RFP Missoula Annexation Policy 2026
| Location: | Montana |
|---|---|
| Posted: | May 10, 2026 |
| Due: | Jun 8, 2026 |
| Agency: | City of Missoula |
| Type of Government: | State & Local |
| Category: |
|
| Publication URL: | To access bid details, please log in. |
| Bid Title: |
RFP Missoula Annexation Policy 2026
|
| Category: | Request for Proposals (RFPs) |
| Status: | Open |
|
Attachment Preview
CITY OF MISSOULA
Fiscal Impact Analysis and Policy Guidance
to Support Annexation Policy Update
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
Prepared by:
Community Planning, Development & Innovation
Address: 435 Ryman Street
Missoula, Montana 59802
Issued: May 9, 2026
Submittal Information:
Deadline: June 8, 2026 at 4:00 p.m., Mountain Daylight Time
Send questions and submittals to: Emily Gluckin
Email: glucking@ci.missoula.mt.us
Phone: 552-6621
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Contents
Introduction .................................................................................................................3
Community Background ............................................................................................3
Purpose and Need .....................................................................................................4
Scope of Services .........................................................................................................7
Project Description: ...................................................................................................7
Final Project Deliverables...........................................................................................8
Proposal Framework ..................................................................................................9
Project Work Plan Elements: ......................................................................................9
Budget and Timeline ................................................................................................ 10
Budget ................................................................................................................ 10
Timeline .............................................................................................................. 10
Consultant and Staff Roles....................................................................................... 10
Consultant Role ................................................................................................... 11
City Staff Role ...................................................................................................... 11
Submission Requirements........................................................................................... 11
Proposal Content: ................................................................................................... 11
Proposal Format: ..................................................................................................... 12
Proposal Submission: .............................................................................................. 12
Consultant Selection and RFP Schedule....................................................................... 13
Proposal Selection .................................................................................................. 13
Review Criteria ........................................................................................................ 13
Selection Time Frame: ............................................................................................. 14
Terms and Conditions ................................................................................................. 14
Statement of Noncommitment ............................................................................. 14
RFP Authority ....................................................................................................... 14
Acceptance of Terms ............................................................................................ 14
Professional Services Agreement .......................................................................... 15
Notice to Consultant ............................................................................................ 15
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Attachments:.............................................................................................................. 16
Attachment A – Related Policies, Plans, Reports and Resolutions ............................ 16
Attachment B – Standard Missoula City Contract Template ..................................... 16
Introduction
The City of Missoula is seeking the services of a consulting team with experience in land
use, development, and planning, and expertise related to annexation and fiscal analysis, to
support the update of the City’s existing annexation policy. Guidance for an updated
annexation policy should be based on recently adopted city policy and informed by fiscal
analysis that considers a more accurate estimate of public revenues and expenditures
associated with expansion of the City’s jurisdiction.
To inform this work, the consultant team will familiarize themselves with and base their
work on City policy, including recent efforts to update the City’s Land Use Plan (LUP), as
well as the Parks, Recreation, Open Space and Trails (PROST) plan, Long Range
Transportation Plan (LRTP), and Water and Wastewater Facilities Plans along with the Utility
Service Area Boundary, all of which have been recently developed in conjunction with an
entirely new Unified Development Code (UDC) and associated Standards and
Specifications manual (COMSSM). The City is currently engaged in a sub-area planning
effort called the Reserve to Scott Street Plan Update that has bearing on this project as
well. Data inputs for the fiscal analysis should include City funded services including, but
not limited to, safety and emergency services, surface and utility infrastructure
maintenance, and parks, recreation and open space capacities, as well as associated
regional impacts.
The consultant team will partner with City staff in order to produce a successful project
outcome involving the overall development of a new annexation policy. Consultants and
staff will co-manage the project, with consultants leading elements including the overall
project timeline, the fiscal impacts analysis, and an update of the annexation policy map.
Staff will lead external public engagement, policy language and criteria development, and
manage public processes around eventual adoption of the updated policy, all with support
from the consultants on supporting guidance and materials.
Community Background
Missoula, Montana is nestled in the heart of the northern Rocky Mountains, and lies at the
confluence of the Clark Fork, Blackfoot, and Bitterroot Rivers. Missoula’s built environment
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is shaped, and constrained, by a mountain valley landscape. Additional constraints further
impact where development is desirable or appropriate, including steep slopes, open
space, wildlife habitat, wildland-urban interface concerns, floodplain, an airport hazard
area, and high groundwater in some areas. The space for growth into easily available
greenfield sites is diminishing quickly. Like many places, Missoula is challenged by
contemporary issues, including high housing costs and environmental risk due to climate
change. As one of its central themes towards addressing these challenges, the City uses a
‘Focus Inward’ approach to growth that prioritizes infill and efficient use of services within
its greater urban area.
From a growth standpoint, Missoula has been somewhat resilient to outside economic
forces over time. Since its founding, the City has seen several up and down economic
cycles but overall has maintained a steady growth rate of about one and a half percent per
year. As of the most recent Land Use Plan update, the current population within the Land
Use Plan area is approximately 93,000 people, and projecting a generally consistent growth
rate of 1.39%, is expected to reach a population of up to around128,000 for the larger Land
Use Plan area by 2045, with the City estimated to grow to 115,950 within that same time
period.
The City has just concluded a multi-year effort generally referred to as the Our Missoula
Project to update its Land Use Plan and comprehensively reform its development codes
which resulted in the creation of an entirely new Unified Development Code. During that
same time, the City also conducted several other plan updates, and the State of Montana
adopted the Montana Land Use Planning Act (MCA 76-25) to update the State's entire legal
framework for land use. With new City policy and implementing regulations in place, and
operating under a new set of land use laws, it is time for the City to update its annexation
policy, and in a way that is enabled by a more comprehensive understanding of the City’s
fiscal health, to continue on a path towards modernizing its approach to growth
management in the urban area.
Purpose and Need
The City’s current annexation policy, first adopted in 2019, provides comprehensive
guidance for annexing areas within and around the City of Missoula. This policy is
supported by Missoula’s Utilities Service Area (USA), which is an area that delineates
where the City agrees to serve with City owned water and wastewater utilities. The USA
boundary is largely consistent with the Land Use Planning boundary. A key aspect of the
policy is its focus on promoting efficient resource use, which is critical for sustainable
growth and a central tenet of the City’s ‘Focus Inward’ growth strategy. Priority for
annexation is currently given to areas that contribute to logical growth patterns, are served
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by adequate infrastructure and proximity to amenities and services, and possess favorable
conditions or reflect existing agreements. This concept is a key factor in how the City
evaluates petitions for annexation, although it is complicated by the fact that some City
utilities (sewer and water) extend well outside of the City limits. Typically, the City requires
development that occurs outside of city limits but would rely on municipal utilities to waive
their rights to protest annexation into the City, though this approach is one that will be re-
evaluated as part of this update.
The current policy already plays a crucial role in managing growth effectively, aiming to
prevent issues such as leapfrog development and inadequate municipal infrastructure,
minimize development on environmentally constrained lands, ensure public health and
safety, and foster walkable urban neighborhoods and community connectivity. It
emphasizes equitable service provision and cost-effective annexations, and these goals
will likely not change as a result of this effort. Although Montana land use law provides
several ways for cities to annex property, the City of Missoula typically uses Title 7 Part 46 of
Montana Code Annotated, which provides rules for annexation by petition. Missoula
officials anticipate this will remain the most common method of annexation, although we
may use other methods as the situation warrants or are suggested by consultants.
The policy explicitly advises against the annexation and development of environmentally
sensitive lands, though there is room for clarification and improvement in the update. The
policy incorporates an associated map of the urban area that specifies which areas tend to
meet annexation policy guidelines (Area A) versus which areas do not (Area B). The policy
allows Missoula City Council the authority to waive certain policy principles when
necessary, and the Council has the authority to and typically requires petitioners (i.e.,
developers) to extend or upgrade municipal facilities needed to serve the projected
development up to city standards. The City does this through conditions of annexation.
Typical conditions include extension or upsizing of sewer and water facilities, onsite
stormwater retention, and street and sidewalk upgrades along the property frontage.
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