A 'Needle in a Haystack': The Rare Acquisition That Became Gallatin County's Beloved Park

By Whitney Bermes, Gallatin County Communications Coordinator

Take a stroll around the 87-acre Gallatin County Regional Park in west Bozeman on a crisp fall day, and here is what you are likely to see. 

Kids casting fishing poles into one of the ponds, watching bobbers dance on the surface. 

Dogs bounding through the off-leash Anderson Dog Park while their owners search the grass for dropped tennis balls, eager for another throw. 

Book lovers settling beneath shade trees, turning pages in the afternoon sun. 

Nearby, senior citizens sitting with friends on benches, swapping stories about grandchildren and retirement adventures. 

“The Regional Park is a tremendous asset for the community because so many different user groups get to enjoy it in so many different ways,” said Caitlin Quisenberry, Director of the Gallatin County Regional Park. “This beloved space is used from sunup to sundown for events and recreation right in the heart of Bozeman.” 

The park exists thanks to the residents of Gallatin County and their support for the Open Lands Program. 

That voter-approved program, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025, has helped protect more than 57,000 acres of private land, including ranches, farms, wildlife habitat, and scenic open space. Among those acres are the 87 that became the Regional Park. 

Sean O’Callaghan, coordinator of Gallatin County’s Open Lands Program, said a land acquisition like this is rare. 

“Opportunities like this are really a needle in a haystack,” O’Callaghan said. 

The push to protect open space in the growing Gallatin Valley came to fruition in November 2000, when voters approved the county’s first Open Space Bond. That measure provided $10 million to conserve land. 

From that first funding pool, the nonprofit Friends of Regional Parks requested $2.3 million from the Gallatin County Commission to purchase 100 acres in the Baxter Meadows subdivision on Bozeman’s west side. 

“Buying this parkland now is the opportunity of a lifetime. They aren’t making land around these parts anymore, after all. And as our county continues to grow by leaps and bounds, it is our responsibility to future generations to keep in mind the place we want our community to become,” wrote Paul Weingart, president of Friends of Regional Parks, in a July 2002 opinion piece in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. “It is hard to imagine not setting aside some of our beautiful valley as parkland. After all, while conservation easements have a good purpose, we taxpayers and residents deserve to have some open space that is for all of us to use.” 

At the time, the land was little more than a flat field. But advocates envisioned soccer fields, trails, ponds, and community gathering spaces. 

The proposal sparked debate before the Gallatin County Commission, with strong opinions on both sides. Ultimately, the commission approved the project. Then-Commissioner Bill Murdock said it was clear that voters wanted the Open Lands Program to fund both conservation easements and park acquisitions. Former Commissioner John Vincent added that the Regional Park fulfilled the very promise of the Open Space Bond. 

Over the years, the flat field transformed into the vibrant park the community knows today. 

Nonprofits now host large events on its grounds, such as Random Acts of Silliness’ lantern parade in winter and Cancer Support Community Montana’s spring food truck festival. The trails also serve as popular routes for charity fun runs and high school cross-country meets. 

Countless partnerships and volunteers have shaped the park. Run Dog Run built the off-leash dog area, Dirt Concern developed and maintains the pump track, and the Sacagawea Audubon Society planted trees and tended wetlands, to name just a few. 

The City of Bozeman’s Parks and Recreation Department and GVLT have also partnered to create and continuously improve the trail system in and around the park, which is part of the larger Raptor Route that crosses Bozeman from east to west.

“All different parts of our community have come together to really make it special,” O’Callaghan said. 

Today, the park offers amenities such as the Dinosaur Playground with its climbing boulders and picnic shelters, a sled hill, two ponds, a bike park, and a dog park, all connected by open space and trails. 

Looking ahead, Quisenberry said the county plans to invest in upkeep and expand amenities in the coming years. 

“But the park will always remain the stunning jewel it is today,” she said. 

You’re Invited: Gallatin County Open Lands Program 25th Anniversary Celebration

Join us at Gallatin County Regional Park on Tuesday, October 14, from 4:30-6 p.m. to celebrate the three-times voter-approved Gallatin County Open Lands Program. Meet at the Dinosaur Park Pavilion at 1705 Vaquero Parkway for light refreshments and remarks from Open Lands Program administrators, participants, and partners.