BOZEMAN, Mont. – City commissioners will vote on Tuesday on a capital improvement plan that lays out the city’s spending for city roads, facilities and parks over the next few years.
The plan isn’t a final say on the projects, but measures in the approved plan are incorporated into the city’s budget, which requires separate approval. The plan lays out specific projects the city plans to fund over the next few years, when they will fund them and where funding will come from.
Some of the major projects in the proposed plan include funding for body cameras for the Bozeman Police Department, replacement fire engines and new “quick response” vehicles for the fire department to respond to medical emergencies that don’t require larger engines.
City finance director Kristen Donald said at a recent city commission meeting that they hope to include plans for a fourth fire station in a future capital improvement plan.
The plan includes funds to continue replacing the library’s carpet and an expansion of the current library building. The draft also includes plans for a proposed recreation center and library complex on the west side of town.
The proposed plan also includes adding traffic lanes on Kagy Boulevard between South 19th and Willson avenues, which would also be funded through the Montana Department of Transportation.
Bozeman Public Works Director Mitch Reister said during a late November meeting that the work is planned for fiscal year 2025. Montana Department of Transportation is leading the project, Reister said.
The proposed allocation has drawn criticism from some residents who have urged the city to prioritize funding pedestrian and multi-modal transportation infrastructure rather than vehicle infrastructure.
During public comment at a meeting earlier this month, planning board member Mark Egge said expanding Kagy Boulevard doesn’t line up with the city’s plans, and said adding lanes could worsen traffic.
“Adding lanes to cure congestion is like loosening your belt to cure obesity,” Egge said. “Why are we spending money to add lanes when we can’t take care of the lanes we already have?”
Egge and others have suggested prioritizing pedestrian and bike improvements to College Street over the Kagy allocation. Egge also urged the city to better prioritize their funding plans.
“We can and should better align the money that we invest with our goals,” Egge said.
Beyond criticism of the Kagy project, others have criticized the funding plan for not including enough for multi-modal transportation, which was prioritized in the recently passed growth policy and proposed climate plan.
Marilee Brown, with Galla10 Alliance Pathways, criticized the city at a recent meeting for not having enough funding for bike infrastructure.
“There needs to be better funding,” Brown said during public comment. “Please stop leaving multi-modal projects out in the cold.”
Several commissioners agreed. City Manager Jeff Mihelich said at a November meeting they would come up with more options to fund sidewalk and bike path projects.
In a city memo for Tuesday’s meeting, city staff list the projects in the proposed plan that do include pedestrian and multi-modal funding, noting bike lanes will be included in road projects funded by the Street Impact Fee fund.
The memo also recommends the commission could adopt the plan and request staff include funding in the fiscal year 2022 budget for bike and pedestrian improvements.
