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Just one of the 12 amazing new murals created in Downtown Great Falls during the 2023 ArtsFest Montana!

1) The cost of living in the Great Falls MSA (Cascade County) dropped from 86% of the national average in 2023Q1 to 85.7% in 2023Q2 according to the highly respected C2ER Cost of Living Index. Housing in Great Falls came in at 64.6% of the national average. GFDA’s long-term goal is to strengthen and grow our regional economy while maintaining affordability. Bozeman came in at 120.4% cost of living with housing at 151.1% of the national average. Billings came in at 100.6% cost of living with housing at 94.4%. The composite index is based on six categories: housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care, and miscellaneous goods and services. 

2) The clean-up of the hazardous and environmental contaminants of the Baatz Building located at 400 2nd Ave South in Downtown Great Falls has begun! This is a major step forward in the redevelopment of the building to transition it into permanent supportive housing. The clean-up was made possible by a $583,000 grant from GFDA’s EPA Brownfield program, which is one of the many tools GFDA has to offer to support development projects. A HUGE thank you goes out to NeighborWorks Great Falls and Homeward, Inc. for continuing to strengthen Great Falls with high mission projects like this one. If you have a project that may need some financing contact Jill Kohles to learn about the different options available to help your business or project, [email protected] or 1-406-590-1056.

3) We issued an RFP for a Downtown Market Assessment & Strategy Development to continue Downtown Great Falls revitalization efforts. Thank you to the City of Great Falls, Downtown Development Partnership, NeighborWorks Great Falls, and the Montana Department of Commerce's Main Street Montana program for helping to fund the work. Download RFP here.

4) Native American Development Corporation, Sweetgrass Development, and GFDA will be co-hosting a training event geared toward helping native owned businesses apply for the Indian Equity Fund Grant in Browning on September 18th, to register for the class click here, The Montana Department of Commerce has four grant opportunities for tribal business development in Montana; see KRTV.

5) Tony and Jake headed to White Sulphur Springs for a Business Focus event with the Meagher County Chamber at Wild Oats Baking on bank and credit union readiness. The event was well attended, and great conversation was had regarding the topic and the various stages of readiness from innovative start-ups to expanding businesses. Many entrepreneurs are unaware of the wide range of support services available to them. If you would like to learn more about financing a business and what resources are available for you, please reach out to Tony at [email protected] or 1-406-750-2099. 

6) Styled by Belt Boutique is a family-owned boutique in Belt, Montana. Owner Jessica Wakeford said she loves owning her own business because, as a mom, it provides flexibility and an excellent work-life balance. Learn more in our Announcement of the Week.  

7) Join us on September 21 from 4-5 PM at the City Bar in Downtown Great Falls to kick off our new round of funding. We’ve received an additional $500,000 to put to work in our region for assessment, clean up, and to move projects forward! As EPA Regional Administrator KC Becker said, “We look forward to these efforts as they address contamination and create new opportunities for the residents of Belt, Cascade, Great Falls, Monarch, Sun River, Ulm and Vaughn.” 

8) Anna traveled to Helena for the annual Food and Ag Development Center meeting with the Montana Department of Agriculture. The Food and Ag Development Center Network discussed exciting new funding opportunities for the upcoming year. Are you planning to expand your agricultural businesses' digital or web offerings (including e-commerce)? If so, reach out to Anna Flies to see if you are eligible for an upcoming state funding program at [email protected] or 1-406-590-1301. 

9) The State Small Business Credit Initiative 2.0 (SSBCI 2.0) low interest rate program is still awaiting their third tranche of funding. This third tranche is on a first come first served basis, so start talking with GFDA now, if you have a project that could move forward with the benefit of low interest rate funding. These funds are limited and will be put to work very quickly to help our economy recover and come back stronger than ever. If you have a business startup or expansion planned that could benefit from a loan participation, contact Jill at [email protected] or 1-406-590-1056.

10) We're excited to announce that Christian Nichols will be joining our team starting September 18th in our new split position 50% SBDC Business Advisor and 50% Project Manager working on our brownfield program. Christian brings small business ownership and management experience. He started and ran RFP Fitness in Great Falls from 2014-2020 then sold the business. He brings excellent leadership and training experience, having served as an Airman Leadership Instructor at MAFB. He served in USAF from 2003-2016. He grew up in the small rural town of Big Sandy, CO. Please join us in welcoming Christian!

11) The support we receive from our investors and public partners is instrumental in fueling economic development, fostering a vibrant business environment, and addressing critical community needs. Learn more about our supporters here. By investing in GFDA, they are investing in the growth & prosperity of our region. Recent investments include: Advance Division—Culligan Water Conditioning of Great Falls; Leadership Division—BNSF Railway Company; Community Division—Woith Engineering, Inc. Without their support, we wouldn't be able to achieve our mission and continue making a positive impact on our community. Thank you! If you’d like to join the team dedicated to growing our economy, contact Investment Director Jenn Gallmeier at 1-406-781-9499 or [email protected].

Hope you had a great Labor Day Weekend!

Brett

Brett Doney

President & CEO

[email protected]

1-406-750-2119

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!

"The reward for a thing well done is to have done it."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Edition 597

We have two great career opportunities to join the GFDA team. Download info on Small Business Advisor -- Director Regional Small Business Development Center or Food and Ag Business Development Officer. GFDA is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer!

If your company needs a rail-served, BNSF-Certified, shovel-ready site with all municipal services at your door, we have lots available for immediate construction in the Great Falls AgriTech Park. Contact Jolene Schalper at 1-406-750-4481 or [email protected]

August SBA 504 Loan Rates

The 25-year loan effective rate (including all fees) is 6.55%; 20-year at 6.61%; 10-year equipment loan at 7.08%; and, 20-year refinance 6.63%; 25-year refinance 6.57%. 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].

The Ag Committee of the Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting its annual Future of Ag Tour on Thursday, September 7th. Learn more and register here.

USDA opened another round of the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP). If you are a meat or poultry processor considering expansion, but missed the first round of funding, please reach out to Anna Flies at [email protected] or 1-406-590-1301.

The Montana Child Care Business Connect Fall Summit will be held September 13-14 at the Fairmont Hot Springs Resort. The summit will be the first of its kind annual gathering of child care providers, entrepreneurs, community leaders and industry professionals in Montana, offering a unique opportunity to share best business practices, learn new skills and resources, and network with like-minded partners. Register today.

The Montana Outdoor Recreation Summit will be held October 11-13 in Butte.

The Montana Indian Equity Fund began accepting applications for their small business grant on September 1st; the application deadline is October 31st. The grant can be used to assist start up or existing Native American owned businesses in Montana. If you need help with the process, contact small business advisor Rich Gannon at 1-406-836-2078 or via email at [email protected].

Registration is open for the Montana Main Street Downtown Conference held in Great Falls, October 18-20.

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.  

The 2023 Montana Food and Beverage Show, hosted by the Montana Department of Agriculture, is scheduled for October 16 in Missoula. The show allows Montana businesses to showcase their food and beverage products to professional buyers from restaurants, hotels, bars, retailers, and more.

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.

The Montana Department of Commerce has extended the application deadline to December 31st for the Montana Cybersecurity Program, which will provide up to $8,000 reimbursement for your cybersecurity expenses. And don't forget about funds available for your workforce through the Incumbent Worker Training Program and the Primary Workforce Training Grant. We can help you access these programs if you run into snags.

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 September 30th. 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.

Are you in the planning and development phase of expanding your agricultural product or adding value to Montana agriculture by expanding your product into new markets? Montana’s Growth Through Agriculture (GTA) Business Acceleration Program (BAP) and Market Development Program (MDP) grants could help! Funds are available; click here for more information or contact Anna at [email protected] or 1-406-590-1301.

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.

Montana STEP grants can pay for 75% of your international export marketing efforts, up to $10,000. 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 Rich at 1-406-836-2078 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. The Great Falls At-A-Glance two-pager is a great complementary resource that highlights Great Falls for people unfamiliar with our community.

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.

Grow diverse economic opportunities that enhance quality of life.

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.

Great Falls Development Alliance | GrowGreatFallsMontana.org