Bozeman downtown boards discuss URD projects, FY26 draft budget and planning for URD sunsetting

Bozeman’s Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) board and Urban Renewal District (URD) staff spent the meeting reviewing the fiscal year 2026 draft budget, updates on URD projects and options for responding to the URD’s eventual sunset.

The discussion centered on three near-term priorities: forming a public‑private partnership (PPP) for downtown parking, moving forward on the EHOT Peace Park project, and planning how to transfer long‑term infrastructure responsibilities when URD funds expire. Director Emily (director) opened the meeting by saying the board would review the assessment rate and aim to approve a final budget at the March meeting rescheduled for March 26.

Why it matters: URD funds have paid for a large share of downtown planning and infrastructure. Board and city participants said they must identify which ongoing maintenance and which capital projects will transfer to the city or to property owners once URD funding ends, and whether new revenue tools or a PPP can replace some URD capacities.

Ellie, representing URD staff, said the downtown parking working group is moving from values and goals toward specific actions. The group plans a “shared‑use” program to encourage use of underutilized lots by employees and short‑term visitors and is preparing terms for a PPP that would combine URD and city funds and go to the development community with clear investment parameters. Ellie said the intent is not to “build it so they will come” but to accommodate projected future growth and ensure employee parking and taxable value increases.

The board discussed the URD’s approach to making investments that could generate future revenue or be structured to leave behind assets the BID or city could manage. Several participants emphasized the difference between maintenance responsibilities the BID typically handles (trash cans, flower baskets, routine upkeep) and larger capital work (sewer, major street reconstruction) that the city would likely need to carry in a post‑URD era.

Peace Park and streetscape projects: URD staff reported progress on the EHOT Peace Park. Staff estimated total construction costs at about $350,000, with roughly $100,000–$125,000 attributed to bio‑retention planters and about $200,000 for the park construction itself; staff said detailed constructability estimates are pending from the city’s contractor/engineer and full site plans have been submitted to the City of Bozeman. URD staff said the streets department will handle certain stormwater and curb‑bulb work and that multimodal transportation funds will contribute to those elements.

URD staff also described completion of a downtown streetscape standard and ongoing work to extend lighting and conduit installation near the Fifth and Main project; the Fifth/Main lighting project will include dozens of light poles and luminaires that URD and Midtown efforts will cover in phases.

Safety cameras and grants: The director and URD staff revisited a proposal to expand a small art and safety grant program to support Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) measures, including lighting and private security cameras. The director said she would seek board approval to increase the grant pool by about $20,000 to subsidize infrastructure on private property; URD staff noted state statute limits URD expenditures to planning and infrastructure and therefore does not allow URD dollars to fund ongoing operational costs, such as camera monitoring or long‑term maintenance.

Budget and assessment: The FY26 draft budget presented to the board keeps the assessment near $280,000, roughly $20,000 higher than FY25 in the draft. Staff reported a small decline in the district’s overall taxable value after property tax protests (about $800,000 lower than previously estimated) and said they used conservative taxable‑value assumptions in the FY26 figures. Line‑item changes discussed included a modest increase to the management fee, a renewed downtown safety line/item, slight increases in maintenance staff costs and supplies, and adjustments to sponsorship income for holiday lighting.

URD sunset and encumbered funds: Board members asked about large encumbered URD sums. Staff said the former Rouse fire station project has $1.6 million encumbered from URD funds and those funds are not available for draw until 2027; staff described the allocation as tied to a conditional use permit and said it is unlikely those specific funds will be drawn before 2027. Board members discussed possibilities for any remaining URD funds at sunset, including a revolving loan fund or targeted stockpiling of infrastructure items (light poles, trash cans, bike racks) to use later in priority locations.

Timeline and next steps: Commissioner Fisher said the city expects to have proposed zoning/street‑edge language and related code updates before the city commission for final action by this fall; that schedule will influence how quickly related capital work or regulatory changes proceed. URD and BID staff planned additional public engagement workshops and a sequence of reviews by boards and the transportation department before finalizing major elements such as streetscape language and PPP terms.

Votes at the meeting: The board approved the minutes for January. A motion to approve the minutes was moved and seconded (mover and seconder not specified in the transcript) and passed on a roll call with recorded “aye” votes from Susan Neidbauer, Eric Bowman, Elena Angelin and Eric Nelson; Mark and Randy were listed as not able to attend.

The board scheduled further review of the FY26 budget at the March meeting and asked staff to continue work on URD/PPP terms, detailed cost estimates for Peace Park, and preparations for public engagement on zoning and streetscape language.