The City of Missoula invites the community to an open house on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 4:30 – 7 p.m. at the Missoula Public Library, to learn about design concepts at the 30 percent design milestone for the Downtown Safety, Access, and Mobility (SAM) Project. At this design milestone, the project has general concepts approaching a 30 percent level of detail. The project team has selected a construction manager/general contractor and received preliminary information from the parking study.
“The 30 percent milestone is a critical checkpoint to confirm that the designs don’t have any major technical issues and are consistent with the grant requirements,” said Megan McMeekin, senior project manager for the City of Missoula. “We also need to make important decisions about what we are carrying forward in design to ensure our project stays within our construction budget.”
Project Overview
The Downtown SAM Project is a transformative infrastructure project aimed at enhancing safety, accessibility, and mobility in Downtown Missoula. It's funded primarily by a $24 million federal RAISE grant awarded in June 2023. Upon completion, the SAM Project will:
- Create safer streets for walking, biking, driving, and public transportation.
- Improve access and circulation for Downtown businesses, workers, residents, and visitors.
- Create an inviting streetscape that showcases Downtown Missoula as a destination.
- Support economic health and investment in downtown.
The project contains four key elements, with aspects that are required in order to receive grant funding, as well as features that can be shaped during the public process.
- Higgins Avenue Multi-Modal Improvements
- Front/Main Two-Way Restoration
- Riverfront Trail & Connectivity Improvements
- Downtown Signal Optimization
At this stage, the design serves as a workable framework: alignments, cross sections and major elements are defined, while fine details will continue to be developed as the design progresses. Design work is being led by local engineering firm DJ&A with additional consultants Kittelson and Associates, HDR, Tetra Tech and Dixon Unlimited.
Collaborative Decision-making
The Downtown SAM Project uses a collaborative decision-making model that employs a Citizen Working Group made up of 19 community members, who offer recommendations reflecting diverse perspectives; Technical Review Teams of subject-matter experts providing guidance on standards, planning, and upfront and life-cycle cost efficiency; and a Project Leadership Team of City department directors who act as the primary decision-making body, aligning recommendations with City-wide goals and overseeing the project management team.
Local Contractor Selected
Due to the complexity of the project, the delivery method for construction uses a Construction Manager / General Contractor (CMGC) model. This approach brings the contractor into the project early in the design stages, rather than after design is complete. That way, the scope and budget are aligned early, and the contractor can better plan how the work will be executed. “Using this model, once the design is complete, we can get shovels in the ground and begin work efficiently,” McMeekin said. The City has selected local contractor, Jackson Contractor Group as the construction manager / general contractor for this project.
Parking Study
Over the last few months, the Missoula Parking Commission has been working with the project design team to collect parking data. The data were collected from Broadway Street south into the Hip Strip along Higgins and one block east and west of Higgins from May 2025 through August 2025. Within this area there are 2,650 public parking spaces, including on-street spaces and off-street lots. Of that, there are 682 parking spaces directly in the project area. According to Dixon Resources Unlimited, the parking consultants for the project, the ideal occupancy rate for a healthy downtown area is 85 percent, which equates to one or two parking spaces being available on each block. Current occupancy rates for the project area range from 64 to 71 percent, which means there is currently more parking available than in most healthy downtowns. Complete information about the parking study will be available at the open house.
Open House
The Oct. 8 open house is the first of several opportunities for public comments during the design phase. The event marks the project’s first major design milestone and will give the public an opportunity to preview plans, ask questions, and provide comments. Additional open houses will take place at future project milestones.
Downtown Safety, Access, and Mobility Open House
Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025 4:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Missoula Public Library – Cooper Room B – Level 4