Montana Economic Development

A lot of issues were covered in the course of this month’s regular meeting of the joint boards for the Big Sky Economic Development Authority (BSEDA) and the Economic Development Council (EDC).

Montana lawmakers are asking the public to weigh in on how best to update the state’s energy policy.

According to the Montana Preservation Alliance, Montana is the only state in the country to have allocated federal stimulus funds for historic preservation grants.

“Montana is lucky to have Senator Baucus representing the state and providing leadership on a number of issues,” said Webb Brown, President/CEO of the Montana Chamber of Commerce, “He supports bills that help the private sector create good-paying jobs and allow businesses to thrive.”

As summer begins its August wane, I encourage our Community Development colleagues from Montana and beyond to explore all of the various opportunities to interact with colleagues from across the nation and internationally.

"Special Events Grants provide important support to one of Montana’s leading industries – tourism and recreation. Ten million people visit Montana annually, and these grants help support the local community events that draw these visitors into our towns and to our main street businesses, restaurants and lodging facilities," said Governor Schweitzer.

"The 2009 conference is an opportunity to learn and network with others invested in downtown revitalization." Governor Brian Schweitzer.

The "Studio 406" campaign, designed by Partners Creative in Missoula, highlights everything from the big stuff (Montana’s refundable tax credits on labor and some expenses) to the seemingly mundane (free use of office furniture) and most everything you can think of in between (almost 16 hours of daylight to shoot in during the summer).

The Nature Conservancy and the Trust for Public Lands need to find buyers for the portion of the lands that they bought on credit – and still need to raise the money to fund the final phase of the project.

The “Economic Blueprint for Western Montana” is the starting point of what MAEDC hopes will be a strategy to help western Montana become more economically competitive through collaboration among political and business leaders in 7 western Montana counties.