Mount Dean Stone Planning for Growth and Balancing Use at the Edge of The City

Abstract

Missoula's Mount Dean Stone community open space project is a 4,200 acre proposed complex located on the wildland-urban interface of the city's fast growing south side. The Mount Dean Stone Committee, comprised of community partners including organizations, agencies, businesses and individuals, have worked together since the inception of the overall proposed complex in 2016 to help understand how to best meet the recreation needs of a growing Missoula area and to leverage these recreational opportunities into broad and engaged community support for conservation of community open space and wildlife habitat. This session aims to share about the role of a community land trust in private lands conservation to meet the conservation values of publicly accessible community open space and protection of wildlife habitat along the wildland-urban interface.