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Ponderosa Solutions has purchased a lot in the Great Falls AgriTech Park and started construction on the first transload facility in Great Falls. Headquartered in Oklahoma, the company has visited Great Falls many times over the last six years to explore the feasibility of the new facility. Thank you to the many GFDA partners who have helped to make this project happen and welcome to the great Ponderisa Solutions team!

1) Dr. Tiffany Hensley-McBain of the McLaughlin Research Institute (MRI) in Great Falls won a National Institutes of Health (NIH) $3.1+ million grant award for her work to understand Alzheimer’s disease and translate findings to clinical applications that may help those with Alzheimer’s disease across Montana and beyond. The project is titled “Investigating neutrophilic inflammation as an APOE genotype-specific mediator of neuroinflammation and cognitive decline in aging.”

Dr. Hensley-McBain grew up in Great Falls, MT, and completed her undergraduate education at Montana State University and doctoral and postdoctoral work at the University of Washington. She returned home to Great Falls and assumed her position as an Assistant Professor at MRI and the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine – Montana campus in autumn of 2021. Watch the Day in the Life video we published earlier this year about Dr. Hensley-McBain. See TheElectric and KRTV.

2) The Montana Headwaters Tech Hub Consortium was selected by the U.S. Economic Development Administration as one of 12 Tech Hubs in the nation that will receive implementation funds. Led by Accelerate Montana at the University of Montana, Headwaters Tech Hub is focused on growing the photonics industry. It will receive up to $41 million in grant funds. The Consortium includes Montana State University and many public and private partners. See KRTV.

Montana Department of Commerce Director Paul Green was in Great Falls and we got to show off our development and progress while sharing our needs for future sustainability. Thank you to the many partners/businesses who gave their time to make this visit impactful!

3) 3 Rivers Communications has installed equipment to provide free WiFi in community spaces in Choteau and Fairfield. See Choteau Acantha.

4) The Montana Indian Equity Fund is now open for applications. The Indian Equity Fund (IEF) is a competitive business grant available to enrolled members of Montana-based tribes. Our Small Business Development Center will be hosting two workshops to assist applicants with the grant application process. The first workshop will be held on July 30th in Great Falls, and the second will be on August 6th in Browning. To register for the Great Falls workshop, click here. To sign up for the Browning workshop, click here.   If you have any questions about the IEF, please contact Rich Gannon, our small business advisor, at 1-406-836-2087 or RGannon@GrowGreatFalls.org.

5) The Montana Department of Commerce has opened a final round of the low interest business loan Montana State Small Business Credit Initiative 2.0 (SSBCI 2.0) program. State priorities this round are Native American owned businesses, Veteran owned businesses, and businesses located in rural areas. These funds are limited so start talking with GFDA now, if you have a project that could move forward with the benefit of low interest rate funding. If you have a business startup or expansion planned that could benefit from a loan participation, contact Jill at JKohles@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-590-1056.

6) We are preparing to welcome the next class of Touro COM students into our community and we need your help! Last year, businesses and community members supported the students by donating items for gift bags, hosting small groups for dinners, sponsoring white coats and more. See KRTV. If you’d like to join us in welcoming this new class, reach out to Jenn at 1-406-781-9499 or Jenn@GrowGreatFalls.org. Click here to sponsor a white coat for an incoming student.

7) The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has recently announced that it will temporarily pause accepting applications for federal small business certifications beginning August 1st through September as it performs system upgrades to its certifications portal. If you’ve been working on your certification application, we recommend completing your submission before August 1st. If you aren’t in a rush to certify (or re-certify) your business, the SBA plans to re-open its certification portal and continue accepting applications in early September. Contact Shannon Clancy at SClancy@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-590-1184.

8) We Are Growing Our Awesome Staff Team. Download a description of openings for Director Regional Small Business Development Center, Lending Solutions Specialist, and Business Advisor -- APEX Accelerator. Contact Tracy for more info at Tracy@GrowGreatFalls.org.

9) As we jump into the start of our new fiscal year, we received the draft Downtown Great Falls Market Analysis and the draft Logistics Economic Development Strategy from the respective consultants, continuing our deep dive market assessments to identify new investment opportunities for the 13-county Great Falls Montana trade area.

10) We've set the dates for most of our big events for the new fiscal year. Mark your calendars for Invest Downtown Great Falls the morning of October 16th, a new regional Entrepreneur Celebration on November 20th, Ignite 2025 the morning of January 10th, and The Fire Within the evening of April 24th. This fall we will also be hosting an Aspirational Trip to the International Economic Development Council annual conference in Denver with a visit to connect with community leaders in Cheyenne and a delegation visit by Economic Development Lethbridge. Our first trip to visit the headquarters of a prospect is only a week away.

Have a fantastic week!

Brett

Brett Doney

Great Falls Development Alliance

BDoney@GrowGreatFalls.org

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 four cornerstones of character on which the structure of this nation was built are: initiative, imagination, individuality and independence."

Rickenbacker, Eddie



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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 JSchalper@GrowGreatFalls.org

The 25-year loan effective rate (including all fees) is 6.351%; 20-year at 6.440%; 10-year equipment loan at 6.892%; and, 20-year refinance 6.470%; 25-year refinance 6.382%. 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 JKohles@GrowGreatFalls.org.

The second annual Montana Child Care Business Connect Summit will be held August 7-8 in Helena.

The 2024 Great Falls Housing Market Assessment shows a need for 650 new housing units per year in the immediate Great Falls area. For assistance with housing development, contact Jake Clark at Jake@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-403-4937.

Great Falls Recruiters and HR professionals! Here is a link to our Talent Attraction Toolkit and the 2024 Great Falls Livability Magazine, part of our effort to help local businesses attract the talent they need for key positions. 

We released a Population Economic Impact Report that documents an $88 million positive impact on the local economy from population growth in the last five years, and estimates economic impact of population growth over the next 10 years.

Manufacturers, if you don't get the monthly newsletter from the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center you are missing out on great training and other resources.

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 Anna@GrowGreatFalls.org 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! RGannon@GrowGreatFalls.org 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 SClancy@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-590-1184.

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 RGannon@GrowGreatFalls.org 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 Nicki at 1-406-750-2099 or Nicki@GrowGreatFalls.org. 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 Jake Clark at Jake@GrowGreatFalls.org or 1-406-403-4937 to be connected with a JobsEQ-trained Business Advisor today. To learn more about GFDA's other talent attraction tools, visit our website. 

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 TMenzales@GrowGreatFalls.org 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 June 30th. For for help applying, contact Anna Flies: Anna@GrowGreatFalls.org 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.



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 Christian Nichols at 1-406-788-9385 or CNichols@GrowGreatFalls.org. 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 SClancy@GrowGreatFalls.org 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 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.

Our Mission is to 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 APEX Accelerator, and a Montana Food & Ag Development Center. GFDA is a certified Montana MicroBusiness Development Corporation.

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