BOZEMAN — City and county leaders have been for years discussing how to bring more affordable housing to the Gallatin Valley. On Tuesday, one group presented a new idea via a petition to the Gallatin County Commission.
“Everyone in Gallatin County knows there's a terrible housing crisis, and I think we need all the solutions,” says Julia Shaida, a member of the Bozeman Democratic Socialists of America.
Shaida has lived in the northeast part of Bozeman for seven years. She says she has seen her neighborhood change before her eyes.
“I see lower-income people being pushed out of my neighborhood,” says Shaida.
Shaida is pushing the commissioners to create a housing authority in Gallatin County.
“What our ultimate goal is, which is to create a social housing model in this area,” says Bozeman DSA Co-Chair Chris Austin.
Zeth Stone and Chris Austin, the group's leaders, want local governments, non-profits, and political groups like theirs to play a role in funding and building affordable housing.
“Housing authority that works, essentially functions as a traditional housing authority, issuing vouchers as well as a public developer,” says Stone.
County commissioners say while the idea of bringing more affordable housing is important, they’re concerned about how to create this first-of-its-kind tool.
“Uncertainty or just not understanding the entire space in state law about what a housing authority actually accomplishes,” says Gallatin County Commissioner Scott MacFarlane.
With the petition coming forward, the county commissioners say they do not want to rush to create redundant authority.
“We want feedback from all of the people in our community working on this to help us design it. We just didn't want to design on the fly,” says MacFarlane.
The county commission did not take any action on this petition. Commissioners did ask the group for more time to brainstorm ideas on how to form this commission.
The next time they'll bring this topic for discussion will be at the Nov. 28 Gallatin County Commission meeting.
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