“I’m just really excited. I think we’re going to see a lot of good
things happen in Boulder in this next year.”
That message was shared by Tom Harrington of the Jefferson Local
Development Corporation (JLDC) at the Boulder Transition Advisory Council (BTAC) meeting December 7.
The positive story of Boulder’s reaction to the proposed closure of the Montana Developmental Center will be drawing international attention in June, Harrington said. A poster presentation that won a Western Region Excellence in Teamwork Award from economic development experts in an 11 state region earlier this year prompted an invitation to an international conference in Dublin, Ireland in June.
Prepared by Micky Zurcher and Tara Mastel of the JLDC, the postern outlines the “Making Boulder’s Future Bright” process. The National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals recognized the work with its teamwork award, prompting international attention. Zurcher and Drew Dawson, BTAC chair, will be making the trip to Ireland, said Harrington.
It will be an opportunity to rub shoulders with international economic development folks and businesses, he said. There are already a couple of international firms expressing interest in Jefferson County, he said.
“It’s kind of cool when you get two international companies looking at things here in Whitehall and potentially in Boulder,” said Harrington.
Another encouraging development, he said, is the release this weekend of a movie shot in Montana in 2016. Starring Bill Pullman, Peter Fonda and Kathy Baker, the movie will have a special showing in Whitehall, said Harrington. Shooting for the film took place in south-western Montana, including Bannack, Nevada City, Virginia City and Harrison.
Harrington also announced that Zurcher has been selected as the executive director for Downtown Helena and will be leaving the JLDC at the end of the year. The BTAC also discussed submitting an application for a $5000-8000 grant from SouthWest Montana for promotional activities.
In addition, Harrington mentioned some other efforts underway to attract new businesses to the area, some of which he described as “a long shot” and others he described as promising.
Those at the meeting agreed to place a discussion about gathering community input on whether the Montana Youth Challenge program would be a good fit for Boulder on the next BTAC agenda. That meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 4, at 8 a.m. in the city hall. The meeting is open to the public.
