MISSOULA — The Missoula County Airport Authority this week approved a $2 million state loan for Neptune Aviation to fund the purchase of two aircraft hangars and the creation of dozens of new jobs. Neptune, a national aerial firefighting company based at Missoula International Airport, purchased the hangars last September from Homestead Helicopters. The hangars Read More…

BIGFORK — Bigfork during the summer is usually full of tourists and people enjoying Flathead Lake but one restaurant would have closed this past summer if not for state-funded coronavirus grants. “Bigfork is right at the north end of the lake and we have The Playhouse right beside the restaurant so that’s usually full — and then we’re Read More…

A local Helena photographer celebrated five years in business. Kevin League hosted a grand opening of his new, permanent gallery this weekend in Downtown Helena to celebrate the anniversary. For League, having a full-time space to display his work is the first within his five years in business. League has numerous awards for his work Read More…

New changes are coming to one of downtown Kalispell’s oldest historic buildings. Originally opened in 1912, the Kalispell Grand Hotel is now under new ownership. Noelle and John Barr of Houston, Texas, took ownership of the downtown landmark after it spent more than 30 years under the care of Janet and Butch Clark. “We’ve got Read More…

FRAMINGHAM — A Framingham development company is co-redeveloping a Montana mall and bringing the first Whole Foods Market to the western state. Framingham-based Grossman Development Group, LLC, is partnering with Boston Realty Advisors/The Broadway Company and the ownership of the Gallatin Valley Mall in Bozeman, Montana, to redevelop the shopping center that serves a five-county trade Read More…

First Interstate BancSystem (FIBK) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.76 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.68 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.79 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 11.76%. A quarter ago, it was expected Read More…

MISSOULA — Over the past 20 years, Montana’s registered apprenticeship program has sent more than 3,300 workers into good-paying jobs, with another 2,400 on the way, according to a new report. On Wednesday, Gov. Steve Bullock summarized the findings of a Department of Labor and Industry report on Montana’s Registered Apprenticeship program and praised the role that Read More…

Montana State Fund (MSF) will be paying a $20 million dollar dividend back to policyholders in mid-November. This is the 22nd consecutive year the MSF Board of Directors has declared a dividend. They’ve returned a total of $306 million to policyholders since 1999, $165 million since 2015 alone. “It tells us we’re making progress in Read More…

Nearly $138 million has been sent to small businesses through the Montana Business Stabilization Grant program since the program launched in May. For a lot of recipients, the program has been a much needed lifeline that has kept their business from going under. “We have been extremely grateful for it,” said Brianne Harrington, owner of Read More…

BUTTE – Just as Butte’s tourism season was getting started, coronavirus dealt the hotel industry a vicious economic blow. “Who knew? Who knew that we would ever come across something like this?,” said Maria Pochervina, director of the Tourism Business Improvement District. READ FULL STORY

WHITEFISH — Whitefish Mountain Resort is taking extra precautions for all of their activities on the mountain due to coronavirus concerns. Elyse Knudsen, risk control manager with Whitefish Mountain Resort, said that the resort is being extra careful with guests. Before the summer season started the resort assessed all possible contact points between guests and Read More…

COVID-19 cases are increasing in Montana, and a group of businesses in downtown Bozeman have decided to do something. “We do have an uptick in cases, and hopefully, this will slow it down. In our industry, we need to show that we’re willing to do our part. But we’ve also got families to feed and Read More…

BILLINGS- A former market president for Rocky Mountain Bank has admitted to fraud and money laundering crimes. A release from the Department of Justice says 46-year-old Stephen Phillip Casher was charged in a 14-count superseding indictment alleging bank fraud and related crimes. The prosecution presented evidence in court records at trial that Casher worked as Read More…

Richland County is among a handful of statewide areas designated as a “Destination Community.”   As part of the Phase 2 Reopening of Montana scheduled to begin on June 1, Gov. Steve Bullock announced that 20 counties — including Richland — would be eligible for additional financial assistance through two new initiatives to help protect Read More…

There’s another twist in the years-long legal battle over the operation of a Creston bottled water plant, with the Montana Supreme Court overturning a lower court ruling which had blocked permits. Local residents and conservation groups have been fighting the plans of Montana Artesian Water Company to pump enough water to fill more than 1-billion Read More…

“Times are hard and change is coming no matter what we do, but what we can do is be good to those around us. Our neighbors need good neighbors more than ever…” Those were well written words by our friends at KXGN Radio & TV in Glendive, Montana as they shared the news that BNSF Read More…

HELENA- Montana child care providers are eligible for funding through the CARES Act Child Care and Development Block Grants. The $10 million in federal CARES Act funding was announced Wednesday, and is to provide support for existing child care providers, assistance for low-income families participating in the Best Beginnings Scholarship Program and will fund emergency Read More…

MISSOULA, Mont. — The Kettlehouse Northside location is closing permanently in Missoula due to COVID-19 pandemic. They posted the following on their Facebook page: We have some difficult news to share. We have made the decision to permanently close our Northside taproom in response to the global pandemic we are currently experiencing. As a result of Read More…