New York City-based real estate investor Clarion Partners has made its first investment in the Bozeman, Montana, area with the development of 162 townhomes and apartments on an 8-acre Qualified Opportunity Zone site.
Highmark, developed in partnership with Phoenix-based developer Wentworth Property Co., is located in the city’s South University District neighborhood. The project started leasing in April and is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.
Units at Highmark, spread between seven residential buildings, will range from one-bedroom apartments to three-bedroom townhomes. The apartments will offer 10-foot ceilings, quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances, and in-unit laundry, while the townhomes will have individual yards and balconies.
Amenities will include a clubroom, fitness center, package room, an outdoor gathering area, a hot tub, a dog park, a pet spa and more than 300 parking spaces.
The South University District is a cluster of residential and commercial properties located around the Montana State University campus. The property is located within half a mile of MSU and 2 miles of downtown Bozeman. In addition to the university, local employers include Bozeman Health and database software company Oracle.
“Bozeman offers an unparalleled outdoor lifestyle as well as proximity to a growing employment base in education and technology,” Jason Glasser, managing director of Clarion Partners, said in the release. “The development of Highmark will add a variety of new housing options in a popular area where home prices have become increasingly unaffordable.”
The Opportunity Zone program is an economic development tool created under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 that incentivizes people to invest in distressed areas in the U.S. Originally set to start expiring on Dec. 31, 2026, the budget bill recently signed into law has made the program permanent.
Clarion currently has 170 properties in areas designated as Opportunity Zones, equivalent to nearly $8 billion in gross real estate value. It also has 734 properties, or $38 billion in value, in submarkets next to OZs.
