RESPONSIBLE TOURISM
WHERE VISITORS INCREASE AFFORDABLE HOUSING
WHITEFISH, MONTANA, UNITED STATES
Photo: Brian Schott / Explore Whitefish
When booking trips, choose accommodations, restaurants and services that participate in sustainability programs so that your money supports local development and well-being. Whitefish, Montana, has a program that makes this easy for visitors and businesses.
What's
changing
When a town becomes more popular with visitors and remote workers are looking to relocate, hospitality workers are often negatively affected by rising costs of living, especially for housing. A lack of affordable housing makes it difficult for long-term residents to stay in their communities and leads to displacement, a loss of local culture and staffing shortages.
What's already
possible
In Whitefish, a voluntary sustainability fee funds programs that work to promote, plan and create affordable housing to combat increases in costs. Portions of the funds are also allocated to visitor education to give guests a better understanding of how to respect the local environment and community.
Seizing
the opportunity
Explore Whitefish’s Community Support Fund (CSF) is a voluntary 1% surcharge on bills for accommodations, restaurants or car rentals operated by member organizations. The funds gathered are used for sustainability initiatives, including housing, off-season marketing, grant programs and educational campaigns.
Standout
tactic
A unanimous vote in June 2024 called for 50% of restaurant CSF funds to be allocated to housing projects via Housing Whitefish, an organization established in part with CSF funds.
How
it helps
In 2023, Housing Whitefish selected architects to design its first project with 16 to 24 rental units for low and moderate income individuals. As of August 2024, the voluntary fund had directed 301,990 U.S. dollars toward housing initiatives.
Diving
deeper
How can sustainability funds ensure that short-term, affordable housing will not create a dependency on external funding or potentially hinder long-term solutions addressing underlying issues?
Increasing
impact
If funds for voluntary sustainability fees were matched by public-private partnerships or other non-profits, the fund could grow exponentially and accelerate solutions to a housing crunch.
Traveling
better
Travel is inherently carbon intensive. Whether you are taking a mini-break or an annual vacation, consider ways to minimize your impact by staying longer in one place, reconsidering how you travel to the destination, and supporting businesses that are working to make their community and the world a better place.
