1316 Bozeman — The Command Center

Here's the program

The City pays up to half. The program is live.

“The City of Helena's Railroad District TIF program matches up to 50% of exterior restoration — windows, wells, doors, masonry, gutters, the ramp. The City is already working with Stephen.”

The formThe City's own 15-page Railroad URD TIF application — filled section by section, in this folder.

Who votesThe Helena Urban Renewal TIF advisory board — meets the second Tuesday, 1:30 pm.

The ruleNothing matchable gets paid before City approval — that's how the match stays safe.

Backup lanesHelena BID façade program (~mid-Nov cycle) · Big Sky Trust Fund (up to $5,000 per new job) · MT Historic Preservation Grant (next cycle March 2028) · historic tax credits on the owner's side.

Here's where we are

A working building for 140 years. Now it goes back to work.

LATE 1800s

Built to work

Stone warehouse of the railroad district — the Nash-Finch food & beverage distribution years, managed by Christie Transfer & Storage.

OCTOBER 1935

The earthquakes

The State Liquor Warehouse next door shattered. This stone building kept standing.

1949 — JULY 1, 2026

Capital Transfer & Storage

Three generations of the Horne family. Seventy-six years. Thank-you cards on the office walls. “Well, the closing part is the hard part — I spent years and years, it's all I've ever done.” — John Horne

2026

Joshua Tree Cabinetry

Stephen Banker — Helena cabinetmaker since 1992, in Diane's own words the building's new lessee and future owner — begins the restoration and keeps craft work in the district.

NOW

The application gets real

Diane's newest numbers landed August 17 — the cost worksheet went from three priced lines to seventeen. Below is exactly where every dollar stands.

$63,326

Bids on the table*

17 / 20

Scope lines priced

$250,000

Stephen's line of credit

End of 2027

Completion target

*Computed from Diane's own bid-total column; counting every priced sub-line it reaches $68,631. She stated no grand total — these are sums of her numbers, labeled as computed.

Here's where all the money is

The lanes, and every line of the budget

Source	What it funds	Status
Stephen's private commitment	The match backbone — up to $250,000 home-equity line of credit, plus his own funds and labor already in	Committed — Diane's narrative, Aug 17
City Railroad URD TIF	Up to half the exterior restoration	Primary · live · City already engaged
Helena BID façade program	Second façade source (Montana Main Street)	~Mid-November cycle
Big Sky Trust Fund	Up to $5,000 per net new job	Via Big Sky EDA
MT Historic Preservation Grant	Up to $350k historic rehab, 1:1 match	Next cycle March 2028
Historic tax credits	~20% federal + MT 25% of federal	Owner (John Horne) side

The cost board — Diane's sheet, line by line

Item	Vendor	#	Quote	Where	Bid total
Single-hung windows — Milgard 44″×61″	Custom Glass & Windows	6	$4,938	Office
Single-hung window — Milgard 26″×45¼″	Custom Glass & Windows	1	$622	Office	$5,560
Labor and materials	JTC	7	$1,400	Office
Casement windows 31½″×48″ (left)	Custom Glass & Windows	3	—	Front shipping windows
Casement windows 31½″×48″ (right)	Custom Glass & Windows	3	$4,746	Front shipping windows	$4,746
Labor and materials	Custom Glass & Windows	3	$1,200	Front shipping windows
Casement craftsman windows 24″×30″	Every Window	3	$2,704.59	Basement, front
Masonry — repointing front and back	Karson Klass		$6,300	Front and back	$6,300
Overhead doors Approved — deposit $11,532 due Sept 8	Overhead Door Co. of Helena	5	$19,220	Front of building	$19,220
Bifold barn / double-hinged doors	JTC	3	$5,400	Back of building	$5,400
Remove concrete from doors, restore doors	JTC	2	$6,000	Back of building	$6,000
Window wells	JTC	2	$1,000	Front of building	$1,000
Remove concrete from covered windows	JTC	8	$1,600	Front (3) and back (5)	$1,600
Restore window encasements — frame and glass	JTC	8	$6,000	Front (3) and back (5)	$6,000
Handicapped entrance, panic bar		1	$5,000	Office entrance	$5,000
ADA extended ramp, landing zone		1	TBD	Office entrance
Man doors		2	No bid yet	Office and loading dock
Gutters, aluminum		Entire building	No bid yet	Front and back
Mural restoration — with John Horne's blessing	JTC	1	$2,500	Front building	$2,500
Disposal of materials removed			No bid yet

Kept exactly as Diane grouped it — the bid-total column is her own roll-up. New in her narrative and not yet priced: removing two instances of graffiti. Also hers: the sidewalk water spigot and air for cyclists' tires — two public gifts for the district — and a historical display inside, “for anyone to enjoy.”

Here's what we're waiting on

The honest blanks — every one of them

Four numbers

Bids still out

ADA ramp (TBD) · two man doors · gutters around the building · disposal of removed materials. Plus graffiti removal, named but unpriced.

One signature

John Horne

His signed permission plus the lease. The letter is already written and waiting for him.

Two answers

From Stephen

Headcount now and planned · whether the basement is storage or working shop (it drives egress).

One confirmation

From the City

Confirm the eligibility call happened, and the current HURTIF submission deadline (board meets second Tuesday, 1:30 pm).

Here's the things to do next

The list, in order

01Overhead-door deposit — $11,532 due September 8 (the one hard date on the board; approved estimate #710)Stephen

02Collect the last four bids — ADA ramp, man doors, gutters, disposal — and drop them into the cost boardStephen · Diane

03Get John Horne's signature on the permission letter, plus the leaseDiane

04Answer headcount + basement use for the jobs sectionStephen

05Finish section 2.k from the statute map — her flag, our map, ready to mergeUs

06Refresh the two window quotes (both were provisional and dated) — pay nothing matchable before City approvalStephen

07Confirm the HURTIF deadline and get on the board's agendaDiane · Us

The board — every card, straight from project management

All thirteen cards, with the truth

DoneSCOUR Desktop + MacBook + Plane + repo for the full record — the compilation and this folder are the resultCard 13

DoneBUILD one comprehensive HTML package — this folder: application, story, presentation, money map, worksite, command centerCard 11

DoneRE-RESEARCH every grant + the show-off/assistive angle — the money map and grant stack carry itCard 12

MostlyRemaining trade bids — wells, openings, masonry, barn doors, overhead doors ALL PRICED Aug 17; man doors, gutters, ADA, disposal still outCard 8

RecordedMT Historic Preservation Grant calendared — next cycle March 2028Card 4

His callWHICH FILE IS THE COMMAND CENTER — this page is the proposal; Carter names itCard 1

OpenJohn Horne signed permission + leaseCard 9

OpenBasement use declared in writing (drives egress)Card 7

OpenCONFIRM the City eligibility call already happenedCard 10

OpenAPPLY Helena BID façade program (~Nov cycle)Card 6

OpenBig Sky Trust Fund job-creation grant via Big Sky EDACard 5

OpenJohn Horne historic tax credits conversation (federal ~20% + MT 25%)Card 3

OpenShowcase: story site live · John Horne oral history · film PARKED on Carter's wordCard 2

Here's the pictures