Montana Judge Blocks Zoning Reforms

A Montana judge reversed parts of a sweeping zoning reform package passed last year which would have legalized accessory dwelling units and duplexes in residential areas. According to the judge, the laws would “likely do ‘irreparable’ damage to residents of single-family neighborhoods.” Writing in Reason, Christian Britschgi calls the decision ‘eyebrow-raising,’ noting that “the reforms rank as some of the more ambitious housing bills passed by any state legislature last year.”

The decision is the result of a lawsuit brought by a group calling themselves Montanans Against Irresponsible Densification (MAID), which sued the state arguing that the zoning reforms were unconstitutional because they allowed neighborhoods with restrictive covenants to continue excluding denser housing types. “MAID said this would unfairly funnel development into areas without protective covenants, and produce arbitrary results whereby duplexes could be built on one side of a street, but not on the other side.”

This reversal of recent zoning reforms isn’t unique to Montana: “In September 2023, a Minnesota judge overturned Minneapolis’ first-in-the-nation abolition of single-family-only zoning (in addition to other zoning reforms), citing the city’s failure to conduct a proper state-required environmental analysis of increased allowable density,” and a Texas judge similarly invalidated zoning reforms in Austin.

With more Americans unable to afford housing, evictions on the rise, and housing supplies not meeting demand in many regions, the zoning reform and missing middle housing’ debate isn’t going anywhere soon.