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 12/13/2024“Missoula This Week” is reported and written By Katie Fairbanks. Send your Missoula news and tips to [email protected] projections show improvement to school budgets   Missoula County Public Schools’ general fund budgets appear to be stabilizing after some significant ups and downs following the COVID-19 pandemic. Pat McHugh, executive director of business and operations, presented an early preview of the fiscal year 2026 budgets to the Board of Trustees on Tuesday. All numbers for 2026 are estimates and could change depending on what action the Legislature takes this session, he said. “This exercise is sort of to show you … just where we’re at out the gate relative to where we were in the past few years, and it looks a little better,” McHugh said. Montana’s school funding formula specifies a base amount districts must spend each year, calculated using a complex formula that takes into account enrollment and other factors. Districts are also given a maximum budget amount, with the gap typically made up by local levies. During the upcoming legislative session, lawmakers are set to consider potential fixes to problems facing many school districts, such as budget cuts and teacher shortages, worsened by the pandemic. In February, the Missoula County Public Schools board approved staff reductions and budget cuts due to an $8 million shortfall. The district’s 2026 elementary budget could see a $1.1 million increase, mostly from the 3% inflation allowed by the Legislature, McHugh said. The district expects a slight boost in enrollment, about 20 students, mostly because of its early literacy program, he said. That follows a drop of 378 students in the 2021-2022 school year and some ups and downs since, according to McHugh’s presentation. “If we can get to the $1.1 million [increase] that really does look more even keel,” he said. The district is expecting a decrease of about $103,000 in basic entitlement funding in the elementary budget because it will no longer get that funding for the middle school level of Connect Academy, the district’s virtual charter school, McHugh said. Enrollment is too low for the middle school academy to qualify for the funding, he said. Basic entitlement funding makes up about 2% of the elementary general fund budget and per-enrollment makes up about 81%.The high school budget will also increase by about $1 million due to inflation, McHugh said. While enrollment increased over the past three school years, the district is projecting a decrease next year, he said. Per-enrollment funding makes up nearly 90% of the high school general fund budget, according to the presentation. State law allows the district to adopt the inflationary increase despite declining enrollment, McHugh said. Both elementary and high school quality educator payments — a payment districts receive for each full-time teacher or other licensed employee — are set to decrease by about $20,000 each because the district has fewer of those staff members, McHugh said. However, under a proposal in Gov. Greg Gianforte’s budget, those payments could double if the district meets certain base salary increase requirements, McHugh said.  “This is really early. The Legislature hasn’t even met, so there can be lots of changes, but it’s a factor to keep in mind relative to what these budgets look like,” he said. “Those sorts of changes would certainly factor into the board’s consideration of the voted levy and that sort of thing.” The board will continue budget discussions in January, McHugh said. Public Notice The Missoula City Council is set to vote Monday, Dec. 16, on the Our Missoula 2045 Land Use Plan, with some amendments discussed this week. The plan will guide growth and development in the city over the next 20 years and inform the city’s upcoming zoning code reform.  On Monday, Dec. 9, city staff proposed changes to clarify language in several sections, as requested by members of the public. During the public hearing Monday, most commenters spoke in support of the plan, with some raising concerns about parking requirements and language stating structures should be compatible with their surroundings. Responding to the comments on Wednesday, Laval Means, the city’s community planning manager, said while community input supported lowering existing parking requirements, most people did not want to fully eliminate them. Means said compatibility doesn’t mean a building has to look the same as next door and that fitting in with the neighborhood or district still allows for a wide range of housing types. Specific standards for each area will be worked out during the code reform process, she said. The council discussed the changes proposed by staff, parking and other amendments brought by members. Council Member Daniel Carlino initially proposed seven amendments and the council voted on five. The council approved one amendment to get rid of language in the “limited urban residential” place type description referencing a “heavy reliance on cars.” In a split vote, the council approved Council Member Sandra Vasecka’s amendment to change the place type designation for a section of the Rattlesnake neighborhood from “urban residential low” to “urban residential high.” The change increases the maximum number of units on a typical parcel from four to six up to six to eight. Vasecka said the change was proposed by a planning commission member. Staff designated the area on the east side of Rattlesnake Creek from Richard Street to Lolo Street as the lower-density place type because of concerns about emergency evacuation routes, said Eran Pehan, director of the city’s Community Planning, Development and Innovation Department. The lower Rattlesnake, close to downtown, is designated “urban residential high” but most of the neighborhood is designated “limited urban residential,” which would allow for up to three to four units on a typical parcel. Council Members Stacie Anderson, Mirtha Becerra, Sierra Farmer, Gwen Jones and Amber Sherrill opposed the change. The council meeting starts at 6 p.m. on Monday at the City Council Chambers, 140 W. Pine St. People can also join the meeting online via the Microsoft Teams link at the top of the agenda.5 Things to Know in Missoula  On Wednesday, the Missoula City Council discussed a proposal to restrict trash and recycling collection hours to no earlier than 6 a.m. in residential areas. Council Member Eric Melson said he proposed the changes in response to residents’ complaints of early morning noise and to limit bears’ access to trash cans left out overnight. Representatives from Republic Services and Grizzly Disposal and Recycling, who worked with Melson on the proposal, said the change won’t affect rates or union contracts. Melson consulted with Bear Smart Missoula, and some members spoke in favor of a later start time to encourage residents to put out trash cans in the morning instead of overnight. The council will consider the proposal on Monday and in January before taking an official vote. Missoula residents interested in running for a special district or school board can now file for open seats. More than 30 school board seats are open in districts across the county. Dozens of special district seats, including community councils and fire, irrigation, water and sewer districts, are up for election. Special district filing closes on Feb. 10 and school board filing closes on March 27. The election is on May 6. Candidate eligibility information and filing forms are available on the Missoula County Election Office website.  The Missoula City Council on Monday moved forward the first three of six phases of the Missoula Loft Homes subdivision on Mary Jane Boulevard in the Sxwtpqyen area west of Reserve Street. The development of 162 units includes 42 single-family homes and 120 apartments on about 17 acres. The first three phases, east of Mary Jane Boulevard, include a 3.2-acre park adjacent to O’Leary Street. The council first approved the subdivision in August 2023. City staff did not identify any significant changes to the project as part of the phased development review, said senior planner Alex Bramlette. This week, the city of Missoula’s Parks and Recreation Department released the results of its public outreach for the in-progress parks, recreation, open space and trails master plan. A statistically representative survey found residents’ top priorities include walkable neighborhoods, trail connections, maintaining clean air and water, accessible park facilities and expanding family-friendly after-school and summer programs. The department will incorporate these results in the master plan goals. Residents can view the results and take an online survey ranking priorities through Dec. 21. The United Way of Missoula County is accepting applications for its Parent Leadership Training Institute. The free 20-week program teaches leadership and advocacy skills and provides an opportunity to build connections. The program begins with a full-day retreat on Saturday, Feb. 8, followed by 20 sessions from mid-February through early June. The 3.5-hour meetings are held at the Missoula Public Library on Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings. United Way offers individualized childcare support, meals during classes and transportation assistance to participants. More information and the application form are available online. Those with questions can email Sam Duncan at [email protected]. On Campus More than 700 University of Montana students are set to graduate during the fall commencement ceremony Friday, Dec. 13. The ceremony, which starts at 2 p.m. at the Adams Center, is free and open to the public. Parking is free. “This Commencement Ceremony will celebrate the hundreds of hard-working Grizzlies who achieved their goal of earning a college diploma,” UM President Seth Bodnar said in a statement. “In the years ahead, I look forward to watching these graduates excel in their careers, using the knowledge they developed and experiences they had as part of our UM community.”During the ceremony, UM will present an honorary doctorate to commencement speaker William Marcus, a 1974 graduate and longtime director of the university’s Broadcast Media Center. Marcus served many roles at Montana Public Radio, and his audio stories were broadcast nationally, according to the university. He taught at the School of Journalism and worked with Jack Hyyppa of Montana State University to establish and grow Montana PBS television into a statewide entity. Marcus might be best known as the on-air host of “Backroads of Montana,” a travelogue Montana PBS television show that covers stories of interesting people, places and events across big sky country. Under Marcus’ leadership, dozens of television productions highlighting the stories of Montana won multiple statewide, regional and national awards. Marcus also received the Montana Governor’s Humanities Award in 2007 and the Cultural Achievement Award from the Missoula Cultural Council in 2015. UM presented him with both the J.B. Speer Award for Distinguished Service and the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2015.“My grandfather was a Dr. Marcus – dentist – and my brother was a Dr. Marcus – optometrist – but I never thought this honorific would ever be attached to my name,” Marcus said in a statement. “I’m deeply honored to receive UM’s highest recognition. I’ve had a long, rewarding relationship with my university, and this honor is unexpected and deeply appreciated.”Might Be Fun Children’s book author and illustrator Jan Brett will be at the Missoula Public Library on Sunday evening as part of her “Alice in a Winter Wonderland” book tour. The event starts at 5 p.m. in the level four Cooper Room and will include a drawing illustration, story presentation and book signing. Space is limited to 250 seats. The event is free but entrance to the signing line requires the purchase of “Alice in a Winter Wonderland” at the event or from Barnes and Noble beforehand. Brett will sign at least one book per group in line and more if possible. For any extra unsigned books, signed bookplates with full-color artwork will be available. The first 100 families in line will receive a signed Jan Brett poster.The post Missoula school board gets 2026 budget preview  appeared first on Montana Free Press.