MISSOULA — Last month, the Missoula City Council heard dozens of public comments on a Fourth Street street condo development proposal last month.
Ahead of another hearing, we have information on what the real estate agent has to say to the criticism.
The council will discuss the future of the historic homes at a Wednesday meeting. So far, almost 400 people have signed a petition to stop the new development of condos.
Jennifer Rokosch said she wrote up the petition to spread the word about the proposed development, because she has a friend that lives in one of the homes.
"We love these historic houses,” said Rokosch. “They are something tangible that we can see from our history.”
While some of the buildings date back to 1908, the property is currently owned by Cade, LLC and Pupaw, LLC.
Cole Bergquist wrote that he is working with the Historic Preservation Office to move the buildings, or reuse their materials, in a Facebook post.
“They say they know the character of Missoula, but the character is more than designing architecture to fit within a city," Rokosch said. "It’s about helping each other out, it’s about solving problems, and not creating them.”
Bergquist was unavailable for an interview on Tuesday. The post also says the condos will start at $250,000, and most will be priced under the 2019 median home price for the University District.
“Affordable housing is a huge issue in Montana right now,” Rokosch said. "Market value condos are just too expensive for those that live here to afford."
Bergquist says they haven’t finalized a design or advertised, and 40 people are already on a wait list for the condos.
The Missoula City council Committee meeting takes place from 12:30 p.m. until 3 p.m. on Wednesday.
Correction: In a previous version of this article the owner of the property in question was identified as Bergquist Donnelly real estate. The correct property owner is Cade, LLC and Pupaw, LLC.
