Our Missoula Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Our Missoula places a priority on extensive and inclusive community engagement. The project team is partnering with community groups to engage a wide range of resident input. This includes traditionally marginalized and underrepresented communities.

This process will also elevate and address emergent housing, climate resilience, and equity-related issues. The community visioning process for future growth will directly inform updates to the codes. The codes are one of the key tools for implementing the City’s vision for growth). By updating the code directly after refreshing the vision for future growth, the vision for future growth will:

• Align the code with the community’s current needs for the foreseeable future.
• Align the code with the community’s priorities for the foreseeable future.

This process is different because the City is overhauling the development code rather than making incremental changes. The goal is to make a more meaningful change.

The process of updating the Growth Policy and reforming the code will take time. The community needs to be involved every step of the way. This means making time to inform people about the project, ask for input, and find solutions together. The new code is expected to be adopted in late 2024 or early 2025.

New construction will continue to occur in Missoula between now and 2025. The City anticipates issuing permits for over 1,000 new homes and apartments during this timeframe. These developments would be subject to the current code. By making targeted changes to the code in 2023, the community could see some of the benefits of the code updates earlier. And the changes will have an impact on more projects than if they were adopted in 2025. Missoula is growing at a fast pace, and the community needs to experience positive changes soon.

Both the Growth Policy and the code are implemented when a development project is proposed. In most cases, a development project must show that it complies with the rules and regulations in the code. In some cases, the development project must also show that it contributes toward the broader goals of the Growth Policy. These codes set the criteria by which the City must approve or reject a development proposal.

However, the Growth Policy also affects other actions the City takes, such as where new streets, trails, and parks are built. It may also influence where and how the City targets certain programs like funding for affordable housing or economic development.

This is your opportunity to help shape the future of your city. How it grows and provides housing, jobs, and opportunities for all Missoula residents to thrive. Because this is an important project, you will be asked for your input and priorities many times throughout the process. The Our Missoula project will impact residents by providing the criteria that future development must use for:

• Building new housing
• Building new commercial areas
• Building other amenities necessary to live, work and play.

There are many points within this project when your feedback will help influence the Unified Development Code and Growth Policy Update. It is critical to understand the top priorities for Missoula residents such as:

• Creating more affordable housing options
• Preserving natural and working lands, etc., particularly because there will inevitably be trade-offs between different priorities.
• Your feedback and evaluation of different strategies for future growth will be what drives the ultimate set of recommendations and strategies that will be adopted by City Council.

Adoption of the Unified Development Code and Growth Policy is decided on by the Missoula City Council and Missoula Planning Board.

Our Missoula is a complex project that requires expertise in planning, facilitation, and code development. The breadth of expertise that the project requires includes:

• Community engagement that focuses on equity, diversity, and inclusion;
• Knowledge of zoning and other land use regulations;
• Process and equity auditing;
• National and Montana land use law;
• Transportation, architecture and design, and historic preservation best practices;
• Utility infrastructure and environmental resource protection;
• Development financing;
• Implementation of sustainability initiatives;
• and best practices in community planning and policy development.

A larger team consisting of City staff and consultants expands capacity and is more efficient. This project requires responsiveness.

Shifting the code from what it is to what it could be takes global expertise that the consultant team brings. The Our Missoula project will involve some challenging conversations about the kind of change we want to see in our shared community. There is a benefit to having an outside party guide those conversations from a neutral vantage point. Consultants bring ideas rooted in best practices and based on experience with other communities doing similar work and facing similar challenges. The consultant team is there as a resource, not to lead. It is ultimately up to us all to decide what we want to do in our own community.