I was delighted to see Mr. Fowler’s letter in the latest issue of EBS, as affordable housing, or the lack thereof, is often a topic of conversation among people I speak with in Big Sky.
I believe his letter and goals act as a challenge to the ski town status quo of catering housing to the vacation/second home class while providing minimal accommodations for those who live, work and breathe there. This is something that has already happened to an extent in Big Sky, and it is up to us to see that it does not go further and get too out of hand.
There is a gap in housing in Big Sky, with one end being the many already-existing condos and townhomes that are often of poor quality, and on the other end, the high-end, luxury homes often designed for non-residents. In the middle are a number of homes built for working families, but that number is small and their turnover low.
The past few years have had too many stories floating around of young couples coming to Big Sky with the intent of moving here and settling down, only to leave before the season even starts because they don’t want to start a family in a Hill Condo studio or sharing rent with a stranger in a Firelight Condo.
There are plenty of condos in Big Sky already; we need more affordable housing for families to live in for longer than a 6- or 12-month lease.
– Mark Davidson, Big Sky
