Business Bites: Love Your Library; Pit Stop and Maria’s closing; Haunted Scoops opening; A Diamond in the Ruff’s new location; United Way campaign; and more
Love Your Library
This month, the Great Falls Public Library Foundation invites the community to share their love for the Great Falls Public Library through a citywide Love Your Library Valentine Box initiative.
From Feb. 1-10, the project encourages residents of all ages to express appreciation for the library through handwritten Valentine messages, while enjoying a creative, community-wide display of decorated Valentine boxes.
Community members, organizations and local businesses have partnered with the library foundation to decorate and host Valentine boxes throughout Great Falls.
Box locations will be announced online and updated regularly through the Great Falls Public Library Foundation’s website and social media channels.
Community members are invited to participate by visiting any Valentine box location, picking up a Valentine card, and writing a message of appreciation for the Great Falls Public Library before dropping it into the box.
Prompts will be available to spark ideas, but personal messages and reflections are warmly encouraged.
Participants are also invited to share photos of their Valentines or box visits on social media using #ILoveGFLibrary, helping spread the celebration throughout the community. Participants can also send a Valentine message through the Foundation website at gflibraryfoundation.org/lyl.
On Feb. 10, the foundation will collect all submitted Valentines and transform them into a display reflecting the community’s shared appreciation for the library and will be on display at the library for the remainder of the month.
The library is hosting a Love Your Library Celebration event Feb. 17 from 5-6:30 p.m. on the second floor of the library.
Patrons are invited to enjoy a dessert reception, view the Valentine’s card displays, and meet the new library director, Amy Dissmeyer.
Great Falls Public Library board selects new director [2025]
Pit Stop
The Pit Stop, Raceway Cafe, Wire Mill Casino and Black Eagle Brewery are closing after 14 years as new owners are taking over.
The bar and restaurant’s last day is Feb. 14.
The casino will be open indefinitely, opening at 10 a.m. daily.
“To our staff—past and present—thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Your dedication, passion, and hard work made this journey possible. It has been a wild ride, and we will always appreciate everything you gave to these places,” the Pit Stop owners posted on social media.
The racing memorabilia will be donated to the Electric City Racing Hall of Fame.
For those wanting an item returned, contact the Pit Stop.
As of Feb. 9, Magpie has not purchased the Pit Stop, according to the Magpie owners, despite rumors.
Haunted Scoops
Haunted Scoops is opening at 1900 4th Street N.E. No. 2, next to Subway.
They’re planning a grand opening in March, but are soft opening this month, to “gently ease into things and work out any kinks before our grand opening. That means: smaller menu, flexible hours, fewer people (on purpose!). It helps us make sure everything is extra good before we go all-in,” according to the owners.
They soft opening hours, which are subject to change, are:
- Sunday: closed
- Monday: closed
- Tuesday: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for pre-order and grab-n-go pickups only
- Wednesday: 4-9 p.m.
- Thursday: 4-9 p.m.
- Friday: 4-10 p.m.
- Saturday: 4-10 p.m.
Top 10 for 2025: Business Bites
United Way campaign
United Way of Cascade County raised $1,302,026 in its annual fundraising campaign, surpassing last year’s total by nearly 6 percent, the organization said in late January as it also honored Gary Owen as he retired as director after 25 years of service.
“During my 25 years with United Way, I have been continually impressed by the sense of community in Great Falls,” Owen said in a release. “The people in our community genuinely care for each other and are willing to give of their time and talents to strengthen the community we all care about. Our community is so generous and willing to step up to help our neighbors. During these times of economic challenges and uncertainty, that generosity is especially important and appreciated. The annual United Way campaign does not measure the work that we do, but it is a reflection of the community’s trust in and willingness to support that work.”
Funds raised during last year’s campaign helped 30,571 people through grants awarded to 30 local nonprofit programs.
United Way relies heavily on volunteers who work with area employers to encourage individual giving and corporate support.
More than 1,300 people donated to United Way this year, with most contributors giving less than $100 through small payroll deductions. Of the total funds raised, 63 percent came from 38 Pacesetter employers—organizations that commit early and significantly to supporting United Way of Cascade County, according to the organization.
Those Pacesetters include:
- Alliance for Youth
- BeeHive Homes
- Benefis Health System
- Bison Motor Company
- Bravera Bank
- Calumet Montana Refining
- Cascade County
- Celtic Cowboy & Hotel Arvon
- City of Great Falls
- City Motor Company
- Columbia Grain
- Cogswell Insurance
- D.A. Davidson
- Dick Anderson Construction
- Douglas Wilson & Company
- First Interstate Bank
- General Mills
- Great Falls Chamber of Commerce
- Great Falls College–MSU
- Great Falls Public Schools
- Horizon Credit Union
- Hoven Equipment
- HUB International Great Falls
- Independence Bank
- JCCS
- LPW Architecture
- Marsh McLennan Agency
- Montana Credit Union
- NeighborWorks Great Falls
- NorthWestern Energy
- Opportunity Bank
- Opportunities Inc.
- Pacific Steel & Recycling
- Pinion
- RBC Wealth Management
- Scheels
- TDS Fiber
- United Way of Cascade County
The largest workplace campaigns were conducted by D.A. Davidson, Calumet, City Motor Company, General Mills and Great Falls Public Schools.
United Way also received support from individual donors across Cascade County. This year, 336 people contributed a combined $261,509, accounting for more than 20 percent of the campaign total, according to United Way.
Grant funding decisions are made by a team of United Way volunteers who evaluate both community needs and program effectiveness. The organization’s grant application process will open in February.
Contributions may still be made by mailing donations to United Way of Cascade County, P.O. Box 1343, Great Falls, MT 59403, or online at http://www.uwccmt.org.
A Diamond in the Ruff relocation
A Diamond in the Ruff recently relocated to their new space at 402 1st Ave. N.W., next door to Reptile Universe behind the U-Haul location between Central Avenue West and the fairgrounds.
Their previous location at 1100 24th St. S. was sold in May 2024 and they weren’t able to find a suitable location to relocate, so rented a small space in a Black Eagle pet shop to continue operating while searching for a space, Katrina Heffernan, co-owner, said.
“We pride ourselves in extraordinary grooming and a peaceful, calm environment for pets. We groomed less pets per day and spend more time on each one making them look and feel extraordinary. We even modeled our colors after the two colors that dogs and cats see very well which is blue and yellow,” Heffernan said.
Maria’s Mexican Restaurant
Maria’s Mexican Restaurant’s last day of business will be Feb. 14 unless they run out of inventory sooner.
The restaurant is closing permanently, according to the owner.
“It has been our pleasure serving the best Mexican food in Great Falls. We will miss our customers and the community. Thank you all for your years of support over Maria’s 29 years in business. Please come see us one last time,” the restaurant posted on social media.
Former Ivy
Several readers have asked about what’s going on at the former Ivy nursing home, seeing lights on and people about the site at 1130 17th Ave. S.
A spokesperson for the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services told The Electric on Feb. 4 that a certificate of need has been submitted for the Ivy, which is the very first step in the process. A final decision has not yet been made.
In January, the city planning office told The Electric that a potential buyer, which owns and operates similar facilities in other states, contacted city planners for due diligence information, such as what would be needed to bring the building up to code.
Ivy files lawsuit seeking to stop closure by federal, state agencies [2024]
The interested buyer is not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, according to the city.
Recent social media comments indicated the facility was planned as a VA clinic, which is not the case, a VA spokesperson told The Electric.
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