Zoning regulations must be:
a. Made in accordance with a growth policy; [Our request maintains the Future Land Use
designation of the Community Plan 2020] and
b. Designed to:
i. Secure safety from fire and other dangers; [Reasonable, it does; no change.]
ii. Promote public health, public safety, and the general welfare; [Reasonable, it
does.] and
iii. Facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewerage, schools,
parks, and other public requirements [Reasonable, it does. More specifically, our
neighborhood is overflow parking for Fairgrounds events and soon for the
upcoming Westlake Heights Apartments. Our streets already get narrow in winter
because of snow accumulation despite the best plowing efforts. Increased
density would pose a serious challenge for the alternate side of the street snow
plowing prospect and therefore impede access to emergency vehicles. An R-C
designation would impact parking while R-A would mitigate it.]
2. In the adoption of zoning regulations, the municipal governing body shall consider:
a. Reasonable provision of adequate light and air; [Reasonable, our proposal specifically
calls for solar access.]
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b. The effect on motorized and nonmotorized transportation systems; [Reasonable, it
does; no change.]
c. Promotion of compatible urban growth; [Reasonable, it does allow for urban growth
through the addition of new units including duplexes, accessory dwelling units, tiny
houses, and cottage housing.]
d. The character of the district and its peculiar suitability for particular uses; Reasonable,
our proposal specifically seeks to protect the character of our existing neighborhood.]
and
e. Conserving the value of buildings and encouraging the most appropriate use of land
throughout the jurisdictional area” [Reasonable, our proposal specifically recognizes the
value of the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District (NCOD) and solar access for
energy and gardens which are part of urban food systems and retaining existing urban
forest canopy which also aids the City in its climate resiliency goals.]
“Under state law, (1) zoning regulations must be “(a) made in accordance with a growth policy.
”This criterion gives the Commission latitude. Zoning map amendments are to correlate to the
future land use map. Beyond that, policy statements such as goals and objectives are weighed.”
The section above continues until pg. 79 in the BCP.
“Housing Type”
Pg. 21 “Housing affordability is a concern; residents of all ages, abilities, and income levels
require a diversity of housing types to meet their specific needs.” [Reasonable, our proposal
calls out affordability as a shared concern.]
Pg. 27 “Housing type diversity within neighborhoods helps ensure community benefits are
available to households of different size, income, and age.” [Agreed. See Cowan et al 2022 and
related works]
Pg. 30 “Goal N-3: Promote a diverse supply of quality housing units.
N-3.1 Establish standards for provisions of diversity of housing types in a given area.
N-3.2 Review zoning districts to assess the range of housing types in each district.” [Some of
this work has already been done by Cowan et al 2022 and others with MSU School of
Architecture with the City of Bozeman and Northeast Neighborhood (NENA) as partners. See
our proposal for citations.]
Pg. 31 “Thoughtful city planning provides a host of advantages from economic vitality to
environmental health to overall quality of life. Many of Bozeman’s neighborhoods have a
concentration of housing with a variety of housing types that support nearby commercial
centers. The City intends to look inward by prioritizing infill.” [Agreed, our neighborhood meets
all these criteria and we seek to maintain and protect these elements through prioritizing infill
over gentrification and the potential of over-development. See also in our proposal the
discussion of the addition of hundreds of new apartments in very close proximity to our zoned
parcel. Changing the zoning designation as requested would better ensure a “variety of housing
types” in this area of the City.]
F-3 “Missing Middle Housing. Missing middle housing is housing constructed in buildings which
are of a size and design compatible in scale and form with detached individual homes. Example
housing types include duplex, triplex, live-work, cottage housing, group living, row houses,
townhouses, horizontally layered apartments, flats, and other similar configurations.” [This
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concept aligns with our proposal of using existing structures rather than promoting/resorting to
demolition and re-development.]
[Additionally, we reviewed Community Plan 2020’s Themes & Goals. At least three themes and
25 goals are in direct alignment with our proposal:]
“THEME 1 | A RESILIENT CITY
Our City desires to be forward thinking, collaborative, and deliberate in planning
and execution of plans and policies to enable our community to successfully ride
the waves of change.
Goals
R-1.1 Be reflective: use past experience to inform future decisions.
R-1.2 Be resourceful: recognize alternative ways to use resources.
R-1.3 Be inclusive: prioritize broad consultation to create a sense of shared ownership in
decision making.
R-2.2 High Risk and Vulnerability: Ensure that strategies directly address the reduction of risk to
human well-being, physical infrastructure, and natural systems
R-2.4 Social Equity: Provide solutions that are inclusive with consideration to populations that
are often most fragile and vulnerable to sudden impacts.
R-2.7 Adaptive Capacity: Include flexible and adaptable measures that consider future
unknowns of changing climate, economic, and social conditions.
R-2.8 Harmonize with Existing Activity: Expand, enhance, or leverage work being done to build
on existing efforts.
R-2.9 Long-Term and Lasting Impact: Create long-term gains to the community with solutions
that are replicable and sustainable, creating benefit for present and future generations.
THEME 2 | A CITY OF UNIQUE NEIGHBORHOODS
Goals
N-1.1 Promote housing diversity, including missing middle housing.
N-1.2 Increase required minimum densities in residential districts.
N-1.3 Revise the zoning map to lessen areas exclusively zoned for single-type housing.
N-1.4 Promote development of accessory dwelling units (ADUs)
N-1.6 Encourage urban agriculture as part of focal point development, in close proximity to
schools, and near dense or multi-unit housing.
N-1.7 Review and where appropriate, revise block and lot design standards, including
orientation for solar power generation throughout city neighborhoods.
N-1.8 Install, replace, and maintain missing or damaged sidewalks, trails, and shared use paths.
N-1.9 Ensure multimodal connections between adjacent developments
N-1.10 Increase connectivity between parks and neighborhoods through continued trail and
sidewalk development. Prioritize closing gaps within the network.
N-1.11 Enable a gradual and predictable increase in density in developed areas over time.
N-3.1 Establish standards for provisions of diversity of housing types in a given area.
N-3.6 Include adequate residentially- designated areas for anticipated future
housing in the future land use map.
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N-3.7 Support compact neighborhoods, small lot sizes, and small floor plans, especially
through mechanisms such as density bonuses.
N-3.8 Promote the development of "Missing Middle" housing (side by side or stacked
duplex, triplex, live-work, cottage housing, group living, rowhouses/ townhouses, etc.) as one of
the most critical components of affordable housing.
N-4.1 Continue to recognize and honor the unique history, neighborhoods, neighborhood
character, and buildings that contribute to Bozeman’s sense of place through programs and
policy led by both City and community efforts.
N-4.2 Incorporate features, in both public and private projects, to provide organization,
structure, and landmarks as Bozeman grows.
N-4.3 Revise Design Guidelines within the Conservation Overlay District to distinguish
Downtown from the residential neighborhoods, to encourage neighborhoods and neighborhoods
near transition areas, both north and south of Downtown.
THEME 4 | A CITY INFLUENCED BY OUR NATURAL ENVIRONMENT, PARKS, AND OPEN
LANDS
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