Yellowstone faces a housing crisis with the average age of park homes at 70 years old, and long overdue for upgrades. The rate of deterioration of homes combined with harsh weather conditions have left houses throughout the park in a state of disrepair, no longer meeting modern standards for safety, comfort, and efficiency. These living conditions must be improved for the park to attract and retain its skilled workforce.
Yellowstone has made housing improvements over past decades, but these efforts have not kept pace with the speed of decline in housing or the loss of external affordable housing availability. This multi-year housing project will renovate the interior and exterior of all the remaining National Park Service housing units. This will include replacing roof surfaces, siding/insulation, double pane windows/storms, interior flooring, kitchens, bathrooms, and adding attic insulation. Where appropriate, solar panels will be added. Updates have been made to 232 interiors. This leaves 167 interiors that are out of date and past their components’ life cycle, and exteriors need to be updated on almost all housing units. The park anticipates a five-year timeline to sequence the remaining housing improvements.
This project, funded through a mix of philanthropy and government funds, showcases an excellent public-private partnership and serves as a model for other parks facing similar challenges.
