= Montana Land Use Planning Act =

'''MLUPA''' is the state statute that reshaped how Montana cities do land use planning, and it is the reason for most of the City's planning work in 2025 and 2026.

= What it changed =

Under MLUPA, growth policies are '''no longer broad vision documents'''. They are implementation-focused and carry weight in later decisions on land use, infrastructure, housing, economic development, natural resources and capital improvements. Because the adopted plan is binding in a way its predecessors were not, the quality of the public process behind it matters legally as well as politically.

That is the frame in which the City built [[FutureGreatFalls2045]] and, alongside it, a separate '''Land Use Public Participation Plan''' adopted by Resolution 10629.

= Code follow-on =

Adopting the plan is only the first half. City code has to be amended to match, and it has consequences for which body hears what. The [[CityCommission]] took '''MLUPA code compliance — variances and appeals''' at [[WorkSession2026-01-20]]. The City noted in January 2026 that staff were reviewing and proposing code changes, and that current [[BoardOfAdjustment]] members would continue to serve as needed until the code could be adopted to give clear direction on the correct bodies to hear appeals.

The [[PlanningAdvisoryBoard]] and the [[BoardOfAdjustment]] are both affected.

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Adjustment/Appeals, MLUPA note: https://greatfallsmt.gov/456/AdjustmentAppeals
Minutes, June 16, 2026: https://greatfallsmt.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06162026-485

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