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11/14/2025
“Missoula This Week” is reported and written By Katie Fairbanks. Send your Missoula news and tips to [email protected].
City officials aim to address parking complaints with enforcement, permits
Hip Strip residents and visitors will see increased parking enforcement starting in the new year that will not include parking meters, at least for now, according to city officials.
The Missoula City Council Wednesday voted to expand the Missoula Parking Commission’s jurisdiction to include the Hip Strip — the area around Higgins Avenue south of the Clark Fork River — effective Jan. 1, 2026. The change allows the parking commission to manage parking in the area through enforcement of time limits, parking permits and parking meters, said Jodi Pilgrim, the commission’s parking services director.
“I won’t say there will never be meters on the Hip Strip, but that’s not where we will start,” Pilgrim said during the Wednesday meeting. “We recognize it’s different from the central business district, and management strategies will have to be built for these needs.”
Pilgrim said parking management will help increase turnover of parked cars, freeing up spaces more often and address concerns of residents who often struggle to park near their homes.
Earlier this year, the commission sought public comment on its proposal to expand parking management to the Hip Strip through an online map and informational meetings, Pilgrim said. Comments from area residents, businesses and visitors varied. Some did not want any parking changes, while others were in favor of enforcement of parking time limits without parking meters, Pilgrim said. The parking commission board approved the jurisdiction expansion in early September.
The Hip Strip area meets the criteria for jurisdiction expansion, including contiguity with the downtown parking district, although it is separated by the river, and the residential parking permit area around the University of Montana.
The area stretches beyond Higgins Avenue because once parking time limits are enforced, the demand will shift to the surrounding residential area, Pilgrim said.
“Expanding jurisdiction a little wider allows us to be reactive to changes that will happen when we start enforcing without having to come back to council to expand,” she said. “We want to be holistic in our approach to expansion, so we’re asking for an area we know we can support versus piecemealing one block at a time as the need arises.”
The parking commission has studied the area since October 2024 and found that parking occupancy exceeds 75% across several blocks on a typical workday in the fall, when school is in session, and during the summer, Pilgrim said.
Residents and employees and visitors of businesses in the area compete with “spillover” parking from Hellgate High School, businesses on Fifth and Sixth streets and people visiting downtown across the bridge, Pilgrim said. Many residents complained about people taking parking spots in front of their homes in the evenings and Hellgate students parking “wherever they can” during the day, she said.
The area will likely see increased parking demand from new developments in the works, including those on the corner of Myrtle and Fourth and the former Missoulian site, Pilgrim said. Changes to Higgins Avenue as part of the downtown Safety, Access and Mobility project also decrease the number of parking spots along that road, she said.
The parking commission will begin by enforcing safety and accessible parking violations, as well as the existing two-hour time-limited spots that have not been previously enforced, Pilgrim said. That will include twice-daily patrols Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., according to the expansion project’s website.
“It would be a great starting point to show us if parking management would help encourage turnover in front of businesses, and give us the opportunity to discuss with businesses how to support their employees and establish employee parking zones,” she said.
The parking commission will also work with Hellgate High School and its neighbors to create a parking permit program that allows residents to park near their homes and students to have reasonably close access to the school, Pilgrim said. The permits will likely cost different amounts than the university area residential parking permits, she said.
While the city council determines the parking commission’s jurisdiction and sets fines, the commission’s board decides policy, like whether to add parking meters to the Hip Strip, Pilgrim said. Any potential future decision on parking meters in the area would include public outreach, she said.
Council Member Gwen Jones said the area needs “a lot of attention” and the jurisdiction expansion is a great step forward in addressing parking issues. Jones said she appreciates the commission starting with a “light touch” while looking into other parking management tools.
Council Member Sandra Vasecka raised several concerns about the change, including that some people may not visit the Hip Strip if parking meters are installed.
Along with similar concerns, Council Member Bob Campbell expressed concern about the nexus between this change and the loss of parking spaces resulting from the downtown SAM project. Campbell said he could get behind the jurisdiction expansion if the council had more control over the future of metered parking in the area.
The council will hold a final vote on the proposal during its meeting at 6 p.m. Monday at the City Council Chambers at 140 W. Pine St.
Verbatim
“I absolutely love Missoula. … I could never have imagined as a child getting to spend a career helping people meet each other, find ways to play and being able to steward the land at the same time.”
—Donna Gaukler, Missoula Parks and Recreation director, said during a city council meeting on Monday, during which Mayor Andrea Davis declared Nov. 12 as Donna Gaukler Day in recognition of Gaukler’s retirement this week after 34 years with the department.
Gaukler joined the city in 1991 as recreation manager and was promoted to director in 2002. As director, she led the city’s implementation of four voter-approved bonds and oversaw the opening of the Splash Montana waterpark, Currents Aquatics Center and Fort Missoula Regional Park. Late last month, the mayor appointed Marina Yoshioka, the former chief of operations at Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, as the city’s new Parks and Recreation director. Yoshioka is set to start with the city Jan. 5.
5 Things to Know in Missoula
On Thursday, the Missoula County commissioners voted to file as an intervener in NorthWestern Energy’s proposed merger with Black Hills Corp. at the Montana Public Service Commission. The PSC is considering the merger, which also requires approval from the South Dakota and Nebraska commissions, the federal Securities and Exchange Commission and the federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The action gives the county a “seat at the table” beyond providing public comment and does not obligate it to take any action or position, said Svein Newman, the county’s climate action program manager. As an intervenor, the county could provide evidence or testimony, request information or documents and question witnesses, he said. Commissioner Josh Slotnick said the action is not a demonstration of opposition or support for the merger, but allows the county to look out for the interests of constituents who are NorthWestern Energy ratepayers. Uda Law Firm will file the paperwork for the county for about $2,250, according to the county meeting documents. Overall intervention costs could range from $5,000 for light involvement to $30,000 to $40,000 for a more thorough intervention.
The Missoula County Public Schools Board of Trustees Tuesday appointed former State Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau to fill a seat vacated by Koan Mercer in September. Juneau, who led OSPI from 2008 to 2016 before serving as the superintendent of Seattle Public Schools, was one of seven applicants interviewed Tuesday. Juneau told the board she is “excited about the opportunity to bring my skills and experience to bear in this type of setting.” The seat will be up for election in May 2026. Board Chair Wilena Old Person said it was exciting to see eight initial applicants for the position and encouraged the unsuccessful candidates to file for positions up for election next spring.
The Missoula City Council Wednesday approved a 23-acre conservation easement in the Grant Creek area donated by the landowner. The Gleneagle easement, located south of Gleneagle Way and north of the city’s Bluebird Preserve, will protect the land from development and eventually include a trail to connect with others in the area, said Zac Covington, the city’s Open Space Program manager. Landowners Peter and Kristen Von Doersten of SEV Enterprises fully donated the easement to the city, and the project won’t require any Open Space Bond funds, Covington said. The easement will have minimal maintenance costs and some construction costs once a trail is finalized, he said. The site features a grassland protection zone and a management zone for the Missoula phlox flower, a species of concern that is endemic to Missoula County. The trail will initially connect neighbors to the nearby Bluebird Preserve trails but will ideally help the city piece together other trail connections, Covington said.
On Thursday, the Missoula County commissioners approved an agreement with nonprofit Girls on Shred to construct and maintain a winter rail garden at Marshall Mountain Park. The freestyle terrain park will feature ramps and rails for skiers and snowboarders of all levels and will be free and open for public use, said Silas Phillips, the park ranger. The fenced terrain park will be at the base area, separate from the most popular areas for sledding and backcountry skiing. The Friends of Marshall Mountain group will donate about $10,000 to build the terrain park, according to the agreement. Volunteers with Girls on Shred, which encourages youth involvement in action sports, will maintain the equipment during the season. Marshall Mountain visitors created their own freestyle features for years, and the project recognizes and formalizes that use, Phillips said.
The Missoula City Council will hold a public hearing Monday on a proposal to rezone a property on Reserve Street, potentially for a new Les Schwab Tires location. Representatives of the company are requesting a rezoning of 1010, 1020 and 1030 Reserve St., between Eighth Street West and Ninth Street West, from business mixed-use to community commercial. The change would allow for more “intensive” uses and density, according to the staff report. In April 2024, the council rejected a similar proposal for the same property from a company that wanted to build a car wash on the site, the Missoulian reported at the time. The Missoula Consolidated Planning Board on Nov. 4 voted 6-1 to recommend approval of the rezoning request, acknowledging traffic and safety concerns. The new zoning code the city is set to adopt at the end of the year would allow for similar types of development in the area, according to the staff report. The public can comment on the proposal during the council meeting, scheduled for 6 p.m. on Monday at City Council Chambers, located at 140 W. Pine St., or virtually.
Might be Fun
One of Missoula’s farmers’ markets is continuing through the winter for the first time this year. The Clark Fork River Market’s winter season will run from Saturday, Nov. 15, through April 4 at The Badlander, 208 Ryman St. The market, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., will include fresh produce, baked goods, handmade items and live music. The Missoula Valley Winter Market’s 11th season began last Saturday in the Southgate Mall near Scheels. The market runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays through the end of the year and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. from January through April 12.
The third-annual Turkey Curling Fundraiser, part of the Can the Cats food drive, takes place from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Saturday at the Glacier Ice Rink. The fundraiser is a partnership among the Missoula PaddleHeads, the Missoula Food Bank and Community Center, Glacier Ice Rink and the Missoula Curling Club. Participants are asked to donate $25 or $25 worth of non-perishable turkey dinner items. No curling experience is required. Those interested can register at gopaddleheads.com.