Crews working on the First Interstate Bank building on Main Street in the Billings Heights have finished demolishing the structure. A fire in the building's lower level in March caused extensive smoke damage throughout the bank. Workers spent much of the spring and summer in the building, cleaning the smoke damage and evaluating the extent of fire damage. After assessing what restoration and remediation would be required, bank officials decided it made more sense to build new. "Regional leadership and executive management determined this was the perfect time to re-invest in the Billings Heights with a new branch," said Brian Brown, First Interstate Bank Billings market president. Officials are looking at having the new building up and operating by late 2018. Larry Mayer