BOZEMAN, Mont. — Longtime Bozeman residents may remember when homelessness was more visible on some city streets. Now, officials at HRDC say the city’s homeless population has declined 25 percent from last year.
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“It’s hard for the homeless to make it here because they really don’t want us here,” Gary said.
Gary has lived in Bozeman for three years.
“How has it been living in Bozeman these three years?” I asked.
“Hard,” Gary replied.
Gary is homeless — and he’s not alone.
“I lost my parents and my whole family, and I’ve been kinda just wandering for the last 15 years,” Matt said.
Matt said he has stayed in shelters across the country. When it comes to HRDC, he said the organization stands out.
“There are many things HRDC is doing correctly. It’s probably the leading edge in homeless shelters that I’ve seen, and I’ve been to 12 or 13,” Matt said.
HRDC is a nonprofit that assists the homeless community. Recently, the organization conducted a Point-in-Time Count of the homeless population in Bozeman. Officials counted 394 people, down 25 percent from the 523 counted last year.
When asked whether they had noticed the decline, both Matt and Gary said they had not.
“I don’t think so,” Matt said.
“No, I can’t say that I’ve noticed,” Gary added.
To learn how HRDC came up with the numbers, HRDC Chief Executive Officer Heather Grenier explained how the annual count works.
“It’s centered around if people are without stable housing on a specific night,” Grenier said.
Grenier said that night is typically at the end of January. HRDC and its partners count and interview people at the shelter, the Bozeman Public Library, Fork & Spoon and other locations to get a rough estimate of the homeless population in the area.
“It’s certainly not foolproof, but it’s the system we have to really track our measurements over time,” Grenier said.
According to this year’s count, homelessness is down 25 percent in Bozeman. When asked whether the decline had anything to do with Ordinance 2172 — passed in 2025 and prohibiting camping on public property — Grenier said the issues are separate.
“People who are sleeping in campers are not necessarily the same segment of the population that is accessing shelter services,” Grenier said.
Grenier attributed the decline to years of work and expanded services in the community.
Those services include expanded shelter capacity. HRDC’s Homeward Point can serve up to 130 people nightly. Community partners also contribute, including Haven’s 40-bed campus for domestic violence survivors and the Family Promise facility, which can support 100 families annually.
But Grenier said the focus goes beyond temporary shelter.
“Our goal is not to just keep sheltering people, right? Our goal is to rehouse or house people,” she said.
In 2024, HRDC and Regional Housing Coalition partners also helped produce or preserve more than 750 affordable homes. Grenier said another 1,300 are expected soon.
“Our goal is that the stint of experiencing homelessness is less than 30 days,” Grenier said.
For Gary, who has experienced homelessness in Bozeman for three years, the efforts are appreciated.
“We all that are homeless appreciate what people do for us,” Gary said.
