Director Paul Green’s Quarterly Commerce Update: Q4, 2024
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Since being appointed director of the Montana Department of Commerce in January 2024, I have witnessed countless hours of dedicated work on behalf of Montanans by passionate and committed Commerce staff who provide business, infrastructure, housing, grant, data and research assistance to build a stronger Montana economy.
While Commerce has diverse programs and subject matter, we are unifying the purpose of our work wherever possible. There are always specific programs that meet critical needs facing Montanans, and our team at Commerce is committed to providing and improving these services every day. In addition to those critical services, our team is working to identify more ways to collaborate across our organization to deliver a greater, more unified impact to our state’s economy. Business or visitation growth, housing availability and affordability and infrastructure planning are inherently connected through cause and effect. Commerce’s programs help both sides of this equation. My letter for this quarter contains just a small sampling of Commerce’s major efforts and successes over the past few months.
Recently, Commerce was awarded nearly $800 million in federal grants designed to help Montana continue on its current trajectory as the leading state in the nation for energy infrastructure, energy transmission and lasers and photonics. Thanks in large part to the work of our Research and Information Services Bureau Chief Mary Craigle and Industry Development Manager Canon Luerkens, along with many hard-working private and public sector stakeholders, Commerce received a $700 million grant from the Department of Energy on behalf of Montana. The grant will advance the North Plains Connector, a 415-mile, high voltage, direct-current line between Montana’s Colstrip substation and Center, North Dakota connecting the nation’s east and west electrical grids. This project will create economic opportunity and good paying jobs for decades in Montana; equally important, it will further energy reliability and affordability for Montanans and individuals across the country. I liken this project to the “Golden Spike” that connected the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads in 1869. The “Electrical Golden Spike” of our near future will be right here in Montana in one of our most critical energy producing communities, Colstrip.
Commerce’s Housing team has been heavily involved in serving on Governor Greg Gianforte’s Housing Task Force, which recently released its third round of recommendations to help make housing in Montana more affordable. Commerce Housing Division Administrator Cheryl Cohen served on the Housing Task Force on behalf of the Department. In addition to the Housing Task Force, Cohen joined Governor Gianforte for a groundbreaking ceremony for the Twin Creek Apartments on Helena’s east side. These apartments are set to be constructed over the next 18 months and will include 72 units of one-, two- and three-bedroom homes. Commerce and the Montana Board of Housing, which is administratively attached to Commerce, assisted by providing the following support for the Twin Creek Apartments development:
Governor Gianforte and Commerce’s Business Attraction team recently celebrated the opening of Ultimate Defense Technologies in Billings at a ribbon cutting ceremony in October. Commerce’s Business Attraction team facilitates site selection support to businesses looking to expand or locate their business in Montana. Ultimate Defense Technologies will create 90 good-paying Montana jobs manufacturing firearms safety solutions. Founded in the United Kingdom, Ultimate Defense Technologies decided to move its headquarters from Arizona to Montana after meeting with Governor Gianforte and our Business Attraction team at the 2023 SHOT Show in Las Vegas.
Along with Commerce’s Chief Diplomacy Officer, Katie Willcockson, I had recently completed an Asian mission trip on behalf of our state. The Montana innovation and economic impact is felt near and far. You can read more about it in this edition of the Commerce Quarterly.
Commerce’s Business MT Division was recently awarded the 2025 fiscal year State Trade Expansion Program grant from the Small Business Administration. The Export team received $900,000 in funding, which tied with seven other states for the highest award for this year. This large award is a direct result of the hard work of this team and their ability to show the positive economic impact that their trade and export work has brought to Montana. Commerce’s Export team within their peer groups and have other states seeking them out for advice on how to grow their own export programs.
Commerce’s Community MT Division recently awarded additional funding for the Main Street Montana program. The team was able to open the application cycle, provide technical assistance to communities interested in applying, score applications and have the program fully awarded in less than 60 days. The resiliency of this team provided $1.5 million in funding to 10 Main Street Communities to help regenerate Main Street businesses and downtown locations through mixed-use and adaptive reuse projects across the state.
This is only a snapshot of the great work that Commerce has accomplished in the past three months. I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of our team and the community leaders and stakeholders we work with every day. You can always find more of Commerce’s latest news and announcements on our website at commerce.mt.gov.
While Commerce has diverse programs and subject matter, we are unifying the purpose of our work wherever possible. There are always specific programs that meet critical needs facing Montanans, and our team at Commerce is committed to providing and improving these services every day. In addition to those critical services, our team is working to identify more ways to collaborate across our organization to deliver a greater, more unified impact to our state’s economy. Business or visitation growth, housing availability and affordability and infrastructure planning are inherently connected through cause and effect. Commerce’s programs help both sides of this equation. My letter for this quarter contains just a small sampling of Commerce’s major efforts and successes over the past few months.
Recently, Commerce was awarded nearly $800 million in federal grants designed to help Montana continue on its current trajectory as the leading state in the nation for energy infrastructure, energy transmission and lasers and photonics. Thanks in large part to the work of our Research and Information Services Bureau Chief Mary Craigle and Industry Development Manager Canon Luerkens, along with many hard-working private and public sector stakeholders, Commerce received a $700 million grant from the Department of Energy on behalf of Montana. The grant will advance the North Plains Connector, a 415-mile, high voltage, direct-current line between Montana’s Colstrip substation and Center, North Dakota connecting the nation’s east and west electrical grids. This project will create economic opportunity and good paying jobs for decades in Montana; equally important, it will further energy reliability and affordability for Montanans and individuals across the country. I liken this project to the “Golden Spike” that connected the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads in 1869. The “Electrical Golden Spike” of our near future will be right here in Montana in one of our most critical energy producing communities, Colstrip.
Commerce’s Housing team has been heavily involved in serving on Governor Greg Gianforte’s Housing Task Force, which recently released its third round of recommendations to help make housing in Montana more affordable. Commerce Housing Division Administrator Cheryl Cohen served on the Housing Task Force on behalf of the Department. In addition to the Housing Task Force, Cohen joined Governor Gianforte for a groundbreaking ceremony for the Twin Creek Apartments on Helena’s east side. These apartments are set to be constructed over the next 18 months and will include 72 units of one-, two- and three-bedroom homes. Commerce and the Montana Board of Housing, which is administratively attached to Commerce, assisted by providing the following support for the Twin Creek Apartments development:
- MBOH - Low Income Housing Tax Credit 4% & 9%: $12,222,670
- MBOH - Bond Allocation: $8,537,000
- MBOH - Coal Trust Multifamily Homes Loan: $8,111,360
- Commerce - National Housing Trust Fund: $2,526,194
- Big Timber’s Crazy Mountain Collective
- The Blackfeet Tribe
- Building a Better Broadus
- Elevate Anaconda’s Winter and Cool Season Tourism Development
- Garfield County Community Tourism
- The Havre Tourism Enhancement Project
- Ronan’s Building a Thriving Rural Region Through Placemaking, Downtown Revitalization and Strategic Tourism Infrastructure
Governor Gianforte and Commerce’s Business Attraction team recently celebrated the opening of Ultimate Defense Technologies in Billings at a ribbon cutting ceremony in October. Commerce’s Business Attraction team facilitates site selection support to businesses looking to expand or locate their business in Montana. Ultimate Defense Technologies will create 90 good-paying Montana jobs manufacturing firearms safety solutions. Founded in the United Kingdom, Ultimate Defense Technologies decided to move its headquarters from Arizona to Montana after meeting with Governor Gianforte and our Business Attraction team at the 2023 SHOT Show in Las Vegas.
Along with Commerce’s Chief Diplomacy Officer, Katie Willcockson, I had recently completed an Asian mission trip on behalf of our state. The Montana innovation and economic impact is felt near and far. You can read more about it in this edition of the Commerce Quarterly.
Commerce’s Business MT Division was recently awarded the 2025 fiscal year State Trade Expansion Program grant from the Small Business Administration. The Export team received $900,000 in funding, which tied with seven other states for the highest award for this year. This large award is a direct result of the hard work of this team and their ability to show the positive economic impact that their trade and export work has brought to Montana. Commerce’s Export team within their peer groups and have other states seeking them out for advice on how to grow their own export programs.
Commerce’s Community MT Division recently awarded additional funding for the Main Street Montana program. The team was able to open the application cycle, provide technical assistance to communities interested in applying, score applications and have the program fully awarded in less than 60 days. The resiliency of this team provided $1.5 million in funding to 10 Main Street Communities to help regenerate Main Street businesses and downtown locations through mixed-use and adaptive reuse projects across the state.
This is only a snapshot of the great work that Commerce has accomplished in the past three months. I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of our team and the community leaders and stakeholders we work with every day. You can always find more of Commerce’s latest news and announcements on our website at commerce.mt.gov.
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