Sweetgrass Development

What Sweetgrass Development does

Sweetgrass Development is a private non-profit corporation and federally certified Economic Development District (EDD) serving North Central Montana. Recognized by the U.S. Economic Development Administration in 2004, the organization operates as the official regional economic development body for a service area spanning Glacier, Toole, Liberty, Hill, and Blaine counties along with the Blackfeet Nation and the Little Shell Chippewa Tribe. Its functional role is to coordinate economic development strategy, deliver technical assistance, and administer federal grant programs for local governments, small businesses, property owners, and tribal communities.

The organization's core service lines include Brownfields site assessment and cleanup planning (anchored by three EPA Brownfields grants awarded in 2019, 2023, and 2024), business development assistance, community development services, a publicly available real estate directory, and a sector-specific meat processing industry resource. Sweetgrass also produces and refreshes the region's Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) on a multi-year cycle, with updates recorded in 2011, 2017, and 2022. In 2022, it joined the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) as a participating lender, extending its function from advisory support to capital access facilitation for small businesses in the region.

The business model is grant-funded and non-commercial: services are provided at no cost to end users, and operating revenue is sourced from federal and state grant programs (EPA, EDA, SSBCI) rather than from fees, subscriptions, or commercial contracts. Pricing is therefore not applicable in a traditional sense; go-to-market is relationship-driven, anchored in the EDD designation, the CEDS process, and partnerships with tribal, county, and state-level entities. Customer segments are highly distributed across the public, non-profit, and small-business categories, and there is no concentration around a single anchor client or revenue source.

Name

Sweetgrass Development

Legal name

Sweetgrass Development Corporation

Website

https://sweetgrassdevelopment.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sweetgrass Development is a federally certified non-profit Economic Development District serving five counties plus the Blackfeet Nation and Little Shell Chippewa Tribe in North Central Montana, delivering Brownfields assessment, business and community development assistance, and regional economic planning.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Economic Development Services

NAICS

Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

Brownfield Redevelopment Due Diligence & Grant Support (EUAHAEAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Brownfield Redevelopment & Land Reclamation (Cleanup for Reuse, Risk-Based Closure) (EUAIALAI), Brownfield Site Assessment & Remediation (BPALAKAA), Urban Renewal, Brownfield Redevelopment & Land Reuse (BPAIANAI)

Keywords

• Economic development services
• Brownfields assessment
• Small business support
• Community development
• Tribal economic development

Headquarters

HQ city

Great Falls

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Federal and State Funding Programs: As a federally certified Economic Development District (EDD), Sweetgrass Development participates in federal and state funding programs. The organization receives EDA recognition and grant funding.
2. EPA Brownfields Grants: Successfully obtained EPA grants for Brownfields assessment and cleanup programs, including $1 million in 2023, $300,000 in 2019, and $500,000 in 2024.
3. Grant Writing Services: Provides grant writing assistance and support to businesses and communities, potentially generating fees for service.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Sweetgrass Development is a federally certified non-profit Economic Development District that delivers brownfields environmental site assessments, small business development assistance (planning, financing, loan packaging, marketing), community development support for local governments and tribes, and a regional commercial real estate directory. Its programs are funded primarily through federal grants such as EPA Brownfields Assessment Coalition Grants and SSBCI, and most services are delivered at no charge to property owners and businesses in its North Central Montana service area.

Product overview

Sweetgrass Development is a private non-profit corporation and federally certified Economic Development District (EDD) that serves as a regional economic development organization rather than a product company. The organization offers a portfolio of economic development services including Brownfields environmental assessment, business development assistance, community development support, and a real estate directory. Services are provided to the five-county region of Cascade, Glacier, Pondera, Teton, and Toole in North Central Montana, as well as the Blackfeet Nation and Little Shell Tribe. The organization does not offer software products, APIs, or AI-powered technology solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brownfields Assessment Program Environmental site assessments for petroleum and hazardous substance contamination on properties across North Central Montana. Provided at no charge to property owners. Funded through successive EPA Brownfields Assessment Coalition Grants.
• Small Business Development Program Business planning, financing, loan packaging, and marketing assistance for small businesses and entrepreneurs in North Central Montana. Includes SSBCI program participation (since 2022) and partnership-based delivery with the Montana Department of Agriculture.
• Community Development Services
• Regional Real Estate Directory
• Meat Processing Industry Resources

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Montana Economic Developers Association (MEDA)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2022Partnered with MEDA on their new website. Ran registration at the 2022 MEDA Fall conference in Great Falls.
• Wendy Weissman, CPAminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Conducted QuickBooks workshops and training sessions for small businesses in the region.
• Montana State University Extension Local Government Center (MSU-LGC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Partnered with MSU-LGC to prepare the five-year Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) document. MSU-LGC facilitated seven community meetings throughout the region.
• Browning Community Development Corporation (BCDC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Partnered with BCDC to prepare the five-year CEDS document. Staff of BCDC provided notes from community meetings.
• Southeastern Montana Economic Development District (SEMEDD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Partnered with SEMEDD to prepare the five-year CEDS document. SEMEDD staff and Board of Sweetgrass Development developed the CEDS together.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• National Association of Development Organizations (NADO): National membership association representing regional development organizations including EDDs and planning districts. Provides research, advocacy, and capacity-building for organizations with Sweetgrass's operating model.
• Montana Economic Developers Association (MEDA): Statewide industry association for Montana economic development professionals. Documented Sweetgrass partner; provides training, advocacy, and convening for EDD practitioners across the state.

Regional players

• Headwaters Resource Conservation & Development: Montana-based RC&D organization providing community development, grant writing, and conservation services. Overlaps with Sweetgrass's community development and Brownfields-related site work, but focused on a different Montana region.

Direct peers

• Snowy Mountain Development Corporation: Montana RC&D providing economic and community development services to central Montana counties. Comparable federal-grant-driven rural development model and similar service portfolio including planning, grant writing, and technical assistance.
• Bear Paw Development Corporation: Another federally certified Economic Development District in Montana (Havre-based), serving north-central Montana counties. Both organizations share the EDD designation, federal funding access, and rural Montana service profile, making them the closest direct counterpart.
• Browning Community Development Corporation (BCDC): Native-led CDC on the Blackfeet Reservation, documented Sweetgrass CEDS partner. Provides directly comparable economic development services on tribal land with overlapping federal funding sources.
• Prospera Business Network: Montana-based economic development organization providing business development, lending facilitation, and community development services. Comparable service portfolio and target customer base of rural Montana small businesses and communities.
• Southeastern Montana Economic Development District (SEMEDD): Federal EDD serving southeastern Montana. Documented as a past co-development partner on Sweetgrass's CEDS document, indicating direct operational comparability and shared EDD program execution.
• Lake County Community Development Corporation: Rural Montana CDC providing economic development, business lending, and community planning services to Lake County. Comparable nonprofit rural development model with similar federal-grant-driven revenue structure.

Broad incumbents

• Montana Department of Commerce - Community Development Division: State-level agency administering the federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program and other economic development funding in Montana. Operates at a broader scale and provides overlapping services to the same rural communities Sweetgrass serves.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sweetgrassdev
• Facebookfacebook.com/sweetgrass-development-1349124558482903
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sweetgrass-development
• Instagraminstagram.com/sweetgrassdevelopmentmt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sweetgrass Development