Bozeman Water Adequacy Initiative (aka WARD) Makes the November 4, 2025, Bozeman Municipal Ballot

BOZEMAN – The Gallatin County Elections Department announced on June 25 that the Bozeman Water Adequacy Initiative (aka WARD initiative) will appear on the November 4, 2025, Bozeman municipal ballot. The initiative is sponsored by a multi-generational, grassroots group of renters and homeowners, Water Adequacy for Residential Development (WARD). The WARD group had 90 days (March 26 - June 23) to collect signatures from at least 15% (5,356) of Bozeman’s registered voters. The initiative received 5,800 verified signatures, or 444 more than required.

The goal of the WARD initiative is to help conserve the City of Bozeman’s (City) finite water supply while helping to provide much-needed affordable housing for rent and for sale to Bozeman residents. Specifically, WARD seeks to amend Bozeman Municipal Code Sec 38.410.130.D to allow new residential developments of three or more dwelling units to pay the City cash-in-lieu of water rights only if such developments include 33% or more of affordable dwelling units for rent or for sale. Moreover, the WARD initiative seeks to repeal the ability of new residential developments to loophole-out of providing affordable dwelling units via implementing offsite water efficiency or conservation measures.

The WARD initiative defines affordable as dwelling units offered for rent at 60% or less of area median income (AMI) or offered for sale at 120% AMI or less. All affordable dwelling units would be deed-restricted for at least 99 years, be required to be of the same size and quality as those sold or rented at market rate, and be evenly distributed among and within all buildings and floors of a development. The City would be responsible for allocating affordable dwelling units for rent and for sale by random lottery.

“This ballot initiative is about our community deciding how we allocate Bozeman's finite water supply, adding an affordable housing tool to our toolbox, and perhaps slowing gentrification within the City,” said Bozeman resident Natsuki Nakamura.

For more information, go to https://www.wardbzn.com/.