Recognizing that there is no silver bullet – that no one housing strategy can do it all – the Housing Working Group evaluated about 40 different methods that could be used to address community housing needs in Bozeman. The reviewed options were based on strategies that have been used in high-amenity communities throughout the nation to address a variety of community housing needs.
Of the different options reviewed, the Working Group, with input from the public, housing needs assessment and technical assistance from the consultants, prioritized 17 of the options (see Action Plan pages 11 through 21) to implement within the next five years. Prioritization was required because neither the City nor the implementing partners have the capacity or resources to implement every strategy at once, nor would every strategy necessarily be effective in Bozeman. The other options are not lost, however. As the City and partners expand their capacity and successes, more strategies can be brought into the housing program to increase the impact of the actions taken. The Bozeman City Commission added two strategies in January of 2020.
The 19 strategies identified for implementation over the next five years cover a range of options and target a variety of incomes and housing types, ensuring that community housing needs are being addressed from multiple angles. This includes:
Funding: How do we pay for it?
Programs: How do we get people into homes?
Regulations: How do we make it happen?
Incentives: How do we make it easier?
Partnerships: How do we work together?
Preservation: How do we keep what we create?
