HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-01-25 Public Comment - R. Gorsuch - Save Bozeman's old treesFrom:Royce Gorsuch
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Save Bozeman"s old trees
Date:Friday, November 28, 2025 12:07:57 PM
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Do the Commissioners hate trees? We hope not. Its not good enough to leave the UDC code as
is.
Here's some updates for UDC, if you care about trees - 38.410.010
"The design and development of all land uses must be properly related to topography,
and must, to the extent possible, preserve the natural terrain, natural drainage,
existing topsoil, trees and other existing vegetation." ,
It is believed that “to the extent possible” creates a loophole, effectively requiring nothing tobe preserved at all. We saw this happen at Canyon Gate which resulted in the total removal ofall trees, etc.
Instead; strengthen this code by adding the word "maximum" so the whole code willread,
"The design and development of all land uses must be properly related to topography,
and must, to the maximum extent possible, preserve the natural terrain, natural
drainage, existing topsoil, trees and other existing vegetation." (Emphasis ours)
The suggested "maximum" is borrowed from text on page 87 in the Sensitive Lands Protection
Plan that states, "On-site native plants and mature trees should be preserved to the maximumextent possible." It goes on to say, "It is more cost-effective to preserve existing vegetation
than to revegetate, and once disturbed, the biological and visual integrity of a site becomesseverely compromised and is complicated to restore."
It's time for the City Commission to stand up for better land stewardship bystrengthening and implementing the City's own plans and codes already on the books.