HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-31-26 Public Comment - Z. Osman - Public Comment for Landmark Project and NCOD Guidelines UpdateFrom:Zehra Osman
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Subject:[EXTERNAL]Fwd: Public Comment for Landmark Project and NCOD Guidelines Update
Date:Tuesday, March 31, 2026 12:46:36 PM
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Please include in the public record
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Zehra Osman <zosman534@gmail.com>Date: Tuesday, March 31, 2026
Subject: Public Comment for Landmark Project and NCOD Guidelines UpdateTo: Jim Webster <jwebster587@gmail.com>, Chelsea Holling <cnholling91@outlook.com>,
Mike Wiseman <mike@arch118.com>, Allyson Brekke <allycaroline@gmail.com>, AshleyHarville <ashleyharville@yahoo.com>, Mitchell Korus <mitchell@smalldogrealty.com>,
Joey Morrison <jmorrison@bozeman.net>, Jennifer Madgic <jmadgic@bozeman.net>,alison.sweeney@bozemanmt.gov, Emma Bode <ebode@bozeman.net>,
dfischer@bozeman.netCc: rharbage@bozeman.net, Erin George <egeorge@bozeman.net>, Chuck Winn
<cwinn@bozeman.net>
Honorable Historic Preservation Advisory Board members, City Staff, Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and
Commissioners:
There was a time in our country's history when we decided, as a nation, to ensure we protected our natural
and cultural environment as our cities, highways, and infrastructure grew. Landmark legislations were
enacted and agencies were created. Cities subsequently evaluated their historic properties, including
buildings, districts, sites (including archeological), structures, and objects. Ethnographic resources
important to indigenous cultures were identified, acknowledged, and protected. The country's goal
continued to be to grow without losing history, historic properties, historic character, as well as
environmental preservation. American cities, like ancient cities all over the world, would retain tangible
evidence of its past history, honoring that history and the character that it embodied.
Shortly after this time, in 1991, Bozeman citizens and the city of Bozeman joined this commitment and
created the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay District (NCOD), which was created to recognize the city's
historic core and to protect its historic properties and historic character. The NCOD contains more than
4,000 properties and nine National Register Historic Districts located in and around Bozeman’s historic
downtown core.
Fast forward to today. At the national level, our nation's current administration is incrementally dismantling
of all these years of legislation protecting natural and cultural resources. It has been heartbreaking to see the
construction of a border wall bulldoze through significant cultural sites and sensitive natural resources. The
White House west wing was demolished without any adherence to the law and a new building is being
proposed that does not comply with regulations established to protect the character of our nation's capitol.
Let us not allow Bozeman to succumb to this current and unfortunate trend of discounting and dismantling
previous commitments, goals, and protections. Yes, of course Bozeman can grow, however it should grow
without irreversible destruction and demolition of historic buildings, districts, structures, sites, and objects.
The historic integrity and historic character of these historic properties should not be adversely affected.
This is what previous Bozeman generations/administrations committed to with the NCOD, and this should
be honored when proposing any changes to the NCOD, NCOD Design Guidelines, and NCOD code.
Currently, according to Bozeman's CODE, new construction within the NCOD will be invited and
encouraged PROVIDED primary emphasis is given to the preservation of existing buildings and FURTHER
PROVIDED the design of such new space enhances and contributes to the aesthetic character and function
of the property and the surrounding neighborhood or area (emphasis added by me). Though there are some
limited exceptions, any alteration, demolition, or new construction within the NCOD requires design review
through a Certificate of Appropriateness application. All work performed in completion of an approved
certificate of appropriateness must be in conformance with the most recent edition of the Secretary of the
Interior's Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with Guidelines for Preserving, Rehabilitating,
Restoring, and Reconstructing Historic Buildings. These standards apply to ALL historic property types,
including buildings, structures, districts, sites, and objects. When applying these standards, the review
authority MUST be guided by the NCOD design guidelines to determine whether the proposal is compatible
with any existing or surrounding structures.
Design Guidelines for the NCOD were first adopted in 2006. Per the Code for NCOD Standards, the
architectural appearance design guidelines used to consider the appropriateness and compatibility of
proposed alterations with original features of subject structures or properties, and with neighboring
structures and properties, MUST focus upon height, proportions of doors/windows, relationship of building
masses and spaces, roof shape, scale, dominant horizontal or vertical expression of surrounding structures,
architectural details, concealment of non-period appurtenances, materials, and color schemes. Non-period
and innovative design of new structures and additions is encouraged WHEN such new construction or
additions do not destroy significant attributes of the structure/components AND WHEN such design is
compatible with the foregoing elements of the structure and surrounding structures.
Wow. These protections look pretty strong to me. When I hear people say the NCOD has no "teeth," I look
at the CODE and Guidelines such as what is shared in the above text and I see lots of teeth! Re-read what I
shared above: they contain words like "standards," "must," "compatible," etc. Look it up yourself if you
doubt what I have shared.
As part of the overall Landmark Project, The City recently hired a consultant team—the Lakota Group—to
update the NCOD Design Guidelines NCOD Guidelines Update. I strongly recommend that the city staff
and consultants not weaken and dismantle Bozeman's existing NCOD protections. Let us not follow the
current destructive trend we're seeing in our nation's capitol. Honor what progress has been made in
Bozeman's protections of natural and cultural resources. Don't be like the current administration in
Washington DC; don't sell out the natural and cultural resources and character of our city.
Respectfully,
Zehra Osman
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