As economy turns, so do job prospects in Great Falls

At the annual meeting of the Great Falls Development Authority in early October, John Kramer noted his belief that the agency’s efforts to land new jobs were being influenced by the state of the U.S. economy.

Great Falls Tribune

The national economy was improving and so were prospects for new jobs in Great Falls, the city’s lead economic developer said then. Kramer repeated that message at a meeting of the GFDA’s executive board last week.

"We are getting more inquiries from some of our clients," he said. "The economy is starting to turn."

Kramer offered brief glimpses of several current GFDA projects last week. He declined to name the companies involved.

"We don’t want Helena or Grand Forks or somebody reading about it and calling these guys," Kramer said after the meeting.

The agency is continuing to work with a large financial services company on a possible financial services center.

It is the same company that spurned Great Falls last spring during its search for a home for a new call center. Kramer said the company didn’t go ahead with its plan for a 200- to 600-worker center in Colorado and is now looking at a smaller operation. The development authority has submitted a new proposal to the company and a decision could be made soon, Kramer said.

GFDA is also working with another very large financial firm, hoping to convince the company to boost the size of its existing operation in Great Falls.

The development authority is working on a plan to expand the existing facility or help build a new home at one of two possible sites in Great Falls. The agency plans to submit a proposal to the company by year’s end, Kramer said.

GFDA is also close to making an announcement involving a small business involved in "homeland security" that intends to establish an operation in Great Falls, Kramer said. That deal involves 5 to 10 jobs initially, but the jobs come with good pay and the company has growth potential, he said.

Contract talks

Speaking of Kramer, he’s been working without a contract for a number of weeks. A two-year deal signed in October 2001 expired last month.

The GFDA board closed a portion of its meeting last week to meet with Kramer about the contract and the direction of the development authority. That discussion will continue at an executive board meeting set for Dec. 15, according to Bill Knick, the GFDA board chairman.

"We wanted to get together with John and the board and make sure we are all pulling the wagon in the same direction," Knick said last week.

Kramer under went a formal evaluation in June and received a 3 percent pay increase, boosting his salary to $97,850 per year.

Knick said he is not aware of any board dissatisfaction with Kramer’s performance.

"As chairman, I’m real happy with what he has done," Knick said. "We don’t want him to get away from us and there is no indication he is going to get away from us."

Is Kramer happy with his job?

"I’m never happy with my personal performance," Kramer said. "You just think you could do more."

James E. Larcombe is the Tribune business editor. He may be reched at (406) 791-1463 or e-mail [email protected].

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