Gathered in a senior center cafeteria on a hot July evening earlier this summer, a dozen Lewistown residents took part in a ritual that has become as much a tradition of the American West as rodeos and Fourth of July parades: debating the merits of a housing development before their City Commission.
The proposal: A four-story, 24-unit apartment building on a long-vacant hillside four blocks from Main Street, pitched by an out-of-town developer seeking a zoning change that would allow a monolithic building rather than a row of mobile homes.
The opposition: A succession of local residents, including neighbors who’d prefer not to have a new development looming over their backyards, voicing concerns ranging from traffic to stormwater runoff.
“I know Lewistown has to grow, I know Lewistown needs to provide more housing. There’s no question about that. I understand that,” said one neighbor, Perry Howell. “But I would just hope we do a real thoughtful process and try to make sure we check all the boxes before we just slam something in there.”
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Dozens, if not hundreds, of public debates much like this one have played out across Montana in recent years over subdivisions in Whitefish, trailer park redevelopment in Great Falls, and
