<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2LD3Ql_15w2N23500" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2LD3Ql_15w2N23500" width="1763" height="1175" ><figcaption>College Street in Bozeman Jupiter Floros/Chronicle</figcaption></figure>Commissioners sent city staff back to the drawing board this week somewhat on plans to redo a portion of College Street running between campus and a popular stretch of businesses after pushback over the proposed removal of parking spots to make room for a shared-use path.City officials are proposing a road project on the street between 8th and 11th avenues, which is the northern boundary of the Montana State University campus on the south side and home to businesses such as Colombo’s Pizza, Joe’s Parkway Market and Pickle Barrel on the north side.The stretch of road is only 900 feet long or so, but has 13 driveways, five alley and street intersections, about three dozen on-street parking spots and about 8,200 vehicles on it daily, said Nick Ross, the city’s director of transportation.“I think this stretch of Bozeman may only be a couple hundred feet, but it is central to the fiber of Bozeman,” Deputy Mayor Joey Morrison said. “This community, the businesses that are there are the heart and soul of the business community of Bozeman.”The project includes plans to redo the sidewalk on the north side, work with businesses to remove some driveway cutouts and add a mid-block crosswalk with a beacon between 9th and 10th avenues.City officials have also proposed removing 24 parking spots on the south side of the street, moving the curb in and adding in a shared-use path between the road and a row of dormitories.Ross said city analysis shows the spots on the south side are often used by students going to campus during the semester.During a discussion about the project Tuesday, several College Street business owners urged the city to try to work with MSU to potentially use some of their land for the path to avoid losing the parking.“I really would not like to see the parking go on that street,” said Dave Lapinski, who owns the Exxon station on College and also lives nearby. “What I do see daily is abuse from the college, zero parking enforcement on that street. It might as well say ‘free MSU parking’ out there because that’s pretty much what it is.“This project might be pretty but it lacks a lot of practicality.”Jenny O’Brien, who owns Pickle Barrel, said losing the 24 spots would be detrimental to her business and could push her customers to park elsewhere, including in the Joe’s parking lot or the small lot next to her sandwich shop.Nearby residential street parking is largely reserved for permitted parking for neighborhood residents.“That will cause friction,” O’Brien said.Ross said the city didn’t have a “willing partner” in MSU on acquiring some of the land for the project during past discussions.City and university officials, though, are planning to meet again to discuss the issue after commissioners asked city staff to give it another go.“I do think it would be a missed opportunity to not reach out to MSU a second time,” Commissioner Emma Bode said.There is no timeline yet on when the discussions may move forward, but city spokesperson Takami Clark said Wednesday a meeting is planned in the coming weeks.MSU officials said they are willing to talk about the issue.“The university supports the city’s work to prioritize pedestrian and bicycle safety by extending the shared-use path west to Eighth Avenue, and MSU would be glad to speak with city staff on how to best resolve parking issues while improving safety for students, faculty, staff and visitors.” MSU spokesperson Mike Becker said in an emailed statement.During an open house earlier in the fall and at Tuesday’s meeting, people were otherwise supportive of parts of the project, such as the mid-block crossing and a city decision to not pursue making the intersection of 8th and College a roundabout.Ross shared with commissioners one direct quote from the open house: “No roundabout, no way.”The highly utilized stretch of road sees a lot of “frogger action” Ross said, from pedestrians scurrying across the road to get between campus and the commercial district.The city used video capture to get data on where cyclists and pedestrians were crossing the street, and found more people were crossing in the middle of the street versus at the intersections.The mid-block crossing will not prevent people from crossing at the intersections, too, Ross said.“The location of the mid-block crossing between 9th and 10th serves to support the natural desire line of people moving between those areas, while also functioning as a really really helpful traffic calming feature,” Ross said.</div></body>

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Commissioners sent city staff back to the drawing board this week somewhat on plans to redo a portion of College Street running between campus and a popular stretch of businesses after pushback over the proposed removal of parking spots to make room for a shared-use path. City officials are proposing...

Shared-use path, parking snag College Street project in Bozeman

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Commissioners sent city staff back to the drawing board this week somewhat on plans to redo a portion of College Street running between campus and a popula

Shared-use path, parking snag College Street project in Bozeman

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