Developer restoring historic downtown Strain building

A local man with considerable construction and rehab experience has purchased the Strain Building and is seeking to renovate the big, multifaceted building that’s in the heart of downtown Great Falls.

Jason Madill is hoping to renovate the combined six-story office tower and three-story former retail building that share the same address of 410 Central Ave. – and the steel-slatted facade on its lower levels that was installed in the early 1970s and cover a wall of windows. Madill and fans of historic architecture would like to see that facade removed.

“I always like investing in local brick and mortar projects,” said Madill, who plans to start some type of construction work on the project this summer. It could be either internal improvements or exterior renovation, depending on what leasing clients want and what grant money is available, he said.

Madill, 47, grew up in Billings, and graduated with a construction engineering degree from Montana State University.

He moved to Great Falls, where he worked 10 years for Sletten Construction. During part of that span, he moved to Las Vegas, and worked on several big projects there and in Phoenix for the regional construction giant that is based in Great Falls.

But Madill and his wife, Tammy, kept their Great Falls connections, traveling back frequently on weekends. He began buying, restoring and managing rental apartments and now has about 100 apartment units.

The couple moved back to Great Falls in 2000. Madill served as a consulting engineer for Sletten when it built the Benefis Heart Tower and for TD&H Engineering in its role with a major Rainbow Dam expansion project.

It’s private, individual projects that are drawing his interests now.

“Some people like to put a model ship in a bottle, but redevelopment work has always been my ‘ship in a bottle,’ my hobby and passion,” he said.

Madill spotted his first commercial renovation project downtown in 2014. He admitted he initially was only seeking a larger office space for his personal enterprises, having outgrown his home office space as his family expanded, but realized he might have something more.

The Pennant Building at 104 4th St. N. in 2014 had been empty for nearly a decade and was undergoing a bankruptcy foreclosure.

Still, Madill gave it a peek.

“As an engineer, I maybe was able to evaluate the building more carefully and better see its potential than others who had toured it,” he said.

Madill said he lifted a tile from the dropped ceiling and could see original crown molding made out of horse hair and plater, painted murals on the high ceilings as well as iron filigree ornamentation and other historic features in the structure, constructed in 1912 by the International Order of Odd Fellows.

He purchased the building and performed much of the renovation work himself.

“I exposed the building’s original historic traits and combined them with a stylish update, such as using a more current color scheme,” Madill said.

He completed the 12,000-square-foot project in 2016 and has tenants on each floor who appreciate the proximity to downtown and the Cascade County Courthouse, including Mountain Title Co. on the first floor and the Sutton DuBois & Mills law firm on the second floor. Madill shares his expansive personal office on the third floor, which was once a ballroom, with U.S. Sen. Steve Daines’ Great Falls office.

He purchased the Strain Building in March from a Salt Lake City real estate agents. The last heir of Strain brothers donated the property to Brigham Young University in her 2003 will, and the school later sold it to real estate agents. It’s difficult to manage and improve commercial property from a few states away, he said.

Madill said he was attracted to the building for its central location, at 410 Central, “because I love downtown” and considers the building’s built-in parking ramp, with 225 spaces, a real advantage for potential building occupants.

He’s not a fan of the building’s steel-slatted facade that was installed in 1972 over the exterior of the building’s first three floors, and would like to remove as much of it as he can, perhaps in phases, and restore as much of the original appearance as possible.

Madill said he has seen historic pictures that show the buildings historic clay, terracotta design features and wall of windows.

He said he is evaluating what can be done with the steel-slatted facade, and what grants and other resources are available in such restoration work.

Besides making the building look more historic, a renovated and attractive exterior can make it easier to help attract tenants, Madill said.

That’s somewhat ironic, according to veteran downtown businessman and amateur historian Ike Kaufman, who has been working at his family-owned Kaufman Menswear Center since 1957.

Kaufman recalled when Strain Brothers installed the steel-slatted facade, technically called Z-bar, in the early 1970s, at about the time other property owners were covering up existing building facades.

“Apparently they thought their buildings were starting to look old and wanted to give them a more modern look,” he said, scoffing.

A traditionalist who enjoys the authentic historical look, Kaufman said he is pleased that Madill is considering restoring the buildings original look “in the best way that he’s able.”

“That will be cool,” he said.

Madill plans to give customers interested in leasing space in the Strain Building a tour of his earlier Pennant Building project to demonstrate how he can combine restored historic touches with comfortable modern features.

The first floor of the Strain Building was leased and remodeled with a roomy, bright exterior by the call center FCR before Madill purchased the property.

There is about 40,000 square feet of space available on the combined second floor and mezzanine level that could be used by a call center, large office or fitness center, or parceled into smaller spaces, Madill said.

The fourth floor is fully occupied by the Joseph Eve accounting firm, he said, with some space available on the third, fifth and sixth floors.

Business people interested in seeing the available space that Madill has can call him at 781-3553 or 453-7368 or visit his website at 453rent.com.

Madill said he’s learned the value of fresh paint and carpeting in making his apartment units more attractive to renters, and will improve space at the Strain Building to meet customer requests.

He plans to change the name of the building to 410 Central and hopes it catches on with Great Falls residents.

“The building is commonly called the Sears building by folks who were around here before that store moved to the mall in the early 1990s. And some longtime residents still call it the Strain or Strain Brothers Building,” Madill said. “But I’m trying to create some excitement with this building renovation so will call it the 410 Central building, which has the added value of providing its location.”