Here is our Top 10 things to celebrate for 2023. Of course I still can’t count to just 10!

The opening of the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Great Falls hits number 1. The first class of amazing students is pictured here.

Calumet’s Montana Renewables project became fully operational, making Great Falls the top producer of Sustainable Aviation Fuel in North America, along with green hydrogen and renewable diesel production.

3) Housing Production

Hundreds of new units opened in the Arc Apartment Homes and the Aurora Apartment Homes, the Station District apartments are nearing completion, and construction has started on the Baatz Permanent Supportive Housing and Carter Commons affordable senior housing projects.

4) Business Attractions

We celebrated 12 business attractions in our Top 10s and we hosted 16 prospect visits. TDS began construction on its city-wide 10Gig fiber network in Great Falls. VACOM announced it has chosen Lewistown for its first U.S. plant.

5) Business Expansions

We celebrated 29 business expansions in our Top 10s, including Montana Specialty Mills, Great Falls Clinic, Old Salt, and TC Glass.

6) Business Startups

We celebrated 49 business startups and 5 business acquisitions in the region in our Top 10s. From the Messy Apron in Cut Bank, to R&L Trucking in Conrad, to Eagles Nest Daycare in Fairfield, to Little Shell Pet Products in Black Eagle and THIRVEcycle in downtown Great Falls, our region continues to demonstrate incredible entrepreneurial spirit! We recognized 26 extraordinary female entrepreneurs with The Fire Within Awards.

7) Downtown Great Falls

Momentum continued to grow with multiple investments in Downtown Great Falls including the 44-room Gibson Hotel, Rib & Chop House, and Civic Center renovations.

8) West Bank Landing

A new wave of construction started in the West Bank Landing riverfront mixed-use development, including a TownePlace Suites Hotel, Qdoba, Great Good Health, TDS, MVD Express, and Panda Express.

9) Economic Development Strategy

We launched a new Economic Development Strategy with four focus areas — People, Place, Opportunities, and Team — with 19 priorities and 46 specific actions to undertake in 2023-2025. We developed a CDFI Growth Model that sets a goal of making $50 million in gap and bridge loans in five fiscal years, a jump from the $22 million in loans we made in the previous five fiscal years.

10) Team GFDA

We created the GFDA Council with 16 business leaders, recognized 14 amazing volunteers with our new Ally Award, and added six fantastic new team members: Lisa Andis, Anna Flies, Alan Gohary, Tracy Heggem, Tyler Menzales, and Christian Nichols. Jake Clark and Jill Kohles earned the Economic Development Finance Professional certification, Shannon Clancy earned the Certified Procurement Professional credential, Christian Nichols earned the Certified Small Business Consultant designation, and Jolene Schalper earned the new Master Economic Development Practitioner designation.

11) Recognition

We won the national Distinguished Local Development Finance Agency of 2023 Award from the Council of Development Finance Agencies and the Jeffrey A. Finkle Organizational Leadership Award from the International Economic Development Council. We won three national Impact Awards from the National Association of Development Organizations and three state Impact Awards from the Montana Economic Developers Association. We earned the 2023 Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid and reaccreditation from the International Economic Development Council.

12) Resources

We leveraged our local GFDA Investor funds to increase the resources we have to put to work in the region by winning $7,353,262 in competitive grants, and securing loans totaling $975,260 and capital to use of $2,252,624. Total increase in resources: $10,581,510.

13) By The Numbers

We closed loans totaling $13,822,920 that made possible total investment of $63,469,699 in the Great Falls trade area. We served 1,208 unique companies with 9,065 activities and 229 projects, 78 of which were new projects. 65% of our client work was on business expansions, 27% on business startups, and 8% on business attractions. We added 596 companies to our CRM system. We traveled throughout Montana and to at least 20 states and Canadian provinces, DC, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands.

14) Much More

There is so much more to celebrate such as cost of living in the Great Falls MSA at 85.6% of the national average, Malmstrom Air Force Base Airmen winning the Blanchard Trophy and the Omaha Trophy, the C.M. Russell Museum raising $40 million in its Art and Soul of the West capital campaign, significant funding for critical rural water system improvements, the Native American Community Development Corporation winning the Native Community Development Finance Network Award, growth in average wages, personal income and local GDP, and the positive findings of the veterinarian school feasibility we commissioned in partnership with Roseman University of Health Sciences, to name just a few.

My apologies for the many exciting accomplishments not named above. Team GFDA truly appreciates the innovative investments made by so many entrepreneurial public, private, and community members throughout the Great Falls trade area!

On to 2024!

I hope you can join us at Ignite 2024 to hear about investments planned in the region by businesses, entrepreneurs, developers, and public entities. The Ignite 2024 lineup is already impressive! Registration is live, and space is limited for the event which will be held at the Meadow Lark County Club in Great Falls on January 12 from 8-10 AM. This in-person and online event format is simple and quick – three-minute presentations on business startups, business expansions, real estate developments and capital projects that will either start or open in 2024. If you have a project starting or a business opening in 2024 that you would like to announce at Ignite please contact Jake Clark at 1-406-403-4937 or at [email protected].

Enjoy a safe and Happy New Year!

Brett

Brett Doney

President & CEO

1-406-750-2119

[email protected]

Connect with me on  LinkedIn to network with the Great Falls Montana region. Forward the GFDA Top 10 to friends and colleagues. You can join our distribution list HERE or text GFDA to 22828.

Subscribe to the Grow Great Falls Montana YouTube channel!

“Our accomplishments show what kind of people we are.”

Gil Scott-Heron

Edition 613

The 25-year loan effective rate (including all fees) is 6.59%; 20-year at 6.61%; 10-year equipment loan at 7.207%; and, 20-year refinance 6.64%; 25-year refinance 6.619%. These rates are FIXED for the life of the loan and are inclusive of all fees. If you would like to find out how to get financing for commercial real estate and equipment at potentially lower rates than you’re paying for your home mortgage, please contact Jill Kohles at 1-406-590-1056 or [email protected].

Do you know that you can direct your state taxes directly to Great Falls Public Schools rather than to the state? We’re trying to put together the maximum $1 million allowed by the Innovative Education Tax Credit created by the Montana Legislature. Download info here or visit GFPS Website.

The Montana Department of Agriculture is partnering with the USDA and the Agricultural Marketing Services to help strengthen the resiliency of Montana food systems. Is your food company focused on middle-of-the-supply-chain activities such as processing, aggregation, or distribution of targeted agricultural products? If so, there is a new funding opportunity for your projects. Discuss this new opportunity and check your eligibility with Anna by reaching out at [email protected] or 1-406-590-1301.

Are you planning any international marketing activities in 2024? The State Trade Expansion Program (STEP) run by the Export Montana team at the Montana Department of Commerce has a host of export support services and federal grants available for businesses up to $12,000. They’re awesome to work with! Our Small Business Advisor, Rich Gannon, can help too and he is also awesome! [email protected] or 1-406-836-2078.

Have you created or updated your Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS) profile? A strong profile can significantly boost your contracting success by increasing your visibility to local, state, and federal agencies seeking goods and services. If you would like more information on how to create or update your DSBS profile, contact Shannon Clancy at [email protected] or 1-406-590-1184.

The Great Falls Housing Market Assessment shows a need for over 450 new housing units per year in the immediate Great Falls area. For assistance with housing development, contact Jake Clark at [email protected] or 1-406-403-4937.

USDA has launched a new online tool to assist small businesses in identifying procurement opportunities; see USDA’s Procurement Forecast.

Zero to 5 has launched the Montana Child Care Business Connect website to help support the startup and expansion of early childcare businesses. The Great Falls Childcare Demand Assessment shows a need for additional childcare facilities to serve 580 children in Great Falls. For assistance with childcare facility business planning, contact Rich Gannon at [email protected] or 1-406-836-2078.

One of the many tools we have for renovating your building in Downtown Great Falls is the City’s Downtown Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Grant. This 50% match grant can help with Façade, Building Code Compliance, and Safety & Security. One of the biggest uses of this grant is Fire Suppression and updating the face of your building. To find out more about this grant, call Christian at 1-406-836-0136 or email [email protected]. Let’s discuss how TIF and other tools can help you change the face of Downtown Great Falls.

Employers, are you looking for timely data on our local workforce? JobsEQ for Workforce is a software tool that provides timely data on our local workforce and employers—including demographics, occupations, wages, certifications, and more. Contact Lyndsay Bruno at [email protected] or 1-406-590 – 1539 to be connected with a JobsEQ-trained Business Advisor today. To learn more about GFDA’s other talent attraction tools, visit our website.

We launched the new Livability Great Falls Magazine. Find and share Livability Great Falls online, or contact Lyndsay Bruno for hard copies of the magazine: [email protected] or 1-406-590-1539.

Recruiters, are you hiring for a job position that is:

• High level
• High salary
• Out-of-the-box/unique/creative?

Help us attract workforce to move to Great Falls – send a one-sentence description of the job, 3-5 of your company’s top employee benefits, salary (if listed), and a link to apply for your job to [email protected] to be included in the Hot Jobs in Great Falls blog post.

Cybersecurity challenges for businesses continue to grow. The Montana Manufacturing Extension Center (MMEC) is offering an array of useful resources to help Montana businesses to protect themselves.

USDA opened a new round of Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) grants and loans. Rural small businesses and agricultural producers can use the funds to make energy-efficiency improvements, lower operating costs, or install renewable energy systems. Quarterly competitions will be held through December 31st. See MATR.net for more info. Or for help applying, contact Anna Flies: [email protected] or 1-406-590-1301.

The Montana Manufacturing Extension Center has launched the Certified Manufacturing Associate Apprenticeship program. This one-year program combines on-the-job training with online technical classes on safety, math and measurements, manufacturing processes, and quality control.

The 341st Contracting Squadron, Malmstrom Air Force Base (AFB), is contemplating a solicitation for a multiple award contract (MAC) and is looking for responses to this Sources Sought Notification. Awarded MAC indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contracts would be for the construction of structures and facilities, repair, maintenance, and alteration of real property assets within the confines of Malmstrom AFB, Weapons Storage Area (WSA), Missile Alert Facility (MAF) and Launch Facility (LF) sites located within the Missile Complex throughout Montana. This is a great opportunity to Introduce your company to the Contracting Wing at Malmstrom AFB. Do you have a Capability Statement prepared to provide with your Sources Sought reply? If not, contact Lillian Sunwall at 1-406-750-1253 or [email protected]. For more information on the Notice, click here.

If you are trying to redevelop a property that involves an environmental cleanup (including lead paint and asbestos) and you have a gap in your financing, your project may qualify for our low-interest brownfield redevelopment loan funds. We can make loans anywhere in Cascade County or within 100 miles from the borders of Cascade County, which covers much of the region. We’re eager to help make your project move forward. Contact Tony Peres at 1-406-750-2099 or [email protected]. We also have some small business or nonprofit startup/expansion loan funds available for Glacier and Blaine counties.

Do you have open government contracts? Is your SAM.gov registration due to renew in the next few months? SAM.gov continues to have issues with the transition of the new validation process. It is recommended that businesses start early to renew their registration to keep from going inactive. If you are having trouble getting through the process, contact Shannon Clancy at 1-406-590-1184 or [email protected] for assistance.

The Montana Innovation Partnership is offering a number of trainings and an accelerator program for companies interested in pursuing Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grants.

The Montana TechLink Center at MSU is offering a new round of workshops on how to win Small Business Innovation Research funding.

We have migrated our pre-business workshop for early stage and pre-venture startups to a self-paced, video-facilitated, online format called Business Basics for Startups. If you’d like to check out the content and provide feedback, we’d appreciate it. We also provide monthly Business Strategy Webinars, which are recorded and available for viewing online at any time. Looking to start, innovate or grow your business? We offer a variety of training options to ensure your success. Click here to check out all of GFDA’s training resources. For more information or to give feedback about these programs, please contact Alan at 1-406-750-0314 or [email protected].

The best resource we scan daily to stay abreast of business and community innovation is MATR.net (Montana Associated Technology Roundtables), which we are proud to help sponsor. Sign up for their free newsletter.

Join our Trailing Partner Email Group specifically for local employers to share resumes of trailing spouses/partners across the Great Falls region with other employers looking to hire. “Your (Live in Great Falls) website is very impressive and helpful! Great Falls looks amazing, and we love what we’ve seen real estate-wise, and business-wise.” This quote was from an email sent to us from a couple considering relocation to Great Falls. We will be sharing their resumes (with their permission) on the Trailing Partner Email Group.

Visit our relocation website LiveInGreatFalls.com. This website was the #1 request we got from local recruiters and HR professionals for aiding in attracting talented workers to Great Falls.

Of our online business planning tool, LivePlan, one said: “LivePlan is Awesome!” The LivePlan tool is helping streamline her strategy in preparation for presenting to bank partners. We offer LivePlan licenses for FREE to active clients. Learn more about LivePlan on our website.

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 Employers, Lenders and Providers.

GFDA is proud to host a Montana Small Business Development Center, a Montana Procurement Technical Assistance Center, and a Montana Food & Ag Development Center. We are also proud to provide office space for MSU’s Montana Manufacturing Extension Center.

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