Governor Greg Gianforte joined Berkshire Hathaway Energy Montana leadership, along with state and local partners, to celebrate the ribbon cutting of the new BHE Montana Control Center in Great Falls, marking a major investment in the region’s energy future.
| 1) GFDA joined community leaders in celebrating the ribbon cutting of the new Berkshire Hathaway Energy Montana Control Center in Great Falls, highlighting continued investment to meet Montana’s growing energy needs. As shared by Governor Greg Gianforte, “Today we cut the ribbon on the new BHE office in Great Falls, celebrating continued investment to meet our state and region’s growing energy needs.” The event brought together local and state leaders and also underscored the new Grid Operators program at Great Falls College, made possible through the BHE Foundation, that will continue to support and strengthen the region’s energy workforce pipeline. Together, these investments reinforce Great Falls’ role as a hub for energy innovation and long-term economic growth. See KRTV. 2) Two new businesses in Downtown Great Falls. Rocky Mountain Kartel offers authentic streetwear cloths and jewelry; see KRTV. Homestead 1909 restaurant offers flatbreads, burgers, sandwiches and shareables. 3) Thank you to both ADF International and TC Glass for hosing manufacturing roundtables with Brent Donnelly, Small Business Administration District Director, and Justin Everett, SBA’s Rocky Mountains Regional Administrator. Everett was in Great Falls sharing resources and listening to regional manufacturers. He also was representing Trent Staggs our Regional Advocate. The Advocate’s role is to identify regulations at any federal agency that are burdensome for small businesses. If you have questions about how the SBA can help your business or would like to report a regulation that is costly to your business, reach out to Rich at RGannon@GrowGreatFalls.org. 4) USAF announced that Westinghouse has been paired with Malmstrom AFB to provide the microreactor for the base; see TheElectric and KRTV. 5) GFDA’s Small Business Development Center participated in a statewide Artificial Intelligence business training this week, bringing together more than 45 attendees across multiple locations throughout Montana. Our Shelby location alone hosted 21 participants. Special thanks to the Shelby Aera Chamber of Commerce for their continued support. The Montana SBDC has developed a “spoke and wheel” model called Elevate Your Business, where subject matter experts present from one central location and the training is broadcast via Zoom to additional sites across the state. Our fall schedule for this training series will be released soon. 6) The Great Falls City Commission approved vacating an alley for the planned Chick-Fil-A on 10th Avenue South; see The Electric. The City Commission also approved a $4.7 million improvement to the city’s wastewater treatment plant; see The Electric. 7) The Big Sky Post of the Society of Military Engineers is hosting a Sentinel Industry Day, May 7 here in Great Falls. Download this flyer for more details and to register. 8) We launched our River Activation Task Force, with more than 30 community members attending our first meeting. The group engaged in productive roundtable discussions that sparked new ideas for activating both the Missouri and Sun Rivers through private investment. These ideas focused on supporting startups and side hustles, expanding existing businesses, and identifying targets from other markets that could thrive here, while also creating meaningful networking opportunities and sparking new partnerships that will help carry this work forward. Stay tuned for a full recap of the meeting and next steps. If you have questions or would like to share your own ideas, feel free to reach out to Shauni Seccombe at 1-406-788-6867 or Shauni@GrowGreatFalls.org. 9) A new housing project in Great Falls you may have been following is breaking ground! Save the Date: May 12 at 1:00 PM 1 46th St., Great Falls. Meadowview Village is a 163-home community designed to bring new, attainable homeownership to Great Falls. Each home sits on its own lot and is built with a focus on efficient design, long-term durability, and predictable costs. The groundbreaking will be a short, focused event with project partners, community leaders, and local stakeholders. If you, or someone you know, are interested in following the project or exploring a future home in the community, join the interest list. We will send more details as the event gets closer. 10) Montana was rated the most friendliest state in the nation by SmartAsset. 11) Sara presented at the Montana Meat Processors Association convention in Billings. The annual gathering is valued as a chance for Montana’s small meat plants to learn about new opportunities and connect with industry suppliers and experts. Our Food and Ag Development Center was invited to present for the second year in a row about funding and technical assistance resources that benefit meat processors. GFDA has comprehensive resources to support meat and ag industry projects from start to finish through business planning, funding applications, and business succession planning. To connect with Sara about funding your food, ag, or bio processing project, call 1-406-590-1301 or Sara@GrowGreatFalls.org. 12) Chambers for Innovation featured a great article about our recent energy event we hosted with the Montana Energy Business Alliance — “Great Falls Development Alliance Shows How EDOs Can Lead on Energy Business Development.” 13) Save the date! Our third data center task force will be on Monday, May 18 from 5:00 – 6:30 PM at Great Falls College MSU in Heritage Hall. Alan Bronec, the Director of Infrastructure for Cushing Terrell will be our expert speaker. Alan is a licensed professional engineer in 21 states and has over 30 years of experience designing complex electrical systems both domestically and internationally. Alan has designed numerous data centers of varying sizes and has deep expertise in data center trends, challenges, evolving technologies, and regulations. Please register for the task force here. Reach out to Kristen Blue at Kristen@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-788-4989 with any questions. 14) Great Falls Tourism boards adopted their Annual Plan and Budget for FY2027. 15) Join GFDA Board & council members, partners, clients, and investors at GFDA’s Annual Meeting on Tuesday June 2nd, 8:00-10:00 AM at The Newberry. We will share updates across the region, highlight key projects, and celebrate the Ally Award recipients who helped move this work forward. See familiar faces, add new connections, and strengthen your network. Walk out with a clear picture of where things are headed and how you can be part of it. No cost to attend. Bring a guest! Register here and see you there. Contact Jenn at 1-406-781-9499 or Jenn@GrowGreatFalls.org for more information. 16) The Montana Agritourism Association will be highlighting agritourism businesses on social media to boost visibility, promote offerings, and increase visitation. To participate, MAA members should provide a brief mission statement describing what the business stands for and its goals, a short business story that may include family involvement and the history of the land or animals, and high-quality photos that highlight the business and its offerings. Businesses interested in participating should submit materials to isabel.feld@mt.gov. 17) The Central Montana Defense Coalition was launched to support and advocate for the missions at Malmstrom Air Force Base and the Montana Air National Guard. These missions support jobs, drive local spending, and keep businesses active across the region. Communities across the country are competing for defense investment. Staying engaged matters if we want to keep and grow what we have. This work takes consistent funding to stay in front of decision makers and position our region for future opportunities. Thank you to the investors who are already backing this effort. If you want to help keep these missions strong and our region competitive, reach out to Jenn at 1-406-781-9499 or Jenn@GrowGreatFalls.org. 18) Are you ready to stop searching for opportunities and start finding the right ones? Great Falls Regional APEX can help you get connected through BidMatch, a free service that delivers government contracting opportunities directly to your inbox based on your capabilities. This tool helps you save time, stay informed, and focus on opportunities that fit your business. To start receiving matched opportunities and grow your government contracting pipeline, contact Mariah Liebing at Mariah@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-217-2174. 19) Published our Quarterly Investor Letter. 20) I was able to participate in the ICSC commercial real estate DC Fly-In with developers and real estate leaders from across the country. Met with Senator Sheehy and legislative staff of Sen. Daines and Rep. Downing to discuss the EPA Brownfields program, organized retail crime, tax incentives to make more and redevelopment of empty properties possible. Travelled to Annapolis to meet with an energy company interested in the Great Falls region. 21) You can feel the moment when a place starts to shift. More activity. Growing confidence. Real movement. We are in that moment. Our investors and partners are helping drive it by backing the work that pushes things forward. They are not waiting to see what happens. They are making it happen. Learn more about them by viewing this short video. Recent investments include: Community Division—Action Plumbing & Construction LTD, Co. If you want to be in that group, step in now, contact Jenn at 1-406-781-9499 or Jenn@GrowGreatFalls.org to find out how. 22) GFDA has two great career opportunities — Downtown Great Falls Business Development Officer and Small Business Advisor. Downland description and how to apply. Please forward to great candidates! “Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning.” Thomas Edison Edition 734 |
