Sign up for the free Missoula This Week newsletter and stay in the loop on Missoula city government, public school meetings, business news and upcoming entertainment and events. Sign up 10/31/2024“Missoula This Week” is reported and written By Katie Fairbanks. Send your Missoula news and tips to [email protected] set to purchase property near Southgate Mall After two decades of planning, the city of Missoula is on track to purchase 13.5 acres near the Southgate Mall by the end of the year in an effort to spur redevelopment in the area. On Thursday, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency board approved using $5.9 million of tax increment financing revenue to purchase the property known as Southgate Crossing, located south and west of Bob Ward’s Sports and Outdoors. The Missoula City Council will discuss the purchase on Nov. 6 and vote on it on Nov. 18. The city plans to subdivide the property, add infrastructure and sell to developers, with an expected mix of housing, businesses and parkland going in, said Mayor Andrea Davis during a press conference on Wednesday. “It is an exciting opportunity for the city of Missoula, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency, to help bring the investment that has been envisioned for this part of our community for some years,” Davis said. “The importance of our investments is that we bring infrastructure investments to this property and the opportunity for us to really catalyze homes, residences, businesses and public spaces.” Credit: Katie Fairbanks/MTFPThe property has been vacant for decades, and part of it was used as a sawmill in the 1950s and 1960s, said Annette Marchesseault, MRA project manager, during the Thursday meeting. The agency has been exploring redevelopment opportunities for the property since the urban renewal district was created for the area in 2000, she said. The Missoula Economic Partnership worked with the MRA and the property owners to help negotiate the purchase, Marchesseault said. On Wednesday, Grant Kier, partnership CEO, said the project is an example of the public and private sectors coming together, including the property owners who agreed to sell to the city for a price below appraised value because they wanted to help address the housing problem. “We are thrilled to see this property opportunity present itself to the city,” he said. “We are confident and hopeful that City Council will embrace it with approval, and we are already hearing from developers who are excited to help build this vision out and see a reality on this ground.” Karissa Trujillo, executive director of housing organization Homeword, said the city’s effort to save land for intentional, community-driven use allows developers like Homeword to concentrate on filling the community’s needs. “We hear resoundingly that folks need more housing. They want homeownership opportunities, they want rentals that they can afford,” she said. “The development of those homes is critical for our city and our state. But it’s also very challenging. And so without partnerships and without intentional land use like this plot of land and other places around the community, it’s going to be more and more challenging for us to create these homes that our local residents can afford.”  Davis said the MRA and urban renewal districts allow the city to invest in Missoula’s urban core with infrastructure projects that wouldn’t otherwise be possible. The Southgate Crossing property is part of Urban Renewal District III, allowing the collection and use of tax increment financing on eligible projects. As improvements are made in the district and property taxes go up, the difference in tax revenue is collected in a fund for further investment in the district.City Council Member Mike Nugent said the city’s involvement in the project will help the property develop to its full potential and fit into the Midtown Master Plan’s vision for the area. The cost to add infrastructure like roads and utilities can impede development, he said. The project, as well as others that support affordable housing, aren’t possible without private investment in urban renewal districts that generate tax increment revenue, Nugent said. If the City Council approves the purchase this month, the mayor will close the sale in December. The MRA will then begin planning the redevelopment, which will include public engagement, Marchesseault said. After taking over the property, the city will rearrange the right of way, subdivide the parcels and install necessary infrastructure — including roads, gutters, sewer and water — to make it ready for the private sector to develop, Davis said. Adding utilities to the property will be a “hefty investment” but the property doesn’t have specific environmental barriers, she said. Ellen Buchanan, MRA director, said Thursday that the redevelopment plan will help determine how much infrastructure is necessary. The agency will likely pay for the work with loans and grants, she said. The investment will make the property more valuable and revenue from its sale will replenish some of the money spent on the project and go toward the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund, Nugent said. By the NumbersThe rate of absentee ballots returned to the Missoula County Elections Office as of Tuesday, Oct. 29. Of the approximately 70,000 ballots sent out, the county has received more than 35,000 back, Elections Administrator Bradley Seaman told MTFP. Total turnout is hard to predict, but the elections office is “pretty proud” of the return rate so far, he said. Seaman encouraged voters to turn in ballots as soon as they can make an informed decision. Voters who mailed in their ballot can check myvoterpagemt.com to confirm it was received. If a ballot mailed this week is not marked as received, residents can vote at a polling place to make sure their vote gets counted, Seaman said. With the election less than a week away, absentee voters should use a drop box instead of returning their ballot by mail, according to the county elections office. Voters can drop off their ballots at the secure, 24-hour drop box at the Elections Center at 140 N. Russell St. On Tuesday only, voters can drop off ballots at any polling place or at drive-thru drop-offs at McCormick Park and on Russell Street between the Missoula County Fairgrounds and the YMCA. Those planning on voting in person on Election Day can find their polling place at myvoterpagemt.com. Residents can register to vote or update their registration at the elections office or at voter services events until noon on Monday. The office will be open for extended hours on Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Same-day registration is available, but the wait time could be up to three hours, according to the elections office. Public Notice The Missoula County commissioners and the Missoula City Council are holding a public hearing Wednesday to consider using $688,000 in Open Space Bond funds on a conservation easement. Five Valleys Land Trust would hold the easement on about 1,667 acres owned by the Indreland family in the LaValle Creek drainage northwest of Missoula. The easement would limit where building could occur and prohibit subdivision. Residents can attend the 10 a.m. meeting virtually or at the City Council Chambers at 140 W. Pine St. 5 Things to Know in Missoula Missoula County property owners will soon receive their 2024 tax bills in the mail, after the county mailed them this week. For property owners who don’t pay taxes through their mortgage, payments for the first half of the year must be postmarked by Dec. 2, 2024. Payments for the second half of the year are due Monday, June 2, 2025. Property owners can mail payments to the county Clerk and Treasurer’s Office, drop them off at the blue courthouse drop box in the west parking lot off Woody Street or pay online at missoulataxes.us. The county created a budget book to help residents understand the county’s budget and how it’s reflected in their taxes. More information on tax bills is available at missoula.co/propertytaxinfo. On Monday, the Missoula City Council approved the 97-lot Meadow View Homes subdivision and the developers’ request to rezone the 31-acre property to allow two-unit townhouses and smaller setbacks. The developers’ representative told the council that although the zoning would allow more density, their plan calls for one home per lot. The developers plan to build out the subdivision in five phases over 11 years. About 20 residents of the Moose Can Gully neighborhood voiced concerns mostly about how the development will affect traffic. Council Members Stacie Anderson and Bob Campbell, who represent the neighborhood, said while they would prefer to vote against the proposal for their constituents, they don’t have a legally defensible reason to do so.  In its annual update to Missoula City Council on Wednesday, the Missoula Housing Authority reported it served 914 households with Housing Choice Vouchers, also known as Section 8, nearly 130 less than the 1,042 it can allocate, said Jim McGrath, director of HUD programs. The amount of federal funding the housing authority receives to pay rent for voucher holders falls short of what’s needed to afford Missoula’s rental market, he said. Before 2020, about 75% to 80% of households who received vouchers could find a rental they could afford, McGrath said. That’s dropped to about 50% in recent years because of cost and availability, he said. About 2,500 households are on the rental assistance waiting lists and 3,870 households are on the waitlist for the authority’s 1,178 affordable housing units, McGrath said. This week, randomly selected Missoula households received postcards in the mail inviting them to take part in a confidential survey developed by the National Research Center at Polco, according to a city press release. The probability-based sample survey has been distributed across Missoula’s six wards and will allow the city to collect statistically significant information on residents’ opinions on the economy, community design, utilities, safety, the natural environment, inclusivity, engagement and transportation. The survey will be available to the full community from Nov. 13 to Dec. 4. Residents can watch the city’s website and Facebook page for notices or sign up for notification of when the survey is ready. Missoula street maintenance crews will begin fall leaf collection on Tuesday, Nov. 5, and plan to complete work by Nov. 29. A schedule and collection map is available on the city’s website. Residents are asked to rake leaves to the curb in the parking lane but not out to the bike or driving lanes and ensure piles are not blocking stormwater inlets. Cars should not park on or around the leaf piles. Residents can also bring their leaves to Garden City Compost at no charge from Nov. 5 through Nov. 29. Loads with branches or other yard debris will be charged regular prices. In Case You Missed It Earlier this month, residents of the Old Hellgate Village manufactured home park officially became the owners of the Missoula community. The cooperative joins a growing number of resident-owned communities in Montana in an effort to preserve affordable housing. You can read the story here. Might be Fun The Confluence Center is holding Dia de Los Muertos events this weekend at 119 W. Main St. From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, community members can bring 5×7 or smaller photos, memorabilia and other offerings to place on the community altar. The evening’s celebration will include altar viewing, live music, performances and an art exhibit. The main celebration from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday includes traditional ceremonies and altar viewing, face painting and performances, ending with a communal reflection and honoring of those who passed. Traditional Mexican food and drinks will be available for purchase both nights. Missoula’s Annual Festival of the Dead will culminate in a procession through downtown on Saturday. The event will begin at 6:15 p.m. on the north end of Higgins Avenue near the XXXXs with a land honoring and round dance by the SnYelMn Salish drumming group. The procession kicks off at 7 p.m. and ends in Caras Park, which will have luminaries, the community altar and music. The post City looks to spur development with land purchase  appeared first on Montana Free Press.