Tony Roma’s

Tony Roma’s officially opens Nov. 4 in the Holiday Inn on 10th Avenue South.

Business Bites: Tony Roma’s opening in November; Kelly’s Signs for sale; GFDA working on potential $1.1 billion manufacturing project; First Peoples Buffalo Jump park seeking volunteers; and more

Feather Your Nest

The owner of Feather Your Nest is retiring and has sold the building.

Kandy Zanto posted on the shop’s Facebook page over the weekend that she’s retiring and has sold the building to Shari and Mike Schmidt.

Feather Your Nest will be open Thursday, Friday and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the end of November into early December.

Business Bites: Broadway in Great Falls; food pantry donation; NWGF expands savings program; Old Chicago remodel underway; Wheat Montana expanding; Claire’s closing; medical degree, residency programs; human trafficking program

Belles and Lace

Belles and Lace is closing its downtown location at 2 5th St. N., Suite 101.

Business Bites: Symphony leadership changes; Peres Food Basket closing; Belles and Lace returning, ice cream and arcade coming to downtown; tax help; fraud prevention bingo; dance show; and more

Sisters Coffee and Cafe

Sisters Coffee and Cafe opened in the Columbus Center this week serving drinks and food Monday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The name is meant to honor the Sisters of Providence, who opened The Columbus Hospital in 1930.

They’re on the first floor at the Columbus Center, 1601 2nd Ave. N.

Business Bites: New food hall opening in The Station District; Crown Room Casino new owners; The Press Club opening; Mac Attack kitchen takeover

Voyagers Baseball

The owners of Enbar have purchased the Great Falls Voyagers from the Great Falls Baseball Club.

The Great Falls Baseball Club looked for new local owners who would agree to keep the team in Great Falls rather than moving the franchise out of town, according to a release from the Enbar group.

The new ownership is planning future improvements such as new netting, a third base deck and a new children’s play zone, according to the release.

Ticket prices will remain the same for the 2025 season, according to the group.

The city and the baseball club entered into a 50 year agreement in 1996 for Centene Stadium. The agreement requires an annual rent paid to the city on or before Nov. 1. The lease is on a fixed rent stepped increase, so the annual rent increased 10 percent every five years, according to the city.

In 2020, the baseball club asked the city for rent forgiveness of of $10,648 since they were unable to play that season due to COVID.

City Commissioners denied the request.

Steve Herrig, Great Falls Park and Recreation director, told The Electric that the sale doesn’t affect the current lease, but that they have been in conversations with the group about possibly restructuring the lease.

Housing regulations

The Great Falls Development Alliance is partnering with the Great Falls Association of Realtors to host a public information forum regarding accessory dwelling units and duplexes in residential zoning districts for Great Falls.

The event is set for 9 a.m. Nov. 14 and register here is here.

Cassiopeia author event

Cassiopeia Books is hosting an author event at 6 p.m. Nov. 14.

Local author Leza Winters will be discussing her new book, The Surface.

Pizza Ranch

Tim Mazzaferro said they’re in the final stages of their permit, which was just approved.

They’ll start construction soon on the new Pizza Ranch in the former Joanns space on 10th Avenue South, he said, and they’ll provide The Electric with estimated finish dates when available.

 Joann

Joann is now open at its Holiday Village Mall location.

They’re grand opening is scheduled for Nov. 22.

From our Sept. 16 bite: Work is ongoing at the new Joann location in Holiday Village Mall.

A spokeswoman for Joann told The Electric on Sept. 23 that they were aiming for a Nov. 22 open date.

Joann is hiring for the new Great Falls location.

Over the summer, interior work was halted as Rhino Investments, the owner of the Joann, Harbor Freight and former Fit Republic spaces, hadn’t repaired the broken sprinkler system.

Business Bites: Big Lots closing; NWE acquiring Energy West; Joanns update; Albertsons merger; Luz’s Mexican kitchen; Eagles Manor auction; and more

Fire Marshal Mike McIntosh told The Electric in July that he was allowing exterior work for the Joann space to continue.

He said Lakeview Construction, the general contractor, and Joanns are bypassing Rhino and trying to get the sprinkler system repaired in all three spaces so that interior work could continue.

The former Joann location on 10th Avenue South is closed and being converted into a Pizza Ranch.

Old Chicago

Work on Old Chicago, which is taking over the former Boston’s space, is ongoing.

They’re now looking at opening in late winter or early spring.

FCR

A reader asked about FCR’s closure, so we checked in with the company for an update.

FCR was acquired by TTEC in 2019. During the pandemic, all employees at the Great Falls location moved to at-home work environments, according to a TTEC spokeswoman.

Their former office at the corner of Central Avenue and 4th Street has been closed for years.

“TTEC continues to maintain a remote employee presence in the Great Falls area and has approximately 80 employees throughout the state of Montana today. We look forward to continuing our work there for years to come,” TTEC told The Electric.

GFDA investment

The Great Falls Development Alliance has received a $1 million program-related investment from the Otto Bremer Trust to “further GFDA’s mission of building a thriving economy,” according to GFDA. The investment will support their effort to focus on high-impact projects in the region.

Business Bites: Rocky Mountain building for sale; gymnastics academy closed; Cup Bop, Cambridge Court for sale; Malmstrom contract; Front Agency opens in Fairfield; Eagle Scout paints Memorial Stadium; permits issued and more

Downtown development

The Great Falls Development Alliance is presenting the Downtown Great Falls Market Analysis and Downtown Great Falls Economic Vitality Transformation Strategy on Nov. 13 from 8:30-10:30 a.m. at Haute Hive.

Register here. For questions or to discuss investing in Downtown Great Falls, contact Nicki Dallison at Nicki@GrowGreatFalls.org or 406-750-2099.

Mountain View Co-op

In September, Mountain View Co-op and Town and Country Supply Association announced they were in initial talks to explore a merger between our two cooperatives.

Mountain View Co-op said at the end of October that T and C had recently informed them that their board didn’t feel there will be synergies for their patrons that warrant moving forward with a merger at this time.

Business Bites: seafood restaurant planned for former Black Bear Diner; new Panda Express opening; Black Eagle Country Club for sale; Chadwick mural dedication; Russell Museum events; Reichert celebration of life; and more

Mountain View thanked T and C for their time and consideration.

“Although this is a disappointment to those in MVC who have been involved with this process, we know there will continue to be opportunities that can bring value to our business, and we will continue to work diligently for the benefit of this cooperative,” according to the co-op.

Property auction

The former fitness center at 715 13th Ave. S. is up for auction.

Bidding on the 28,269-square-foot building opens Nov. 18 and closes Dec. 4.

Business Bites: Vintage Sellers, Yarn and Honey moving; Miss Linda’s registration open; Ranch at Milo Creek open house; optometrist opens; Evergreen Nutrition, Cozy Corner Cafe for sale; Back 2 School Blast

Bella Vita Wellness

Bella Vita Wellness is opening at 618 Central Ave. early next year.

Roe River Realty will be moving upstairs to make room for the new wellness center on the main floor.

True Brew EspressGo

True Brew EspressGO has new owners, Carsen and Travis.

Contact them for your next event at 406-868-7120 or paradiseventuremt@gmail.com.

Business Bites: Firehouse Steamers for sale; community kitchen opening; Joann Fabric under construction; Scheels still not moving; Old Chicago opening later this year; Stuff the Bus and more

New exhibit at C.M. Russell Museum

The C.M. Russell Museum has opened Inner Light: The Art of Tom Gilleon, an exhibit celebrating one of the most respected masters in contemporary Western Art.

The exhibit will be open through March 2025 showcasing Gilleon’s journey from an accomplished illustrator for NASA’s Apollo and Saturn space programs to a successful career with Walt Disney Imagineering, where he was mentored by several master artists, according to the museum.

The exhibit features luminescent colors and authentic portrayals of Native Americans and iconic Western structures and landscapes with a 70-painting career retrospective, including 12 original paintings on special loan from Walt Disney Imagineering. Gilleon collaborated with Walt Disney Imagineering art legend Herb Ryman and other greats, contributing to the development of concepts for Imagineering’s projects worldwide, according to the museum.

Business Bites: News and Brews; Thursday night markets at new city pool; kite festival; The Music Man; Cushing Terrell acquires engineering firm; veteran commendations; games at the library; Paris Gibson Square gift; swim lesson registration; junior rangers

The exhibit is co-curated by Tim Peterson and Richard King of KingArts art agency, in collaboration with the C.M. Russell Museum.

The exhibit also presents The Spirit Catcher, his 22-minute digital painting triptych that magically morphs before viewers’ eyes, created with former Disney Imagineer and concept designer Marshall Monroe of Marshall Monroe
Magic, according to the museum.

Interim director at The Square

The Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art‘s board of directors appointed Nicole Maria Evans as interim director effective Oct. 31 as the board seeks to replace the recently departed director, ideally by February.

Evans is the curator of exhibitions and collections at The Square and has served in that role since June 2019, according to the museum.

Business Bites: JBs closed; Craft Beer Week; Lewis and Clark Festival; Chase Your Dreams closing; Big Sky Big Dreams for sale; Prairie Mountain River Adventures; Pizza Ranch, Joann updates; Juneteenth; Giant Springs activities; Arts on Fire; Big Dipper, arcade open; Yarn and Honey moving

Evans is an art historian, curator, writer, researcher, and educator. She oversees the programming initiatives for exhibitions and collections at the museum. She secured the needed Collections Assessment for Preservation national award for the museum in 2022, starting the current strategic planning projects for the museum, according to a release from The Square.

Evans holds a master’s in art history and museum studies from Tufts University and a bachelor’s in art history from the University of California Los Angeles. She serves on the board for the Montana Art Gallery Directors Association.

New programs at UP

The University of Providence’s School of Health Professions has added two in-demand concentrations to its master’s in healthcare administration program.

The university has added community health and health justice concentrations to the existing leadership concentration.

The program looks at topics such as health inequities, population health, social epidemiology, medical-legal partnerships and the social drivers of health.

Business Bites: downtown Hardee’s sold; Mrs. Wrights Pastys closing; Honey Hippo has new owners; Hi-Line Climbing offering free climbing; Miss Linda’s, Montana Youth Symphony have upcoming events; Cascade 66 Race; Special Olympics Montana numbers; Korean War online exhibit; Safety Town; and more

Students enrolling in UP’s the master’s program can select their concentration during the first and second semesters. Once selected, students will take up to six credits of specialized courses tailored to their concentration. Students who select the community health concentration can register for an additional elective course during their final semester or after completing all required 40 credits.

Program graduates who wish to pursue additional specialty in community health or health justice may be eligible to transfer credits to UP’s community health investment or health justice certificate, with enhanced and targeted curriculum specific to those topics, according to UP.

Got a business bite? Email jenn@theelectricgf.com with ‘business bite’ in the subject line and the details in text form in the body of the email.