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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-18-25 Public Comment - Z. Osman - Disappointed in the Study Commission Survey with Ex Officio ResponseFrom:Zehra Osman To:Mike Maas Cc:Bozeman Goverment Study Commission Subject:[EXTERNAL]Disappointed in the Study Commission Survey Date:Wednesday, October 22, 2025 11:24:36 AM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Hi Mike, Thank you so much for this reply and thank you for all you do. I try to attend meetings in person, virtually, or review their recordings. I’ll review all therecordings of the study commission meetings. That said, minutes, reports, and summaries are helpful and I’ll check the webpage link you provided to find these. It was not clear that this survey was a preliminary feedback mechanism. Surveys can behelpful, however they can also be misleading. So it’s a good idea to be careful in administering surveys and in analyzing their results. I understand that individuals and personalities are not the focus of the study commission’swork. However the form, powers, and structures of the city government can be set up with checks and balances to ensure that individuals, personalities, businesses, and corporationscannot inflict undue influence. Your email is helpful and encouraging. I’m more optimistic about the work of the study commission. I look forward to reading the various references, studies, and examples the studycommission has been reading so I understand where this is heading! Respectfully, Zehra Osman59718 On Tuesday, October 21, 2025, Mike Maas <MMaas@bozeman.net> wrote: Hi Zehra, I know I speak for all of the City Study Commission when I say, thank you for taking both the time for the survey and to provide us your feedback. I speak only for myself with the following comments: I hear your critique of the survey and I think you thoughts are completely valid. I do want toprovide additional context in light of what you have offered us here. This survey is only the beginning of the dive into the options before the City Study Commission.The idea is to gauge the areas of significant interest and then provide more narrowly tailoredsurveys and education (for both the public and the City Study Commission). If a particular area offocus has a strong opposition from the community, it doesn’t make much sense to dedicated the limited time and resources to dive into that given the breadth of what is available. The focus of the work of the City Study Commission is not on individuals or personalities but, on the form, powers, and structures. Any form of government can have both good and bad actors. You raise good questions: the burdens on a Mayor, the difficulties of wards or districts, or aboutthe chosen survey form. I do want to offer some information as a response to a few of your questions. As I stated, thissurvey is the top, the start of a filter that will get narrower in focus for future efforts. No decisionsfor the final report are going to be made based solely on the data in this one survey. Additionally, wards/districts would only apply to how representatives (City Commissioners) are elected andwould not be a limit upon the Montana Constitutional Right to Participate in other publicprocesses. Also, wards/districts need to be balanced on residents; this means that the DowntownPartnership would not get additional representation on the City Commission. Many of those business owners reside outside the City’s limits and they have structures in place (the DowntownUrban Renewal District Board, the Business Improvement District Board, and the DowntownBusiness Association) that already feed the Downtown Partnership’s Executive Board. All of thoseare outside the scope of the City Study Commission. To find the resources of the City Study Commission, we have opted to create our own webpage,bozemanstudy.com. The Engage Platform is specifically for City projects/efforts and the City Study Commission operates autonomously (with support from City staff, such as myself andothers). We have set up a separate specific eNotification category for the City Study Commissionand provide access to the documents both created by the City Study Commission and reviewed.Our meetings are regularly held on the first Thursday of the month from 4 – 7 p.m. and the third Wednesday of the month from 4 – 6 p.m., both in the City Commission Room at City Hall.Additional, off-site engagement opportunities will continue throughout this process; digitalparticipation in meetings is available; and, written public comments can always be submitted togovreview@bozeman.net. Lastly, we call for public comment on any topic within the purview of the City Study Commission twice a meeting, at the beginning and at the end. I hope to see you continue to participate, in both future surveys, and meetings. If you have any additional questions, feel free to reach out to me directly. Thank you, Mike Maas, MPA City of Bozeman | 121 N. Rouse Ave. | Bozeman, MT 59715 406.582.2321 Pronouns: he/him/his Have Questions? Ask BZN From: Zehra Osman <zosman534@gmail.com> Sent: Saturday, October 18, 2025 10:41 PM To: Bozeman Goverment Study Commission <govreview@BOZEMAN.NET> Subject: [EXTERNAL]Disappointed in the Study Commission Survey CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Bozeman Study Commission members, I am disappointed in the Study Commission. At this moment, I am working on the survey that is due tonight and I can’t believe you are asking us to choose between your options for city structure when you haven’t provided any examples, case studies, or other information. Your public engagement plan is lacking if I search for your “resources” page to inform my survey choices and I find nothing. Regarding the Mayor and City Manager’s roles: This survey offers really only two choices, with one being existing conditions. You offer hybrids of the two choices, however you do not provide any case studies, links to resources, etc. that support why you are only giving us these limited choices and why these hybrids. Do I want the Mayor to be burdened with the daily operation of the city? Do I want the City Manager to run the City (especially after Mr. Miheilic)? How am I supposed to make that decision and how are you going to use results when others may be like me and not be able to make an informed decision? Regarding Districts/Wards: Do I want to have districts/wards where I have an elected representative who votes for our ward? What if I live in a district/ward where there is, for example, a preponderance of students, airbnb owners, or other neighbors who may not share my interest for a long-term thriving community? If I’m in one district/ward, am I able to participate in the preservation of a riparian corridor of 130-year old trees in another district/ward or a historic district with iconic Bozeman buildings? Does this mean the Downtown Bozeman Partnership becomes a district and they make all the decisions for Main Street? What am I getting into if I choose the ward/district example? Regarding the Neighborhood Associations: We've been trying to revitalize my neighborhood association for over a year. Although we’re active, we don’t always find out if neighbors have moved and get the email address of the new neighbors. The mailed flyers don’t work. As a member of my neighborhood steering committee, I would need to go door-to-door a few times a year. That’s over 500 doors to knock. Use the City utility bills to have people automatically submit their email addresses to their neighborhood association. In conclusion, I present the above examples because I want to demonstrate how poorly design your survey is. The questions are too superficial and the results you will get will be from a users who do not have sufficient information. I strongly recommend a much better outreach and public engagement. Why do you not have an Engage Bozeman presence? That certainly would be a good place to store information and case studies that may help us understand what the Study Commission has been working on, so we understand how we can help. Respectfully, Zehra Osman 59718 City of Bozeman emails are subject to the Right to Know provisions of Montana’s Constitution (Art. II, Sect. 9) and may be considered a “public record” pursuant to Title 2, Chpt. 6, Montana Code Annotated. As such, this email, its sender and receiver, and the contents may be available for public disclosure and will be retained pursuant to the City’s record retention policies. Emails that contain confidential information such as information related to individual privacy may be protected from disclosure under law.