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4/13/2026
City approves avenue for spending money from increased rates
The Great Falls City Commission last week approved a new framework for spending the money collected from recent utility rate hikes, hoping the funds will improve the city and spur growth.
The Strategic Capital Investment Reserve will fund infrastructure that benefits both current residents and future growth. The pool of money, expected to collect $6 million each year, is funded by the 27% increase in utility rates for sewer and water that went into effect last June.
Before approving the rules for how the money should be spent, commissioners debated whether funds should prioritize existing ratepayers or support new growth.
Commissioner Casey Schreiner said he was concerned that funding projects to expand Great Falls might irk residents who want to see renovations to existing infrastructure.
Commissioner Joe McKenney raised similar concerns and asked how he could defend the program to his constituents.
“So, as a current citizen, how do these projects benefit me directly? How do I answer that to my neighbor?” McKenney asked.
Brock Cherry, the city’s director of planning and community development, told the commission that projects would benefit both current and future residents while supporting the local economy.
“It’s not only recognizing there’s infrastructure that needs to be improved today but understanding if we improve this infrastructure, not only are we going to make it better for ‘Joe resident’ who’s lived in their house for 50 years and they’re going to continue to have great water pressure, but we’re also going to enable 50 new jobs or two new apartment buildings to be built,” Cherry said.
Cherry admitted there were a lot of moving parts.
“We are Blue Angel pilots flying along with the market, trying to put on a show that works,” Cherry said.
To prevent developers from taking funds without completing projects, the program only allocates money after the fact as a reimbursement.
Development applications open April 15. Developers can submit proposals for less than $250,000 year-round, but projects requiring more than that amount will only be reviewed twice per year.
On the campaign trail with school board candidates
The Cascade County Elections Office will mail ballots for the school board and Fort Shaw Irrigation District elections April 16.
Centerville, Ulm and Belt will vote on school board trustees. Ulm will also be voting on a levy.
Ballots for all elections will only be counted if received on or before May 5.
Four school districts, Great Falls, Cascade, Sun River Valley and Vaughn, will not hold elections because there are no levies to consider nor competitive school board races. This is the first time since 2019 that the Great Falls School Board has not had an election, according to the district’s director of business operations, Luke Diekhans.
In the race for rural school boards, campaigning has been pretty laid back.
“Not so much door-knocking, maybe a little bit,” Kenadee Chartier, a candidate for Centerville School Board trustee, told MTFP. “Our community is small, so you see them.”
Chartier and her opponent, Jessi Hough, both said they planned to do most of their self-promotion casually, mainly at community events or at their kids’ extracurriculars. But neither said they had specific policy priorities.
“Not anything particular,” Hough told MTFP. “I love the school. I love the teachers. I love the community out there. I would just like to be another voice to help move the school forward in a positive direction.”
In Ulm, school board trustee candidate Andrew Gould told MTFP that his campaigning relies on his friends, family and word of mouth.
“I don’t agree with negative advertising,” Gould said.
Gould said that if he took office, one priority would be building improvements to the school in Ulm, which is more than 100 years old.
“If we could get better classrooms, it would encourage more teachers and good, quality teachers to want to stay in Ulm and raise their family in Ulm,” Gould said.
One of his opponents, incumbent Will Waldner, is running to represent the Fair Haven Hutterite Colony. The K-8 school in Fair Haven, the district’s only other school, has two teachers and about 30 students.
“If there needs to be any clarification between teachers and parents, and they don’t feel comfortable, I can help them out,” Waldner said.
But even if he doesn’t win, Waldner said he is not worried that the school board would ignore Fair Haven’s needs.
“I have very close relationships with the principal in Ulm and our teachers, so we kind of work together as a team,” Waldner said.
The third candidate in the race, Foster Sensibaugh, did not respond to MTFP’s request for comment.
A full list of candidates running in the upcoming school board elections is available on the elections office website.
3 Questions for
The Great Falls Public Library announced in November that Amy Dissmeyer would be the organization’s new director, and she took over the post in January. Dissmeyer most recently served as director of the Spirit Lake Public Library in Iowa and spent 16 years as director of the Hastings Public Library in Nebraska. MTFP last week asked her a few questions about her plans for the local library.
MTFP: Why are you passionate about libraries?
Dissmeyer: “Librarians usually start out as avid readers. When I was a child, my mother had to make me put down my book and go outside to play. But now I spend far more time with Netflix than I care to admit. However, as a library director, my passion lies in the fundamental mission of libraries and ensuring everyone has the basic human right to the knowledge and learning opportunities they provide. I believe every individual should have equal access to any topic they are interested in, whether it is general education, recreational reading or becoming an informed citizen to make better life decisions. Learning doesn’t only come from textbooks.”
What changes should residents expect at the Great Falls Public Library?
Dissmeyer: “Having worked in both large and small libraries in Colorado, Nebraska and Iowa, I see opportunities to improve our communication with residents and our own internal efficiencies. A significant part of a new library director’s first years involves relationship building, especially for someone new in town and new to Montana. My hope is not that residents notice sudden, big changes at the library, but that over time they come to recognize the library’s significant role in the community in many different ways.”
What about the Great Falls Public Library will likely stay the same?
Dissmeyer: “Expect the same great service from the library staff and the same commitment to excellence from the leadership team and library board. I have been incredibly impressed with everyone I’ve met involved with the library community here in Great Falls; it’s my honor to continue a long tradition of excellent service to the community.”
Snapshot
5 things to know in Great Falls
Mark Robinson stepped down as CEO of Great Falls Clinic, one of the city’s two hospitals. The organization has begun its search for a new leader. Jeremy Clark, who previously worked as a hospital administrator in Alabama, will serve in the interim.
The Great Falls City Commission last week approved a roughly $80,000 repair for Centene Stadium, home of the Great Falls Voyagers. That work will replace the poles that support the backstop netting. Windstorms damaged the poles in the fall of 2025. Last week’s allocation adds to an earlier city investment in the stadium, including $425,000 for new netting and seats.
Drama students at C.M. Russell High School are putting on the psychological thriller, “Trap,” at Bill Williamson Hall Auditorium this weekend and next. Evening performances are April 17, 18, 24 and 25 at 7:30 p.m. Matinees are April 18 and 25 at 2:00 p.m.
First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park will host a star gazing in collaboration with the Great Falls Astronomy Club April 18 from 8:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. The park has three telescopes for visitors but encourages attendees to bring their own. A member of the Blackfeet Nation will share the Blackfeet star stories for a portion of the event.
NorthWestern Energy began replacing a natural gas pipeline April 8 along Fifth Street in Great Falls between Second Avenue North and Second Avenue South, according to a press release. NorthWestern expects the project to be completed in early June.
Calling all photographers: Submit a photo for Great Falls This Week to [email protected].
