City Council votes to allow police, fire to live 60 miles from city limits

Citing the cost of housing, the Missoula City Council on Monday approved an amendment to city code allowing police officers and firefighters to live further outside city limits.

The request was brought to council last month by Police Chief Mike Colyer, who said the department struggles at times to recruit qualified candidates due to the cost of housing in Missoula. He said the department has lost applicants at various stages of the requiting process due to housing costs.

“I don't think this is a silver bullet that will change all of our issues, but if this amendment will help us pick up a qualified person here or there, or retain a qualified person we've already hired to continue with his or her career, it would be well worth it,” Colyer said.

On Monday, members of the council voted unanimously to approve the amendment setting the residency requirements for police and fire employees.

As adopted, it requires all police and firefighters employed by the city to be a resident of the city, “or a resident of an area located within 60 miles of Missoula city limits.” It also gives reasonable exceptions to live beyond that distance “but within a reasonable response time.”

The median price of a home within the City of Missoula stands at $561,000, according to the Missoula Organization of Realtors. In comparison, the median home price in Sanders County is $373,000 while in Granite County it's $356,000. The median price for Missoula County as a whole is $562,000.

Council member Bob Campbell said that allowing officers to live up to 60 miles outside city limits could help recruitment and not leave officers in a financial pinch.

“This goes to a much larger problem of affordability here in Missoula,” said Campbell. “I know first-hand from officers that look to come here who see the cost of living. It doesn't work for them because they can't find affordability based upon the salary being offered. Oftentimes, we lose qualified candidates.”

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