Business Bites: FedEx changes; Cassiopeia events; Tasty Hot Pot hour changes; Bellissimo Dance marks a year downtown; SKYWARN training; Taste of Ireland; library speaker; and more
FedEx
Despite rumors, the FedEx facility at the Great Falls International Airport is not closing.
The facility will remain open, but the local deliveries that dispatch from that location will be consolidated into another location and the customer counter for dropping off packages will close.
“As part of our previously announced network transformation strategy, the FedEx facility at the Great Falls International Airport will have a staff reduction effective Sept. 28. Team members at the facility were notified several months in advance, and certain employees will be offered other roles within the company. For customers who have historically used this location for package drop off, other locations providing these services can be found at fedex.com. These decisions are never taken lightly and reflect our commitment to supporting affected employees – through job placement assistance, relocation aid, or severance, as applicable – while transforming our network and continuing to provide an outstanding experience for our customers,” a FedEx spokesman told The Electric in an email.
Since the changes won’t be effective until the fall and employees have several options, he said FedEx isn’t able to provide final details on impacted employees.
John Faulkner, Great Falls airport director, told The Electric that FedEx continues to add flight capacity at the airport because of the growth of the other cities, so the company isn’t closing its airport facility and will continue to have all the aircraft loading and unloading activity.
In 2020, the airport board voted to sell the FedEx building to FedEx and continue to lease the ground under the building in a 30-year lease.
The building and ramp were constructed in 1999 using tax-exempt financing, so the airport authority owned the infrastructure while the rent paid by FedEx covered the debt service on the facility.
Faulkner, airport director, told The Electric in 2020 that the original lease agreement expired that June and the board approved the sale of the building for $1.8 million.
Airport board approves sale of FedEx building to FedEx; planning new 30-year lease of land [2020]
According to airport board documents, the 81,000 square foot building was appraised in early 2017 at $2.5 million.
The sale agreement deducted the cost of $644,450 in roof repairs and $74,629 in HVAC and other roof repairs that FedEx would make within 10 years.
FedEx will continue to lease the ground under their building from the airport under a new 30-year lease for about $70,000 in starting annual rent and a lease for preferential use of the cargo ramp for about $47,000.
Tasty Hot Pot
Starting June 2, Tasty Hot Pot will be closed on Tuesdays to give its staff a break.
Bellissimo Dance
In case you missed it, like we did, Bellissimo Dance recently celebrated their one year anniversary downtown at 405 Central Ave. Check them out for dance lessons, workshops and more.
Cassiopeia Books author events
Pop into Cassiopeia Books on May 27 at 6 p.m. to hear Montana poets Sean Hill and Gabriel Furshong read from and discuss their latest collections.
On May 30 at 2 p.m. Cassiopeia is hosting Montana cozy mystery author K.L. Borges to discuss her first book in a new mystery series, Murder in the Crazy Mountains. All proceeds from sales during the event will benefit Pet Paw See.
SKYWARN training
The National Weather Service’s Great Falls office is partnering with NWS offices in Glasgow and Billings to host three virtual SKYWARN talks this month.
These talks are collaborative between the three offices, each covering largely the same material but offering a slightly unique climatological perspective for three areas of Montana east of the Divide.
Intermountain: May 20 from 6-8 p.m. (NWS Great Falls and NWS Billings)
Hi-Line: May 21 from 6-8 p.m. (NWS Great Falls and NWS Glasgow)
Eastern Plains: May 27 from 6-8 p.m. (NWS Billings and NWS Glasgow)
Here is the registration link for each of the talks.
These public trainings help NWS build its weather spotter network, which is so very important in rural Montana, where population, observations and radar coverage can be sparse. The talks also help build individual preparedness.
Ballot initiative petition
The Transparent Election Initiative launched sign.montanaplan.org, a website that walks Montana voters through self-submitting their own signatures for ballot measure I-194, also called “The Montana Plan,” that aims to eliminate corporate political spending and dark money influence in Montana elections.
The “Print, Sign, Submit” process is designed to make signature gathering more accessible to rural voters and households across Montana.
The new website provides a printable page and detailed instructions on how to sign and mail signatures. Registered Montana voters can review the initiative text, print out the official I-194 petition form and unsworn declaration, sign the petition, complete an unsworn declaration, then mail their signed form and declaration to TEI’s P.O. Box in
Helena.
TEI has confirmed that self-witnessed and mailed signatures are legal and valid with the Secretary of State.
Signatures are necessary to put I-194 on the statewide ballot in November; they are not a vote for the measure. If passed, The Montana Plan would redefine the powers granted by the state of Montana to corporations and other artificial entities, preventing them from spending money to influence elections.
EPA issues Montana Renewables related permits
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 8 Underground Injection Control Program recently issued two Class V permits to Montalban Oil and Gas Operations, Inc. for injection activities into the Jody Field 34-1 and 34-2 wells in Pondera County.
The permits allow for the injection of produced fluid from oil and gas-related activities and non-hazardous industrial wastewater from Montana Renewables’ Great Falls facility into the two existing wells. The wastewater is generated by pretreating renewable feedstocks, according to EPA.
EPA also issued an aquifer exemption expansion approval in connection with the UIC Class V permits, consolidating and expanding previously authorized exemptions for the Madison Formation at the Jody Field 34-1 and Jody Field 34-2 wells by expanding the exempted area laterally to 6.6 square miles and increasing the depth to approximately 3,700 feet below ground surface.
More information and documents are available here.
Any person who filed comments or participated in a hearing on the draft permits can appeal the final permits by filing a written petition for review with the clerk of the EPA Environmental Appeals Board.
Any person who did not file comments or participate in a hearing may petition for administrative review of any permit conditions set forth in the final permit decision, but only to the extent that those final permit conditions reflect changes from the proposed draft permit.
A petition for review must be filed within 30 days after service of notice announcing EPA’s final permit decisions.
Taste of Ireland
Direct from Off-Broadway and London’s West End, A Taste of Ireland Company returns with its flagship production – ‘A Taste of Ireland – The Irish Music and Dance Sensation.’
The tour is making a stop in Great Falls for a May 20 show at the Mansfield Theater at 7:30 p.m.
The show features dancers from Lord of the Dance, Riverdance, and the recent West End cast of Éireann, bringing the spirit and energy of modern Ireland to life with a pint of Irish wit.
Great Falls Park and Recreation reached out to United Way with a special request for volunteers.
Park and Rec staff will be laying fresh sod in Gibson Park May 27-28 and is looking for community volunteers to help.
Work will be done from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day, and Park and Rec staff will be present, working and providing direction. Volunteers do not need to commit to a full day.
To sign up or get more information, contact Kevin Vining, city parks supervisor, at kvining@greatfallsmt.gov.
Author/filmmaker speaking in Great Falls
Native author/filmmaker Julian Brave NoiseCat will be in Great Falls on June 6 for a free author talk and screening of his Academy Award-nominated documentary.
The American and Canadian writer, filmmaker, and activist will discuss his , debut memoir We Survived The Night at 1 p.m. in the Cordingley Room in the basement of the Great Falls Public Library. Cassiopeia Books will be on hand to sell copies of his book after the talk.
NoiseCat will present a free screening of the documentary Sugarcane (Rated R) at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center 6 p.m., followed by an hour-long question and answer session.
Doors open at 5:30 pm. The interpretive center is located at 4201 Giant Springs Road.
You can check out NoiseCat’s book, released in October 2025, at GFPL using MontanaLibrary2Go with the Libby App, or in the non-fiction section of the library, Call Number 970.004 NOISECA.
Sugarcane was nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary in 2025. Directed alongside investigative journalist Emily Kassie, the film premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, where NoiseCat and Kassie won the directing award for U.S. documentary. NoiseCat is a member of the Canim Lake Band Tsq’escen and descendant of the Lil’wat Nation of Mount Currie.
NoiseCat is a writer, filmmaker, champion powwow dancer, and student of Salish art and history. His writing has appeared in dozens of publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and The New Yorker. NoiseCat has been recognized with numerous awards, including the 2022 American Mosaic Journalism Prize and many National Native Media Awards. He was a finalist for the Livingston Award and multiple Canadian National Magazine Awards and was named to the TIME100 Next list in 2021.
The Montana Arts Council and Great Falls Public Library Foundation sponsored the event, with additional support from coal tax placed into Montana’s Cultural and Aesthetic Projects Trust Fund.
Great Falls Public Schools has been honored with the Best Communities for Music Education Award from the NAMM Foundation for its outstanding support and commitment to music education.
Now in its 27th year, the program continues to spotlight and celebrate school districts and individual schools across the U.S. for their exemplary dedication to music education and their ongoing efforts to ensure equitable access to music learning as part of a well-rounded education.
The award reaches K-12 communities nationwide, offering both recognition and momentum to strengthen and expand music education programs.
GFPS celebrating student art, music, theater for March
In 2026, more than 1,000 school districts and schools—including public, private, charter and parochial institutions—have been recognized for outstanding achievement in providing access to high-quality music education.
“Being recognized again for this award validates the statements we make as a district about the importance of studying music for the success of our students’ overall education and the well-being of our community,” Dusty Molyneaux, GFPS fine arts supervisor, said in a release.
Recipients of the 2026 BCME Awards were selected through a comprehensive application and review process that evaluates key indicators, including funding, instructional time, participation rates, facilities and community support. To uphold the program’s rigor and credibility, all applications were independently reviewed and verified by WolfBrown, a leading research and evaluation firm specializing in education and the arts, according to the NAMM Foundation.
GFPS educates 10,000 students in our community and is very proud of the hard-working music educators who make magic every day in the classroom, as well as the community partnerships that contribute to the success of the GFPS Music program, according to Molyneaux.
The NAMM Foundation is the charitable arm of the National Association of Music Merchants, the global trade association for the music products industry. The foundation works to remove systemic barriers that limit access to music-making and career pathways in the music industry. By investing in bold ideas and innovative solutions, we strive to build inclusive and thriving musical communities.
Sleep Number
The former Sleep Number store on 10th Avenue South is listed for sale for an undisclosed price.
Malmstrom contracts
The 341st Contracting Squadron at Malmstrom has awarded a contract for an electrical panel replacement to James Talcott Construction for $53,525. The period of performance for this award is 60 calendar days after issuance of the notice to proceed.
The squadron also awarded a contract to Jaxon Construction of Tulsa, Okla. to repair missile alert facility roofs for $489,322.38. The period of performance is 168 calendar days after issuance of the notice to proceed.
Give Great Falls
This year’s Give Great Falls, which was April 26-May 2, raised $81,263 from 577 donors for 70 local nonprofits.
The event raised more than it did in 2025 and is organized by the Great Falls Area Community Foundation.
Mayfaire
Benefis Foundation’s Mayfaire 2026 raised $900,000 for the Goodnow Healthy Aging Center.
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