Until code reform, Missoula extends ’emergency’ ordinance

Martin Kidston

(Missoula Current) The Missoula City Council on Monday night extended an emergency ordinance adopted in 2023 to ensure the city remains in compliance with state law until it's able to fully reform its zoning and development codes.

The extension is the third approved by City Council and is good for one year, or until code reform is finished. That's expected to occur this year now that the city has adopted its new growth policy.

“Implementing these changes with the emergency ordinance enables the city to incorporate the state mandates as close to the effective date of the bill as possible, and give the city time to contemplate code reform as part of the growth policy update,” said city planner Jen Gress.

The initial emergency ordinance was adopted to comply with seven specific bills passed by the state Legislature during the 2023 session. They allowed microbreweries to obtain a beer and wine sales permit, and they increased the maximum number of children allowed in residential daycare facilities.

Other changes focused on development and the state's lack of affordable housing. One bill limited the city's ability to require certain design standards while another reduced the number of required parking spaces in multi-family housing.

One other bill also limited zoning regulations related to townhomes, limited the review period to 20 working days, and prohibited city staff from imposing conditions of approval.

“The emergency ordinance allowed for rapid alignment of our codes to protect public health and safety,” said Gress. “It accomplished many changes, including full compliance with the 2023 statutes.”

Still, some on Monday night pushed City Council to go farther, such as extending the operation of the Johnson Street shelter. The city will close the center this August, partially due to a lack of funding.

“I'm hopeful that City Council will consider a 12-month extension of other projects related to affordable housing and assisting those who are housing insecure in our community, such as extending folks ability to reside within shelters when it comes to closing the Johnson Street shelter,” said Sage Bennett.

Local developer David Gray also urged City Council to include the full removal of design standards from the emergency ordinance. He said striking the standards could positively impact the cost of building multi-family housing.

“There has been no ordinance in Missoula that helped take away equity and make Missoula more unaffordable than the design excellence overlay,” he said. “It would be great to have those rules removed so we can have more affordable, attainable and equitable housing in Missoula.”

However, the city cannot make substantive changes to the emergency ordinance, city officials said. Rather, City Council could consider such changes as it shores up code reform.

“We're not able to make substantive amendments to the emergency ordinance without having to start the whole process over again,” said council member Mike Nugent. “The emergency ordinance is only designed to carry us through code reform, which is coming up fast and will be a larger conversation.”