HomeMy WebLinkAboutINC neighborhood Public Comment 6-20-14
June 19, 2014
THE INTER-NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL (INC) OF BOZEMAN, MONTANA
To Mayor Jeff Krauss, jkrauss@bozeman.net
Deputy Mayor Carson Taylor, ctaylor@bozeman.net
Commissioner Cynthia Andrus, candrus@bozeman.net
Commissioner Chris Mehl, cmehl@bozeman.net Commissioner I-Ho Pomeroy, ipomeroy@bozeman.net
From The Inter-Neighborhood Council Ms. Jennifer Rockne, Chair
Dear Mayor Krauss and Bozeman City Commissioners,
The Inter-Neighborhood Council (INC) strongly urges funding the proposed position of Neighbor-
hood District Specialist in the City budget which you are considering. We understand that half of the time of a person in this position would be allocated to serving as the City’s Neighborhood Coordinator. The City of Bozeman demonstrated the importance of the Neighborhoods Program when the City Commission
formalized the Program by passing the Neighborhood Recognition Ordinance in Dec., 2007. The City and its residents will benefit from a decision to continue to support this program by funding a Neighborhood
District Specialist whose responsibilities include serving as the City’s Neighborhood Coordinator.
A Neighborhood Coordinator can build on the previous progress made by the Neighborhood Program
and the Inter-Neighborhood Council by:
• developing more tools to facilitate consistent communications between neighborhood associa-
tions and residents,
• improving the success of neighborhood associations by dedicating time and resources to assist
their volunteer leadership and ensure that they are fulfilling their Neighborhood Program obliga-tions,
• proactively increasing participation in the Program by building community awareness and creat-
ing outreach opportunities.
For several years the INC has discussed ways the City could provide more functionality and interac-tivity in the Neighborhoods section of the Web site. Not only could tools be added to assist neighborhood association leaders to communicate with their membership, but residents city-wide could gain greater ex-
posure to the Neighborhoods Program, sparking increased interest in expanding the program. To date, minimal progress has been made toward this goal. The INC believes that a Neighborhood Coordinator is
essential to help maintain focus on meeting this goal.
Participation in the City’s Neighborhood Program has increased over the past few years. However,
addition of new recognized neighborhood associations has been nearly offset by dormancy and dissolu-
tion of other associations. Without a Neighborhood Coordinator, it is unlikely that the Program will grow,
and it may not be able to maintain its current level of membership. A Neighborhood Coordinator provides
stability and reinforcement for the leadership of recognized neighborhoods and for the Inter-Neighborhood Council. A Neighborhood Coordinator could also proactively focus on establishing addi-
tional recognized neighborhood associations throughout Bozeman, instead of relying solely on neighbor
inquiries. One such avenue is reaching out to homeowners’ associations around the city. Some HOAs have recently expressed interest in participating, and this opportunity should be seized. Proactive efforts
are unlikely to occur without a Neighborhood Coordinator. Increased participation in the Neighborhood Program will greatly strengthen the Neighborhood Program and the INC. In turn, a strengthened and bet-ter-represented INC will provide more value to the City Commission and City departments, both by sup-
plying input from a broader cross-section of the City on important issues, and by providing an expanded conduit from the City government back to the neighborhoods. The Neighborhood Coordinator has also had a significant role in advancing other outreach efforts such as the Good Neighbor Program. This pro-
gress might be lost without someone focused on continuing to work on these programs. At our meeting on June 12, 2014, the INC membership discussed this issue and subsequently voted in
favor of drafting this recommendation requesting that the Neighborhood District Specialist position be funded in the budget.
Sincerely,
The Inter-Neighborhood Council Jennifer Rockne, South Central Association of Neighbors (SCAN), Chair Ginny Cowan, Bozeman Creek Neighborhood Association (BCNA)
Joe Genovese, New Hyalite View Network (NHVN) Gary Gullickson, Bogert Park Neighborhood Association (BPNA) Kirk Johnson, Marwyn-Lindley Neighbors (MarLinN)
Elizabeth Healey, University Neighborhood Association (UNA) Chris Nixon, North East Neighborhood Association (NENA) Bob Wall, SouthEast Neighborhood Association (SENA)