GFDA Top 10 for 8-13-17

Here is our Top 10 for this week, celebrating work and successes to grow and strengthen our regional Great Falls economy.

1) Catching up on a few more important project milestones during June and July — Benefis Health System started construction on the $12.5 million expansion of its Emergency Department. The innovative design will allow for more efficient and patient-friendly care with shorter wait times. The Great Falls City Design Review Board approved plans for improvements at CMR High School, including a new 25,000 square foot Multi-Purpose Practice Facility and the 5,200 square foot building addition for Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) education. The Cascade County Commission hired a consultant to begin work with community organizations on future land use planning of the former Anaconda smelter site in Black Eagle. EPA is funding the planning work.

2) The Downtown Development Partnership board voted to fund two more traffic box local art wrappings and to seek funds to expand the successful pedlet demonstration into a larger downtown-wide program to help spur more outside dining venues. Contact Joan Redeen at the BID for more info at [email protected]. The DDP board elected officers for the new fiscal year: Brett Doney, Chair; Kellie Pierce, Vice Chair; Sheila Rice, Treasurer; and, Joan Redeen, Secretary.

3) Facilitated a stakeholders meeting with local and state partners to move forward with next steps on clean up planning and redevelopment for a site in Great Falls. For brownfield redevelopment help, contact Lillian Sunwall at [email protected]

4) The cost of living in the Great Falls MSA (Cascade County) continues to remain low; latest calculation released by JobsEQ has us at 92.6% of the national average. Great Falls city water and sewer rates continue to be very competitive. The 2017 Annual Utility Rate Survey conducted by AE2S Nexus ranks Great Falls in the lower quartile of water rates charged to residential and commercial customers. Great Falls is fifth lowest overall in the monthly residential water rate and second lowest of respondents in Montana. Great Falls ranks in the lower quartile of wastewater rates to residential customers and in the lower third for commercial customers. With respect to the larger Montana communities, Great Falls offers the lowest commercial water and wastewater utility rates. The survey includes data from 285 communities throughout the Upper Midwest and Rocky Mountain Region.

5) Are you working on a project that adds value to Montana’s agriculture commodities? Need help funding planning, start-up, or expansion? We have access to a wide array of resources, including the upcoming Montana Growth Through Agriculture grant round. Contact Jolene to discuss your project and potential opportunities, 406.750.4481, or email [email protected]

6) Monthly visitation in Glacier National Park topped one million people for the first time in the Park’s history with 1,009,665 visitors passing through its gates in July. Papa Murphy’s is opening a second Great Falls location with plans to construct a new building across from City Brew on Smelter Avenue.

7) Worked with four local companies working to expand operations and a startup working through financial feasibility in preparation to purchase a building to launch its venture. We’re here to help your business grow and expand, whatever that looks like. Connect with Jason and get started planning your next move at [email protected]

8) We issued a new draft Strategic Plan http://files.constantcontact.com/3e765937001/e11b4349-b1f4-4216-9eff-9050493f6f30.pdf to focus GFDA’s economic development efforts. The draft was developed by GFDA’s Board based on the results of a spring survey of our public and private investors. We’re seeking feedback on the draft. Please email comments to me at [email protected]

9) Gov. Bullock signed the apprenticeship tax credit bill back in June (Yes, still catching up!) that was sponsored by Rep. Casey Schreiner, a GFDA Director. HB 308 provides Montana businesses with a $750 tax credit for every person hired where the worker is offered on-the-job training through the Montana Registered Apprenticeship program at the MT Dept. of Labor; $1,500 for every veteran hired. If you missed it, we recently published the Great Falls MSA Labor Supply Report http://files.constantcontact.com/3e765937001/dc1f22c6-9d9f-4978-b064-46f06d6b8bff.pdf .

10) We signed an agreement with Northwestern Energy to raise a regional electric transmission line that crosses the Great Falls AgriTech Park. Raising the line will give Park tenant’s more flexibility in their lot development.

11) We renewed our Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) annual contract with Big Sky EDA. The DOD funded program helps local businesses to learn the skills and technicalities to compete for federal contracts. In the Golden Triangle Great Falls trade area, the program is made possible by our amazing GFDA investors. Our local investor match for the next 12 months will be $32,742. For help with government contracting, contact [email protected] See details below on a special free Contracting with the State of Montana workshop in Great Falls on August 22.

12) GFDA’s Board elected officers for our new fiscal year: Nate Weisenberger of AE2S, Chair; Ron Nelson of Church Harris Johnson & Williams PC, Vice Chair; Errol Rice of Transystems, Treasurer; and, Glenn Lambert of Cascade Farmers Mutual Insurance, Secretary. THANK YOU to Bob Butcher of US Bank, who was term limited off our Board, for his many years of service to GFDA, including as Board Chair and Immediate Past Chair! Ted Lewis of First Interstate Bank has stepped into the Immediate Past Chair position, having done an outstanding job as Board chair. Thank you also to Jim Voegele for his years of service on GFDA’s board!

13) The High Plains Financial Board elected new officers for the year: Len Watkins of Gusto Distributing, Chair; Rebecca Engum of Great Falls Tourism, Vice Chair; Rich West of Dowl Engineering, Treasurer; Ryan Smith of Nelson Architects, Secretary; Amanda Boutilier of JCCS, Asst. Secretary; and, Greg Thayer of Montana Milling, Asst. Secretary. Thank you to Erin Townsend of Embark FCU for a great job as Board chair last fiscal year!

14) The National Center for Appropriate Technology’s new ATTRA program has created a series of six videos on Farm-based Food Safety, as well as an array of online resources concerning food-safety regulations under the Food Safety Modernization Act. Visit http://www.attra.ncat.org

15) I’ve been elected to the boards of the Great Falls Convention & Visitor Bureau, and the Upper Missouri River Heritage Area Planning Corp., part of our efforts to boost the Great Falls regional tourism industry. The CVB Board has elected me chair for the new fiscal year.

Hungry to Grow the Great Falls region!

Brett

Brett Doney
President/CEO
Connect with me on LinkedIn to network with the Great Falls region.

"The time is always right to do what is right."
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Congratulations
To Dexter Busby on being appointed by Gov. Bullock to the Montana Board of Environmental Review. Dexter served as a long-time GFDA Director before retiring as Director of Government Affairs at Calumet Montana Refining!

To Dan Vuckovich, shareholder at Anderson ZurMuehlen, on being presented with the 2017 George D. Anderson Distinguished Service Award by the Montana Society of Certified Public Accountants!

Commercial Loan Portfolio Manager opening. Exceptional professional sought to support the growth of GFDA’s business and real estate lending and overall economic development efforts. Join our dedicated, passionate, fun, fast-paced, results-driven economic development CDFI team. Help us grow and diversify the Great Falls regional economy and support the creation of higher wage jobs. Duties include loan portfolio risk rating and financial analysis, loan documentation and servicing, reporting to a variety of public and private funding sources, maintaining our loan portfolio management system and other specialized software databases, responding to client and partner inquiries, and business development. Requires the ability to maintain accurate records, timely submission of reports, and strong computer and written/oral communication skills. Must be detail oriented, self-directed, and organized with the ability to be flexible to help achieve our overall team mission. Lending, finance, government grant management and/or accounting experience preferred. BA/BS or equivalent relevant experience. Salary range $40,000-45,000 with excellent benefits, professional development, growth opportunities, and flexible work environment. Work with a great team, help us move Great Falls Forward, and make a difference in people’s lives! EOE. Cover letter and resume to Lillian Sunwall at [email protected]. Open until we find a great candidate.

Cost-Effective Industrial Sites Available
If your company needs a rail-served, BNSF-Certified, shovel-ready site with all municipal services at your door, we have lots available for immediate construction in the Great Falls AgriTech Park. Contact Brett Doney at 1-406-750-2119 or [email protected]

Upcoming Business Events & Training

Don’t miss the free Montana PTAC Workshop on
"Contracting with the State of Montana: How-To Workshop" in Great Falls, August 22, 9:30 AM – 12:30 PM, in downtown US Bank Building in the 2nd floor training room. To register go to
https://mtptac.ecenterdirect.com/events/41258 For questions or more information, contact Lillian Sunwall at 1-406-750-1253 or [email protected]

Profit Mastery workshops assist entrepreneurs to more efficiently manage the cash flow of their businesses. Our next Profit Mastery workshop is scheduled for September 13-14 at Great Falls College MSU. The two-day course is $125, which includes materials and lunch. Click for more info https://mtsbdc.ecenterdirect.com/events/3782 . We are also offering a QuickBooks basics workshop for $79 on October 11. Click for details: https://mtsbdc.ecenterdirect.com/events/3863.

Montana Downtown Conference, "Attracting Private Investment to Your Downtown," October 19-20 right here in Great Falls. Sponsorship opportunities available, contact Sheila Rice at [email protected]. Come a day early on October 18th for a special Great Falls Downtown & Riverfront Showcase.

Join the Native American Development Corporation as we continue our webinar series. We are hosting a monthly webinar series on various topics ranging from Business Planning to Government Contracting. The series will be held on the Third Thursdays of the Month at 3pm. This Month’s Webinar will be on building a sustainable credit profile to advance small business opportunities with speaker Darrell LaMere August 17th at 3pm. For more information or to inquire about future topics please call Tim Guardipee at NADC 406-259-3804.

This fall Senator Daines will be hosting the second biannual Montana High Tech Jobs Summit in Missoula, October 8-9th. To register or for more information, please visit the website at http://www.montanatechsummit.com.

Join us for the first annual Montana Food Show! This tradeshow will provide opportunities for food buyers and food producers to connect and find ways to get more Montana foods on Montana plates. Over 50 Montana fresh produce, meat, food and spirit companies will be showcasing their products in Bozeman on Tuesday October, 10, 2017. We invite food purchasers from schools, restaurants, hospitals, grocery stores, catering businesses, and other organizations to attend a private buying event from 10am-4pm. Doors are open to the general public from 4 to 7pm. Buyers can register and learn more at http://www.foodshow.mt.gov Questions? Contact Steph Hystad with the Montana Department of Agriculture at 406.444.5425 or [email protected]

Vision
Hungry to Grow the Great Falls region

Mission
Grow and diversify the Great Falls regional economy.
Create higher wage career opportunities.
Improve market competitiveness.

The first economic development organization in the Rocky Mountain West to earn accreditation from the International Economic Development Council.

GFDA is a certified Community Development Financial Institution and a 501(c)3 charitable organization. High Plains Financial is a certified Community Development Corporation that offers SBA 504 loans statewide. GFDA and High Plains Financial are Equal Opportunity Lenders.

GFDA is proud to host a Montana Small Business Development Center
and a Montana Procurement Technical Assistance Center.

For more info, click to our website.

Great Falls Development Authority, Inc., 300 Central Avenue, Suite 406, Great Falls, MT 59401, Mailing Address: PO Box 949, Great Falls, MT 59403