Council refers Safe Streets for All RFP to planning after presentation of four proposals

Butte-Silver Bow Planning Director Julia Crane reviewed proposal responses for the Safe Streets for All (SS4A) program and related transportation-safety work. Crane said the SS4A program is a federal grant program administered by the Federal Highway Administration to fund safety action plans that improve pedestrian and cyclist safety.

Crane listed four respondents: Sandell (Bozeman), SCJ Alliance (Butte), IMEG (Bozeman) and Kittleson & Associates (Boise). She told the council the first RFP request (Sandell) included a grant amount of $208,000 and a $52,000 in‑kind match from Butte-Silver Bow. Crane said selection will be by a committee (community development director, public works director, transportation coordinator Corey Johns, and Crane) and that the selection committee will return a recommendation to the council at a future regular meeting.

Commissioners asked procedural and technical questions about data collection, seasonal variability in counting (for example, Montana Tech student traffic), and coordination with the Montana Department of Transportation. "We are also the chair of the Butte Transportation Committee," Crane said, adding that the planning team has worked with MDT planners and Federal Highways to integrate state and federal requirements into the RFP.

Commissioner Thatcher moved to refer communication 2026-323 to the planning department for the steering committee to provide a recommendation back to the council. The clerk recorded the vote as "12 Aye, 0 Nay," and the motion passed unanimously.

Crane said the planning work will include robust public participation and noted this phase is an update to the 2012 safety document intended to produce recommendations the county can use to pursue additional implementation grants.

Next steps: The selection committee will review proposals, scope the project with a contracted vendor, and return a recommendation to the council at a future regular meeting.