Downtown Bozeman Improvement Plan

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1 INTRINSIK ARCHITECTURE LELAND CONSULTING GROUP GROUNDPRINT Downtown Bozeman Improvement Plan AUGUST 17, 2018 SUMMARY OF COMMUNITY INPUT & EARLY IDEAS

2 PRESENTATION CONTENT The following pages include a preliminary summary of what we learned from our Engagement Week during August 13-17, and through on-line feedback. The ideas represent a few key ideas that were present in early brainstorm sessions that week. Please stay tuned to watch the plan develop and continue to give your feedback!

3 Community Conversations Feedback Summary METHODS THEMES WHAT WE HEARD

GETTING THE WORD OUT How did people find out

Chronicle City of Bozeman Email list servs and

4 GETTING THE WORD OUT How did people find out about the plan and ways to engage? Downtown Bozeman website Downtown Bozeman Facebook/ Instagram Press Release Bozeman Chronicle City of Bozeman list servs and stakeholder invitations Engagement postcards Storefront Activity Parklet signage

5 ENGAGEMENT WEEK Feedback to online survey responses 165+ participants in five community workshops* 155 comment flags placed 227 comments overall - sticky notes, flags, postcards 68 stakeholder interviews Numbers are approximate based on sign-in sheets and head counts *not including Bogert Farmer s Market

Leaders Developers and Builders Downtown Office Employers Historic

6 STAKEHOLDER CONVERSATIONS Focus groups were held on the following topics: Advisory Committee Business Owners City Staff Community Leaders Developers and Builders Downtown Office Employers Historic Preservation Neighbors Property Owners Young Professionals/Next Gen Group

7 STAKEHOLDER CONVERSATIONS Takeaways Transform the relationship of city nodes like Downtown and The Cannery to create exciting destinations and connections between. Congestion is not all bad, means stuff is happening. Neighborhood character is an important element. Address homelessness downtown. Development projects are challenged by expenses and timeline for approvals. Parking restrictions disincentivize office development. Parking is the elephant in the room - it is still a challenge. We need to think multimodal, what does the future hold for cars? Can we open up parking downtown in underutilized, private lots?

8 STAKEHOLDER CONVERSATIONS Takeaways Keeping downtown sustainable means preserving the mix of retail and restaurants. The east and west edges of downtown are gaps in the street experience. This is an opportunity to rethink side street businesses Find ways to imagine an incubator space downtown. Don t make Main do everything! Invest in bike infrastructure between MSU and downtown. To make downtown a livable retail center access to grocers are important to have downtown. Soroptomist Park is great for those who use it, but it breaks up the Main Street experience. This is a crucial time to re-prioritize historic preservation in the city.

9 WORKSHOP KEY THEMES Mobility Parking Bikes Streets Public Transit Truck Access Alleys Directionality Signage Livability Character Housing Affordability Students Families Safety Development Scale Materiality Approval Process Building Heights Infill Parking Views Rentals Costs Developers Preservation History ADU Public Realm Open Space Outdoor dining Sidewalks Homelessness Events Business Retail Office Commercial

10 WORKSHOP KEY THEMES

11 MOBILITY SAMPLE COMMENTS My ideas are... Metered Parking Downtown, especially on Main Make Main Street with turn lanes, onelane only to drive, add bike lanes Wilson as an important potential grand boulevard to the north Redirect semi-trucks around Main Street My concerns are... Adapt to new paradigms for parking and vehicular movement Keeping one way streets Parking for visitors, lack of connectivity to the rest of town, overbuilding and congestion Clearer parking spots and bike lanes on Babcock for easier and safer access to downtown

12 LIVABILITY SAMPLE COMMENTS My ideas are... Don t demolish historic structures - like the Armory travesty Regulating the development of housing out of town/ considering a farther reaching public transit system. Consider ADU s responsibly as way to encourage density, not new apartment buildings My concerns are... Unoccupied pied-aterres for the private jet set Loss of charm Very important to keep it alive - retail shopping, preserve the mom and pop stores Too much, too fast! You must appreciate how unique what you have now really is, Be different! Be unique!

13 DEVELOPMENT SAMPLE COMMENTS My ideas are... Develop better and larger office spaces to bring more high paying employees downtown Important to step down heights further from downtown Consider ADU s responsibly as way to encourage density, not new apartment buildings My concerns are... large, over tree top grey block buildings and out of scale and character with historic downtown New developments will not respect the architectural elements that give Bozeman its character. Too much infill that it makes Bozeman too metropolitan

14 BUSINESS SAMPLE COMMENTS My ideas are... My concerns are... Support locallyowned businesses. Need neighborhood retail locations, drug store, grocery, office supplies - not just galleries and restaurants Very important to keep it alive - retail shopping, preserve the mom and pop stores Don t take away more parking for new offices Traffic calming on Mendenhall and Babcock. Make them human scale. Encourage retail there. Rental rates driving out all but high end business

15 PUBLIC REALM SAMPLE COMMENTS My ideas are... Make Bozeman Creek an amenity (open it up) Better utilization of green space in and near downtown Heated Patios for Winter Create other centralities that allow for more pedestrian traffic beyond Main Street My concerns are... Congested sidewalks, bikers, pedestrians and outdoor dining congestion in business districts off leash dog parks are encouraging owners to take their dogs off leash outside of parks - concerning for children We need to require public squares and gathering places integrated into new development. Not just green space.

16 ONLINE FEEDBACK Tell us a fond memory of Downtown. I proposed to my wife in Downtown! Walking down Main Street, seeing friends, and making new friends out of strangers by making eye contact, smiling, saying hi and stopping to chat. First Christmas Stroll - froze our butts off. Thirty years ago, before moving to Bozeman, my mom was describing the downtown and she used the word old fashioned so I imagined dirt streets and wooden sidewalks. I was pleasantly surprised! Sitting outside at the Garage restaurant in the summer and listening to Music on Main, greeting friends on the Art Walks and appreciating the creative talents of the Bozeman community.

17 ONLINE FEEDBACK If you could fix one thing about Downtown today, what would it be? The newest large buildings are ugly and not in keeping with the character of our historic downtown. not overwhelm it and detract from it. Less expensive store front leasing for local business owners, more bike friendly lanes, slower speed limits (like 15mph). Left hand turns. Take out parking every other block for turn lane with arrow. Left hand turns not allowed anywhere else I would like to see the road network reevaluated. Consider converting Main Street to a three lane road with a dedicated turn lane and back-in diagonal parking. All the side streets from Grand to Black would be as popular as Main Street. More variety and attention toward promoting businesses located on the side streets.

18 ONLINE FEEDBACK In 10 years, what is your dream for Downtown? How should it grow and change, or what is important to retain? Light transit on Main Street to get folks from parking areas in surrounding areas to Downtown. Make Downtown, more user friendly without pollution, noise, etc. It is not sustainable as is. More bike and pedestrian friendly areas. And public space, affordable housing, on site parking, community rooms, etc. It s important to retain the small town downtown feel. Keep the buildings short, quaint and original. More affordable housing--keep a diverse residency--service industry employees should be able to rent within the area. Re-route the semis. I have no idea how, but sitting outside during the few months of summer are ruined by a large, dirty, noisy truck!

19 IMAGINE DOWNTOWN...

21 SCALE TRANSITION PER EXISTING CODE KEY MAP FOR SECTION BOZEMAN ROUSE MENDENHALL ST MAIN ST BABCOCK ST

RECENT TRANSPORTATION IDEAS WILLSON AVE 14.

23 RECENT TRANSPORTATION IDEAS WILLSON AVE % LENGTH OF COMMUTERS AVERAGE WHO TRAVEL BY BOZEMAN BIKE OR WALK COMMUTE (MIN) 7TH AVE NEW BIKE BOULEVARD POSSIBLE ON LAMME ROUSE AVE MENDENHALL & BABCOCK REQUIRE NARROW LANES FOR DEDICATED BIKEWAYS 2017 Transportation Management Plan tested ways to expand bikeways. MDT vehicular counts show that vehicular traffic has not increased over the last 30 years, but it may feel more congested due to more pedestrians and no clear route for bikes. 5TH AVE PARTS OF OLIVE MAY CARRY TOO MUCH TRAFFIC FOR BIKES WILLSON AVE REDUCE MAIN TO 3 LANES & ADD BIKE LANES MAIN ST Bike Lane Designated Bicycle Route Shared Use Path Trail TMP 2017, CITY GIS, MDT

POTENTIAL CHANGES LET MAIN BE FOR PEDESTRIANS PEACH ST 7TH AVE 5TH AVE WILLSON AVE ROUSE AVE PROS: Lets the streets work as a system LINK TO HIGH SCHOOL FUTURE SIGNAL AT BLACK ADD WESTBOUND BIKE LANE

24 POTENTIAL CHANGES LET MAIN BE FOR PEDESTRIANS PEACH ST 7TH AVE 5TH AVE WILLSON AVE ROUSE AVE PROS: Lets the streets work as a system LINK TO HIGH SCHOOL FUTURE SIGNAL AT BLACK ADD WESTBOUND BIKE LANE TO MENDENHALL LINK TO TRAILS & VILLAGE Net increase in 40+ on-street parking spaces New bike lanes link well into existing network New Bike Lane Street Reconfiguration New Signal REDUCE MAIN TO 3 LANES & ADD DIAGONAL PARKING 8TH AVE BIKE LANE TO MSU ADD EASTBOUND BIKE LANE TO BABCOCK LINK TO TRAILS MAIN ST

25 POTENTIAL CHANGES URBAN STREETS PROS: PEACH ST 7TH AVE 5TH AVE WILLSON AVE ROUSE AVE Creates safe biking on Main STUDY IMPACT OF 2-WAY CONVERSION CHANGE MENDENHALL TO 2-WAY; RETAIN PARKING No net loss of parking As two-way streets, Mendenhall and Babcock have better development character and traffic calming BIKE LANE INTERRUPTION AT 7TH CHANGE BABCOCK TO 2-WAY; RETAIN PARKING REDUCE MAIN TO 3 LANES & ADD BIKE LANES MAIN ST LINK TO TRAILS & VILLAGE New Bike Lane Street Reconfiguration 8TH AVE New Signal

26 EXISTING STREET CHARACTER Historic Main Street (State Highway) Center used for stockpiling snow during the winter ~ ~15

27 OPPORTUNITY Historic Main Street (Back-in) Angled Parking OPPORTUNITY FOR EXPANDED PARKING WITH ANGLED SPACES Angled Parking 45 ) 15 ~ ~15

28 OPPORTUNITY Historic Main Street Bike Lanes OPPORTUNITY FOR TWO WAY BIKE LANES Bike Lane 5-6 min ~ ~15

30 LIVABILITY Vibrant Downtowns In Bozeman, downtown retail activity is focused along Main Street. Peer downtowns are active district-wide and provide more space for people and businesses. Bellingham MENDENHALL ST Fort Collins MAIN ST BABCOCK ST Bozeman Bend Cities all drawn to relative scale, active downtown blocks sourced from Google Maps. Missoula Boise

Preserve neighborhood character and scale

31 LIVABILITY Neighborhood Character Encourage diverse housing options and improve affordability for people who want to live Downtown. Preserve neighborhood character and scale through clear building design standards. Bottom image: Greenville, South Carolina

33 A GREAT URBAN PLAZA An outdoor living room for downtown SOROPTOMIST Bozeman 0.25 ACRES PEARL STREET MALL Boulder 0.5 ACRES DIRECTOR PARK Portland 0.5 ACRES

34 A GREAT URBAN PLAZA SOROPTOMIST Bozeman, Montana This small park is currently a landscaped garden with a meandering path. The park offers limited opportunities for diverse programming beyond people watching and places to sit during lunch.

A GREAT URBAN PLAZA GAMES WATER PLAZA DIRECTOR PARK

the park features a café, ample outdoor seating and a

35 A GREAT URBAN PLAZA GAMES WATER PLAZA DIRECTOR PARK PORTLAND, OREGON This former parking lot was converted into a public square in Located just a block from Pioneer Courthouse Square, the park features a café, ample outdoor seating and a fountain, and plays host to occasional events in the summer. EVENTS AND GATHERINGS

36 A GREAT URBAN PLAZA GAMES WATER PLAZA PEARL STREET BOULDER, COLORADO Year-round, Pearl Street is a gathering place for Boulderites and visitors, where musicians and performers fill the air with festive noise, kids clamber on play installations their parents once clambered on themselves, and strolling couples peer in shop windows.

38 PARKING UTILIZATION WILLSON AVE ROUSE AVE 7TH AVE MAIN ST High Utilization Blocks with over 85% occupancy during peak times 5TH AVE WILLSON AVE WESTERN TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE

39 INCREASE & OPTIMIZE PARKING UNLOCK EXISTING SPACES During peak hours, parking can be ~65% full; 100 s of under-utilized space should be maximized. New residential requirement of 0.75 spaces per unit to encourage small, affordable housing. Reduce office parking minimums to 2/1000SF (from 4). Unencumber buildings before 1980 from UDC reqs. Clarify management strategies (ie. public/private sharing.) DIVERSIFY MULTI- MODAL CHOICES Create an urban express transit loop, linking Downtown, Midtown, the Cannery District, and the Fairgrounds (potential park-andride site). Expand bicycle infrastructure. EXPAND CAPACITY Complete the existing garage to host 2 additional levels (200+ spaces). Test key sites for future structured parking. Expand public-private benefits in future projects. Ensure street parking is an accessible public parking resource.

40 Thank You! For all of your ideas so far. Please stay in touch via for more updates and ways to participate.

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