MONTANA Zoning Atlas
The Frontier Institute — a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization — initiated work on the Montana Zoning Atlas in 2022 with support from the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. It completed its analysis of key areas in Montana in 2023, making it the second major project to be completed.
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Strong Towns, Montana’s Fear of "California-Style Zoning" Spurs Reform: Local coverage of zoning reform bills, informed by findings from the Montana Zoning Atlas, proposed in Montana’s 2023 legislative session.
Bloomberg CItyLab, YIMBY Zoning Reform Sweeps the Mountain West: Connects research from the Montana Zoning Atlas to advocacy efforts in favor of addressing exclusionary zoning conditions in the Mountain West.
The Center Square, Report highlights zoning reforms that could improve Montana's housing supply: Coverage of Montana Zoning Atlas report highlighting how Montana’s severe zoning restrictions undercut efforts to build much-needed multi-family housing throughout the state.
Independent Record, Kendall Cotton: Time for Action on Housing Affordability: Opinion piece from Montana Zoning Atlas Director Kendall Cotton outlining key findings from the newly completed Montana Zoning Atlas that show how zoning constraints contribute to the state’s housing crisis.
Washington Post, How NIMBYism Chokes Off Affordable Housing Even in Big Sky Country: Opinion piece from Kendall Cotton, Director of the Montana Zoning Atlas, explaining how restrictive zoning increases housing prices and produces sprawl as Montana experiences rising housing demand.
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Click here to view the independent Montana Zoning Atlas. | Click here to download the zoning data collected for this atlas.
Video — Why is Montana’s Housing Expensive?
In January 2023, The Frontier Institute published an updated report to accompany the release of its Montana Zoning Atlas 2.0.
In May 2022, The Frontier Institute published a report describing the results of its initial Montana Zoning Atlas. The resulting data table is here. The code used to process the data has been published to Github.
You can review the zoning code for each city in the current Montana Zoning Atlas below:
A 2021 report by Pew Charitable Trusts to the Montana Legislature found jurisdictions that heavily regulate their housing supply see higher housing costs, slower economic growth and fewer homes built.
In a 2019 article in Montana Business Quarterly, the Director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER) at the University of Montana said “there exists ample evidence that local regulation has a significant impact on housing costs.”
A Washington Post op-ed by the Montana Atlas director explaining the preliminary results.
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Director: Kendall Cotton (Helena)
Zoning Code Analysts: Nathan Dugan (Whitefish); Marissa Getts (Columbia Falls); Thor Larson (Corvallis); Tanner Avery (Bozeman)
Geospatial Analysts: Marissa Getts (Whitefish); Mark Egge (Bozeman)
Special Thanks to: The Mercatus Center at George Mason University for generous funding to expand this project, and National Zoning Atlas team, especially Caleb Smith, who provided above and beyond technical assistance.