By Jen Clancey STAFF WRITER
When the Gibbon Avenue Apartments went up for sale in West Yellowstone a year and a half ago, tenants were nervous. Most, like Andrey Nedelko live there year-round as they operate and work at local businesses in town. The 18-unit complex was listed online for $3.9 million in September 2024, which was later reduced to $2.8 million in July this year.
Tenants discussed what they could do to keep their homes for the long-term future. The 2020 Census reported that 307 of the 849 homes in West Yellowstone were “vacant,” a status which includes both short-term rentals and homes used seasonally, recreationally or occasionally. With the help of the West Yellowstone Foundation, NeighborWorks Montana reached out to the tenant leadership team to discuss forming a housing co-op that would keep the beloved apartments in residents’ hands for the foreseeable future.
NeighborWorks Montana is a nonprofit that provides education and financing for Montanans to secure stable, affordable housing. In West Yellowstone, NeighborWorks will help residents of Gibbon Avenue Apartments establish a style of housing that all tenants own and maintain, led by a board of directors including Nedelko as vice president. Housing co-ops can be beneficial in places where cost of living is high, helping reduce monthly expenses and create a stable living option.
The board of directors began leading the formation of the cooperative in July and have met weekly since, to organize the purchase of the building. The purchase is expected to be completed in mid-December, and the land will be under a housing land trust, the first for the town. The Human Resource Development Council will hold the land trust, and also provide technical assistance as needed to the cooperative.
Nedelko owns the restaurant Yogi’s Waffle House and has lived in West Yellowstone for about 16 years. For six of them, he’s lived with his family in the Gibbon Avenue apartment building, which operated on month to month leases. He said he’s very satisfied with his home now.
“You know, it feels absolutely great,” Nedelko said. “We definitely make that place very comfortable for our family to stay and our neighbors are wonderful people, and the area is very safe and sound, so we are very happy.”
Kaia Peterson, executive director of NeighborWorks Montana, explained that West Yellowstone paved the way for a housing co-op like this. Earlier this year, the Town of West Yellowstone established a $500,000 housing fund. That fund’s first investment is the Gibbon Avenue project at $275,000. Outside of town dollars, the project is funded by a variety of sources.
“I think part of why I was really excited about this project is I knew that the community had done a lot of work to evaluate housing needs and the town was ready for a project,” Peterson said. “And I think in a small town that can be really hard to do, but I’ve been really impressed with the work that’s gone into talking about housing issues, evaluating options, bringing together partners.”
The West Yellowstone Foundation, Montana Board of Housing, Montana Healthcare Foundation and Gallatin Housing Impact Fund are also supporting the effort financially. West Yellowstone Foundation Executive Director Carrie Coan noted that the project is a “huge milestone” for housing in West Yellowstone. She hopes that momentum will carry forward into the 80 Acre project for affordable housing in town.
“Housing is such a huge challenge in so many places, but it’s really definitely a unique challenge in resort-like tourism communities like West Yellowstone,” Peterson said.
Alanah Griffith, Montana state representative for Big Sky and West Yellowstone, also submitted a letter of support for the project to the Town Council in October. She noted that residents are willing to give up generating wealth by entering an agreement that assures long-term affordable housing for community members with capped resale values.
“In exchange, they will have stability. This is a real value that they are giving up, in order to have a stable home in West Yellowstone,” Griffith said. “As you know, a stable, local workforce benefits the community as a whole.”
She encouraged the Town of West Yellowstone to funnel resort tax dollars toward the effort, to help organizers adapt to the quick opportunity to establish affordable options in town. Nearby in Big Sky, the Big Sky Community Housing Trust and Big Sky Resort Tax have been engaged in a significant funding partnership in the near-decade since BSCHT was created. Grants from Resort Tax fund various local housing programs like Good Deeds, as well as large infrastructure projects like the RiverView Apartments and Cold Smoke neighborhood.
Nedelko hopes that this decision will set a precedent for other resort communities to invest in affordable housing.
“I believe that’s not only good for us, it’s just good for the town of West Yellowstone, which is, I believe, kind of stuck in the ‘70s and ‘80s,” Nedelko said. “… That’s why we’re here with the fresh blood, trying to bring something new to the town.”
West Yellowstone is still developing plans for its 80 Acre project, a massive investment in long-term affordable housing for its year-round community. Work continues on a new water and sewer facility to accommodate current and future water processing needs of the town.
In the meantime, fast turnarounds on purchases like the Gibbon Avenue Apartments are rare opportunities to acquire affordable housing before breaking ground on new projects.
