Red ink on route of Lewis and Clark

GREAT FALLS – A series of events celebrating the Lewis and Clark expedition’s bicentennial ended with a $500,000 deficit, the Great Falls city manager said.

Marketed under the banner “Explore the Big Sky,” the events here and in Fort Benton were billed as a national “signature” component among bicentennial observances in various parts of the country. Great Falls and Fort Benton were significant in the 19th century journey of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, as their party traveled the Missouri River in search of a route to the Pacific Ocean.

Some expenses from “Explore the Big Sky,” which spanned 34 days this summer, have not been counted yet. So far the cost is about $1.5 million. Revenue, mostly grants, came to about $1 million. Potential income includes proceeds from the upcoming sale of props, signs, sound systems and other goods bought for the events.

City Manager John Lawton said he will recommend covering the deficit with reserve funds from Great Falls’ treasury. Reserves totaled $2.8 million as of June 30.

“This was a community event, not a city event, but the city supported it and agreed to underwrite the risk,” Lawton said.

“It was worth the money to be involved in a national event that was happening here,” said Wayne Thares, who manages Pepsi-Cola Bottling Co. of Great Falls and became a sponsor of the Lewis and Clark events. “We probably didn’t sell any more pop because of it, but it was good publicity.”

Mayor Randy Gray said an American Indian symposium alone was worth $500,000.

“The three-day symposium attracted scholars and tribes from across the United States for an event that had never been done before,” said Gray, emphasizing the symposium’s importance in a city with an Indian population greater than 10 percent.

“I saw bridges grow across gaps that have been too wide and too deep for too long,” he said. “How do you measure the value of that?”

Major attractions besides the symposium included a ballet, an opera and a performance by singer Rita Coolidge.

The city clerk said attendance during the 34 days came to 40,527.

Ed Bumgarner of Fort Benton said that community “put on the dog for the events, and those who attended were shown a good time.”

Cities with Lewis and Clark events scheduled for 2006 include Billings, where “Clark on the Yellowstone” activities during the past week were a forerunner to the major package of events next July.