GREAT FALLS — The City of Great Falls has approved its first-ever conditional use permit for marijuana cultivation within city limits, paving the way for a Missoula-based cannabis company to establish operations in the Electric City.
On a 3-2 vote Tuesday night, the city commission granted the permit to Flower Montana, owned by Bobby Long, to operate a secure cultivation facility at 748 Crescent Circle. The property is zoned I-1 Light Industrial, where marijuana businesses are allowed with city approval on a case-by-case basis.
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Mayor Corey Reeves and commissioners Shannon Wilson and Joe McKenney voted for approval while commissioners Susan Wolff and Rick Tryon voted against.
The project also received a 4-1 vote from the Zoning Commission to recommend approval of the conditional use permit. And Neighborhood Council #2 voted 4-1 to "not oppose" the request.
“I was the first dispensary at street level in Missoula,” Long told MTN News. “And now I'm the first person in Great Falls approved to cultivate inside city limits. That takes risk, it takes a little bit of courage, and it takes a lot of planning.”
Long, who founded Flower in Missoula County, said the business will invest roughly $750,000 in an advanced HVAC and CO₂ filtration system designed to eliminate odors and improve product quality.
“It keeps the smell inside, but it also keeps contaminants and bugs on the outside,” he said. “So it’s a win-win — operationally and for the community.”
The 10,000-square-foot facility will eventually house indoor cultivation, manufacturing, and retail operations. Long said the project will create 10 to 15 full-time jobs and provide training for workers in cultivation, compliance, and agricultural technology.
“We take people that are unskilled and we train them to be skilled operators,” Long said. “With skills they could take to a larger market, or back home to the family farm.”
Flower’s retail shop is scheduled to open September 14, with cultivation to follow as part of a two-year phased expansion. Long said he hopes to make Great Falls the company’s new operational base.
While the proposal received approval from the neighborhood council, planning board, and ultimately the city commission, not all residents were in favor.
Ron Pollock was the only member of the public to speak in opposition to the permit during Monday's meeting.
“Our public safety guards, police and fire are underfunded, understaffed,” Pollock said. “It becomes uncalled for to allow marijuana cultivation and dispensary to increase their production and harms and use in Great Falls.”
Long said he understands those concerns, but believes transparency and professionalism can help ease community skepticism.
“If you communicate with people, if you have good intentions, and you address those concerns proactively,” Long said, “you can accomplish that with good cultural practices and good design.”
Great Falls joins a growing number of Montana cities adapting to the state's recreational marijuana industry, which voters approved in 2020. Cultivation and manufacturing are subject to strict state regulations, and Long said his goal is to set a standard other operators can follow.
“This is not something that happens overnight,” he said. “But I believe Great Falls is a community that will support it — if it’s done right.”
