After years of planning, Bridger View — a compact neighborhood of 62 sustainably built homes — has officially broken ground, and building footprints are appearing. Adjacent to Bozeman’s Story Mill Community Park, Bridger View sits on 8 acres with shared open spaces and pedestrian connections to the park and local trail systems. This unique neighborhood addresses housing inequity, creates a connected and compact neighborhood, and promotes sustainable building practices.
The modest homes of Bridger View are intended for Bozemanites. Half of the homes at Bridger View will be held in the Headwaters Community Housing Trust, which will keep 31 homes attainable in perpetuity, providing permanent home ownership opportunities for middle-income residents who are finding it increasingly difficult to purchase a home in Bozeman. As a mixed-income development, Bridger View helps bridge the growing gap between current wages and housing costs.
The neighborhood fabric of Bridger View is tight knit: It resembles some of Bozeman’s older neighborhoods, with homes, lots, and streets smaller than the city’s current average. Courtyards and communal green spaces will be places for neighbors to connect and enjoy the outdoors. Smaller lots mean fewer resources are needed to maintain lawns and landscaping. Shared streets are narrower, slower, and safer, encouraging walkability and, ultimately, more neighborhood connection.
Each home has a high-performing building envelope, resulting in greater energy efficiency and lower utility bills for homeowners. Built with high-quality, healthy, and durable materials, homes will be cared for by generations to come. While many projects may want to address environmental concerns, housing inequity, or challenge the development status quo, rarely does a project achieve all three. The multiplicity of benefits interwoven with the Bridger View neighborhood provide solutions to many bigger issues our community is facing and hopefully will be a model for future development in Bozeman.
For the design of the neighborhood, our team collaborated with evolveEA, Stahly Engineering & Associates Inc., Groundprint LLC, Navigate LLC, Design 5, and Langlas & Associates. This project would not be possible without this talented design team and dedicated owners.