Bear Paw Development seeks input on economic planning document

Staff and wire report

The local economic development agency is looking for some help planning for the region’s economic future.

Bear Paw Development Corp. said in a release that it is seeking input from area residents on the organization’s draft 2022 Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy.

The CEDS was last updated in 2020 and is typically utilized for five years.  However, the federal Economic Development Administration has requested that Bear Paw’s CEDS be updated in 2022 to align with the same CEDS approval schedule as other Economic Development Districts in Montana.  

“We know our work in economic and community development doesn’t occur in a vacuum and is informed by the needs of our region’s community members,” Bear Paw Executive Director Paul Tuss said. “Public input about our goals and priorities will assist our team of economic development practitioners to make sure we are responding as accurately as possible to the real needs of northern Montana.”

Tuss also is a Democratic legislative candidate this year, facing incumbent Rep. Ed Hill, R-Havre, in the race to represent House District 28.

Bear Paw is a regional nonprofit corporation organized to assist with the economic and community development priorities in Liberty, Hill, Blaine, Phillips and Chouteau counties and on the Rocky Boy’s and Fort Belknap Indian reservations.

Bear Paw’s website says the agency, being involved in a variety of projects, assists communities and businesses through its departments of community planning, business lending, value-added agriculture, community development, brownfields redevelopment, and small business counseling.

Over the past five years, Bear Paw has coordinated the investment of more than $156 million in public and private funds to enhance our economy, create jobs and make our communities more sustainable.  

In addition to being a planning resource, the CEDS is a requirement of Bear Paw Development as an Economic Development District, as designated by the Economic Development Administration.  Bear Paw has been providing economic planning and development assistance to communities in northern Montana since 1969, when it became the first Economic Development District in Montana. 

The five-year planning document outlines economic and community development priorities for northern Montana and identifies goals, strategies and action items for implementing development activities. Residents in the five-county, two-reservation region of northern Montana are encouraged to submit comments and feedback on the draft CEDS.

The CEDS is an important planning tool for communities as they seek to implement economic and community development projects.

The CEDS includes data and background information for Bear Paw’s region of northern Montana, explains the process for creating the CEDS, and outlines the action plan for development activities as identified by residents and Bear Paw’s Strategy Committee. The Strategy Committee is a 20-member committee with individuals from all sectors of the economy, including education, local government, agriculture, arts and tourism, and other private sector businesses. Community input through an online survey earlier this year, along with Strategy Committee participation, forms the basis of the 2022 CEDS, and this public comment period will allow community members another opportunity to provide feedback on the region’s priorities and action plan.

The draft CEDS document can be found on Bear Paw Development’s website, located at http://www.bearpaw.org .  Comments on the CEDS should be directed to Sara Strissel, Bear Paw’s director of community planning and brownfields.  She can be reached at sstrissel@bearpaw.org or at 406-265-9226.