HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-23-25 Public Comment - K. Tripp - Fowler Ave Connection Resident Comments - AND Annexation Concerns - Harvest Creek ResidentFrom:Kristen Read
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Fowler Ave Connection Resident Comments - AND Annexation Concerns - Harvest Creek Resident
Date:Tuesday, July 22, 2025 12:47:53 PM
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To City Commissioners, May Terry Cunningham and to Fowler Ave Connection Project Managers, AND
to Whom It May Concern,
Please include my comments in the Transportation Advisory Board folder.
FOWLER AVE CONNECTION COMMENTS
In lieu of recent changes to the design of phase 1 of the project and after attending the tour of the
changes (thank you Nick Ross) I am including my below concerns about the project:
While I understand this project is seperate from the development of the city property and housing project
which is in process, it seems negligent to not work in concert on the road building and development
project so that the development project does not cause harm to the new road and thus MORE expense to
the City for any damage done to the new road by means of heavy equipment operating in the housing
development project. Is there a means of being strategic in timing these two projects so that the following
concerns are taken into consideration?
1. Round-abouts - current design phase has two round-abouts in this initial phase. Round-abouts are
expensive and two seems excessive. The cost is an estimated $7.04 m for the Oak to Durston portion
alone!! Can we not decrease this expense or is part of this budget amount tied to the private land
purchase?
2. NEITHER round-about has appropriate crossing for children with traffic management integrated.
SAFETY is paramount as MANY kids live in Harvest Creek.
3. If agreements are not in place for the two large parcels of private property in both phase 1 and even
larger in phase 2 - why is the city continuing without those two properties secured. My other question is
HOW MUCH is this road costing us the taxpayers in these land transactions? Where is that expense
threshold or is the City willing to push the entire project thru regardless of cost??
4. Cost concerns for doing the work twice. As alluded to above, why are we not trying to work in concert
and time both in the same timeframe? It is my understanding that the road would be damaged by the
housing development project and heavy equipment impact on the Fowler connection.
5. Impact of construction to residents and homes on New Holland - with the road project slated for 2026, it
is possible that residents would experience massive construction projects for the better part of two if not
three years if the road project and the development project are not planned for the same timeframe. My
son has asthma and multiple years of construction and dust (with no plans for dust abatement) would
translate into a lack of livability in our home for more than one season if the road project is done in 2026
and the development is then executed in a subsequent year. My house on New Holland will essentially be
unliveable for him for 2-4 years depending on how the city manages the timeilne of the road project AND
the development project.
6. I have MAJOR concerns about the housing development plans that were recently released. High
density housing is not a good strategy and without adequate parking at a reasonable ratio, Harvest Creek
will most definitley be substantially impacted unless density is decreased for the development project.
7. Affordable housing IS an issue, but this development project is NOT a solution. I would instead
recommend a development project that maintains the density, look and feel of Harvest Creek to maintain
the value and livabilty of the exisiting homes in Harvest Creek. Yet another high density housing
development does nothing to solve the larger issue of affordability in Bozeman. There are plenty of empty
condos all over this city - why are we trying to build more? Drought and water a huge issue and highdensity housing developments will only exascerbate the drought and parking issue.
I think it is the City Commission's responsibilty to residents of Harvest Creek to consider the impact notonly of cost/ market values of our homes, but also to consider the orchestration of the road project ANDthe development project NOT as seperate projects on seperate timelines, but TOGETHER. Think abouthaving a massive road project being built in one year and the very next a development project thattranslates into year 3 in redoing the roads built in year 1. This is at expense to all in the City, not justthose living on New Holland and Harvest Creek.
Part two of this is development plans for the parcel that the City owns which is slated for annexation -there is no update on this process as far as timing of it and/or solicitation for public input that we haveseen to date. Is there a date for the annexation of the property? How and who decides what is determinedfor zoning and development there? What level of direction/input does the public have on the developmentplans for the parcel? What about parking??
I live on New Holland and my house backs up to the City property where the connecting road is slated tobe implemented so this is critical to determining if I am able to even stay in Bozeman any longer. I movedhere in 1989 and hate to leave after 36 years in this town, worse yet to be pushed out by a City project.
I look forward to more clarity on all of this for both the projects that are slated and how residents of boththe neighborhood and the city residents and taxpayers.
Thankyou for your time and consideration of my concerns and questions.
Kristen Tripp1079 New HollandBozeman, MT 59718
406-581-2114