HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-01-25 Public Comment - M. Harding - TRCFrom:Mardy Harding
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Public Comment ahead of Tuesday meeting:
Date:Sunday, November 30, 2025 1:45:29 PM
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My name is Mardy Harding. I live in Bozeman and I organize with Bozeman Tenants United.
Growing up, my parents were small time landlords in Seattle, WA. They treated the tenantsdownstairs with dignity and fairness, so I grew up thinking that was the norm - that landlords'
priority is the safety and well-being fo the people they are housing. In my adulthood, in myfirst years in the rental market at 18, I learned how wrong that understanding was.
Landlords lie. Property managers cut corners. In one instance, my roommates turned on mewith anger and blame when the washing machine broke and filled our house with rank stench,
and our landlord declined to fix it. In Bozeman, my property manager manipulated me and myroommates into paying rent before we could even move in, and on top of that, he refuses to fix
our ancient, dirty house and held our security deposit hostage unless we cleaned and fixed itourselves.
As much as I would love to believe that a landlord's interest is in providing a home, myexperiences have shown me that for most, their interest is in profiting off our home. This is no
surprise, because this extractive relationship is exacfly what our current housing system is setup to support and even inscentivize (especially in landlord-friendly Montana).
Eviction is the ultimate tool of a landlord. It can be done in retaliation, it can be on a whim, itcan be out of prejudice, or laziness, and yes, it can also be legal. But let's not kid ourselves that
the later is the norm, and let's not take chances with the poor and working class people in ourcommunity who cannot afford to enforce the complex and few laws that protect us.
I will be so proud to see Bozeman pass Right to Counsel. It will show that this community isnot blind to the pain of eviction and devastation it causes, and that we are serious about taking
care of our community. Codify Tentant Right to Counsel this Tuesday. Keep our community in their homes, Be real
and proactive and see the impact it has in so many Bozemanite's lives - I'm sure you won'tregret it!
Thank you for supporting this program!
Mardy Harding 3020 Healy Ave
Bozeman, MT 59715