Story Mill plan will meet highest green standards
Saturday February 24, 2007
Bozeman Daily Chronicle, February 24, 2007
Kath Williams, Guest Columnist
The proposed development of the Story Mill area just north of Bozeman’s downtown has engendered some strong feelings within the community. Most are positive comments, starting with the fact that this will be a new diverse neighborhood embracing Bozeman history while regenerating wetlands and reviving an area that is deteriorating.
There are many unique opportunities in the Story Mill project. First, it is led by a socially responsible developer with a vision that provides an alternative to sprawling fields of high-priced, single-family homes. Secondly, this will be a “in-town” neighborhood, not a homogeneous development. It is being designed for people of all ages and income levels, living and working together. It will be filled with residents who have purchased homes or apartments and located businesses purposely to reduce the negative impact of living on the land. The folks who choose to live here are those who prefer to walk and bike rather than drive and who are interested in preserving history, conserving natural resources and reducing emissions.
One of the most important opportunities is to demonstrate that growth and development can be done in a sustainable manner. Bozeman has already taken a first step with a single building, the Bozeman Library. As a long-time Bozeman resident and someone who is both personally and professionally devoted to “green” concepts, I was honored to contribute to the sustainable design standards, from Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), by which Bozeman Library was designed and built.
The Story Mill developer has committed to going much further. The team is applying to be a national pilot project for LEED-Neighborhood Development. This new third-party certification through the U.S. Green Building Council defines sustainable neighborhoods, using the best urban design principles known to date. It requires the application of hundreds of environmental and social criteria including preservation of existing structures, the reusing or recycling of existing materials, reduced automobile dependency and transportation efficiency, parkland and wetland preservation, water and stormwater conservation and contaminated brown-fields redevelopment.
LEED requires respect for the land and the people. The goal is to build a community through collaboration, creating solutions for all kinds of development challenges. Essential components of LEED projects are partnerships and teamwork needed to overcome challenges inherent in any leadership project. We have to think differently, act differently, build differently.
Addressing the concerns of current neighbors becomes a natural part of any LEED project. For example, Story Mill will produce more traffic and the northeast neighborhood will be impacted on a daily basis under the current street configuration. Story Mill’s traffic studies show that the effects of traffic can be mitigated to the city’s standards for capacity and level of service. The city plans to construct an Oak Street connector with or without the Story Mill project, and the plan includes the use of street impact fee money. By encouraging new development within the city limits, there will be more impact fee money to help pay for it.
Building a LEED neighborhood development will provide a chance for Bozeman people to work together for the future of Bozeman and the kind of community it can be. Growth is a given, and most of us understand that residential developments are a function of economic development. As a community, it is important that we encourage and support developers who are taking a leadership role and expanding the “green start” the city of Bozeman has taken with the LEED-silver Library.
Building to LEED, the highest standard currently available, is not easy. LEED-ND is the most responsible and inclusive approach to development, the result of years of volunteer work by the Green Building Council, Congress for New Urbanism and Natural Resources Defense Council. The entire document is downloadable from www.usgbc.org under LEED. Bozeman has before it the opportunity to live up to the full potential of environmental stewardship of Montana’s rural beauty and demonstrate national leadership in sustainability.
Kath Williams, a resident of Bozeman, recently concluded her third term as president of the World Green Building Council. She is a LEED accredited professional and serves on the Story Mill Center Development Team.
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