HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-25-26 Public Comment - M. Kaveney - Public Comment for UPF Board members, UFMP Update folder with staff responseFrom:Jessica Laughlin
To:Bozeman Public Comment
Cc:Alex Nordquest; Mitchell Overton; Addi Jadin
Subject:RE: [EXTERNAL]Public Comment for UPF Board members, UFMP Update folder
Date:Thursday, June 25, 2026 12:32:25 PM
Just sent it out. Thanks!
Jess Laughlin | Administrative Assistant II
Bozeman Parks and Recreation Department
600 Bridger Drive | Bozeman, MT 59771
P:406.582.2909 | E: Jessica.Laughlin@bozemanmt.gov | www.bozeman.net/recreation
Please note my email has changed!
From: Bozeman Public Comment <comments@bozemanmt.gov>
Sent: Thursday, June 25, 2026 12:23 PM
To: Jessica Laughlin <Jessica.Laughlin@bozemanmt.gov>
Cc: Alex Nordquest <Alex.Nordquest@bozemanmt.gov>; Mitchell Overton
<Mitchell.Overton@bozemanmt.gov>; Addi Jadin <Addi.Jadin@bozemanmt.gov>
Subject: FW: [EXTERNAL]Public Comment for UPF Board members, UFMP Update folder
Hi Jessica,
Please distribute this public comment to the UPF board.
Take care, Alex
From: BozemanTreeCoalition <bozemantreecoalition@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 24, 2026 11:40 PM
To: Mitchell Overton <Mitchell.Overton@bozemanmt.gov>; Alex Nordquest
<Alex.Nordquest@bozemanmt.gov>; Bozeman Public Comment <comments@bozemanmt.gov>
Cc: Alison Sweeney <Alison.Sweeney@bozemanmt.gov>
Subject: [EXTERNAL]Public Comment for UPF Board members, UFMP Update folder
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Hello-
Please share the attached letter with the UPF Board members and the public comments folder
before the noon deadline today for the Thursday June 25 UPF meeting and work session.
Please also forward the attached letter to Mitch and Alex if the email addresses above are no
longer current.
Thank you,
Marcia Kaveney for BTC
To: Mitch Overton, Bozeman Parks and Recreation Department
Alex Nordquest, Forestry Division
Urban Parks and Forestry Advisory Board members
Re: Urban Forest Management Plan Update and Survey Results
June 25, 2026
The Bozeman Tree Coalition (BTC) is writing today to express its appreciation for the good work
that has been done on the Urban Forest Management Plan (UFMP) Update, the continued
opportunities for public comment, and to share some perspectives for the Urban Parks and
Forestry Advisory Board work session of the UFMP Update.
Following a review of the work session survey results and presentation slides, BTC is pleased to
see that some of the “Key Takeaways” of the survey include concerns about the removal of
mature trees, the acknowledgement that replacing trees with a one-to-one ratio does not replace
the value of the removed mature trees, and the importance of native and diverse species for
wildlife habitat. BTC agrees with these takeaways and looks forward to seeing how these
concerns are worked into the UFMP update.
The “Preliminary Data Review” sections revealed some topics that BTC would like to see
explored in more depth in future work sessions. Some of these topics include, but are not limited
to, the following:
(1) Canopy Coverage Goals:
Is 12% a robust enough goal? On PlanIt Geo’s for setting urban canopy cover goals, it states the
average urban tree cover in “grasslands is 18%, and [is] just 12% in desert areas.” Bozeman is
considered a high desert by some sources, but also part of the northern great plains’ grasslands.
Bozeman receives an average of 16+ inches of rain/year compared to a desert which typically
receives 10 or less inches of rain/year. A canopy cover goal of 12% over 20 years will only achieve
what can be found in the average desert area. Also, because Bozeman’s canopy coverage is
already 10-12% wouldn’t it be reasonable to set a higher target goal?
BOZEMANTREECOALITION@GMAIL.COM
(2) Arriving at a tree canopy goal-
PlanIt Geo’s website also discusses how to arrive at a goal. “Tree planting should be methodically
planned with a specific purpose in mind. The first step in developing a planting strategy is to
define the goals” - Chris Pieber, Director of Urban Forestry Consulting Services, PlanIT GEO.
What purpose(s) is Bozeman trying to accomplish with the tree canopy? i.e. Shade, mental
health, pollution abatement, storm water control, etc… Where does Bozeman want to
accomplish that?
(3) Tree planting financial reports-
Are analyses being done to compare the financial cost of planting programs compared to the cost
of retaining existing healthy mature trees? Can this be investigated more thoroughly? If it’s cost
ebective to retain the existing mature trees, it would support one of the Key Takeaways in the
survey report.
(4) Green Ash Removal:
How do we arrive at the targeted canopy cover goal while simultaneously setting a goal for
removing 10% of ash trees? Removing ~ 350 mature trees per year will likely be shocking for the
public. The exception would be if the removals are appropriate due to pest damage, tree health,
risk assessment, etc. Given that emerald ash borer has not yet been detected in Montana, can
this removal recommendation be discussed in more depth at future work sessions?
(5) Young Tree Maintenance (YTM) as a budgeted and well defined program will be a key factor in
recovering from the Ash tree losses that appear on the horizon.
(6) Is there a goal to increase the health of Bozeman’s trees from fair to good or good to excellent.
What percentage of Bozeman’s urban forest trees are in excellent health? In good health? In fair
health? In poor health? Dead?
(7) Most notably, further investigation/discussion is warranted on the subject of “private trees on
private land undergoing development review” before the UFMP update is drafted. This topic was
postponed during the Unified Develpment Code (Chapter 38) update with the expressed intention
that it would be covered by the updated UFMP, and upon completion would guide related
development code updates in Chapter 38 .
Thank you all for your consideration of these comments. The BTC looks forward to future
engagement opportunities on the UFMP Update.
Marcia Kaveney, BTC cofounder
Daniel Carty, BTC cofounder
April Craighead, BTC cofounder
Angie Kociolek, BTC cofounder
Annie Sheets, Retired City Arborist, BTC member