Great Falls officials woo Fortune 500 company

Leaders like city’s chances of landing tech operation for Fortune 500 company

Local leaders say they are optimistic about the city’s chances of luring a Fortune 500 company’s high-tech, information-processing center to Great Falls after a visit from top company officials this week.

By James E. Larcombe

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/stories/20040421/localnews/267472.html

The center could employ up to 300 workers at pay starting at $10 per hour with a strong benefits package, officials said late Tuesday.

"I’d love to have this company doing business here," said Randy Gray, the Great Falls mayor. "They have the right attitude and philosophy that we are looking for."

A location decision could come in a matter of a few weeks, said John Kramer, president of the Great Falls Development Authority.

Gray led a contingent of local and state officials that met with the company leaders on Monday evening, and Tuesday. Lt. Gov. Karl Ohs and David Gibson, who heads the state’s Office of Economic Opportunity, took part in the meetings.

Kramer and others declined to name the company, noting that Great Falls is competing with at least one other community to land the center.

The company is based in the Midwest and its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange.

"It’s a very solid company, with good financials and a good balance sheet," said Ian Davidson, chairman of the Davidson Cos. in Great Falls.

Davidson joined company officials at a dinner Monday night at the Indigo restaurant in downtown Great Falls and gave the visiting CEO and others a tour of the financial services firm’s Great Falls operations Tuesday.

Davidson said the company leaders seemed impressed with what they saw in Great Falls.

"I think our chances are better than 50 percent," he said. "I think this is the kind of location they are looking for."

Gray declined to offer odds on landing the center.

"I’m not going to predict the possibility of that happening," he said.

Kramer said officials visited the MSU-Great Falls College of Technology and with officials from the state Job Service office in Great Falls. The availability of qualified workers is a prime concern, he said.

"I think they liked what they saw in terms of labor force," said Gray, adding the company provides extensive training and works to avoid employee turnover. "They are looking to us because we have a labor pool that fits their needs."

The company told local officials it would need a 15,000- to 30,000-square-foot building for the information-processing center. They are seeking a modern, secure center capable of handling intensive technology applications.

Gray said the company uses proprietary software to sort Medicaid claims under contracts from a number of states.

Local officials showed the visitors several potential sites for a new building but officials have asked for additional proposals. The location of the spurned sites was not disclosed.

"The things we showed them, they didn’t like," said Kramer. "They focused us more as to the site they would like."

Kramer and Gray said they would submit proposals for additional building sites to the company. The cost of the building and the ability to have it built and ready for occupancy quickly appear to be key concerns for the company.

Gray said he and others would work with state officials to explore possible incentives that could reduce the cost of the building to boost the competitiveness of the proposal. The company, the mayor said, is not seeking tax reductions or other incentives to locate in Great Falls.

Kramer said new proposals would be submitted within two to three weeks.

"The decision, I think, will come very soon after we put our package together," he said.

Company officials have told local leaders that they hope to occupy a new site by the end of the year.

Initial hiring could begin at about 50 workers but could quickly ramp up to 300 with a year or two, local officials were told.

"This is a pretty short-tailed project," Gray said, noting the aggressive timeline.

Company officials arrived in Great Falls via private plane Monday evening. They stayed at the La Quinta Inn and Suites along Broadwater Bay.

The CEO and others were treated to breakfast at the Collins Mansion before a series of meetings and site tours Tuesday. Lunch and a tour of the C.M. Russell Museum were on the agenda before the officials departed by midafternoon Tuesday.

"They were here less than 24 hours," Gray said. "I hope we packed in a representative view of this town."

Davidson said the company CEO was very complimentary of the hospitality displayed by Kramer, Gray and many others in Great Falls.

"I think that’s important," he said. "A lot of us have invested money in this (job recruitment) effort and want to see results. But I think we can be proud of our effort."

"It’s not every day you get the CEO of a Fortune 500 company here," added Gray.