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Sunday, December 21, 2014
Montana Economy A joint publication of The Billings Gazette, Missoulian, Independent Record, Montana Standard and Ravalli Republic
Economy strong in Eastern Montana
CASEY PAGE/Billings Gazette photos
Shiloh Crossing on Billings’ West End has attracted new retailers during the last year.
By ERIK OLSON Billings Gazette
“Construction has come back. It looks like it will regain the jobs that were lost in the recession,” Rickard said. Amundson added that planning in the Billings area has so far kept up with growth, avoiding haphazard urban sprawl. “It’s really a good omen for our community that we’re growing fast,” he said. Construction, along with financial and professional services, is among growing industries that pay well, according to the state. Yellowstone County has an average wage of $41,850, seventhhighest in the state and above the state average. Montana overall is among the bottom five states nationwide for wages, however.
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ILLINGS — With low unemployment, falling fuel prices, and growing consumer demand, the greater Billings area and most of Eastern Montana have been enjoying a good run, experts say. They also warn that economic growth is slowing in the region, largely because the frenetic pace at the Bakken oil fields in North Dakota is finally leveling. Low wages, a graying workforce and a shortage of new labor also are impeding business expansion, regional experts say. Despite these challenges, the overall outlook should remain positive for Yellowstone County for the next few years. “Relatively speaking, I think we are doing better than some, especially some of the more rural areas of the state. We have a more developed economy,” said Scott Rickard, director of the Center for Applied Economic Research at Montana State University Billings. Montana is expected to continue adding jobs in most sectors, with much of the activity driven by the eastern part of the state, according to the state’s Department of Labor and Industry. Montana is expected to add 8,300 jobs statewide in 2015, then slow to an average of 6,600 jobs annually for the next six years, according to the state. In Yellowstone County, where unemployment hovered between 3 and 4 percent in 2014, annual job growth remains above the state
Relief in the east
A new, massive Scheels sporting goods store in Shiloh Crossing has attracted other retailers and lots of traffic to the development.
Scheels, a sporting goods retailer, finished its massive new destination store on the West End. Developers say the store will make Shiloh Crossing a regional draw. To tap into traffic at Scheels, developers finished the Shops at Shiloh Crossing next door — a lifestyle center of shops geared toward women. West Park Promenade on Grand Avenue is nearly full, and the Heights will welcome Billings’ Shiloh Crossing expands third Shipton’s Big R farm supply The retail sector saw a major store next year. reshaping in Billings this year. “Retail is a huge part of our average, meaning businesses must compete for workers, labor officials said. “Many businesses in the region are pursuing efforts to improve workforce training to reduce turnover and attract a strong workforce in their tight labor markets,” said Barb Wagner, Montana’s chief economist.
economy here, and all factors point to very positive,” said Gary Amundson, business professor at MSUB. These new stores, along with road improvements, are helping the construction industry continue to climb out of the huge hole left by the recession, economists said. Yellowstone County had 200 more jobs this September than we did the last. Experts say they expect slowdowns during winter months, but the industry overall remains healthy.
In Eastern Montana, job growth is finally easing, which will actually start relieving the pressure on communities stressed to provide services for the oil boom, economists say. Build out of the oil wells is pushing annual job growth to below 2 percent through 2022, according to forecasters. “Growth is expected to slow in the Bakken areas due to lower oil prices and cost controls by companies, but that means that employment growth is expected to be at a fairly strong pace, not just the neck-breaking pace seen in earlier years,” Wagner wrote. Economic development officials said they’re seeing rising interest from industries to expand Please see East, Page 2
Facing infrastructure challenges, Bakken towns struggle to cash in on oil boom By TOM LUTEY Billings Gazette BILLINGS — Sometimes, if you’re not ready to catch an opportunity, it lands on you just the same. Bainville was a town of 300 when the Bakken oil boom arrived on its doorstep in 2012. An Alberta company looking for rail access for a fracking sand depot moved in, followed by a 350-person “man camp” to house oilfield workers and plans for a 400home subdivision northwest of the city limits. The town wasn’t the least bit ready. Bainville didn’t have a sewer lagoon big enough to accommodate the growth or a suitable water tank or plumbing to meet demand. The community had been shrinking for decades, slowly reaching its angle of repose. It could see nearby Williston, N.D., boiling over with new oil-related growth. It assumed
at some point that growth would reach Bainville, but the town didn’t have the money to do anything to prepare for it. “When you’re next to a town that’s set up for 15,000 people and now it’s 60,000, you get some spillover,” said Dennis Porta, Bainville’s mayor. Bainville got its sewer lagoon worked out. The town’s new fracking sand neighbor, Procore Logistics LLC, paid $1.5 million to double the sewer system and then sold the improvements back to the community for $1. But the community has struggled mightily with other infrastructure challenges. It needs an adequate water supply and more teachers, which could cost as much as $3.5 million. The town also needs a railroad underpass because as it stands, the community’s only two crossings are sometimes blocked by mile-long
LARRY MAYER/Billings Gazette
Culbertson, just 18 miles down the road from Bainville, is also struggling to accommodate growth. The community Please see Bakken, Page 2 upgraded its utilities in April.
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