Great Falls Development Authority works with aviation company

The Great Falls Development Authority is working with a yet-to-be named aviation parts company to open a manufacturing operation in Great Falls.

"Initially they would employ 25 to 30 workers and then grow to 50," said Brett Doney, president of the GFDA.

It would be an expansion of a company already doing business in the United States and abroad, Doney said.

GFDA is working to secure two grants from the Montana Department of Commerce: one for workforce training and one to help with start-up expenses.

"They have shook hands on a lease, but they are also asking for a 65 car parking lot to be built on the property," said Doney. "We hope to be able to make an announcement in a couple of weeks and that they can start up this winter."

The company is being courted by several states and communities, he said.

"What helped Great Falls attract them is the quality of our workforce and the willingness of the community to support them," Doney said.

The Great Falls Development Authority is also working with several retailers.

"There seems to be a pretty good sense of optimism, both with national chains and local businesses looking to expand, but you just don't know.

"As far as the national retailers, we've been shoveling a lot of information their way, but they are hard to gauge," he said. "What that means in terms of their decision making, we don't know."

A study titled "The Economic Impact of a Transition from Dollar Bills to Dollar Coins on the Retail and Service Sectors of the United States Economy," was conducted by economics research firm John Dunham & Associates. The study says if the paper dollar bill is dropped for a dollar coin, a proposal before Congress, it will cost Montana businesses.

The study, paid for by Americans for George, found a transition to dollar coins would increase annual costs in Montana by $764,500 and lead to an estimated annual loss of $1.53 million in business activity, as well as costing jobs. Nationwide, the switch would increase annual costs by $201.85 million and lead to at least 4,300 job losses, the study says.

Costs of the change would be incurred through things such as cashier training for new till configurations, new cash drawers and even increases in armored car costs, according to the study.

Americans for George includes members from timber industry-heavy states such as Alabama and Washington and several retail businesses.

Santa will temporarily trade in his sleigh for the Great Falls Historic Trolley when he arrives at 11 a.m. Nov. 19 to kick off the holiday season at Holiday Village Mall.

St. Nick will arrive in the shopping center's parking lot near the south entrance door on the lower level. Joining him will be Mrs. Claus and a few elves. He will be in the shopping center's lower level, near the Montana Law Enforcement Museum.

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