Missoula, Montana – The Missoula City Council has enacted a landmark Unified Development Code (UDC), a comprehensive overhaul of the city's zoning regulations that legalizes multi-family housing across all neighborhoods, removes density caps in most areas, and eliminates off-street parking minimums citywide. The reforms, approved in February 2026 after three years of development, aim to address a severe housing shortage and rising costs in the city of approximately 80,000 residents.
Mayor Andrea Davis emphasized the intent of the new code, stating before the final vote, "This code puts more homes in more places distributed across our neighborhoods, and it puts in place clear rules that reduce costs and uncertainty." The new UDC builds upon the "Our Missoula 2045 Land Use Plan" adopted in December 2024, which guides the city's growth for the next two decades and calls for 1,100 to 1,500 new housing units annually.
The changes are particularly significant as they allow small-scale mixed-use developments, such as shops with apartments above, on every parcel. City Council President Mike Nugent highlighted the environmental and housing benefits, noting, "Our core goals are more homes, more choices, and more resilient, walkable neighborhoods. And one of the most significant pro-housing, pro-climate reforms we can make is to allow more of a site to be used for homes instead of mandatory asphalt."
The reform process was partly spurred by the 2023 Montana Land Use and Planning Act (MLUPA), which mandated that larger cities, including Missoula, relax zoning regulations to encourage infill development. While the state law required at least two units per parcel in all residential areas and limited parking mandates, Missoula's council opted to go further by eliminating parking minimums entirely. This decision makes Missoula the first city in Montana to do so, recognizing the connection between parking requirements and housing costs.
The comprehensive nature of Missoula's reforms has drawn attention from other cities grappling with similar housing challenges. As Saad Asad noted in a recent tweet, "> If a small Montana city can overhaul its zoning code, San Diego has no credible excuse not to." The city's bold move positions it as a model for other communities seeking to increase housing supply and affordability through significant regulatory changes.
