Financial company rejects Great Falls – Loss of 200 to 600 potential jobs disappoints city officials

Great Falls will not be the home for a Fortune 500 company that was the motivation behind a recent labor study, the Great Falls Development Authority and the city announced Tuesday.

By BETH BRITTON
Tribune Business Editor

"The project we’ve been working on did not come to fruition," said GFDA President John Kramer.

The financial services company, which the GFDA has declined to name, told Kramer it decided to move its offices to a city in Colorado. Great Falls and the Colorado location — which the GFDA also declined to name — were the two finalists, he said.

The Montana Job Service conducted the weeklong labor study last month. The study featured full-page advertisements in the Tribune, as well as radio and television spots. More than 2,000 people responded.

"They loved the labor force, and we felt as a business location we were competitive, but we did not have the additional amenities they were asking for," he said.

The company, which could have employed between 200 and 600 workers, would have moved several members of its management team to town, and those employees played a significant role in the final decision, Kramer said.

The company expressed concern about convenient transportation in and out of the Electric City, housing costs and availability, professional employment opportunities for spouses and retail selection.

"We can’t just turn that around tomorrow," Mayor Randy Gray said. "It’ll take us some time."

But Gray said no one wants to change the community just to attract certain companies, and the city will not appeal to everyone.

Despite the disappointment in the wake of the company’s decision, Gray said the information collected in the labor study is core data and will be shared with other businesses.

"This is worth its weight in gold," Kramer said, holding up a labor study packet the GFDA has assembled. The study is worth in excess of $100,000, he said.

"I’m very, very glad we did that study," Kramer said. "(The community’s) efforts won’t go unappreciated or unused. This gives us a better tool now.

"I don’t like losing. I hate it," Kramer added. "But we were a contender, and to know that we were competitive and that companies of that stature will consider us, that’s positive. Any company looking for a high quality labor force will take a look at us now."

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