Missoula Zoning Intelligence
Zoning, permitted uses, and development potential for Missoula, Montana. 21 districts with their permitted uses and building controls.
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Zoning districts are shown at zoom 15 and closer. Zoom out for the Missoula city outline and street context.
How is Missoula zoned?
Missoula regulates land through 21 zoning districts under a prefix system that sorts land by urban context before use. LU marks limited urban, U marks urban, R marks rural, T marks transitional, CD marks civic and OP marks open space.
That prefix answers the first question on any site. Limited Urban Residential 1 covers roughly 4,252 acres while Urban Residential 1 covers about 692, and the two are governed differently despite covering the same nominal housing type.
The urban residential series runs 1 through 4 and the urban mixed use series runs 1 through 4 as well, split between neighborhood scale at the first two and community scale at the second two. That gives the city eight graduated urban districts before any rural or transitional category is counted.
Open Space is the largest classification at roughly 4,822 acres, with an Open And Resource Lands district adding about 310. An Aviation district covers roughly 2,459 acres.
Two Civic districts cover roughly 958 acres between them, and a Transitional Mixed Use district covers about 412, marking where the city expects change.
Downtown is split into a core at roughly 193 acres and a transition district at about 196, an unusually even split that treats the ring around the core as equally important. This is pre-development intelligence, not legal advice - verify with the local planning department before acquisition.
Missoula, Montana Zoning Districts: What Do They Mean?
Zoning districts are areas regulated by specific laws that determine land use, building types, and development rules. Each district below shows its zone type. Missoula's ordinance does not state permitted uses as citywide flags, so they are read from each district's own table rather than summarised here.
| Zone Code | Zone Type | Area |
|---|---|---|
OP-1 Open Space | - | 4,821.9 ac |
LU-R1 Limited Urban Residential 1 | - | 4,251.6 ac |
A Aviation | - | 2,459.5 ac |
U-R3 Urban Residential 3 | - | 1,594.6 ac |
What are the building controls in Missoula?
Setback, height, FAR, lot area, and density controls enforced across Missoula zoning districts.
- Building height
- Coverage
- Density
- FAR
- Front setback
- Lot
- Lot width
- Multi
- Pervious
- Rear setback
- Side setback
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Missoula zoning: frequently asked questions
- What do the prefixes in Missoula district codes mean?
- They sort land by urban context before use: LU for limited urban, U for urban, R for rural, T for transitional, CD for civic and OP for open space. The prefix answers the first question on any site.
- How do limited urban and urban districts differ?
- They are governed differently despite covering the same nominal housing type. Limited Urban Residential 1 covers roughly 4,252 acres while Urban Residential 1 covers about 692, each under its own standards.
- How is mixed use organised?
- Through an urban mixed use series numbered 1 through 4, split between neighborhood scale at the first two and community scale at the second two, plus a limited urban mixed use district at roughly 939 acres.
- Which is the largest district?
- Open Space at roughly 4,822 acres, ahead of Limited Urban Residential 1 at about 4,252 and an Aviation district at roughly 2,459.
- How is downtown zoned?
- Through a Downtown Core at roughly 193 acres and a Downtown Transition district at about 196. The unusually even split treats the ring around the core as equally important.
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Book a demo →Zoning data is pre-development intelligence, not legal advice. Verify with the Missoula planning department before acquisition or design.