GREAT FALLS — The city is updating the plan that guides how downtown Tax Increment Financing, commonly referred to as TIF, money can be used, potentially opening the door for future investments in parking, lighting, pedestrian safety and business development.
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The proposed 2026 Downtown Urban Renewal Plan would align the city's downtown priorities with the recently adopted Future Great Falls Land Use Plan and Growth Policy. It would also reflect changes in state law affecting how tax increment financing requests are reviewed.
The Downtown Urban Renewal Plan outlines the types of projects that could be considered for TIF funds.
"We've recognized with our partners downtown that there's some projects that need to be done," said Brock Cherry, Great Falls' strategic development officer.
He explained that one area the amended plan could support is downtown parking.
"We understand there's quite a bit of work that needs to be done when it comes to our garages, our surface lots, the technology that we have," Cherry said.
He added that adopting the plan does not mean approval or funding committed to any specific improvement.
"When we actually do identify certain projects that are very large in scale, like maintenance for the garages or updating, that will be its own item," Cherry said. "It will have to go in front of the commission, and it will have to be looked at independently. But the amendments we're doing set the table for that."
He also emphasized that the update would not increase taxes. Instead, it would broaden the types of projects that could be considered for the existing Downtown Urban Renewal Plan.
In 2025, Great Falls created the “Super Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Advisory Committee” to review requests from all of the city's five TIF districts.
"The 'super' is just a term that we use because they're looking at all of the TIF districts that we have within the city," Cherry said.
The committee reviews TIF applications before making recommendations to the Great Falls City Commission, which retains final approval authority.
Ed Brown, president and CEO of the Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce, serves on the committee. Brown said TIF funding can be allocated to support downtown businesses in paying for improvements, like facade work and fire-suppression systems.
"It allows a business to utilize some of that funding to help support what they want to do and make their dream a reality," Brown said.
Brown believes continued investment downtown can also shape the impression Great Falls leaves on visitors, prospective residents and businesses considering the community.
"When folks come to look at our community, to come here, to locate here, downtown is where they go," Brown said.
The Great Falls City Commission will hold a public hearing and consider final approval of the amended and restated plan, Ordinance 3286, at 7 p.m. Aug. 4 in the Commission Chambers at the Civic Center.
