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9/26/2025
“Missoula This Week” is reported and written By Katie Fairbanks. Send your Missoula news and tips to [email protected].
Paisley Park would add single-family homes, apartments to Mullan area over 20 years
The Missoula City Council in early October will consider approving a 670-unit subdivision in the Sxʷtpqyen neighborhood west of Reserve and north of Mullan, one of the city’s fastest-growing areas.
In the last five years, about 2,000 dwelling units have been approved for the neighborhood but less than 300 have been built, said Dave DeGrandpre, city planning supervisor.
“These are long-range projects that are intended to be developed over an extended period of time,” he said.
The developer of the 40-acre Paisley Park subdivision, OO Land Holding, LLC, is proposing a mix of market-rate single-family homes, duplexes, townhomes and apartments built in eight phases over 20 years. The project will also include new and extended streets, trails and 4.5 acres of parkland. The requested zoning would allow for some commercial uses, though commercial buildings are not included in the initial project plan.
“Fingers crossed that we get commercial in some of those neighborhoods, that was a big theme in Sxʷtpqyen plan,” Council Member Gwen Jones said. “We can try to do it on our end but then the demand has to translate on the ground.”
The city council did not vote on the project on Wednesday but heard a presentation from city staff and the developer’s engineer ahead of the Oct. 6 public hearing.
The developer is requesting annexation into the city. The property is in an area prioritized for annexation because it is adjacent to city limits, contributes to a logical growth pattern and is within the utility service area, DeGrandpre said. The requested zoning would vary throughout the project and include open space and various residential and mixed-use zones, he said.
The project meets the city’s subdivision criteria, as well as the more restrictive form-based codes required in the Sxʷtpqyen Area Neighborhoods Master Plan area, DeGrandpre said. The form-based zoning codes regulate street design, density, lot sizes, land uses and building types.
Matt Hammerstein, a civil engineer with Woith Engineering representing the developer, said the apartment buildings will be on the eastern side of the property, while the single-family homes will be on the western side adjacent to the open space property owned by the Missoula airport. The property will also include duplexes, triplexes, townhomes and mansion apartments, he said.
The first phase of development will include 48 units, half as single-family homes, in the southwestern corner of the property. For each phase, the developer must build the infrastructure and receive city approval before housing construction, DeGrandpre said.
Traffic from the subdivision will largely use England Boulevard and George Elmer Drive to access Mullan and Reserve streets, Hammerstein said. The intersections of George Elmer and Mullan and England and Mary Jane Boulevard were upgraded as part of the Mullan BUILD project, and this development will add stop signs and turn lanes at George Elmer and England, he said. In 2019, Missoula County received a $13 million federal BUILD grant to develop infrastructure in the Mullan neighborhood.
Troy Monroe, a city engineer, said once George Elmer Drive is extended north to connect with West Broadway, its intersection with England Boulevard will require a stoplight or roundabout.
DeGrandpre said the council can add conditions to final plat approval if it comes forward five years after preliminary approval to address changes in traffic patterns or other new information.
Molly Blakely, superintendent of the Hellgate Elementary School located southeast of the project, said knowing the number of bedrooms in the houses and apartments would help the district estimate future enrollment. Blakely said she hopes garages don’t open onto sidewalks, creating potential dangers for children walking to school, and that safe walking and biking paths with marked crosswalks and blinking lights are needed in the area.
Monroe said the city estimates an average of 12 new students per year from this development based on the percent of schoolchildren in Missoula’s population and the average household size. The later phases that include the apartment buildings will likely see more students, he said.
The council will vote on the annexation, zoning and subdivision proposals during its 6 p.m. meeting on Monday, Oct. 6, at 140 W. Pine St. Members of the public can also join the meeting virtually via Microsoft Teams or by phone.
Following Up
Missoula Public Library’s green roof project is moving forward with local funding after lawmakers cut state grant support earlier this year. The project would help filter stormwater runoff, provide habitat for pollinators and conserve energy by cooling the roof and providing insulation, according to the city.
The Missoula Redevelopment Agency board on Sept. 18 approved contributing $75,000 to complete the $250,000 match needed to receive a $1 million grant from the Western Montana Conservation Commission.
Library Director Slaven Lee said Thursday the roof will be accessible to the public via the third floor.
“It’s a huge education opportunity for the community, for architects, contractors, students,” Lee said. “It will be used and interacted with.”
Along with the MRA’s contribution, Missoula County added $75,000, the Missoula Public Library Foundation contributed $70,000 and the city contributed $30,000 through a renewable resource project grant.
The city applied for a $125,000 Renewable Resource Infrastructure Grant, included in House Bill 6, for half of the matching funds. In late February, the House Appropriations Committee removed the project based on concerns raised by subcommittee members that green roofs are problematic to install and maintain.
Tracy Campbell, the city’s stormwater superintendent, told the committee the library was built with the project in mind and can support the structure. The soil does not go directly on top of the roof and the plants would be installed in a modular system that could be moved to access the roof, she said.
Campbell told Montana Free Press the city had $65,000 before the Legislature’s decision and would have had to find another $60,000 if it was awarded the grant. Without the state grant, local partners had to contribute more money to the project, she said.
The city’s stormwater staff will help the library with maintenance as needed, Campbell said during the MRA board meeting. The project will ideally be complete after about six months to a year of planning and about six months of construction, she said.
By the Numbers
The increase in fall enrollment over last year at University of Montana, according to a press release. The bump was largely driven by returning undergraduate students, graduate students and Missoula College enrollment, according to the fall census report.
The total number of undergraduate students decreased from 6,494 to 6,237, mostly driven by a drop in first-time entering freshman, according to the report. The university saw a record retention rate of 77.2%, the press release said. First-to-second-year retention at UM has increased by 9% since 2018.
“Our No. 1 priority is to place student success at the center of all we do, and these record-breaking student success rates are a testament to the hard work and dedication of UM’s talented faculty and staff members,” said UM President Seth Bodnar in a statement. “Given the high number of first-generation college students on our campus, this work is truly changing the economic trajectory for thousands of Montana families.”
This fall, 3,621 first-generation students made up about 33% of the student population. About 69% of students are from Montana.
The number of graduate students increased 9.7% to 2,910. Missoula College students increased 17% from 1,397 to 1,637, with a boost in dual enrollment of high school students, according to the press release.
Between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025, 10,387 people participated in UM’s noncredit courses and trainings aimed at meeting the state’s workforce needs, according to the press release. That number is not included in the enrollment data.
In fall 2024, UM recorded a 5.6% enrollment increase, the largest year-over-year jump in 15 years.
5 Things to Know in Missoula
The Missoula City Council on Wednesday renewed contracts with Black Knight Security to manage access at City Hall and City Council Chambers and to patrol city parks and the area around the Poverello Center homeless shelter. The contracts, which expire next year, include a 3% pay increase. The patrol contract is worth up to $779,860, but the city may pay less depending on how many hours security officers work, said Dale Bickell, the city’s chief administrative officer. A total contract amount for the City Hall and council chambers contract was not immediately available. Arianna Jones, Black Knight’s president of operations, said the security officers help divert calls that would otherwise go to police. From Jan. 1 through Sept. 15, police were called 11 of 170 times Black Knight responded to the Poverello Center and 12 of 184 times security officers responded to the now-closed Johnson Street shelter, Jones said. Security officers called police four times when issuing 372 trespassing reports in city parks, she said. Council Member Daniel Carlino proposed the city require Black Knight officers wear body cameras while patrolling for the city. A handful of council members said they would be open to discussing the idea to include in a new contract next year, but the cost may be prohibitive.
The city is set to receive nearly $900,000 in federal housing funds this year, but the future of at least one program is uncertain, city staff told the Missoula City Council on Monday. Last year, the city received $884,666 from the Community Development Block Grant and HOME Investment Partnerships Program, which paid for work benefitting more than 200 households, said Lisa Bower, a city grants administrator. The HOME funds paid for the rehabilitation of Homeword’s Fireweed Court 12-unit affordable rental complex. The CDBG funds paid for rehabilitation at Homeword’s 35-unit Orchard Gardens apartment complex, three loans for low- to moderate-income homeowners for repairs, installation of 18 wheelchair ramps with capacity for 10 more and the acquisition of a single-family home by Front Step Community Land Trust. House and Senate versions of the federal 2026 budget bill have kept the CDBG program, Bower said. However, the House has proposed cutting the HOME program and the Senate proposed keeping it, making its future unclear, she said. Staff will continue to monitor the situation, Bower said.
The U.S. Forest Service awarded Missoula County a $1.27 million grant to establish a wildfire planning program. The grants went to communities with limited resources that face high risk from wildfire, according to the Forest Service. The Missoula County program will focus on proactive land use strategies to reduce exposure, adopting regulations for resilient new development and increasing home retrofits to mitigate wildfire risk. The project was one of 58 that received more than $200 million in Community Wildfire Defense grants this year, according to the agency. The grant program will award $1 billion over five years to assist at-risk communities, including tribal communities, nonprofits, state forestry agencies and Alaska Native Corporations with planning and mitigating wildfire risks on land not managed by federal agencies.
Catalyst Montana and the Missoula Tenants Union are holding a municipal candidate forum on Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the Zootown Arts Community Center. The event from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. will be emceed by Missoula Rep. SJ Howell. The forum will include mayoral and council candidates, and organizers expect most to attend. Following a set of questions on housing policy, public participation, public safety and the budget, the audience will have a chance to ask questions. Those interested in attending can RSVP online. The all-mail municipal general election is Nov. 4, and ballots will be mailed on Oct. 16.
The city is holding a ceremony Monday celebrating Greenough Park’s designation as Montana’s first community old-growth forest. The event, which starts at 5 p.m. at the pavilion off Monroe Street, will include remarks from Mayor Andrea Davis, Parks and Recreation staff and an Old-Growth Forest Network representative, followed by a nature walk through the park. The community forest designation recognizes Greenough Park’s importance to the community and the commitment to maintain it as an old-growth cottonwood forest. The park was deeded to the city in 1902 by Thomas and Tennie Greenough with the intent that it be maintained in its natural state, according to the city. The park has old-growth trees that remain from a black cottonwood riparian forest along Rattlesnake Creek, and city staff and volunteers have been removing invasive trees to protect and restore the natural forests.
Happenings
Climate Smart Missoula’s annual Climate Solutions Week kicks off with ClimateFEST on Saturday, Sept. 27 at Caras Park. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and features interactive demos and dozens of organizations and businesses, including solar installers, health organizations, outdoor experts and an electric vehicle and bike show. Various events, workshops, activities and discussions are scheduled for Climate Solutions week, Sept. 27 through Oct. 5. The full schedule is available on Climate Smart Missoula’s website.