JOHN MEYER

Bozeman has been taken hostage by developers. We need a new mayor who can take control of the situation and end the unspoken policy of growth at all costs. People want to live in Bozeman for the high quality of life, not the sprawling subdivisions that are gobbling up our farm land and lack basic infrastructure like public transportation. The status quo is not sustainable.

This may come as no surprise to longtime residents, but the City of Bozeman is facing a water crisis. City bulletins state we’re looking at water shortages in the next ten years, but City Commissioners continue to approve unnecessary developments. Bozeman should not be asking its residents to water their lawns less if it is going to rely on that water to continue approving development of second homes. This raises the fundamental difference between wants and needs. In times of crisis, we must focus on satisfying our needs, not our wants. By declaring a water crisis, the City of Bozeman can prioritize how we allocate our remaining water resources. Approving development of housing for people that work in Bozeman is a need. Approving development of second homes is not.

The City of Bozeman needs to become transparent in how it determines water availability. The sources of water that Bozeman relies upon — Bozeman Creek and the Hyalite Reservoir — are surface waters; they depend upon snowpack for replenishment. Bozeman’s third source of water, Lyman Creek, is primarily spring-fed but only accounts for 20% of our water supply. Science is saying we’ll see less snow in the future, and that precipitation is going to come in the form of rain, meaning less snowpack, and water later in the summer. The City may acquire more water rights, but it cannot make more snow. The cost for this oversight will fall on city residents and taxpayers, not developers, sooner rather than later. The only way to move forward is to look forward. That means accounting for climate change.

The next mayor should not be approve any new development until it is confirmed we have an adequate supply of water available for current residents five, ten, and twenty years from now. Thus far, the City has refused to release its water availability analysis. Does the City take into consideration climate change, growth rates, and changes in form of precipitation before approving developments? Why doesn’t the City make this analysis publicly available? Development should stop until there is transparency to ensure that the health, safety, and welfare of current residents is protected.

Bozeman’s municipal code allows developers to pay the city cash to tap into our water supplies instead of bringing new water for their proposed developments. Due to the ongoing effects of climate change in Montana, developers are paying for access to water that simply won’t exist in the future. The City needs to end the practice of accepting cash in lieu of bringing its own water. As the next Mayor, I’ll work to end this loophole and others like it.

​The Bozeman City Manager has confirmed our city has begun conversations about building a pipeline to Canyon Ferry to steal water from the reservoir to continue developing. That is unsustainable. The City of Bozeman needs to learn to live within its means, not take water from a reservoir more than fifty miles away to feed an insatiable growth machine. The secret is out that Montana is the last best place. As more and more people call Bozeman home, we need to be honest in confronting limitations. At some point, we have to admit that what we’re doing is not working any more. That time is now.

The Montana Constitution provides every Montanan with the right to a clean and healthy environment. The City of Bozeman is violating its residents’ constitutional rights to a healthful environment by failing to ensure current residents have adequate water five or ten years from now. By ensuring water is one of Bozeman’s highest priorities, the next mayor can control growth, development, and density, while retaining the energy and excitement that draws so many people here.  

John Meyer is a practicing environmental attorney in Bozeman. He is suing the Yellowstone Club for violations of the Clean Water Act, and is running for mayor to make Bozeman the most sustainable town on the planet. meyerformayor.com

Joey Morrison

My name is Joey Morrison, and I’m a social worker and community organizer running for Mayor of Bozeman. I am also honored to have the endorsement of Bozemanites fighting for change: former mayor Carson Taylor, local leader and organizer Jan Strout, Rep. Alice Buckley, former Congressional candidate Cora Neumann (MT-01), and local grassroots organizations like Bozeman Tenants United and the Sunrise Movement.

In this election, we want to talk with you, face to face. We’ve been out asking our neighbors an important question: Do you like the direction Bozeman is going in? We’ve knocked on thousands of doors and one thing has become clear: it feels like we’re all losing the Bozeman we love. I want to share why I hope to earn your vote on November 7th.

I grew up in Montana, one of three children raised by our single mother who has spent her entire life as a nurse. We struggled to get by, and my story is one that so many working Montanans know. From an early age, I was shown the way Montanans do things. We work hard, we know our neighbors, and we give each other a helping hand when we need them.

As a student at MSU, I learned what it meant to choose between paying for rent and paying for my tuition. I had to work full-time to get myself through school, balancing working nights at the Warming Center and being a student by day. I gave back to this community because I found my voice here, I found my purpose, and I decided this is the community where I want to spend the rest of my life.

It’s those experiences that led me to give back to the community. I’ve had the honor of serving Bozeman in a variety of ways, from answering phones for the local suicide crisis line, serving as a rapid response case manager during the 2022 Yellowstone flooding, to working with crisis centers like the Warming Center and Haven, and community organizing. Responding to neighbors in crisis is the work I’ve dedicated myself to.

I am running for Mayor of Bozeman because I’ve experienced first-hand the challenges that we all face. Today, Bozeman is in crisis. From housing insecurity and mismanaged growth to climate vulnerability. We need a local government that is responsible, responsive, and bold. We need a mayor who takes on today what threatens us tomorrow.

I am running so we can build a Bozeman where seniors don’t get priced out of their homes, renters don’t have to worry about where they’ll live next month, young families can afford to raise their kids in a safe community, small businesses can grow, and local government works for you - not out-of-state investors.

We need to explore every possible option to secure housing for the people who live here and build the housing we needed yesterday, not rubber-stamp luxury apartments. We need to strictly hold every development to our water conservation needs, not pipe in water from another region. We need to take real, data-driven, and research-based steps to address homelessness in Bozeman, not kicking our neighbors while they’re down.

As mayor, I’ll ensure that city hall has the backs of everyday, working Bozemanites who make this community run. We’re facing tough challenges, and we need to be having the tough conversations together, as a community, not relegated to online forums and angry letters to the editor. Our elected officials are uniquely positioned to lead our community around these important dialogues, and as your mayor, I’m excited and eager to lead them.

So, do you like the direction Bozeman is going in? This community is made up of people from all walks of life. We have different opinions, worldviews, pastimes and hobbies, perspectives and experiences. But what binds us all together is this beautiful place we call home.

That’s the Bozeman I am fighting for, and I am excited to invite you to join this fight with me - so we can build a better Bozeman together.