HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-25-16 Public Comment - M. Hamilton - Golden Gate January 24, 2016
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ATTN: Allyson Brekke JAN 255 20 66
City of Bozeman Dept of Community Development
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Bozeman, MT COMMUNITY[)FVELOPMFNT
P. O. Box 1230
Dear Ms Brekke,
This letter is our response to the invitation for public comment on the site plan and building permit
application for the Golden Gate Condominiums, 4835 Golden Gate Avenue, Bozeman. We own the
house at 4888 Victory Street in Loyal Gardens, a neighborhood that will be directly affected by the
proposed condominiums. Our daughter Katrina and her children are living there now, while we
gradually prepare to move from our present Bozeman house where we have lived for the past 45
years.
According to an informational meeting held last Thursday evening by the Loyal Garden HOA, the
condos site plan is being changed. We were disappointed in the original site plan showing 84 condo
units and 168 parking spaces, in 3-story buildings. It was not sensitive to the existing neighborhood
for reasons we believe have already been conveyed by our neighbors. We trust that the city will
provide an opportunity for us to comment on the new site plan.
There are two issues related to the Golden Gate Condo development that we urge the city to consider.
Bozeman residents are active and outdoor-oriented folks. From the sketches we saw on Thursday, the
revised condo site plan still uses essentially all of lot 11 for buildings and parking, even to the extent
of putting the buildings closer to the street than the neighborhood setback requirements. No space is
reserved for the residents to enjoy the outdoors. The site plan should provide a children's playground,
some additional play space possibly including a basketball hoop, and an outdoor area for teens/adults
to enjoy. We hope the city will work with the developer to include such amenities in the revised site
plan.
The second issue is that the development at Huffine and Cottonwood requires safe pedestrian and
bicycle paths to points east. The city should commit to assure that paths are built along the south side
of Huffine from the Town Pump at Cottonwood to the Huffine-Fowler intersection(about 700 yards),
from which point satisfactory paths already exist. Then walkers/cyclers could travel between
Huffine&Cottonwood and College&llth (MSU) safely, having to cross only two high traffic streets
(Fowler, 19th). As part of its oversight of new housing developments, we believe that it is Bozeman's
responsibility to see that paths are constructed for non-vehicular access to central locations.
Please ensure that the Golden Gate Condo project is livable, safe, accessible, and environmentally-
friendly.
Respectfully submitted,
Martin A. Hamilton Mary T. Hamilton Katrina N. Hamilton
309 S 6th Ave 4888 Victory St
Bozeman, MT 59715 Bozeman, MT 59718
406-587-3392