HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-24-25 Public Comment - K. Filipovich - Zone, Transition, and Mass_Scale Topics for Inclusion in UDC updateFrom:Karen Filipovich
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Zone, Transition, and Mass/Scale Topics for Inclusion in UDC update
Date:Tuesday, June 24, 2025 11:59:46 AM
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Dear Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Commissioners:
I am a resident of the NENA neighborhood. I have extensive lived experience with how
decisions on transitions, transition edges, zoning, and mass and scale decisions affect the
neighborhood. Though I am in a neighborhood that is being redeveloped, these discussion
topics will also be of use in our greenfield areas as the city grows. Please consider having an in-
depth discussion around the following topics.
Since 2018, many zoning changes, transition changes and new buildings that use the entire
building envelope in transition areas have been built. Overall, the lessons learned are that the
current code does not adequately address how to change zones and how to complete edge
transitions that respect both the lower and higher density changes.
Zoning: There are significant problems with how zoning districts abut each other and the
boundaries of those zones. This is especially true in the already built areas of town, but the
lessons should be applied throughout town. The draft zoning map does not address all the
problems.
Zoning Districts should go up or down one at a time, from block to block. Right now,
we have business zones (renamed “mixed” zones in the draft code across the street
from or even across lots or alleys within a block. The 300 block of Grand contains both
B-3 and R-4 zones in a single block. The R-4 designation as a whole block in some of that
area is appreciated, but it still doesn’t solve the problem that the zoning jumps an entire
zoning level in adjacent areas. Across Villard, the jump is from B-3 (mixed use) to R-3 (R-
A). This is two zone changes and a radical change in conditional uses across a relatively
narrow street. If you go East to North Tracy, the jump is from B-3/mixed use to R-2, and
the only historic district on the North side. The buildings that are currently permitted
and under construction do not match character, use, scale, or mass. Let’s learn from our
mistakes and change zoning wherever possible.
Do not change zones in a block
Do not allow zoning jumps across streets greater than one zone
Every zone transition needs to have a transition code.
Where one zone jumps are not possible in existing districts, add additional code
language and implement edge transitions that respect the adjoining zone.
Consider some larger-scale changes in zoning before adopting the new code. I
recognize the work, and in some areas, there are improvements. But more work needs
to be done.
Transitions between Zones:
Change definitions of what an edge transition is and where it applies: Right now, the
extra transition language only applies across alleys and does not account for the
number of zone jumps that occur. Going from a B/mixed zone to the highest level of R
(currently R-5) is quite different than the transition to a different R zone or between R
zones. We should have transition rules for every transition.
Adjacency definitions. Right now, the only rule appears to be an ally or lot line.
Crossing a street = no transition rules. This needs to be changed, especially where
the step is greater than one zone district step.
Crossing a street is not sufficient to avoid edge transition rules.
Meet the adjoining neighborhood with varied transition rules based on which zone is
adjacent: The building on the 300 block of N. Villard and N. Willson is across the street
from an R-3 (RB) medium density neighborhood, yet the frontage characteristics are for
commercial plate class development and a garage entrance that serves a commercial
level of parking spaces and loading/unloading vehicles. None of this makes sense to
have sixty feet from a quiet residential area, both in terms of traffic and economically. It
is difficult for most commercial entities to be economically viable in the required
configuration. And yet the entire B-3 mixed-use zone is treated like it is all on Main
Street. Some of this could be revised on the zoning map, with a clear demarcation
between the commercial district (which includes Mendenhall and Babcock) and the rest
of the zone. For the edges, significant decisions on the following factors need to be
made:
Clear code that includes a transition when it steps down one zone
Characteristics of the streetscape, building front, height step-backs, and
considerations around light and noise, especially in transitions that step down
more than one zone across a street.
How to ensure transitions occur in light of the next law that requires 6-story
building envelopes in business zones.
Mass and Scale:
We need to have a conversation about the type of housing and commercial areas the city
needs as it grows. Right now, we’re really off balance in the number of apartments, especially
luxury apartments this city has, yet much of the code changes proposed will result in even
more of that type of housing units being built (or building simply stalled if the vacancy rate
continues at this rate).
Secondly, the number of large houses being built, especially as replacements for more
affordable, small older housing, is a real problem.
This is a list of conversations and potential solutions we need to include in this discussion:
Matching perceived mass and scale to human needs and adjoining existing buildings.
Mass articulation and street activation standards. The Armory is a pretty good example
of things that can be done in our highest-density area.
Maximum housing unit sizes, not just total square feet. My neighborhood has been
inundated with large single-family dwellings that do not provide affordable housing (and
in many cases eliminate existing affordable units) and do not lead to more people living
in the core of Bozeman. Let’s have the conversation about limits on McMansions and
out-of-scale buildings that are vacant or part-time residences.
Sincerely,
Karen Filipovich