2nd Quarter 2022 Index
Number of units in Aurora Apartments development adjacent to the Touro Montana Medical School construction: 216
Number of units in planned Carter Commons affordable senior housing development: 25
Speed of all-fiber broadband network TDS Telecommunications is constructing throughout Great Falls: 2Gig
Record number of The Fire Within female entrepreneur award winners: 32
Mill levy increase in City of Great Falls from newly taxable property since 2002: $8,750,727
Amount of pasta produced annually by Pasta Montana: 85 million pounds
Number of hives Smoot Honey puts out in region: Over 5,500
Megawatt generation increase in Great Falls area dams underway by Northwestern Energy: 4
Average annual wage growth in Great Falls MSA in 2021: 3.2%
Average annual wage in 2021: $46,437
Average annual wage growth in 2021 $1,430
Dollar amount of annual total wage growth Great Falls MSA in 2021: $103 million
Cost of living in Great Falls in 2022Q1 compared to national average: 86.7%
Number of CNA graduates in first year of Great Falls College MSU program: 52
Completion rate: 100%
Percentage of College’s CNA graduates who passed certification and are working for five health care providers in the region: 94%
Funding announced by U.S. Dept. of Interior for Rocky Boy Central Montana Rural Water System and St. Mary Diversion water project: $142 million
Companies added to our CRM this quarter: 143
Companies we actively engaged with this quarter: 363
Target activity this quarter (companies and developers we have targeted to try to attract into Great Falls trade area): 67
New targets identified this quarter: 16
Total current identified targets: 292
New leads generated this quarter (companies and developers with planned investments that are considering Great Falls trade area): 39
Active projects (investments in Great Falls trade area planned by companies and developers) we worked on this quarter: 45
Entrepreneurs, future entrepreneurs, and businesses in Great Falls trade area advised by GFDA during quarter: 187
Of these, number of new advising clients: 69
Entrepreneur and business training sessions offered during quarter: 14
Number of training participants: 175
Businesses bought or started by advised clients during quarter: 7
New capital secured by entrepreneur clients during quarter: $724,479
Jobs supported by our Small Business Development Center (SBDC) during quarter: 467
Businesses active with our Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) this quarter: 156
Amount of government contracts won by clients during quarter: $554,119
GFDA gap and bridge loans closed during quarter: $1,130,000
Additional private investment leveraged by GFDA loans: $7,019,618
SBA 504 loans closed during quarter: $173,000
Additional private investment leveraged by these loans: $252,000
504 loans approved by SBA this quarter: $147,000
Additional private investment to be leveraged: $210,000
Current SBA 504 fixed 20-year effective loan interest rate with 10% down: 5.047%
Current 10-year equipment effective fixed rate: 4.962%
Free Brownfield assessments completed: 4
Free Brownfield assessments underway: 3
Brownfield cleanups underway: 2
Factors scoring over 90% in corporate site selection survey: labor costs, availability of skilled labor, energy availability and costs, inbound/outbound shipping costs, and highway accessibility
Factors scoring over 80%: raw materials availability, corporate tax rate, state and local incentives, environmental regulations, tax exemptions, quality of life, occupancy or construction costs, and right to work state
Montana rank for bars per capita: 2nd
Montana rank for best state to retire in: 7th
Increase in Montana meat processing so far in FY2022: 50%
Increase in number of animals processed: 34,942
Average cost reduction announced by Montana State Fund worker compensation system: 3%
Percentage of online buyers who do in store research before purchasing on web: 60%
Ransomware attacks in U.S. in 2021: 420 million
Cybersecurity industry revenue in 2021: $150 billion
Increase since 2020: 98%
U.S. college student loan debt: $1.6 trillion
Student loan balance held by borrowers over age 50: 23%
U.S. renters who live with a pet or service animal: 64%
