GFDA and NeighborWorks reflect on 2022 achievements - KRTV NEWS Great Falls

1 year ago 64

Throughout 2022, we person seen each kinds of projects and developments that person been successfully completed, oregon are inactive successful the works. Look nary further than the operation of Touro Medical School, which volition beryllium 1 of Montana's archetypal aesculapian schools, arsenic good arsenic a caller flat analyzable downtown - "Lofts At The Station." When passing by Central Avenue, you mightiness announcement operation going connected astatine the aged Greystone Inn, which volition soon beryllium "The Gibson Hotel." There is besides the Arc flat analyzable that is being built adjacent the intersection of Division Road and Smelter Avenue."

When catching up with Great Falls Development Authority, they said 2022 has been a immense success, portion besides noting the advancement that has been made implicit the past mates of decades.

GFDA Vice President Jolene Schalper noted the expanding fig of business-leaders flocking to Downtown Great Falls.

Schalper said, "It (downtown) was thriving successful the 80's, and went done this modulation wherever it was truly sleepy ... Now, the first-floor buildings are each taken, galore of the 2nd and 3rd floors are taken. There are a mates opportunities to get successful if there's a concern thought you have, but it took partners moving connected the lighting, the music, and the façade improvements, conscionable investing their clip and effort to go, 'you know, I similar our downtown, and present it is.'

Schalper noted that determination has been immoderate obstacles successful the mode the past respective years, which is ever a portion of starting a project.

"The market, the proviso chain, the precocious outgo of building. There are challenges ahead," she said. "So far, we've seen businesses going up anyway. We've seen immoderate that person had to wait, and we've had to find different tools and resources to assistance immoderate projects that are large ideas, but truly needed assistance ... I deliberation we are going to spot much occurrence successful our assemblage implicit the adjacent year."

NeighborWorks Great Falls besides considers 2022 to beryllium a success.

NeighWorks manager Sherrie Arey stated, "2022 has been a palmy year, adjacent seeing immoderate of the fluctuations successful homeownership and the lodging situation we person faced successful Great Falls. We person been capable to proceed our Owner-Built program, successful having 2 builds going astatine the aforesaid clip to bring 20 caller homes into our community. We're inactive doing our High School House. We finished a fantastic location past May, and we started 1 successful August. Then we’ve had respective antithetic projects internally done rehabs, homes that person been donated to us, arsenic good arsenic gathering homes this past year, truthful we’ve been palmy successful continuing to bring homes to our community.”

Arey said the programs NeighborWorks offers person served a captious relation to those looking to go homeowners successful Great Falls. She says they are hoping to grow upon those programs, and adjacent adding much wrong the adjacent year.

Arey said, "we're going to proceed processing our single-family homes, and utilizing that successful our Owner-Built and High School House arsenic good arsenic doing immoderate much in-fill, moving with the metropolis to assistance region immoderate blighted property, hopefully successful the downtown area. We're besides going to absorption connected the rentals. We cognize a batch of folks are going to beryllium hurting with those costs of rental housing, truthful we're going to beryllium looking astatine however we tin measurement into that abstraction and spot what we tin bash either with immoderate education, providing down outgo assistance for homeownership arsenic good arsenic looking astatine imaginable apartments that we whitethorn bring to our portfolio."

When asked astir what this means heading into 2023, they each said they person precocious hopes. While determination whitethorn beryllium immoderate challenges on the way, they said that’s each portion of gathering a stronger community.

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