HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-17-25 Public Comment - P. McGown - No UPZONING!From:Patty McGown
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]No UPZONING!
Date:Sunday, November 16, 2025 1:00:54 PM
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Dear Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and Commissioners,
First I am writing to implore you to honor the incredible amount of work done by residents, and keep BOTH
Centennial Park and the Bon Ton zoned R-A!!! This would be as it is shown in the current proposed draft.
The fact that these are in danger at the 11th hour is unacceptable.
Second, since the draft UDC was first released in 2023, residents have consistently and overwhelmingly opposed
increasing density through upzoning. Remember the fact: upzoning does not provide affordable housing. It actually
tears down older affordable houses. Don’t believe me? Read the ads that realtors write, they call affordability “under
rented”.
There are other options for adding housing, and the proposed draft implements several of these options. There is no
need to resort to traditional up-zoning.
I'm writing to you today to ask that you keep the following unit caps in the final UDC that you adopt.
>Keep R-A at 2 units while allowing for the Existing Building Alternative.
DO NOT UPZONE TO 4 UNITS BY-RIGHT!
>Keep R-B at 8 units, which is perfectly adequate to build missing middle housing!
The 3 story 12-plex that one architect* is angling for can easily be built in R-C. DO NOT UPZONE TO 12 UNITS!
(Do not give special treatment to one architect at this point in the process. If you are going to give ANY special
treatment, give it to residents).
>Keep R-C at 24 units. If you remove unit caps in this zoning district there is no real difference between R-C and R-
D.
Why are you making these changes at the last minute after all this time and all the work and effort by residents?
It would be good for our community to have an option at 24 units because new state law doesn't allow us to require
parking. Can you imagine in 10 years the mess this will be?
Most areas zoned R-C cannot handle increased demand of on-street parking, and this will only lead to dysfunction.
DO NOT REMOVE UNIT CAPS IN R-C!
Our growth policy calls for a gradual and predictable increase in density. Further up-zoning beyond the draft UDC
unit caps is NOT acceptable because it is NOT gradual or predictable.
Standing by,
Patty McGown