Montana Highlights

A new rest area off of Interstate 90 opened recently, one year after it was originally suppose to open. The Headwaters Rest Area in Three Forks is near U.S. Highway 287 and the Bridger Brewing Facility. It was built by a local developer, who constructed the new rest stop facility in exchange for acquiring the old rest area property off of North 19th Avenue in Bozeman.

Recently two sections of road in Yellowstone National Park have opened to non-motorized vehicles. Since last week 49 miles of U.S. Highway 89 have been available for cyclists, providing paved recreational opportunities from the West Entrance to Mammoth Hot Springs with travel thru Madison and Norris Junctions.

The operators of the Séliš Ksanka QÍispé Dam got the go-ahead in last month to keep more water in Flathead Lake this spring. This is an effort to avoid a repeat of last summer’s low water levels. Energy Keepers, Inc., the company that oversees the dam on the south end of Flathead Lake, had previously petitioned the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to deviate from the lake’s Flood Risk Management Plan. While the lake is usually lowered to make room for spring runoff, the Corps determined that the risk of flooding is minimal, according to Energy Keepers.

Glacier National Park officials expect construction on the Going-to-the-Sun Road and the Upper McDonald Creek Bridge to end this year. Other projects, like water infrastructure and road improvements in the Swiftcurrent developed area will be beginning. New construction projects slated for 2024 include the installation of fiber optic lines, the rehabilitation of roads near park headquarters and a dust mitigation treatment in Many Glacier. Park officials One of the largest upcoming projects includes the construction on the Swiftcurrent Water Distribution System and road rehabilitation, which will begin after the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn, Many Glacier Hotel and Many Glacier Campground close for the 2024 season.

Dozens of people showed up to a Bozeman city commission meeting recently to push the city to stop a development proposed for the city’s midtown area. The “Guthrie” building is proposed for the corner of North 5th Avenue and Villard Street. Developers HomeBase Partners are proposing to build a five-story, 111-unit building that will include half of the units as affordable housing. The units will be a mix of one-bedroom and studio apartments, and the half affordable units will be restricted to 80% of area median income, which ...

While the labor markets seems to be returning to 2019 – 2020 levels, a closer look reveals that it isn’t all that great for native-born Americans. For many of them it has been declining for the past four years because of job losses to illegal immigrants, according to Epoch Times. Illegal immigrant numbers are obscuring actual conditions.

Since 2020, the number of illegal immigrants working ...

President Joe Biden’s new EV mandates will likely prove to be a sizable wealth transfer from rural red regions of America to urban blue sections, and to wealthy Democrats who reside in them, according to reports.

The Biden administration has imposed the “strictest” rules in history for the auto industry staring in 2027. On March 20, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized its ta...

Todd O’Hair, President/CEO

Montana Chamber of Commerce

Advancement in technology is rapidly changing the world we live in, the careers we pursue, and undoubtedly affecting nearly every aspect of our lives. Traditional “big iron” companies like John Deere and GM have become “technology companies”.

Electric vehicles, medical devices, military innovation, energy production and storage, a...

Jann Parker of Billings Livestock Commission Horse Sales has been selected as the Billings Chamber of Commerce’s 2023 recipient of the Award for Agriculture Excellence.

Parker is a champion for agriculture and Billings — billing it as the first-choice destination in the nation for purchasing a horse, whether for roping, riding, ranching or recreating. She is the epitome of the award which i...

A new rest area off of Interstate 90 opened recently, one year after it was originally suppose to open. The Headwaters Rest Area in Three Forks is near U.S. Highway 287 and the Bridger Brewing Facility. It was built by a local developer, who constructed the new rest stop facility in exchange for acquiring the old rest area property off of North 19th Avenue in Bozeman.

Recently two sections ...

Chamber Welcomes Staff

The Billings Chamber of Commerce welcomes Abbie Chvilicek and Sara Hollenbeck to its staff. Chvilicek fills the position of Member and Operations Specialist and Hollenbeck joins as the Marketing Specialist for Visit Southeast Montana, a tourism marketing arm managed by the Billings Chamber. ...