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- Bozeman Build Report #6
Bozeman Build Report #6
120,000 tons, blueberries, costly commodities, Rural Renovators, and Hank Williams Jr.
Daniel Zavadil
April 01, 2024
Howdy builders and movers of Montana! Happy April and mud season continued (extra muddy this week). Today were talking 120,000 ton contracts, blueberries for sale in Bozeman, costly commodities , Rural Renovators aka RR Buildings, and Hank Williams Jr. Enjoy the next 5 minutes of blue collar builder updates focused on Montana and thanks for reading!
Arrowhead Condos located at Big Sky Mountain Village built in the mid 80’s
Happy Easter and April Fools Day,
Daniel - Not your professor, financial advisor, or builder
*PLEASE READ* When, what, and who is the Bozeman Build? The BB is a once a week free newsletter sent out every Monday morning focused on Mountain West trades with an emphasis on Montana. The author is Daniel who has a passion for the local building scene who works as a part time contractor and owns a small construction information business called Block Biome.
Table of Contents
Montana Trade Pulse
120,000 tons to Yellowstone
In response to the Yellowstone flood events in May of 2022, the NPS needed to rebuild miles of road which requires tons of gravel. Fischer Sand and Gravel in Livingston was awarded a supply and delivery contract to deliver 120,000 tons of gravel to various sites across the park which is the equivalent of 4,000 trips (assuming 30 tons delivered per trip). Fischer had only two years to pull this off and they did so with only one clipped mirror.
Gallatin County special use permits
Last week, I stopped at the Gallatin County Dept of Planning & Development Office to see if they had any interesting numbers to share. They shared a report of Special Use Permits issued within Gallatin County since 2023.
2003-2014 12 years of Gallatin County SUPs
2003-2014 12 years of Gallatin County SUPs
Crazy to see the drop off in 2023 SUPs issued nearly cut in half from previous year 2022 although it makes since given the higher rate interest environment and the net migration slowing down since 2020/2021. This year 2024, we may be on track to reach 400+ again.
*Please note that this is NOT my spreadsheet or a representation of total new build starts/developments this is ONLY SUPs within Gallatin County. Sheets provided by the Gallatin County Dept of Planning.
Montana State to break ground on four new nursing education buildings across Montana
Montana State University’s Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing is getting new buildings on each of its five campuses, which are in Billings, Bozeman, Great Falls, Kalispell and Missoula, to further its mission of educating nurses to meet the state’s health care needs.
Construction of the buildings will be covered by a portion of the historic $101 million philanthropic investment made to MSU in 2021 by Mark and Robyn Jones.
Currently, the nursing college operates out of leased buildings in Billings, Great Falls, Kalispell and Missoula.
Bozeman’s groundbreaking ceremony will take place 3-4:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 9 — Montana State University, southeast corner of West Grant Street and South 11th Avenue.
Craigslist/Marketplace post of the week - Blueberries
Not the longest grow season here but hey I’m all for some local fresh berries.
USA Trade View
Top stories from the Construction Dive this week
Key Bridge ‘couldn’t have been expected to withstand impact’
Condolences to all the road workers and their families.
Commodities and Inputs
Building materials need to cool
The highest performing industry in the “Basic Materials” sector YTD is building materials. Good if you’re a manufacture, bad for everyone else!
See Building Materials +24.46% Year to Date
Pricey gas, gold, and Ghirardelli (as of Thursday 03/28)
WTI crude futures rose above $82 per barrel on Thursday, marking a third consecutive monthly increase fueled by optimism around continued production cuts by the OPEC+ alliance.
Gold advanced past $2,200 an ounce on Thursday, hovering at all-time highs and looking to record its biggest monthly gain of around 8.5%
Cocoa futures soared to a fresh record level of $9,900 a ton, extending the March gains to about 54% and the year-to-date surge to more than 130%, as poor harvest in top producing countries Ivory Coast and Ghana led to supply shortages.
25 Year Chart of Cocoa. When will it settle back to reality?
Trade Media
Build influencer of the week - RR Buildings
Rural Renovations (RR Builds) based out of Franklin Grove, IL started by Kyle Stumpenhorst is hands down the king of post frame construction and is one of the biggest builder influencers in the States. If you are ever considering building a barndominium, pole barn, shouse (shop house), or anything 8’ on center (8’ o.c.), watch some of RR buildings content on Youtube with nearly 1.67 subscribers. Super salt of the earth humble guy, always learn something new from his building documentations.
Photo sourced from the National Frame Builder Association
Taco Bell preserving its OG HQ
Don’t pretend like you don’t like T-bell. The original Taco Bell building is parked in the back of its head quarters in Irvine, CA. I fact checked this Instagram post and found the OG taco hell posted up in the South East lot! Always cool to see larger companies preserving their pioneering steps.
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Montana Building Pioneers
Sixteen Mile Rail Line History
J. Neils Lumber company photo. Stanley "Stu" Reedy, in J Neils #6 Libby Montana. The gentleman in the cab of #6 are Victor Albertini, Stu Reedy and Phil Myron. Standing on the ground are Walter Neils, Bernhard Schlumm, and George Neils.
Eagle Nest Bridge and Tunnel
Starting in 1895 the Montana Railroad, nicknamed the "Jawbone". Built a line along 16 Mile Creek from Lombard, Mt. on the NP's main line along the Missouri River, up 16 Mile Creek to the head of the canyon at Ringling.
Milwaukee Road entered a trackage rights agreement with the Montana Railroad in December, 1907 for 99 years although just over two years later in January, 1910 the latter company sold the route directly to the CMStP&P. Between 1906 and 1910 construction crews (which was handled by contractors Dittmar, Breadbury & Weitbrec and McIntosh Bros.)
In 1910 the Milwaukee bought the Montana RR and used its mainline from Harlowton to Lombard as a quick way to get through the mountains while they built a new grade higher above the creek through the canyon. Electrification of the high level route commenced in 1915. This line was operated through June 74.
It is known for prime fishing and lots of rattlesnakes. The land is now owned by Ted Turner and is posted private property. Guided tours with Turner ranch hands can be arranged.
Work songs and quotes
Montana Song - Hank Williams, Jr.
“Everybody was wearing rhinestones, all those sparkly clothes, and cowboy boots. I decided to wear a black shirt and pants and see if I could get by with it. I did and I've worn black clothes ever since. ”
Common its easier than sh*t
I’d love to hear what cool projects you’re working on, feel free to send photos, respond to this email with feedback, or subscribe!
Thanks for reading,
Daniel - Not your professor, financial advisor, or builder
Oversized load parked on the side of Hwy 287 between Townsend and Helena weekend of 3/23/2024. Wondering if the DOT shut him down and what the heck this prefab unit is.