EAST HELENA — East Helena is a growing city, and right now, community members have a chance to weigh in on what that growth and development will look like. East Helena is in the midst of a community review, a process run by local, state and regional organizations.
“Community reviews happen in places that are experiencing rapid growth, change,” Montana Business Assistance Connection economic development program manager Katherine Anderson said.
(WATCH: East Helena participates in community review process)
That describes East Helena—a city that is seeing housing development happening right now, and more planned for the near future, but within and bordering city limits.
“It’s going to be a very different East Helena in the next 10 years,” East Helena business owner Kevin Schulte said.
The community review is funded by the Montana Economic Developers Association (MEDA), and put on by the Montana Business Assistance Connection, MEDA, the Western Community Assessment Network and Western Rural Development Center.
The three-phase process gives area residents and business owners a chance to help shape what growth and development will look like. The overall goal is to learn what people want to see in their community, then help make it a reality.
The phase one report was released at the end of April.
“Phase one is all about getting into the community, hearing from the community what they’re excited about, what they want to see happen, what they do not want to see happen, hearing directly from them,” Anderson said.
Schulte has been an active participant in the community review process. He owns Galaxy Roasting, a small business on Main Street in downtown East Helena.
“Being a business owner in East Helena, it just seemed like we needed to be involved,” Schulte said. “The future of East Helena is coming, there’s big changes coming, and so to have this type of study done makes so much sense.”
One thing Schulte said he wants to see in East Helena’s future is a thriving downtown with the same character that encouraged him to open Galaxy Roasting in the city four years ago.
“The community is amazing, the people are amazing,” Schulte said. “It’s kind of cliche to say, but it’s more of a family environment, everyone watches out for each other.”
Schulte isn’t alone in that desire. Phase one of the community review process included gathering and synthesizing community input—almost 600 responses from an online survey, and input from more than 100 people who attended listening sessions—and maintaining East Helena’s identity and character was a priority that people expressed.
Some other things people said were important are infrastructure improvements and having a community gathering space.
“Where we are now is taking that input into the projects that are already happening, and then also into new projects,” Helena city council member Wes Feist said.
One of those projects Feist said could be shaped by the public input gathered during the community review process is the city’s new library, which will be built adjacent to JFK Park.
“The new library will hopefully have a large community space that opens up to the general space, it will have doors that come in and out right here to JFK Park, that will lead right out to the Grove and to the creek, and will also have access to our pool, the pavilion and the amenities JFK Park has,” Feist said.
Gathering community input is just the first part of the community review process. In July, the community review team will be back in East Helena for the second phase of the process—connecting the community with professionals and the expertise that can make what they want to see become reality.
“It’s been incredible to be part of the shaping of what’s going to happen in the future,” Schulte said. “Instead of letting this little town go away, we’re seeing this little town have a bright, bright future.”
There are still opportunities for public involvement in the community review process, Anderson said more information will be released closer to July.
