HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-15-25 Public Comment - K Filipovich - UDC - Meeting 7_14_25 - comment on R-A and R-B zoning, zoning mapFrom:Karen Filipovich
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]UDC - Meeting 7/14/25 - comment on R-A and R-B zoning, zoning map
Date:Monday, July 14, 2025 10:50:16 AM
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Dear City of Bozeman Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Commissioners:
I appreciate your work toward updating the UDC in Bozeman. It is a living document, and I
encourage you not to look at your current work as "one and done," but as a particular set of
decisions that can be tested and reevaluated in the future. I hope this meeting today from 1-5
is a first, rather than final discussion of the proposed zone map and R-A and R-B ideas, since
most people can't get out of work to attend the meeting.
Zoning Map: Blocks should be consolidated, with zoning mapped as the less intense level,
unless that block is completely surrounded by higher density zoning. One thing we learned
from building since the 2018 zoning update is that built transitions between lots or across
alleys are not successful.
I'd also like to highlight that the City of Bozeman should use zoning in an orderly fashion to
step up or down one level of intensity or changing types of uses at a time. We can't do that in
much of original boundaries of Bozeman, due to decisions made before most of us were born,
but we can take steps to smooth out the zoning map and provide thoughtful transitions,
especially in areas where the jump is more than one level of zoning (Between the current B-3
and R-4, R-3, or R-2 levels, for instance)
R-A and R-B proposed height, mass, and unit changes:
A successful city grows over time, with neighborhoods that look and feel distinct. Right now,
the proposed code to dramatically increase the size and mass of housing in the proposed R-A
zone is significantly higher that what is in the draft and what is needed in Bozeman. A duplex
and an ADU is plenty, especially if the city would like to honor its planning documents that
require support for distinct and vibrant neighborhoods and preservation of existing housing.
There are economics to sticking to the state-mandated level of building in these areas, which I
will outline below.
In the proposed R-B level, 8 units and 10,000 square feet building max capacity was already
too big of a proposed jump. Moving to 12 units and no maximum building cap is essentially
erasing the differences between proposed zones R-B and R-C.
This has some different effects on the already build areas of town and the greenfield areas.
In the existing areas of town, these proposed further up-zoning are likely to have the following
effects:
In the areas south of Main in the oldest part of town, it will likely promote more very
large single family homes. The economics of the richest parts of town dictate this. This
will make that neighborhood even less affordable, with no additional gains in
population.
In the areas built 20-50 years ago that do not have an HOA, it is likely you'll see a mixed
set of outcomes. In many areas, there probably won't be much movement in housing
stock, unless the city addresses some of the building and permitting barriers that make
it difficult to work through the steps to split a house into multiple units or add an ADU.
In some cases, you may see some additional apartment buildings that do add full-time
residents, but it will be sporadic and fairly hard to predict. Some of these existing
housing could have potential to act as filtering units, based on price, but I have yet to
see any public analysis of the predicted housing stock increases in areas like 25th or the
area around Christie Fields.
For areas in HOAs, (and more will continue to be added under both the draft and
further amendments under discussion today), the original building is frozen in time,
unless an HOA changes its covenants. I do not think HOAs are going to change their
covenants, so these largely single-family home areas are going to get more expensive,
since the incentive in non-HOA areas will be to demolish and replace family homes and
small multi-unit dwellings. These zoning decisions being discussed in the UDC only really
apply to new neighborhoods and those that do not have HOAs. It is worth thinking
about how many additional HOAs the City is incentivizing, since almost all the newer
complexes, from smaller ones like the townhouses on Lamme and Beall to the 16
Willson project to new subdivision are HOAs. They may sound enticing because they do
some of their own street and open space maintenance, but the laws around covenants
mean that essentially all redevelopment and annexation projects will be frozen at the
level and type of development you initially approve. This is not a recipe for a dynamic
city in 10, 25, or 50 years.
In the northeast side, depending on the street and block, this will make it even easier to
build teardowns of larger sizes, since the underlying minimum rule is no net loss of
units, not promotion of more units. In other streets such as North Montana Avenue,
immediately north of City Hall, the incentive will be to rip down many of the smaller
apartment buildings, which are some of the most affordable, convenient housing in
Bozeman and replace them with "luxury apartments." These will be much more
expensive that the existing housing stock in both cases and will eliminate most of
housing stock that is considered filtering units that would be occupied by lower income
people as more new and higher priced units are built.
I live in NENA and have significant experience with how new building is occupied. Right now,
16 Willson, which did not add any additional housing units compared to the Willson Courts,
has five listed short-term rentals that I can find on popular rental sites. In addition, several
units appear to be occupied on a part-time basis. None of the former Willson Court residents
still live in the immediate neighborhood and several have left the area or state. This project
had a significant negative effect on the number of people living near downtown and a very
significant effect on the cost of housing, with the asking price of $14. Million dollars for one
front and ADU units.
Some say that was a special project, so let's take a look at the cost of the new mid-rise
buildings in the redeveloping medical arts complex. The Henry, a new condo mid-rise that is
now selling units, advertises a one bedroom unit for $1.3+ million dollars and a two bedroom
condo for nearly $1.5 million dollars. This compares to entire houses in the adjacent blocks
that are assessed in the $750 thousand to $890 thousand range. For rent, a studio in any of
rental units in the medical arts complexes is around $1,900. A bedroom in one the houses just
north of this redevelopment is $1,000 or less and entire existing units are typically ¼ to ½ the
price of the new units. The older housing stock is not as affordable as is desirable but giving
every single incentive to redevelopment which will replace older housing with newer housing
will increase rent and sale prices of units. The math is pretty clear. These changes will result in
the eliminate of older, less expensive houses and apartments and replace them with much
more expensive units. Give the experience with occupancy rates in some of the newer units in
the area, it is not at all clear that these units will add significant number of full-time
reesidents. It is clear that the existing residents will be moved somewhere else. Is that really
the signal you want to send to people?
Please consider meeting the state requirements in Zone R-A and R-B areas, but do not do
anything further. Take a few years and conduct the analysis on what gets permitted, built, the
occupancy rates, and the price of housing both in and outside the City of Bozeman.
Sincerely,
Karen Filipovich