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Exxon Will Not Protest Taxes This Year
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- Created on Monday, 26 November 2012 10:08
- Written by Press Room
Members of the Lockwood School Board said that they breathed a big sigh of relief to hear that ExxonMobil Corporation will not protest their taxes this year.
Board Chairman Tim Sather said that board members entered a meeting with ExxonMobil last week, with heavy hearts, prepared to hear the worst. ExxonMobil Manager in Billings, Monica Mainland was quick to announce the company's decision, said Sather, "it was a relief."
EDA Applies for Second Brownsfield Grant
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- Created on Wednesday, 24 October 2012 10:22
- Written by Press Room
Patty Nordland, director of Community Development for Big Sky Economic Development (EDA), announced that the agency is submitting an application for another Brownsfield grant of $400,000. The grant, like that of a previous $400,000 grant, will be used to evaluate properties in the East Billings Tax Increment Finance District, or the EBURD (East Billings Urban Renewal District), which are potentially contaminated with toxic materials.
EDA Looks at Need for Industrial Park
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- Created on Monday, 26 November 2012 10:05
- Written by Press Room
Does Billings need an industrial park developed?
That's a question that Steve Arveschoug, Director of Big Sky Economic Development, (BSED) hopes to answer with a feasibility study.
Arveschoug says that his agency is frequently approached by businesses looking for a place to locate that has the proper zoning, space, rail and road connections, and utilities. There just isn't much available in the Billings area, he said, and having it is "strategic to the expansion and attraction of manufacturing, warehousing , and transportation/distribution operations."
EDA/EDC Scrutinize Budget
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- Created on Monday, 08 October 2012 09:34
The last fiscal year was a good year for the Big Sky Economic Development Authority (EDA) and its sister organization the Economic Development Corporation (EDC), as far as Jim Tevlin, comptroller, is concerned. "We controlled our costs and stayed within budget, he told members of the executive committees for both organizations at, at their regular monthly meeting.
Their biggest struggle for the agency, which depends upon monies generated by a county wide mill levy, is to compensate for funds they can't use, because of the tax protests. Tevlin said that he has allowed as a line item cost, $60,000 to reflect that loss in the 2012-13 fiscal year budget, which will go before the full board for final approval, this week.
County Waits to Act on Health Care Clinics
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- Created on Monday, 26 November 2012 10:03
Yellowstone County's Health Insurance Advisory Committee is recommending that the proposal to establish a health care clinic for county employees be tabled in the hope of partnering in the future with other local agencies in establishing one. A move they believe would generate greater savings.
County Director of Finance Scott Turner said that they received three proposals in response to the county commissioners' request for proposal. But, in reviewing the proposals, he said, the advisory committee became aware that other entities, such as the City of Billings, School District 2, and the State of Montana are considering opening similar clinics in Billings.
Citizens Voice Concerns on Northend Bypass
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- Created on Monday, 08 October 2012 09:25
The building of the proposed Northend Bypass will most likely involve the rebuilding of the Johnson Lane Interchange.
"It won't be the interchange it is, today," said Stefan Streeter, District Manager for the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), during a public hearing which reviewed the draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for the proposed route, which would connect Lockwood and the Heights with a bridge across the Yellowstone River.
"Do Nothing,"?Recommendation on 6th Street Overpass
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- Created on Tuesday, 06 November 2012 15:50
To do nothing about the increasing traffic congestion until the Northend Bypass is built was the primary suggestion from a consultant from Sanderson and Stewart Engineering, in a report presented to the members of the Policy Coordinating Committee, on Tuesday.
Kirk Spaulding said that it wasn't a recommendation that he liked but it appeared to be the best plan of action after having analyzed, as his firm was retained to do, by the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), existing and future traffic conditions as they relate to the intersection of Sixth Avenue and Main Street.
Read more: "Do Nothing,"?Recommendation on 6th Street Overpass
Regulations Push Closure of Corette Plant
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- Created on Monday, 08 October 2012 09:23
The 154 megawatt coal-fired Corette Plant in Billings will be mothballed in April 2015 due to a culmination of economic conditions and governmental regulatory impacts.
Big Sky Economic Development was quick to call together business and civic leaders, last week, after PPL announced the pending decision. Local officials asked if there is anything the community can do to continue the plant's operation. Closing the plant, which has been in operation since 1968, would lay off 35 people and perhaps more in secondary businesses.
