Downtown Design Plan 2020

This section frames the challenges and opportunities facing Downtown Belgrade. The community desires a vibrant, connected urban center with more living, shopping, and gathering spaces. The plan, tied to the creation of a 234-acre Urban Renewal District, is intended to focus limited resources on high-impact projects that can spur private investment. Two sub-areas are targeted: the Urban Core (Main Street and Broadway, intended for denser, mixed-use development) and the Community Core (more residential in nature). Key recommendations include creating design guidelines, improving streetscapes, enhancing pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, updating zoning for higher density, and adding gateway signage to foster a sense of arrival.

The introduction explains that the plan’s purpose is to communicate a shared vision for the commercial center, improve economic health through redevelopment, and use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) effectively. It stems from the 2017 Urban Renewal District designation, which identified blight conditions such as deteriorated buildings, inadequate street layout, and unsafe conditions. The section emphasizes moving Belgrade beyond its “bedroom community” identity by attracting businesses that keep residents from traveling to Bozeman for goods and services.

Due to COVID-19, outreach combined virtual and small-scale in-person efforts, including farmers’ market booths, online surveys, mapping tools, stakeholder interviews, and even input from elementary students. The top ten public priorities ranged from visual improvements, better sidewalks, and more parking to historic preservation and railroad safety solutions. Design charrettes engaged community experts to refine building character preferences, streetscape designs, and potential redevelopment scenarios.

The vision statement positions Downtown as Belgrade’s economic, cultural, and social hub, celebrating both historic character and industrial railroad heritage. Planning themes—Feel, Move, Work, Play, Live, Grow—guide goals and objectives such as preserving historic structures, improving multimodal connectivity, supporting diverse businesses, expanding parks, offering varied housing, and concentrating density in the Urban Core. Detailed objectives align with each theme to translate the vision into actionable steps.

This chapter synthesizes findings from four key reference plans: the 2020 Growth Policy, 2017 Urban Renewal District Plan, zoning regulations, and 2018 Long Range Transportation Plan. It identifies zoning limitations (e.g., low building height caps, lack of mixed-use allowance), constrained land ownership (notably Montana Rail Link’s holdings), economic challenges (lack of available retail/dining properties), and mobility issues (railroad barriers, poor pedestrian/bike connectivity). Public survey data reinforces the urgency for more retail/dining, improved traffic flow, and better sidewalks.