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Commission approves 20‑year lease to Montana Veterans Memorial group for memorial site
Summary
The Commission approved a 20‑year nominal ($1) lease with two 10‑year options for the Montana Veterans Memorial at 1025 25th Street North, assigning operations and maintenance responsibility to the memorial committee and requiring liability insurance; proponents detailed recent site improvements and a May 25 Memorial Day ceremony.
The Great Falls City Commission on May 5 approved a 20‑year lease (with two optional 10‑year renewals) of city property at 1025 25th Street North to the Montana Veterans Memorial Committee for continued operation and maintenance of the Veterans Memorial.
Park and Recreation Director Toby Hazelbaker described the lease terms: a nominal $1 lease fee, committee responsibility for operations, maintenance and upkeep, required liability insurance, and prior approval from Parks and Recreation for substantial work (trees, irrigation). The lease formalizes memorial boundary lines and clarifies parking responsibilities previously shared with adjacent baseball and golf course uses.
Star Darko, president of the Montana Veterans Memorial Association, thanked the Commission and described recent upgrades including the installation of nearly 100 granite tiles, five new benches and a new north patio area, and invited the public to a Memorial Day ceremony on May 25 at 1:00 p.m. Gina Winters, the association’s vice president, said the memorial represents more than 8,500 living and deceased veterans and emphasized its continuing role as a place of remembrance. Commissioner Rick Tryon, speaking in support, noted personal family ties to the memorial. The motion to approve the lease carried 4‑0.
