Park & Recreation Administration

Park & Recreation Director, Marty Basta

During his 28 year career with the City of Great Falls Marty has supervised Street Maintenance, Solid Waste Services, and Landfill Operations and served as Operations Manager for the Public Works Department. He was appointed Interim Park and Recreation Director in October of 2007 were he served until January of 2008 when he was promoted to the position.

Education includes courses from Cornell and Montana State University, ICMA, Devry Institute of Technology along with numerous continuing education courses in business management.

The Rocky Mountain Chapter of the American Public Works Association, which includes Montana, Wyoming and Idaho, has twice selected Marty as Public Works “Man of the Year”. First in 1992 and then selected again in 2001. Marty served as Rocky Mountain Chapter President in 2000. Marty served two terms on the APWA International Affairs Committee. Marty also has traveled three times to Naryn Kyrgyzstan  as part of a US State Department International Affairs project.

Park & Recreation Deputy Director, Patty Rearden

Patty Rearden has been with the City of Great Falls since February of 1981 and with Park and Recreation since January of 2003. Prior to this position, she was the General Manager of Montana ExpoPark/Montana State Fair. Patty has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Great Falls. She is a member of NRPA, MRPA, RMAF and IAFE. She is a Certified Fair Executive through the International Association of Fairs, served as President of the Rocky Mountain Association of Fairs in 2001, and was named RMAF Fair Manager of the Year in 2002. Patty currently serves on the Bluegrass on the Bay Committee, as Chair of the RiverFest Committee, Convention and Events Task Force, Destination Great Falls, Co-Chair of Great Falls Baseball Foundation Campaign Cabinet, Four Seasons Sports Foundation and Explore! the Big Sky Resource Committee. Areas of responsibility include the two municipal golf courses, swimming pools, the Community Recreation Center and the Mansfield Convention Center and Theater located at the Civic Center.

Park Maintenance Supervisor, Giles Salyer

Giles Salyer, Park Maintenance Supervisor since 1997, member of NRPA, MRPA, and Sports Turf Managers Association. He is responsible for maintaining all public parks with in the jurisdiction of the City of Great Falls. During the Peak season, the Park Maintenance Division operates seven days a week. Daily duties include maintenance of park turf, 1,053 acres of developed parkland and 182 acres of undeveloped parkland (mowing, irrigation, weed control), playgrounds, ball fields, restrooms, shelters, boat docks, tennis & basketball courts, horseshoe pits, pathways (including Rivers Edge Trail). In addition Park Maintenance is responsible for facility maintenance at the Community Recreation Center, Swimming Pools and the two Municipal Golf Course Club Houses and all buildings and grounds that are within the park system. During the winter months crews maintain Gibson park skating, sledding hill, and snow removal on park sidewalks.

Personnel include:
Johnny Smith, Park Maintenance Foreman
13 full time permanent employees and 22 temporary seasonal employees

City Forester, Jon Thompson

Jon Thompson, City Forester since 1989. The Forestry Division is responsible for providing professional horticultural services in the design, planting, maintenance and removal of trees, shrubs, flowers and other vegetation in all public parks, the two golf courses and within public street right of ways.

The Forestry Division's responsibility for trees is primarily in the Boulevard Assessment District, an area created in 1946, comprising approximately 13% of the total City area (primarily the original townsite). Since 1987, when Dutch Elm Disease was found in Great Falls, the major focus and effort in the Forestry Division has been the control of the disease, which has destroyed 65% of the City's Elm trees. However, through an aggressive "ReLeaf Great Falls" program, over 5,700 trees have been planted to replace these losses. Fortunately diseased Elm tree losses in 1995 were the lowest since the program started. Reducing these annual losses continues to be a primary goal so that resources can be directed to maintaining and trimming the over 22,000 public trees in the City, planting additional trees, removal of stumps, and other needed services.

Personnel include:
Forestry Foreman, Todd Seymanski;
6 permanent full time employees and 7 temporary seasonal employees.