MISSOULA — The Missoula City Council voted Monday night to finalize the plan that would transform downtown.
The Downtown Safety, Access, and Mobility (SAM) project has four main elements.
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One converts Front and Main streets back to two-ways, with improved bicycle access and bulbed-out pedestrian crossings.
Another element will make Higgins Avenue a three-lane street to the intersection with Brooks Street. This element includes improved bicycle access as well.
The plan also calls for widening the riverfront trail from Kiwanis Park to Orange Street.
Finally, Pattee Street will be improved by adding ADA accessible ramps down to the riverfront trail. An ADA accessible ramp will also be built on the east side of Beartracks Bridge down to the riverfront trail.
There will also be stoplight optimization for 23 signals downtown and the surrounding area.
The Hip Strip will also see some changes with the project. Higgins Street would become a three-lane street with a center turning lane. The city, however, is still finalizing the plans for which direction will be two lanes. If the project goes through, there will no longer be parking on both sides of the Hip Strip.
The plan for this downtown transformation is currently 30% complete. But with the city council giving the green light to continue planning, a finalized draft could be completed in early to mid-2026. Finalizing the plan will include determining what kind of gravel will be used, as well as what kind of paint will be used for crosswalks.
Funding for planning and construction is already secure, especially with the help of a federal grant.
If all goes according to plan, construction for the downtown overhaul could start in the fall of 2026 or the spring of 2027.
