Missoula City Council Land Use and Planning Committee Minutes

Wednesday, April 05, 2023

9:00 A.m. - 11:00 A.m.

Council Chambers (in person) or TEAMS (virtually)

Attend in person: City Council Chambers, 140 W Pine, Missoula MT

Members present:

• Stacie Anderson, 
• Mirtha Becerra, 
• Daniel Carlino, 
• John P. Contos, 
• Sierra Farmer, 
• Gwen Jones, 
• Mike Nugent, 
• Jennifer Savage, 
• Amber Sherrill, 
• and Heidi West 

Members absent:

• Kristen Jordan 
• and Sandra Vasecka 

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1.

ADMINISTRATIVE BUSINESS

The meeting was called to order at 9:01 a.m.

1.1

Roll Call

Amanda Vermace called the roll.

1.2

Approval of the Minutes

1.2.1

Approval of the Minutes from March 29, 2023

​​​​​​​​The minutes were approved as submitted.

2.

PUBLIC COMMENT

There were no public comments for items not listed on the agenda.

3.

COMMITTEE BUSINESS

3.1

Referral - Provide an update on the Our Missoula Code Reform and Growth Policy Update project

Jordan Hess

Mayor Jordan Hess gave an introduction of the subject item. Eran Pehan, Director of the Community Planning, Development and Innovation department, presented details and background on what the project is about. Ms. Pehan shared the goals and why an update is essential. She also covered the project timeline; including the phases for the project and how the community can engage. Additionally, Ms. Pehan shared some potential legislative changes to consider as the project develops. 

Jamin Kimmell, a member of the consultant team with Cascadia Partners also shared a slide show on the equity in land use reports preview. Mr. Kimmell went over the purpose of the report which included why the projects focus is on equity. The city has implemented polices and plans over the last few years with equity being the common grounds. The report consisted of historical context, an analysis of current zoning regulations that impact equity, an evaluation of the equity impacts of implementing the Growth Policy map, and the principles for reform. Mr. Kimmell's shared the takeaways and provided visuals of Missoula's zoning back in 1932 through present day. Other topics covered included housing affordability, segregation and exclusion, and displacement and gentrification. His presentation ended with six principles for Code Reform.

Committee members raised questions about the organizations involved with the project; specifically the organization Common Good. They also touched on the data around the minimum feasible sale price by zone district and infrastructure limitations and considerations. The committee also discussed the neighborhood gentrification typology to ensure there is no intentional cause of gentrification. At the request of the committee, Eran Pehan explained what land use code was. 

PUBLIC COMMENT:

John Wolverton, a Missoula resident, expressed support for the overall project. He also commented on the desire to expedite some areas of the project. Additionally, he touched on his concerns over the city's development surrounding housing affordability and social service outlets. 

• Information only

3.2

Referral - Code reform parking requirements near transit stops

Daniel Carlino, Mike Nugent

Justin Sloan Whitaker

As someone who has lived in Missoula off and on since 1998, I have seen a lot change in this beautiful mountain city. One of my greatest joys has been seeing more and more space dedicated to bikes and pedestrians. Another has been seeing the growth of the Mountain Line service. I love that it is becoming easier and easier to get around the city without a car. And yet, the demand for parking spaces for businesses contradicts this growth and positive change. We could have many more little cafes, markets, art galleries, etc in our neighborhoods if they could cut back on parking and encourage more customers to walk or bike in. Having lived abroad in Europe and Asia, I recall many of these spots being vital hubs of neighborhoods. They would in turn encourage all of us to walk or bike the few blocks for a quick breakfast or basic groceries instead of needing to drive to the nearest café or supermarket. Please vote yes on this reform.

Committee chair, Mike Nugent introduced the subject item and turned the floor over to Daniel Carlino. Mr. Carlino gave a presentation regarding issues with parking requirements and how they are taking away from more housing options in the city. His presentation included data from Buffalo, NY where parking requirements were lifted and developers were allowed to determine parking needs per project. Additionally, he explained how the cost of parking lots impacts the future residents and takes away from recreational areas. Mr. Carlino shared data showing that due to less living space, the cost of buying or renting has increased dramatically. Another highlight of the presentation showed where other cities in the United States have some type of parking reform and a few states have already passed a statewide reform that prohibits parking mandates near transit stops.  

Eran Pehan, Director of the Community Planning, Development and Innovation department, shared staff opinion regarding the proposal to lift parking mandates. She expressed support for implementing parking changes but noted that the changes with code reform should work together. The point would to not make one off changes to the code as that could create new issues or conflicts. Ms. Pehan also made suggestions of alternative options such as parking maximums. Jeremy Keene, Director of the Public Works and Mobility department, also added to the conversation by adding additional possibilities that could be attached to the code reform changes. An active map of the transit stops was displayed and highlighted the half mile radius from those stops. It showed that Missoula has a large portion of town that falls under the proposed change and could have a big impact.

The committee had several questions from both sides of the table. They asked how the proposal would fit into the planning process recently launched by the parking commission. The committee expressed concern over the service plan provided by Mountain Line and their ability to provide services to those areas. Some services are limited and that lead to the next concern where data was requested from Missoula in Motion for a survey that evaluated barriers in the community with alternative forms of transportation. There was also discussion about ADA requirements and assistant for those with disabilities. Additionally, it was mentioned that incentives around parking reduction could help reduce overall project costs. Not only would it reduce parking costs, but it could reduce the requirements for a developers cost with infrastructure requirements that are tied to projects.

PUBLIC COMMENTS:

Danny Tennenbaum, Jana Richter, and John Wolverton, were members of the public that expressed support of this initiative and would like to see some form of parking reform that closely aligns with the proposal. 

Due to limited time, this item is scheduled to return back to the Land Use and Planning Committee on Wednesday, April 19, 2023.

• Proposal to direct our code reform consultant team and staff to include eliminating parking minimums within half a mile of a transit stop in their next recommendation to council for code reform early deliverables or to include other substantive parking regulation changes to provide maximum flexibility for creative project development.

4.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting adjourned at 11:16 a.m.