Developers: Marriott, restaurants, retail space in works for Great Falls

After years of work, a partnership of Great Falls business developers on Friday announced extensive plans for the West Bank Landing, 12.5 acres of land just west of West Bank Park, including a four-story, upscale hotel.

Contractor, developer and hotel owner Brad Talcott and his wife and business partner Linda Caricaburu unveiled a master plan they and partners Spencer Woith and Joe Aline hope to complete over the next few years that will include constructing six new buildings for a mix of retail, restaurant, office and residential uses.

“As longtime local residents, we are excited by the potential of West Bank Landing,” they said in a joint statement. “Our goal is to clean up a longtime industrial eyesore, bring in new and expanding businesses, create jobs and offer a fun setting for local residents to live, work and play.”

The property extends north from the Cowboy’s Bar and Talcott and Caricaburu’s West Bank One development that includes StayBridge Suites, the Front Brewing Company, Faster Basset and Kobe Seafood and Steak north to Stockman Bank, excluding the former J Bar T property. It is flanked on the east by West Bank Park and the Missouri River and on the west by 3rd Street Northwest and Montana ExpoPark.

They plan to start construction by late spring on development’s centerpiece, a 132-unit Marriott SpringHills Suites hotel. It’s an upscale hotel with all-suite rooms 25 percent larger than industry average. Set to open by spring of 2017, the hotel will have a large courtyard, meeting rooms, a swimming pool and spa, but no restaurant.

By this summer, the developers plan to begin phase 2, which includes renovating the 10,000-square-foot, curved, 1940-vintage “Barrel Building” for restaurant and retail use, building a mixed-use 34,000-square-foot building on the south side of the project and tearing down two former county buildings along 3rd Street N.W., and replacing them with another building that will have retail and restaurant use on the first floor and office space on upper floors.

Talcott said there could be two or three restaurants and specialty retail shops in the first two phases of the project, expected to be completed by next spring. Their mixed-use plans eventually could include as many as 75 to 100 residential condominium units plus office space.

A master plan drawing shows seven buildings connected with an internal road, with extensive parking and landscaping. Creative landscaping is planned by Mike Hollern, who did the landscaping at the Talcotts’ West One project.

The developers are committed to designing and building “the most environmentally responsible project in Great Falls history” by building to LEED, or leadership in energy and environmental design, standards.

West Bank Landing will be bike- and pedestrian-friendly, with easy access to the River’s Edge Trail and West Bank Park. The Missouri River is 100 to 200 yards from the property, separated by a railroad spur and West Bank Park.

Talcott said the property is “very scenic but also has been environmentally challenging.”

Cascade County once used the land for public works and health department functions, but before that an oil refinery was located on the site, leaving a large swath of petroleum and other environmental contaminants. Cascade County oversaw partial cleanup of the site during its ownership, but remediation is still required on a good portion of the property the partners bought from the county last year for $2 million, Talcott said.

An environmental review is underway that will determine the extent of the cleanup work that remains, he said, adding the cost of the cleanup will be part of the project’s development costs.

Montana Specialty Mills is winding down operations on part of the property, with plans to relocate to the Great Falls Agri-Tech Park. Further cleanup will be done in May on part of the Montana Specialty Mills site, before hotel construction can start.

It was common in the 1800 and 1900s to build railways along low-lying rivers, attracting industrial use in many cities, Talcott said, but with community help he and his partners are seeking to join many other cities by cleaning up such aging industrial eye sores and converting them to a better mix of clean businesses, office and residences that takes advantage of the scenic river and park.

Talcott and Caricaburu said they began thinking of developing what would become the West Bank Landing property after they completed StayBridge in 2009, and were urged by others to continue improving the West Bank. Talcott said as many as 10 to 15 folks have expressed interest in developing businesses or townhouses in the new project.

The four developers are all Great Falls natives who want to do the project right and hired L’Heureux Page Werner architects to develop a master plan so the project can be completed in orderly phases, not piecemeal, Talcott said. His company will do the construction work, Aline has extensive experience with environmental cleanup and Woith is a civil engineer who has built townhouses.

“The West Bank Landing project is a very exciting development for Great Falls,” Great Falls Development Authority President Brett Doney said. “Celebrating our riverfront and making the river a vibrant center of our community will help us to attract new residents and business investment.”

“The proposed high-quality, mixed-use development will insure that this special location becomes a showcase for Great Falls,” he added. “We’re lucky and thankful that a great local development team has formed to create a unique vision for the site, and the commitment to make it happen.”

“The project has been made possible by years of effort by City of Great Falls, Cascade County, GFDA and many other partners,” Doney added. Talcott agreed and thanked the many agencies and individuals who stepped forward to help with cleanup, financing and other aspects after the partners bought the property.

As a way of thanks, the partners have committed themselves to setting a certain, as yet undetermined, percentage of revenue derived from West Bank Landing to help community initiatives, such as River’s Edge Trail, West Bank Park and public education, Caricaburu said.

The West Bank Landing partners have hired Jeremiah Johnson, former GFDA vice president for business development, to oversee marketing and recruitment. Johnson has a strong background in business development and recruitment.

Johnson, who has been with GFDA for six years, said it is difficult to leave the close-knit GFDA team, but he is excited to join West Bank Landing, “which has a vision and a smart plan” for a “vibrant, energetic and special development.’

Doney said Johnson “has done an extraordinary job for GFDA and his efforts have made a big impact on Great Falls.”

“While it’s bittersweet to lose Jeremiah from the GFDA leadership team, he will continue to help Great Falls by making exciting things happen on the riverfront,” Doney added.