GREAT FALLS — The Great Falls Development Alliance’s annual meeting gave business owners, city officials, investors and community partners a chance to look back on the past year and talk about where the region is headed next. This year, that conversation ended with one of the biggest economic development announcements Great Falls has seen in years.
Janicki Industries, a privately owned engineering and manufacturing company, has officially chosen Great Falls as the site of its next manufacturing campus.
Madison Collier reports - watch the video here:
The company announced plans for an $800 million investment that will add 2 million square feet of production space over the next decade. Janicki expects to create 1,000 jobs within the first five years, with total employment exceeding 2,000 jobs once the campus is complete.
MTN previously reported that Janicki was considering Great Falls along with communities in Idaho for the project. Earlier this spring, Great Falls city commissioners also approved a tax abatement for the company as part of the effort to bring the project to Montana.
According to Janicki, the decision follows a multi-month site evaluation process driven by growth in aerospace, defense and space programs that has increased demand beyond the capacity of the company’s current facilities.
The company is purchasing 180 acres of shovel-ready land within the AgriTech Park on the northeast side of Great Falls.
The proposed location is near the intersection of River Drive North and 57th Street North.
Construction is expected to begin in July 2026, with the first phase of the campus anticipated to open by the end of 2027.
According to a news release from Janicki, the company currently operates more than 1 million square feet of facilities across Washington and Utah and employs more than 2,000 people.
“We believe in creating an environment where hard work, innovation and collaboration are rewarded, not only professionally, but through opportunities to build a life, own a home, raise a family or pursue entrepreneurial goals,” John Janicki, president of Janicki, said in the news release. “Great Falls embodies the kind of community where we feel those opportunities can flourish.”
For GFDA, the announcement was also a reflection of years of work to grow and diversify the local economy.
Jolene Schalper, executive vice president for GFDA, said the organization’s purpose is to create more opportunities for families in the Great Falls region by supporting business growth and development.
“We just try to make this a great community focusing on business sector,” Schalper said.
During the annual meeting, GFDA shared updates on entrepreneurship, business growth, government contracting and regional development. Schalper said local businesses secured $98 million in government contracts over the past year, something GFDA hopes to continue growing, especially with opportunities tied to the Sentinel program and other major projects.
But the Janicki announcement was the highlight of the morning.
“Today is phenomenal for Great Falls and, frankly, the state of Montana,” Schalper said.
Schalper said GFDA has been working with Janicki for months, alongside state and local leaders, as the company searched for the right community for its next phase of growth.
“They were looking for a community that could partner with them for their next step in growth, and they really wanted a place that held similar values to their own,” Schalper said.
She said Janicki’s decision brings more than one new facility to Great Falls. It also brings a new industry to Montana and creates opportunities in aerospace, engineering and advanced manufacturing that have been limited in the state.
“There’s aerospace engineers that have no jobs in Montana. Well, now they do,” Schalper said. “They can move back to Montana. Kids that graduated from MSU with their degrees that couldn’t find jobs here, now they can come back home.”
Spencer Woith, with Woith Engineering, said his team has been working with Janicki for about nine months, helping with planning, pricing and other parts of the process.
He said the company’s decision is expected to have an impact beyond the facility itself.
“With them coming in, it’s going to expand the economic footprint of Great Falls dramatically,” Woith said. “They’re a company, the majority of their work is out of Montana, so we’re bringing new dollars into our economy with them.”
Woith said the project could also create opportunities for construction companies, supporting businesses and housing development as new workers come to the area.
“There will be other companies that will come to support what their growth is, so it’s going to be bigger than just Janicki alone,” Woith said.
GFDA leaders say the next step is helping Janicki move from announcement to construction, workforce recruitment and community integration.
“This is the next step for Great Falls,” Schalper said. “This is a generational change offering opportunities for our kids and grandkids with a great family-owned company.”
Montana Governor Greg Gianforte said in a news release: “We are thrilled to welcome Janicki Industries to Montana and celebrate the company’s $800 million investment in Great Falls. Through its creation of over 1,000 good-paying jobs, Janicki will inspire innovation, strengthen our economy, and support our growing communities for years to come.”
