For years, a ring of unincorporated land surrounding Belgrade — known locally and bureaucratically as the “Belgrade Donut” — has existed in a jurisdictional twilight zone where development rules are applied with the consistency of a coin flip and the transparency of a gravel pit.

The Bozeman Daily Bee spent two weeks investigating who, exactly, decides what gets built in the Donut. The answer, it turns out, is: it depends on who you ask.

“Development in the Donut falls under county jurisdiction, but we coordinate with Belgrade on planning,” said Gallatin County planning director Steve Erickson. When asked what “coordinate” means in practice, Erickson said, “We talk to each other.” When asked how often, he said, “When issues arise.” When asked how issues are identified, he said, “Sometimes we call them. Sometimes they call us. Sometimes a building goes up and both of us find out about it at the same time.”

The Bee reviewed 14 development permits issued in the Donut between 2022 and 2025. Of those, 9 were processed by the county, 3 were processed by Belgrade after the county redirected them, and 2 appear to have been processed by both simultaneously, resulting in duplicate approvals with slightly different conditions that nobody reconciled.

“I got approved twice for the same shop building,” said Donut business owner Cliff Nygaard. “The county approval said I needed a 30-foot setback. Belgrade’s said 25. I split the difference and did 27.5 and nobody said anything.”

A 2019 interlocal agreement between Belgrade and Gallatin County was supposed to clarify responsibilities but was described by one county employee, speaking off the record, as “aspirational.” A 2023 revision to the agreement was described by the same employee as “aspirational but longer.”

The newly announced transition of planning authority to Belgrade is intended to resolve the ambiguity. Belgrade city planner Diane Schafer said the city is “prepared to take on this responsibility” and is hiring two additional staff members to handle the increased workload. When asked if those positions have been budgeted, Schafer said, “We’re working on that.”

Development in the Donut continues. Three subdivisions are currently under review, two commercial projects are awaiting permits, and one landowner has been operating a small engine repair shop out of a pole barn for four years without any permit at all.

“I didn’t know I needed one,” said the landowner, who declined to give his name. “I thought I was in Belgrade.”

He is not. He is in the Donut.

This story was produced with support from the Bee Investigative Fund, which has a current balance of $0.00.