OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Belgrade City Council Meeting - April 20, 2026

City Council & Boards — Monday, April 20, 2026
BodyBelgrade, Montana
SessionCity Council & Boards
DateMonday, April 20, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
0:04

All right, I'd like to thank everybody for coming out here tonight for our city council meeting here April 20th, and I'll call this meeting to order.

0:12

And will you please stand and follow me in the pledge?

0:19

My pledge to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands.

0:27

One nation under indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

0:37

Roll call, please.

0:40

Jason Guffy.

0:41

Here Matthew McKee.

0:44

Here.

0:45

Jim Simon.

0:46

Here.

0:46

Michael Meese.

0:47

Here.

0:48

Christine Guci.

0:49

Here.

0:50

Aaron Bell.

0:51

Here.

0:51

Renee Manner.

0:52

Here.

0:53

Thank you.

0:59

All right.

1:00

Next up is uh our public forum.

1:03

So before starting your comments, please state your name and address and an audible tone of voice for the record.

1:08

This is the time for individuals to comments on matters falling within the purview of the Belgrade City Council that are not already on the agenda.

1:16

There will be an opportunity in conjunction with each agenda item for comments pertaining to that item.

1:21

Please note that the council may not engage in discussion or respond to questions during this time.

1:26

However, at the mayor's discretion, the city manager may ask to provide clarification on existing policy and please limit your comments to three minutes.

1:36

So first call for public comment.

2:03

So I'm really upset about that because I think we should work, or whoever's doing this should work to make a different choice on that because our business is what's going to happen to our businesses.

2:16

What's going to happen to the restaurant?

2:17

What's going to happen to the taxes?

2:19

What's going to happen to the bank?

2:20

What's going to happen to the hotel?

2:22

If you tear all that stuff, Dan, you got this fabulous library here.

2:26

You care all that yeah.

2:28

This is going to stay at the loan, and it's not Belgrade.

2:31

So whoever, I just wanted everybody know that I'm I'm really upset about that.

2:36

I really don't think it's a good idea.

2:39

Thank you.

2:40

Thank you, Vivian.

2:41

And I will maybe make just one comment that MDT is hosting on open house from four to seven Wednesday afternoon right here in this building, uh, so you can talk with MDT and the engineers as well.

2:53

So uh second call for public comment.

3:00

Third and final call for public comment.

3:06

Russ, I'm like waiting for you.

3:08

No, all right.

3:11

At this time I'll close the uh public forum and move on to uh first on our agenda here is uh the proclamation for Arbor Day.

3:24

So Arbor Day, April 24th, 2026, whereas Arbor Day in Montana is officially the last Friday in April.

3:32

And whereas natural areas, trees, and landscapes provide not only community beautification but also economic and environmental benefits.

3:40

And whereas tree provides trees provide many benefits to the community, including air purification, wind breaks, noise reduction, shade and energy savings, and whereas planting trees and maintaining older trees provides an opportunity for community interaction, volunteerism, economic development, and environmental conservation.

4:01

And whereas our efforts to improve the environment benefit present and future generations now, therefore I, Michael Demace, Mayor of the City of Belgrade hereby recognize April 24th, 2026 as Arbor Day and encourage citizens to participate in appropriate activities and to take advantage of the benefits of the parks and other natural areas in our community.

4:35

All right, now we'll move on to our uh public hearing.

4:41

So first up is discuss and consider resolution 2026-5 to create lighting district 2446 Prescott Ranch Phase 2.

4:52

Good evening, Council.

4:54

Um back on March 2nd, we brought to you a resolution of intent to create uh lighting district number 2446 for Prescott Ranch phase two.

5:02

We mailed those notices out and posted them in the paper on April the 2nd, and the protests were due back on April 10th, and we received no comments.

5:12

We're ready to move forward.

5:14

All right.

5:15

Is there any uh questions for charity from the council?

5:23

All right, at this time I'll seek a motion to open up the public hearing.

5:28

So moved.

5:31

Second.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████33%
Public Works█████████████████████████25%
Public Engagement█████████████████████21%
Education Funding█████████████13%
Transportation Safety████4%
Arts And Culture████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Belgrade City Council Meeting - April 20, 2026

The Belgrade City Council met on April 20, 2026, at 7:00 PM. The meeting included a proclamation for Arbor Day, public hearings on a lighting district and a road name change, a presentation on school district levies, and various reports and announcements. All votes were unanimous.

Proclamation

  • The Mayor proclaimed April 24, 2026 as Arbor Day in Belgrade, encouraging citizens to participate in community beautification and environmental conservation.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Vivian (resident) expressed strong upset about a proposed road project, stating it would negatively impact businesses, the library, and tax base, and emphasized that the project is "not Belgrade." The Mayor noted that MDT is hosting an open house on April 22, 2026 (4-7 PM) for public input.

Public Hearings

  • Resolution 2026-5 – Lighting District 2446 (Prescott Ranch Phase 2): The city reported that notices were mailed and published, with a protest deadline of April 10, 2026. No comments were received. The council opened and closed the public hearing, then unanimously adopted the resolution.
  • Resolution 2026-6 – Rename Depot Drive to Copper Ranch Road: The city explained that the name change is needed due to duplicate road names in the county. The council opened and closed the public hearing, then unanimously approved the resolution.

Discussion Items

  • School District Levy Presentation: Dee Dee (school district representative) presented two levy questions on the May 5, 2026 ballot. She explained that Montana schools receive 80% of funding from the state and rely on local voted levies for the remaining 20%. Belgrade seeks levies for both elementary and high school districts to increase staff wages by 2% and reach full funding. She encouraged early mail-in voting and reminded voters to sign and include their birth year on ballot envelopes. Councilmember Minacucci expressed personal support, calling it a "small ask."

Reports & FYIs

  • Mayor: Reminded of Arbor Day event (April 24, 10 AM) and MDT open house (April 22, 4-7 PM) to discuss road projects.
  • City Manager: Emphasized the MDT open house as an opportunity to correct misinformation about road projects; noted the public works team's response to unexpected snow; announced upcoming absence for recovery but will be available remotely.
  • Councilmember McGee: Reported on preliminary discussions with UTD to reroute the streamline bus to include the airport twice and connect to downtown Bozeman, benefiting Belgrade residents.
  • Councilmember Guffey: Announced a $14,000 donation from Gibson Guitar and Bozeman Rotary Club to the library (5 guitars, 2 fenders, snare drum, tuning device).
  • Councilmember Minacucci: Noted water quality forum attendance; highlighted the need for well testing (over 30,000 private wells in area); expressed concern about dangerous parking blocking intersections downtown.
  • Councilmember Simon: Reported on attending long-term planning open house and airport master plan open house.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolution 2026-5 (Lighting District 2446, Prescott Ranch Phase 2) was adopted unanimously.
  • Resolution 2026-6 (Rename Depot Drive to Copper Ranch Road) was adopted unanimously.
  • No other votes were taken.

Meeting Transcript

All right, I'd like to thank everybody for coming out here tonight for our city council meeting here April 20th, and I'll call this meeting to order. And will you please stand and follow me in the pledge? My pledge to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Roll call, please. Jason Guffy. Here Matthew McKee. Here. Jim Simon. Here. Michael Meese. Here. Christine Guci. Here. Aaron Bell. Here. Renee Manner. Here. Thank you. All right. Next up is uh our public forum. So before starting your comments, please state your name and address and an audible tone of voice for the record. This is the time for individuals to comments on matters falling within the purview of the Belgrade City Council that are not already on the agenda. There will be an opportunity in conjunction with each agenda item for comments pertaining to that item. Please note that the council may not engage in discussion or respond to questions during this time. However, at the mayor's discretion, the city manager may ask to provide clarification on existing policy and please limit your comments to three minutes. So first call for public comment. So I'm really upset about that because I think we should work, or whoever's doing this should work to make a different choice on that because our business is what's going to happen to our businesses. What's going to happen to the restaurant? What's going to happen to the taxes? What's going to happen to the bank? What's going to happen to the hotel? If you tear all that stuff, Dan, you got this fabulous library here. You care all that yeah. This is going to stay at the loan, and it's not Belgrade. So whoever, I just wanted everybody know that I'm I'm really upset about that. I really don't think it's a good idea. Thank you. Thank you, Vivian. And I will maybe make just one comment that MDT is hosting on open house from four to seven Wednesday afternoon right here in this building, uh, so you can talk with MDT and the engineers as well. So uh second call for public comment. Third and final call for public comment. Russ, I'm like waiting for you. No, all right. At this time I'll close the uh public forum and move on to uh first on our agenda here is uh the proclamation for Arbor Day. So Arbor Day, April 24th, 2026, whereas Arbor Day in Montana is officially the last Friday in April. And whereas natural areas, trees, and landscapes provide not only community beautification but also economic and environmental benefits. And whereas tree provides trees provide many benefits to the community, including air purification, wind breaks, noise reduction, shade and energy savings, and whereas planting trees and maintaining older trees provides an opportunity for community interaction, volunteerism, economic development, and environmental conservation. And whereas our efforts to improve the environment benefit present and future generations now, therefore I, Michael Demace, Mayor of the City of Belgrade hereby recognize April 24th, 2026 as Arbor Day and encourage citizens to participate in appropriate activities and to take advantage of the benefits of the parks and other natural areas in our community. All right, now we'll move on to our uh public hearing.

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