12/09/2024
“Great Falls This Week” is reported and written by Matt Hudson. Send your news and tips to [email protected].
Weissman Hood Institute (formerly McLaughlin) expands mission
Years ago, as Touro University administrators eyed central Montana for its medical college, the McLaughlin Research Institute stood out as a beneficial neighbor.
By the time Dr. Alan Kadish, Touro’s president, cut the ribbon at the Great Falls campus in August 2023, the two entities were already working toward formalizing their relationship. After all, the Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine is just blocks from the institute.
“We knew about what was in McLaughlin when we made the decision to establish the school in Great Falls,” Kadish told Montana Free Press.
This year, McLaughlin celebrated its 70th anniversary and announced a change in name to recognize two influential Montana scientists, Drs. Leroy Hood and Irving Weissman. In addition, after decades of research as an independent institution, the facility has joined the Touro University system as an affiliated entity.
All that is to say that the McLaughlin Institute is now the Weissman Hood Institute at Touro University — or WHIT, to borrow Kadish’s shorthand. It’s the second partnership of its kind between Touro and a medical research organization, and Kadish said that the research and educational missions dovetail nicely.
“We firmly believe that those synergies will increase the value of the science that’s done both at Weissman Hood and at Touro,” Kadishsaid.
The name transition is still underway. According to Dr. Renee Reijo Pera, director of the Weissman Hood Institute, revising all the letterheads, signage, websites and other officially labeled property at the institute will take time. But already, the influx of students participating in research at different levels has provided a jolt of energy.
“We’ve had 76 students from the medical school here be involved in research,” Reijo Pera said. “We have never had access to a student population previously. So that’s really exciting to have young health care professionals.”
Working with Touro allows the Weissman Hood Institute to expand its research, which is part of the mission of a $14 million grant received from the National Institutes of Health. The expansion includes the creation of a Center of Excellence on Integrated Biomedical and Rural Health Research.
A blog post announcing the partnership with Touro described the move as helping to secure the institute’s future. Reijo Pera said that while the organization will maintain its operational independence, it now has a stronger foundation on which to build.
“I think that associating with Touro, there is this sense that we’ve gotten the best of both worlds,” she said. “To be an entirely independent, no affiliations, research institute is a tough row to hoe.”
The Weissman Hood Institute’s research focuses on areas like chronic wasting disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and more. In November, the institute announced that Moses Leavens, a scientist born in Great Falls, developed a new detection method related to ALS, also called Lou Gehrig’s Disease, which can be difficult to diagnose in some cases.
5 Things to Know in Great Falls
The Great Falls Public Library Board of Trustees unanimously approved a negotiated deal that removes 3.5 mills of funding from the library budget starting in the 2027 budget year. Trustees passed the measure on Nov. 26, following the Great Falls City Commission’s passage on Nov. 19. Some library trustees felt defeated after months of negotiation. “I feel it is the best we can do, and so I will be voting for it,” Trustee Jessica Crist said before the final vote. “I am very disappointed. It really does feel like a slap toward the library.”
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is reviewing a donation of 109 acres of land between Winifred and Big Sandy with the intent of making it Montana’s 56th state park. Public comment is ongoing for the environmental assessment, and the Montana State Parks and Recreation Board will meet Dec. 20 to discuss the acquisition. American Prairie, which has butted heads with the administration of Gov. Greg Gianforte, donated the land. The addition of a new state park on the land is still potentially years in the making.
The Great Falls-Cascade County Historic Preservation Advisory Commission has released its annual Christmas ornament for 2024. Designed by artist Sheree Nelson, the ornament depicts the Great Falls Public Library building, which was completed in 1967, according to a press release. Proceeds support preservation efforts in the community. The $15 ornaments can be purchased at the Planning and Community Development Department in the Civic Center, the Great Falls Public Library, The History Museum, Cassiopeia Books and Dragonfly Dry Goods.
The Gibson Park Committee is collecting donations to replace trees that were recently culled due to age and storm damage. The cost to replace each tree ranges from $495 to $770, according to a release from the city. Tree options and donation information can be found here.
Great Falls city commissioners approved a contract for nearly $1 million to replace the seats in the Mansfield Theater after bids came in higher than expected. Originally estimated at around $650,000, the lowest bid came in at $995,190 from Wadsworth Builders. The city will use $487,500 from a state infrastructure grant and $162,500 from the downtown tax increment financing district. The city is looking at COVID relief funds or fundraising to cover the remaining $357,190, though that funding will need to be identified in the near months.
City officials meet with new lobbyist, ready for the upcoming session
Great Falls city commissioners recently met with a new lobbyist who will represent the city’s interests at the Montana Legislature in 2025.
The lobbyist, Chuck Denowh of the firm The Montana Group, gave a preview of the upcoming session and spoke to city officials about areas of focus. Denowh led with property taxes, citing Gov. Greg Gianforte’s task force recommendation of a homestead exemption, which has gained traction among allied Republicans amid estimates of spiking property values again in 2025. The exemption would reduce the tax rate on primary homes and increase the rate on secondary homes.
Denowh also expected some legislation targeting local budgets, including tax increment financing and special levy requests.
“There was also a lot of discussion about trying to control local government spending, so putting additional restrictions on voted levies,” Denowh said. “There were several proposals on those lines.”
In addition, Denowh expected to see some legislation regarding the ability of local governments to increase their basic tax levies from year to year. Currently, cities and towns are limited to growing their tax levies by half the rate of inflation for the existing tax base — a structure that local officials have criticized as expenses have outpaced those increases.
“I think there’s going to be a push to adjust that to allow for more spending,” Denowh said. “It’s going to be met with some stiff resistance. I think a lot of Republican legislators are skeptical of more spending.”
Commissioner Rick Tryon said legislation around this “inflationary factor” would be of high interest to Great Falls.
“I understand that they’re against spending and all that, but be against spending at the state and let us do something here at the local level,” he said.
Embedded in the state-level debate over property tax relief is a disagreement over who is better equipped to reduce the tax burden on property owners — the state and its ability to set tax laws or local governments through their budgets. Gianforte, as well as some state legislators, have placed the burden on cities and towns.
These will be important issues as Great Falls officials lay the groundwork for a potential renewed public safety levy request in the future. Getting funds directed toward public safety has been a high priority in city government.
“We need to have strong local public safety,” Commissioner Susan Wolff said. “So if there’s anything, or we need to do anything about that, we need to make sure it happens.”