Thank you for attending the most recent neighborhood update on these projects on January 23, 2024 at the Burns St. Community Center!

• View the recording of the January 23, 2024 Northside Housing and Transportation neighborhood update on YouTube.
• View the PowerPoint presentation from the neighborhood update.

Current Project Updates and Events

March 21, 2024: Construction has Begun!

After many years of hard work and determination by community members, construction for the Scott Street-Ravara housing project is starting next week! The first step is excavation work on the north end of the property near Rogers St. has begun. Vertical construction on the Community Land Trust Homes is expected to start by June 2024.

Mayor Andrea Davis and partners kicked off construction with a groundbreaking on Thursday, March 14, 2024. This marks the start of construction of the Community Land Trust portion of the project, Missoula's largest development of income restricted for-sale units.

Groundbreaking of the Scott St-Ravara project on March 14, 2024

Partner organizations who are making this project possible include Goodworks Ventures and Ravara Development, the North Missoula Community Development Corporation (NMCDC), City Councilors, key community members, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency Board, and City staff.

March 4, 2024 Update: City Council approved a resolution that allows the Ravara Project and infrastructure improvements for this project to move forward, including the intent to bond for the project using Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds. In addition, Council approved the Scott Street Workforce Housing project agreements which allows construction on the project to begin. Construction of the infrastructure (streets, sidewalks, etc.) will likely begin in late March 2024.

Recent history:

The Scott Street-Ravara housing project took a large step forward on Tuesday, February 6 when the Montana Board of Investments (BOI) loan committee approved funds for public infrastructure at the site. A low-interest rate loan of $2.8 million dollars was approved to help fund streets, sidewalks, and utility extensions that will serve the entire development. This is the first approval in the state by the BOI that utilizes the newly formed Montana Housing Infrastructure Revolving Bond Program.

This project is one of Missoula’s top priorities and has been in the planning stages for the past two years. When complete, the Scott Street-Ravara project is expected to include 89 new home ownership units, 51% of which will be income qualified for families earning less than 120% of Area Median Income ($83,040 and below for a 2-person household). Additionally, the master plan for the project contains 220-225 apartments and approximately 35,000 square feet of commercial space.

The BOI approval is a key piece of this public-private partnership. Community partners that are essential in the success of this project include:

• City of Missoula
• Ravara LLC, a subsidiary of Goodworks Ventures
• Affordable Housing Trust Fund
• North Missoula Community Development Corporation
• Missoula Redevelopment Agency
• Montana Board of Investments
• First Security Bank

See below for more information about this project.

Current plan for the Scott Street-Ravara Redevelopment Project (December 2023)

For more information about what upcoming Northside projects the City of Missoula is working on, visit the Northside Housing and Transportation Improvements Engage Missoula page.

History of the Scott Street Property

The Master Plan

The master developer for the site is Ravara LLC, a subsidiary of Goodworks Ventures, LLC. “Ravara” is derived from the Swedish word ‘Råvara,’ meaning “raw material.” Our vision is to take the raw material of the currently undeveloped 9 acres of the former White Pine Sash site and turn it into quality housing and community amenities that will benefit the northside neighborhood.

The main purpose of the Master Plan is to ensure that the layout of the road infrastructure and placement of buildings and parking results in an attractive and livable neighborhood. It has two main components:

1. A “Land Use Plan” that shows where homes, apartments, the school, primary roads, etc. will be located. This plan is currently being developed and will be the topic of discussion at our July 12, 2021 Open House at Burns Street Bistro. Later on this summer, we will have additional community discussion on “Design Standards” that set requirements for builders to ensure high-quality apartments, homes, other buildings, roads, and amenities.
2. A Conceptual Master Plan that generally shows the type, size, location, and spatial relationships of interior spaces, including essential amenities. Additional considerations will include support facilities, circulation throughout, and connections to the site.

Historic photo of the White Pine Sash Mill

The Need

Missoula has critical housing needs. Over the last several years and in particular over the last year in response to COVID, Missoula has seen remarkable growth in its population. Home prices have steadily increased in recent years, outpacing wage growth and causing many Missoulians to find it challenging to afford safe and healthy homes. There is little inventory for sale and homes, when offered for sale are often bid up by out of state buyers with cash, making an affordable home out of reach for most Missoulians. That, in turn has driven up the costs of rentals and vacancies are at an all-time low. Rents have increased by 12-50% over the last 24 months, and many tenants have simply been informed by their landlords that the properties they have lived in for years are no longer available.

To learn more about Missoula's housing need, please download the Affordable Housing Fact Sheet.

Known Community Priorities

In 2000, the Missoula City Council adopted its 2000 Joint Northside/Westside Neighborhood Plan, which had a limited update in 2006. As part of the Northside West Side plan, respondents to the 2006 survey identified the three greatest housing needs in the neighborhood as:

1. improvement of substandard housing;
2. affordable homebuyer opportunities; and
3. affordable rentals.

Thirty-nine percent thought there was a need for more housing for people with low and moderate incomes and 49% identified a need for more housing for the elderly. However, 40% of the respondents to the 2006 survey expressed the opinion that the neighborhood had too much multi-family housing.

To learn more about the results of the 2006 survey, please visit this link.